LEFT: "Brahms Loves Rock" (7/5/1981)
RIGHT: "More More" (1/21/1982)
LEFT: "Call Girl" (9/5/1982), the theme song to Mie's infamous movie of the same name
RIGHT: "From Window Side" (6/5/1983)
LEFT: "Shampoo" (11/5/1983)
RIGHT: "Never" (6/1/1984), a Japanese version of a song from the soundtrack to 'Fame'
LEFT: "Diamond in the Ashes" (10/21/1984)
RIGHT: "Woman In Mirror" (3/21/1985)
LEFT: "Dreamer" (1/22/1986)
RIGHT: "Noon Face Love Story" (3/25/1988)
LEFT: "Now, The Choice" (4/25/1988), Mie's last release on vinyl
RIGHT: "Otona-Doshi" (4/25/1990), Mie's first release on CD
LEFT: "Jinx" (10/1/1990)
RIGHT: "Heisei Refined Woman" (4/25/1991)
LEFT: "Dance" (3/21/1994)
RIGHT: "Love Jail" (11/25/1995)
"Me Ing": front and back. While it's hard to describe the former, the latter showed Mie-chan's wild side
Mie kept plenty busy after the 1981 break-up of Pink Lady by launching a successful career as a solo recording artist with some sixteen singles between 1981 and 1995. So, here's her solo discography, complete with release dates for your viewing pleasure! Thanks to Viva Pink Lady for the pictures and the titles! Enjoy!
THE ALBUMS
When I learned that all of Mie-chan's solo albums would be released on CD in mid 2007, I wasted no time ordering them. Even though I had the original vinyl, it was still great to have the updated digital versions which includes some highly entertaining extras. As for the albums, here they are, in chronological order of release:
RELEASE DATE: 8/21/1981
RELEASE DATE: 2/21/1982
RELEASE DATE: 10/5/1982
RELEASE DATE: 8/25/1985
RELEASE DATE: 4/25/1992
Mie's post-Pink Lady solo work was by leaps and bounds more dynamic than Kei-chan's as she turned out a goodly amount of uptempo, power pop, soft rock, stirring ballads and sultry songs, including my favorite Mie song, "Call Girl". Mie's live album was most interesting to listen to as she covered some Motown hits, then did a lengthy medley of Pink Lady tunes, covering just about everything from "Pepper Keibu" to "Remember" (from the "Fame" soundtrack), however, it was, well, unusual to hear Mie cover the PL standards with singers other than her longtime partner. Mie's greater vocal range made her songs all the more powerful, and enjoyable to me. In the reissued CD versions of her albums, additional songs were added, such as B-sides from her solo singles, most notably, the special edition of the "Never" album which featured eight additonal tracks, plus a DVD of "Never", a 30 minute, seven track music video that came out the same time as the original album. And here's something really cool about the "Never" DVD, it's region free, meaning you can pop it into your player and watch Mie-chan, circa 1985. In closing, all of Mie's albums are worth buying and treasuring.
In October 2007, Mie released her first CD of all new songs since "Diamond & Gold" in 1992. Called "Me Ing" (Please, don't ask me to explain the title because I can't), Mie maintained her dynamic solo musical style and, after having listened to the CD, I thought Mie turned out quite a stylish effort that I found to have been rather enjoyable.
"Me Ing" was an eclectic mix of power pop, soft rock, ballads and even a jazz tinged tune or two. The most notable songs in my mind were "Think Of Me", a sharp, sassy and funky song Mie sang fully in English, something that surprised me, but, her command of the langauge, even after all these years is still exceptional. "Let It Snow" was a positively charming Christmas themed song. Yeah, I know what you're thinking, but remember, this CD came out in October, two months before the big holiday, so it was quite topical. "Two short instrumental tracks, "Virgin Step I" and "Virgin Step II" featured Mie playing keyboards on both. I didn't know Mie tickled the ivories. Cool! All in all, "Me Ing" made for delightful listening as Mie was at her best.
