TEA FOR TEARS

ABOUT THIS ALBUM

Released in 1981, TEA FOR TEARS marked Junko Ohashi’s first major step after the dissolution of Minoya Central Station and the beginning of a new phase as a solo artist. Produced by Kazuharu Honjo, the album surrounds Ohashi with polished AOR and adult-pop arrangements rather than the stronger band-funk emphasis of her earlier work. All of the lyrics were written by Yoshiko Miura, while composers including Takeo Sato, Yoshihiro Yonekura, Mitsuo Hagita, Yasuhiro Abe, and others contribute material with a remarkably consistent late-night tone. The album is especially notable for containing “Telephone Number,” later one of the central songs in Ohashi’s international rediscovery. In the context of the full LP, however, that track sits naturally beside “Another Day, Another Love,” “La Rosa,” “Maroon Person,” and the title song, revealing how broad her voice could be. Ohashi’s power remains unmistakable, but the arrangements often ask her to work with more restraint and nuance. TEA FOR TEARS is therefore an important transition: it keeps the soul strength of her Minoya years while placing it inside a more refined, urban AOR framework.