Anzen Chitai | Profile

While Anzen Chitai (safety zone) officially came together in 1978, their roots are in a high school garage band called the Invaders, who were active in Ashikawa, Hokkaido as far back as 1973. In their early years the group played diligently in local clubs in Hokkaido, and gathered a respectable following around the northern island. In 1978 the band built their own studio, MFP (Musical Farmers Production), and became more focused on recording. The initial line-up under the Anzen Chitai name featured guitarist brothers Yutaka and Toshiya Takezawa, bassist Takahiro Miyashita, drummer Shiji Taihei, and vocalist Koji Tamaki. In 1981 the group moved to Tokyo and began playing at venues like Shibuya’s Yaneura. They received two substantial breaks that year, having their song “On My Way” used in a Bridgestone tire ad, and landing an opening slot on a tour with singer Yosui Inoue, who they had met when he visited their studio. Inoue, already a major star, was to play an important role with the group, writing a number of their biggest hit songs. They also benefited over the years from the services of Goro Matsui, a songwriter who wrote a number of hits for them, as well as for Shizuka Kudo, Akina Nakamori, Miho Nakayama, TM Network, and Hikaru Genji, amongst others. Along the way there had been a number of line-up changes, but by 1982 Anzen Chitai’s line-up stabilized with Yutaka Takezawa and Wataru Yahagi on guitar, Haruyoshi Rokudo on bass & ... Read More

While Anzen Chitai (safety zone) officially came together in 1978, their roots are in a high school garage band called the Invaders, who were active in Ashikawa, Hokkaido as far back as 1973. In their early years the group played diligently in local clubs in Hokkaido, and gathered a respectable following around the northern island. In 1978 the band built their own studio, MFP (Musical Farmers Production), and became more focused on recording. The initial line-up under the Anzen Chitai name featured guitarist brothers Yutaka and Toshiya Takezawa, bassist Takahiro Miyashita, drummer Shiji Taihei, and vocalist Koji Tamaki. In 1981 the group moved to Tokyo and began playing at venues like Shibuya’s Yaneura. They received two substantial breaks that year, having their song “On My Way” used in a Bridgestone tire ad, and landing an opening slot on a tour with singer Yosui Inoue, who they had met when he visited their studio. Inoue, already a major star, was to play an important role with the group, writing a number of their biggest hit songs. They also benefited over the years from the services of Goro Matsui, a songwriter who wrote a number of hits for them, as well as for Shizuka Kudo, Akina Nakamori, Miho Nakayama, TM Network, and Hikaru Genji, amongst others. Along the way there had been a number of line-up changes, but by 1982 Anzen Chitai’s line-up stabilized with Yutaka Takezawa and Wataru Yahagi on guitar, Haruyoshi Rokudo on bass & keys, Yuji Tanaka on drums and Tamaki on vocals. Anzen Chitai released their debut single “Moegi Iro No Snap” for Kitty Records in February 1982. The band’s debut album, 1983’s Remember to Remember, didn’t break wide open until the fourth single, “Wine Red No Kokoro”, which was used in a Suntory red wine advertisement and went to number one in Oricon. The song was a huge hit, and won a number of awards, including Best Song Award for Tamaki. Their 1984 single “Koi no Yokan” was used in a Japan Airlines ad and also did well, so much so that they were soon playing Budokan. In 1985 the band toured extensively, including dates in baseball stadiums. At year end they were invited to play at the prestigious Kohaku Uta Gassen. In 1986 Anzen Chitai contributed the soundtrack to the film Prussian Blue no Shozo, in which Tamaki starred. In 1987 Tamaki made a well received solo album, which he recorded in London and Los Angeles. While externally things seemed to be going well, in 1988 the band suddenly announced that they would indefinitely discontinue working together. They all worked on their own projects, Tamaki the most visible, with success as a solo artist and as an actor. He is also the most celebrity-like, having first married actress Hiroko Yakushimaru, and later musician Satoko Ando. In 1990 Anzen Chitai reunited briefly, but mostly continued to work separately. By 1996 Tamaki was such a big star that he was invited on his own to perform at Kohaku Uta Gassen. Fans, however, remained hopeful that Anzen Chitai might reunite, but it was said that there was friction between Tamaki and Yutaka Takezawa, who had been best friends starting since they met at age 14. While the members were working on solo projects, other members would sometimes show up to play with Tamaki, but not with Takezawa, who spent much of his time producing other artists. In 1998 at a performance at Tokyo Kokusai Forum, Tamaki suddenly shouted “you’re not here right now, but please come back Takezawa”. A few months later Takezawa walked on stage with Tamaki and they played Anzen Chitai hits together. This led to speculation that the band would reform. In 2001 the 1982 line-up reassembled and began recording, again working with songwriter Goro Matsui. They released the album Anzen Chitai IX in 2002 and Anzen Chitai X in 2003, and also resumed touring, and have been active since. Their soft rock sound, perhaps something like a blend of Air Supply and Toto, has been popular in parts of Asia since the early 80s, especially in Hong Kong and Taiwan. In Hong Kong, Anzen Chitai received a gold disc award in 1985 for their album Roman Kashu, and the band played shows there in 1986 and 1987.  Collapse