This band is so overrated and there's too much sexism in their lyrics for me to stomach another medicore old white man ska band with some marginal scene cred lol
There are tunes that are high waters marks for a genre, that just hit a level of personal achievement that can't be replicated. A signature piece, or a solo that is iconic. Vinnie Nobile's trombone solo in Chawalaleng by Pilfers is one such example. As someone whose tried and failed (and watched others try and fail) to emulate it, and only now performs a sometimes passable facsimile of it, evoking the spirit of the thing if not the same actual notes, I can certify just how challenging it is, what it takes to nail stuff like that on the regular. This song is one of those pieces for keyboard player Oki Yuichi. On the original recording they brought in arguably one of the best jazz pianists in the world, Hiromi Uehara. The fact that Oki has not only risen to the challenge, but surpassed the original solo is one of those highwater marks for the genre of ska as a whole. There's a reason that TSPO punches so much higher in terms of its weight class than any other ska band in Japan, and arguably the world. It's stuff like this, that no one else has the chops to pull off consistently. Truly one of the best to have ever done it.
I remember how it used to be, and all the things you said to me. You always taught me right from wrong. (Wrong from right, right from wrong) 'Til you went on the killing spree, and killed your family. Why is this the way things have to be? Oh Mr. Smiley, how could it be true, the things they say that they knew? I can't believe it! What has happened to you? I took my time while thinking it through. Digging through facts, believing in you. Oh Mr. Smiley. Give me a clue, why they said it was you, I can't accept it! Tell me it's not true. Because you were once so good to me, oh Mr. Smiley tell me how it could be. You always had a smile on your face, I never thought you'd become a criminal case. Until I saw your face on my TV. Was it just for entertainment? Because now you face solitary confinement, in jail. Why is this the way it has to be? Tell me! Oh Mr. Smiley, what has happened to you? Tell me it's not true!
