At a glance
- Artist
- Mariya Takeuchi
- Released
- 1994
In the issue
Best-selling compilation selling over 3 million copies, demonstrating city pop's enduring appeal despite genre's fall from fashion in the 1990s. Released in 1994 when most city pop was being dismissed as overproduced nostalgia, the compilation's success showed that the music's craft and sophistication retained commercial appeal even as musical trends shifted toward grunge and alternative rock. Takeuchi's commitment to making "music that is universal, both the words and the sound, and won't be considered old even after 20 or 30 years" proved prescient.
How it was made
Released in 1994 as a compilation of Takeuchi's hits, Impressions arrived during the post-bubble period when city pop had fallen from commercial favor. The compilation became Takeuchi's best-selling release, moving over 3 million copies—proof that established artists with devoted followings could outlast genre trends. The selection focused on Takeuchi's most successful singles from the 1980s and early 1990s, carefully sequenced to work as a coherent album rather than random hits collection. For many younger Japanese listeners in the 1990s, Impressions was their introduction to Takeuchi and city pop. An entry point that presented the genre's most accessible material. The compilation's success occurred while other city pop artists struggled. Takeuchi had transcended the genre to become a pop institution. When international audiences discovered city pop in the 2010s, Impressions tracks appeared frequently on streaming playlists, introducing Western listeners to Takeuchi beyond 'Plastic Love.'
Find a copy
More by Mariya Takeuchi in the issues
- Love Songs1980
- Variety1984