Casiopea - Down Upbeat (1984)

 Alfa ‎– ALR-28063

BUY ON DISCOGS

With a mix of funky, quirky and relaxed pieces, Down Upbeat is a unique transition album from Casiopea's earlier years to their wider appeal in the mid 80s.  Side B is particularly good, kicking off with the underrated and never-to-be-repeated "Homestretch".  Issei Noro continues to show his genius songwriting and the supporting cast of Mukaiya, Jimbo and Sakurai are irreplaceable at this point.  This copy is basically mint with shrink (note: this means I won't ship it with a resealable outer sleeve since the OBI is already protected).