My Arbitrary Best 15 [Yuming] #8: “Chuo Freeway” – Passenger Seat Memories and the Magic That Turned Tokyo into a “Runway”

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Number 8 is “Chuo Freeway”

Coming in at number 8 in “My Arbitrary Best 15: [Yuming] Edition” is the driving anthem that needs no introduction, “Chuo Freeway” (Chuo Free Way).

Among all of Yuming’s songs, there is likely no other work that has “perfectly fixed the scenery into music” like this one. Her skill in taking specific place names and sublimating them into sophisticated urban pop is unmatched. The year following this song’s release in 1976, I started my new life in Tokyo.

1977, To Tokyo… A Melody Carved into Experience

The biggest reason I placed this song in this position in my “Best 15” is not merely admiration, but because it is strongly tied to my own “original experience.”

• Moving to Tokyo: In 1977, I entered a university in Tokyo.
• First time on the Chuo Expressway: What I saw there was exactly the world depicted in this song.
• A sense of synchronization: The shock of placing myself in that scenery so soon after the song’s release (end of 1976).

I still can’t forget the first time I rode the Chuo Expressway during my university days in Tokyo. Yuming’s singing voice flowing from the radio and the scenery flowing through the windshield matched without a fraction of a deviation. That sense of unity is one of the most vivid musical experiences of my life.

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First, please listen to the official audio

■ Credits
“Chuo Freeway (2022 Mix)”
Lyrics & Composition: Yumi Matsutoya
Vocals: Yumi Matsutoya
Album: “Yuming BANZAI! 50th Anniversary Best Album”
© 2022 UNIVERSAL MUSIC LLC
■ 2-Line Explanation
An official audio remix of the 1976 signature song “Chuo Freeway,” newly mixed to commemorate her 50th anniversary. It is an anniversary version reconstructed with a modern sound image while maintaining the original’s sense of speed and urban lyricism.

■ Credits
"Chuo Freeway"
Lyrics & Composition: Yumi Matsutoya
Vocals: Yumi Matsutoya
Included in: "Yumi Arai The Concert with old Friends"
(Released: Dec 20, 1996 VIDEO/LASER DISC / Dec 12, 2001 DVD)
■ 2-Line Explanation
A masterpiece of early Yuming, released in 1976, symbolizing urban scenic descriptions and a melody with a sense of speed.
This video is a rare live record of a reunion concert with friends from her debut period, shining with mature expressive power.

The Truth of “Flowing Scenery” Only Visible from the Passenger Seat

Passive and Luxurious “Aesthetics of Driving”

What is essential in discussing “Chuo Freeway” is that the lyrics are written thoroughly from the “perspective of the passenger seat.” Glancing at the profile of “you” holding the steering wheel, gazing at the sunset spreading through the windshield. Here flows not the active perspective of driving oneself, but the “luxurious passivity” of surrendering oneself to the flowing scenery.

Metaphors that Turn Landmarks into Romance

The famous phrase, “Racecourse visible on the right, beer factory on the left.” It is a specific description that anyone who has driven on the Chuo Expressway would instantly recognize.

• The Ordinary: Suntory Musashino Brewery and Fuchu Racecourse.
• The Extraordinary: A runway leading to the night sky.

This leap is the reason for Yuming’s genius, repainting boring travel time into a “special ritual leading to another world.”

The “Adult Distance” in “One Hand on the Handle”

Descriptions in the lyrics such as “holding the handle with one hand” and “holding my shoulder with one hand” carry the air of a slightly perilous adult romance of the mid-1970s.

A Private Space Born of Trust

In this day and age, one might make a boorish comment about safe driving, but for us at that time, this description was the perfect composition of a “man with composure” and a “woman who trusts him and leans on him.”

• Whispers drowned out by the engine sound
• Sunset dyeing the windshield
• The wind blowing too strong in the car

All of these served as essences emphasizing the private space between the two.

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Construction of a “Sound Runway” Ahead of its Time

Collaboration between Ichizo Seo and Caramel Mama

The floating feeling of this song is created by the exquisite ensemble of the arranger, Ichizo Seo, and the performers, Caramel Mama (Haruomi Hosono, Shigeru Suzuki, Tatsuo Hayashi, Masataka Matsutoya).

“Acceleration” Drawn by the Groove

Especially, the movement of the bass line is superb, expressing both the smoothness as if tires are sliding on asphalt and the exhilaration of accelerating. In 1976, there was no one else but them who could embody this kind of “horizontal groove” in Japanese pops.

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The Moment Symbolized Scenery Turns into a “Story”

Turning the “Beer Factory” into a Romantic Device

When discussing this song, we must dig a little deeper into the magic of the phrase “Racecourse visible on the right, beer factory on the left.” Although this scenery has become a “standard” for drivers using the Chuo Expressway today, its meaning is completely different before and after Yuming.

Redefinition of Everyday Scenery

• Scenery of the Past: Merely a scattering of industrial areas and leisure facilities.
• After Yuming: A “platform” for taking off from the city.

Syncing with Personal Memories

From the calm streets of Setagaya Ward, where I spent my university days, especially around Higashi-Matsubara, via Kannana (Ring Road No. 7) to Koshu Kaido, and the moment passing through the gate of the Chuo Expressway. For me, that had an elation akin to a ritual.

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The Quiet Premonition of “Parting” Lurking Behind the Lyrics

A “Shadow” Creeping into the Perfect Drive

At first glance, this song seems to depict a scene of a happy drive. However, when deciphering the lyrics, one realizes that “the end” or “coldness” is creeping in the background.

Changed Relationship Between the Two

• Past: Enthusiastic days of driving every day.
• Present: A slightly cooled sense of distance, described as “without sending me home.”

Depiction of Multi-layered Emotions

Behind the ecstatic feeling sung as the city lights began to twinkle and the two “seemed to become a meteor,” this drive can actually be read as a time to hold together the relationship between the two, or perhaps for a final confirmation. Because there is this “happiness that is not unbridled, a slight poison or loneliness,” this song transcends being a mere hit song and acquires a literary quality that withstands adult appreciation.

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Luxurious Void That Cannot Be Tasted in the Modern “Time-Performance” Era

Aesthetics of “Movement” Without a Destination

In this day and age, emphasis is placed on how quickly and efficiently one can reach a destination. However, what “Chuo Freeway” depicts is not the arrival, but the “enjoyment of the movement itself,” an extremely luxurious and cultural use of time.

Communication Beyond Words

“Even if I say I love you, you can’t hear me, the wind is too strong”

This verse holds the beauty of a relationship that does not rely on words. Important things do not even dare need to be put into words. Just the shared experience of running through the same scenery at the same speed. In an era when I was chased by busyness and always thinking about the “next” schedule, listening to this song reminded me that such “blank time” enriches life.

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In Conclusion: The “Runway” in Our Hearts

As a Universal Drive Anthem

“Chuo Freeway” still exists under the sky of Chofu. However, within each fan who loves this song, a different, invisible “personal freeway” must be flowing.

The reason I chose this song is that this refreshing groove has accompanied all the scenery of the path I have walked myself. Tonight, if you have time, please open the car window a little and play this song. Surely, beyond the windshield, you should be able to see the runway leading to the night sky that “you” once looked up at.