If she had to sum up the past couple of years, Sachiko Kanenobu would probably opt for a simple ¡°OMG!¡±

¡°That¡¯s what I¡¯ve said so many times, repeating over and over and over: ¡®Oh my God!¡¯¡± she says, speaking by phone from her home in California¡¯s Sonoma Valley. ¡°Things are just coming to me and happening, and I¡¯m just overwhelmed.¡±

It¡¯s an understandable reaction. At 71, the singer-songwriter is finally enjoying the acclaim she should have received when her debut LP was released back in 1972. For years, ¡°Misora¡± was the kind of album you heard about through word of mouth: A singer-songwriter record of translucent beauty, redolent of early Joni Mitchell and Sandy Denny, whose creator disappeared from view before it was even released.