Michiya Mihashi -- Tasha de na (達者でナ)

The words "Tasha de na" basically means "Take care". People say it to their family members and their friends as they part ways, and it seems like this phrase is said more often when they're not gonna see them for a while, or at least that's what I've seen/heard in other Enka songs.

But how about saying these words to a horse?

I had to do a double take on the lyrics that Hiroshi Yokoi wrote (横井弘) as I saw its translation. A horse? At least now I know why there's "Kuri ge" (栗毛... Chestnut-coloured hair/fur) and the kanji character for "Sell" (買) in the mix. No wonder it didn't seem right when I pictured our protagonist saying his goodbyes to some family member/friend. Anyway, that's what Michiya Mihashi's (三橋美智也) song "Tasha de na" is about, bidding farewell to his favourite horse he is about to sell. It may seem a tad strange at first, then you realize how much this character loves and cares for the creature, and it all makes sense. He even tells the horse to keep well and not fall sick! Hmm, for the fella to do this he must really be in desperate need for some cash.

Jazz singer and composer Tadaharu Nakano (中野忠晴), who had handled the composing duties for songs sung by other Enka old timers like Hachiro Kasuga (春日八郎), did the music for "Tasha de na". It's a rather solemn and quiet score to match the occasion and the melancholy the person must have felt. And is it me or does the rhythmic beat to it - in the recorded version - just remind you of a horse trotting away? Since Mihashi had a strong background in Min'yo since he was a kid, this is one song where you can hear him putting those skills to work.

"Tasha de na" was released in 1960 and it did really well, eventually becoming one of Michi's hits and million-sellers. Impressive, for a song about a horse. I managed to find a video Takashi Hosokawa (細川たかし) doing a cover of "Tasha de na" years later - looks like it was performed in the mid-2000s, and Hosokawa's version is more powerful since his voice is more shrill and packs more of a punch than Michi's... very loud too. Oh yeah, here's a little fun fact for you: Hosokawa's "Min'yo name" is Michitaka Mihashi (三橋美智貴), basically his mentor's name but having "Taka" (貴) rather than "Ya" (也).

Noelle from 1/4/17: I had mentioned that "Tasha de na" has a disco version. By a stroke of luck, I found it. It's really strange but in a good and funny way - somewhat like a disco slow jam but with a hint of minyo.

(Unfortunately, the video has been taken down.)

Nakano fan girl Noelle from 26/3/25: 

On the note of Mr. Nakano's music, the layering of Michi's vocals during the chorus (?) had actually never been done before in the Japanese pop music industry. But Nakano, being one who liked to tinker with new things, gave it a go and Tassha de na's uniqueness was born. 

Also, an interesting perspective on this song was given by prof. Yoshinori Osakabe in Showa Kayo Shi (2024). While Yokoi's words illustrate a the somber mood of a man having to sell his prized horse, prof. Osakabe suggested that one could replace the main character with a parent and the horse their child. You see, this song was released in an era when lots of young migrants from the countryside flooded cities for work (shudan shushoku). It was commonplace for families to send their teenage kids off when it came for them to be shuttled off to the big, scary city. One can imagine that, like the protagonist walking his horse to the marketplace, the parents would be wistfully telling their kids to have a good life and assuring them that things'll be fine on the walk to the train station. So, while prof. Osakabe's analogy may seem strange at first, it actually makes sense. One wonders if that may have partially attributed to the song's success.

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