Katsuaki Kitanofuji -- Bojou no Blues（慕情のブルース）

 

Welcome to Hump Day here on KKP! Although I never saw him during his active days as a sumo wrestler between 1957 and 1974, Yokozuna Katsuaki Kitanofuji（北の富士勝昭）was still someone that I knew on sight and by sound because he became a frequent commentator on the NHK sumo broadcasts.

Kitanofuji was a figure that I could recognize from his glasses and how dandy he looked in either a yukata or a tailored suit in the occasional times when the camera was focused on him during the TV broadcasts. From what I read, he could be very cordial and also very harsh in his comments on other rikishi and their actions. In the last year or so though, I noticed that he hadn't been appearing on the last few tournaments and then came the announcement in November 2024 that he had passed away at the age of 82. My condolences to his family, friends and fans.

When I think about what retired rikishi do following their illustrious careers in the ring, I usually think three options: TV commentator, chankonabe restaurant owners and singers. For example, Daishiro Masuiyama（増井山大志郎）took that third route through songs such as "Yuko no O-Mise"（夕子のお店）in 2013. For Kitanofuji, even though he was still an active wrestler, he had his few years of going behind the recording mike and putting out some enka or Mood Kayo tunes.

One such song by Kitanofuji was "Bojou no Blues" (The Yearning Blues) which is notable for its rich Mood Kayo stylings. And often in that genre, I hear a baritone sax but this is the first time that I had ever heard of a bass saxophone being played which perhaps added some further gravitas to the big man singing there. Kitanofuji did have a good voice and perhaps his spirit is blushing a bit when I say that his vocals were reminiscent of the Tough Man himself, actor/singer Yujiro Ishihara（石原裕次郎）. 

According to his J-Wiki profile, his recording career ranged from 1967 to 1969. However, I couldn't track down when he released "Bojou no Blues", so I'll go for average and say 1968 until I get something confirmed. As well, there were apparently two songs with the same title but with no singer listed and two pairs of different songwriters according to the JASRAC database. I know none of those songwriters so I'll just let that go, too, for now.