Shoji Ishibashi -- Yoake no Teishajo（夜明けの停車場）

 

I've heard of the manga "Ashita no Joe"（あしたのジョー...Tomorrow's Joe）and know of its anime adaptation which has become iconic for that final scene of the main character leaving this mortal coil in the best way possible. However, I hadn't known about the live-action adaptation that was released in 1970. The man who played the titular boxer was actor/singer Shoji Ishibashi（石橋正次）who hails from Osaka, and he was featured on the big and small screen up to the end of the 20th century, although his time as a stage actor has continued up to nearly the present day.

Ishibashi also had a music career that spanned from 1970 to 1978 with 19 singles and 10 albums under his belt. One of his big hits was his third single from January 1972, "Yoake no Teishajo" (Sunrise Station) which managed to stay at No. 1 for three consecutive weeks, sold 493,000 records and ended up as the 11th-ranking single of the year. Written by Haruki Tango（丹古晴己）and composed by Gendai Kanou（叶弦大）, it's a bittersweet ballad of the times with the boss rhythm and the sorrowful background chorus as Ishibashi sings about a couple having to tragically and reluctantly separate under unclear circumstances although their love for each other is crystal clear. The song was successful enough that it also earned Ishibashi his one and only invitation to NHK's Kohaku Utagassen at the end of 1972.

Rio Azato -- Rio no Carnival（リオのカーニバル）

 

Spoke with fellow KKP administrator and contributor Marcos V. some days ago, and by the way, the above is a shot of Rio de Janeiro from his camera. Of all the things that have been happening here in my frigid city and around the world, Marcos reminded me that another major event will be starting up once more from tomorrow on the 13th. And that is the annual Carnival in Brazil. Tomorrow also happens to be Friday the 13th so I'm not sure if there is any significance of that day coinciding with the start of Carnival.

Just by coincidence, I came across this song in the last number of days. "Rio no Carnival" (Rio's Carnival) is the latest single by singer Rio Azato（東里梨生）which was released just last month. A combination of Brazilian samba and Okinawan melodies, I was left somewhat surprised that I hadn't heard this natural affinity between the two types of music before. With the very upbeat feeling and the whoops and the cute cover for the single, I wonder if "Rio no Carnival" could even make for an ending theme of some anime. Words and music were provided by Shimon (Jaa BourBonz).

Azato herself hails from Ishigaki City in Okinawa, and with Yu Ishigaki（石垣優）, the two of them formed the pop and folk unit Yanawarabaa（やなわらばー）in 2003. The band lasted until 2020 after which Azato continued on a solo career path.

Let's Go Sanbiki -- Shinchi Waltz（新地ワルツ）

 

When I heard this pleasant song on the most recent episode of NHK's "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新BS日本の歌）the other day, I assumed that it was one of the veteran enka singers who had tackled this way back since it had that certain old kayo sound. Not surprisingly, I'm once again having crow for dinner.🐦‍⬛

Nope, when I looked up this tune via J-Wiki afterwards, I found out that "Shinchi Waltz", a laidback enka about the commercial area of Shinchi in Osaka, had actually been recorded by a comedy trio by the name of Let's Go Sanbiki（レツゴー三匹）. Written by Jun Hashimoto（橋本淳）and composed by Tadashi Yoshida（吉田正）, "Shinchi Waltz" was released as the trio's second single in 1973. From what I can glean from Hashimoto's lyrics, it's all about love gained and lost in the titular neighbourhood. And with the titular dance, there is that rhythmical flow in the melody that almost approaches that of a lullaby. The song was a hit, selling around 100,000 records.

Despite the three fellows, Let's Go Shouji（レツゴー 正児）, Let's Go Jun（レツゴー じゅん）and Let's Go Chousaku（レツゴー 長作）, being shown on the single cover, I only hear one of them singing away. Maybe the other two couldn't sing a note to save their lives but they were there in the recording booth as moral support. Anyways, although I was surprised to find out the identity of the singer behind "Shinchi Waltz", I also remembered that comedy groups in Japan are not unknown to cut records. The manzai duo Saruganseki（猿岩石）and the group Imo Kin Trio（イモ欽トリオ）are just two examples I know that have had their hits.

Let's Go Sanbiki first got started in 1968 when Shouji, Jun and then-member Let's Go Isshuu（レツゴー 一修）had trained within a comedy troupe known as Rookie Bakusho Gakudan（ルーキー爆笑劇団）. Their name came about from a Nagoya yakitori restaurant called Sanbiki that they had frequented but added the phrase "Let's Go" for further oomph. Isshuu would leave the team a year later and was immediately replaced by Chousaku. Let's Go Sanbiki would last until the early 1990s when they would go on indefinite hiatus but with the passing of Jun in 2014, the trio would officially break up.

NHK Jido Gassho Dan/Miku Hatsune -- Sakura, Sakura（さくらさくら）

 

Although February 11th 2026 has already passed into history in Japan as I'm typing this, it's still February 11th here so allow me to give a belated Happy Birthday to the nation via its National Foundation Day. As such, I was wondering what song I could contribute to commemorate the day and I remember that I had yet to post this one onto the blog.

"Sakura, Sakura" is a traditional folk song that I've known since I was only yea high. I'd assumed that this was a truly ancient creation going back a thousand years or so, but its birth was relatively recent...being sometime during the Edo era (1600-1868). No songwriter was ever identified and actual lyrics for the song weren't included until around 1888. 

I guess in a way then that the mystery surrounding its origins fits the mystique of "Sakura, Sakura" since it sounds so hauntingly beautiful with lyrics that talk about how fleeting the existence of things are...illustrated by cherry blossom petals. My early years of listening to the song were only via the instrumental version that I heard often enough whenever my family went to Nikko Gardens, one of Toronto's first Japanese restaurants. Basically, I had thought that "Sakura, Sakura" was the patron saint song of Japanese restaurants. I would always remember whether I should choose the teriyaki set or the tempura set while it was playing on the speakers. The above version, by the way, is performed by the NHK Jido Gassho Dan（NHK東京児童合唱団...NHK Tokyo Children's Choir） while the one below (with a slightly different arrangement) is performed by Miku Hatsune（初音ミク）.

It's pretty safe to say that over the decades, whenever a traditional Japanese music group comes over to the West for recitals, "Sakura, Sakura" is pretty much obligatory performing. As for my initial assumption on the age of the song, I'd thought that I would actually break a new record of how far back I could go in time with a new ancient year in Labels as opposed to 1597, but I guess I will go for the aforementioned 1888.

Haruo Minami -- Lupin Ondo（ルパン音頭）

 

I never became a dedicated follower of "Lupin III"（ルパン三世）although the music associated with the various shows and movies has interested me over the years because some of it has had roots in jazz and City Pop. But I do have to say that next year will be the 60th anniversary since the original manga was first published in 1967. 

Until today though, I hadn't even known of this "Lupin III" flick called "Lupin Tai Clone"（ルパンVS複製人間）which literally translates into "Lupin vs. The Clone" although the English title is "Lupin the 3rd: The Mystery of Mamo" which got into theatres in December 1978. I have no idea what it's all about but I'm sure that it's got the usual Lupin hijinks with Fujiko, car chases and lots of derring-do. 

What it also has is a rather interesting insert song called "Lupin Ondo" (The Lupin Song). I never thought I'd see the day that a Lupin song would be a 80/20 mix of traditional festival-friendly min'yo and some of that Lupin jazz created by composer Yuji Ohno（大野雄二）. With "Lupin III" creator Monkey Punch（モンキー・パンチ）and Daisaburo Nakayama（中山大三郎）providing the lyrics, the finishing touch was inviting the legendary Haruo Minami（三波春夫）coming into the recording booth to sing "Lupin Ondo". 

I'd expected the characters to be involved in a typical Japanese festival as they danced to "Lupin Ondo", but I guess the producers went with a montage-style ending credit sequence while Minami was singing away.

Hikaru Nishida -- TRUTH

 

Not sure if any of the KKP viewers have also been viewers of the current Olympics happening in Italy but I've been catching my fair share of the action including snowboard, ski, hockey and speed skating. 

Having posted back number's "Doushite mo Doushite mo"（どうしてもどうしても）which is serving as NHK's official theme song for the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina (or perhaps for copyright purposes, I should say NHK's "winter sports" theme song), I decided to see what other past tunes have been used as Japanese television network themes for the Olympic games. Well, I found out that TBS' first-ever Olympic theme was introduced for the 1992 Barcelona Games and it's the coupling song to Hikaru Nishida's（西田ひかる）July 1992 13th single "Ikiterutte Subarashii"（生きてるって素晴らしい...To Be Alive is Wonderful）.

"Truth" is a song that was written and composed by Hiromasa Ijichi（伊秩弘将）and it's got that jumpy and jaunty arrangement that reminds me of much of the discography of Misato Watanabe（渡辺美里）. And that shouldn't be a surprise since Ijichi also whipped up tunes for Watanabe as well. Following "Truth", TBS wouldn't punch in another Olympic theme for its coverage until the Nagano Winter Games in 1998 and that turned out to be the hit "UNITE! THE NIGHT!". As for "Ikiterutte Subarashii", it reached No. 24 on Oricon.

Harumi Miyako -- Harumi no Sandogasa（はるみの三度笠）

By Miguel Discart via Wikimedia Commons

Ah, yes...the sandogasa. According to Jisho.org, it's described as a "type of traditional Japanese conical hat", although I can't really see anything conical about the hat itself. However, I have seen this on many a Japanese pate in historical TV shows and movies, and it can be quite the introductory device as a lordless ronin of justice travels the byways of Japan with the sandogasa covering his eyes until it's time ​to reveal the whole face...and usually a whole ton of sword-flashing kickass.

NHK's "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新BS日本の歌...Songs of Japanese Spirit） was back on for the first time since the Holidays and I got to see someone sing a Harumi Miyako（都はるみ）song that I hadn't heard before (or at least for a very long time). Apparently, lyricist and composer Shosuke Ichikawa（市川昭介）, one of Miyako's main songwriters in her first decade as a singer, was tickled pink about seeing the young enka chanteuse in a sandogasa that he just went and whipped up her 39th single "Harumi no Sandogasa" (Harumi's Sandogasa) for April 1969. 

The whole lyrical premise is that young Harumi wants to go around everywhere wearing that sandogasa so that she's not recognized, although I have to say that even in the latter half of the 20th century, I think she would have still stuck out like a sore thumb wearing that archaic hat. Perhaps if she kept her person in the Asakusa district, she would have a chance...

Well, then again, if she had been able to head back in time to the Edo era via TARDIS and completely submerge herself into a warrior's role, she may just get away with it...of course, while wearing the titular hat. Back in 1969, she got plenty of fame though by scoring a No. 25 ranking for "Harumi no Sandogasa" and even getting her 5th appearance on the Kohaku Utagassen to sing the song at the end of the year. Of course, her high but steely and growly vocals were one of the highlights.