Bin Uehara in Academia (上原敏の晴れ姿)

Oh, wow, it actually happened... So, a few months back, I mentioned that an academic paper I wrote on ryukoka star Bin Uehara (上原敏) was probably going to be published in a school publication accessible to anyone (with internet access). I am glad to say that it has actually come to pass! You can check it out on my school's International Relations Student Association (IRSA) website here if that's your cup of tea. You can read the papers of a couple of other students who had the same honour as me as well and support the IRSA's other endeavours if you'd like.

In a quick summary, I talked about how Bin-san's songs served as propaganda and morale boosters to Japanese soldiers and civilians during the Pacific War. More importantly, the overly optimistic and nationalistic light the lyrics presented had perhaps encouraged cruel optimism in this demographic for the sake of the country's glory. I.e., even though the country was in ruins and suffering was abundant, the hope of success and hApPy songs forced everyone forward, even if it proved harmful to them. 

To give my paper a narrower focus, I picked three of Bin-san's songs to analyse of traces of extreme patriotism and false hope. Spoiler, all three showcased overwhelming amounts of both these traits. I shall give you a rundown of my tunes of choice, but I shan't elaborate on them now and will let past Noelle do the talking in that paper. Future Noelle may do individual KKP features on them too.

The first of which was an Uehara classic, "Shanghai Dayori" (上海だより) from 1938. Not one of my personal favourite Bin-san serenades, but it was perhaps the song that made me write about this topic.

The next two are a little more obscure, but they were chosen due to them being collaborations Bin-san had with other popular singers at the time. One of them was "Naki Warai no Jinsei" (泣き笑ひの人生) from 1938, which was a duet with Uehara's senior, Taro Shoji (東海林太郎). I wonder if this would have been considered a "yume-corabo" (dream collaboration) back in the day. I would've deemed it such.

The final song was a pretty large group project that included the likes of the Batayan (Yoshio Tabata...田端義夫), and that was "Bakudan kurai ha te de uke yo" (爆弾くらいは手で受けよ) from 1941. Uehara sang with Shimeka Asakusa (浅草〆香), Shiro Omi (近江志郎), and Kimisakae Nihonbashi (日本橋きみ栄). This one is the more blatant in terms of war propaganda among the three, I feel.

I had written this paper for a media and pop culture theory class during the Spring semester some months ago. Looking at it again, I could have definitely spiced it up more, but with a fried brain and a limited word count, that was the best I could do at the time. I think I would consider it my favourite paper I've written in my almost four years at school, which says a lot since I dislike/hate most of them. Perhaps it's because I felt that my understanding of the theory I used was stronger compared to some of my other papers. Come to think of it, it's like one of my long KKP articles :) ... Sans the effusive husbando gushing and sarcasm, of course.

I do feel... happy? Cathartic, I think. Because it proves this statement, "I want to learn more about Japanese culture and enka music", which I made when trying to apply for undergraduate programs in Japan, was not void of meaning after all. I could write about enka on an academic level. With Christine R. Yano and her "Tears of Longing" (2002), gifted to me by KKP reader Francium years ago, as my inspiration, I had come to that realisation in my sophomore year. I began to use whatever opportunity I could in relevant classes to do so, probably to the ire of some professors. Getting near Yano's level of a proper publication and contributing to her work, however, seemed like a goal not meant for my undergraduate studies. Then came this writing contest, which I didn't even see as such an opportunity until much later. Of course, I am nowhere near Yano's level. I still have no idea what I'm doing. The words "theoretical framework" and "methodology" still give me heart palpitations. But, I would like to see this as a first step. I did not expect this first step to be with Bin-san, though. 

To round things off, here is Uehara's "Otoko Hare Sugata" (男晴れ姿) from 1941, which was where I first made mention of the paper and of why I wanted this song to represent this mini achievement of mine. Cheers, Bin-san.

The publication's cover

P.S. I could be wrong, but I don't think there has been English literature spotlighting Uehara. At least, not in my hunt for sources there hasn't. If that were actually the case, and if this piece qualifies as proper academic literature, I would find it hilarious that it was my ode to one of my Husbandos that actually became the first one.

P.S.S. I know it's not my usual KKP article, but I just wanted to share this recent kayo-related project I had done with you guys.