Yoshio Tabata -- Hyotan Jitterbug (ひょうたんジルバ)

Oooooosu!

It's been a hot minute since I've gone through Batayan's repertoire. And by hot minute, I mean five years. At least. Of course, my all-time favourites were constantly on rotation over the years and that affable greeting of his never gets old. But, another expedition into what more he has on offer was long overdue, and so that's what I've been doing lately.

"Hyotan Jitterbug" is at the 7:00 mark

To reaccustom myself to Yoshio Tabata's (田端義夫) other works, I tuned into one of those long album videos on YouTube as I surfed the 'gram for food ideas. This video turned out to be the very same one I used to love back in the day. In it was nine of the electric guitar-wielding singer's works with a 1960s-swing-style facelift to the melodies, giving them a more contemporary and snazzy sound. Among them, the jubilant "Hyotan Jitterbug" (the latter written as "jiruba") brought back a wave of nostalgia as the tinkling keys of the piano's introduction rang out and its jazzy beat came crashing in. I loved its fun-loving vibe then and I still love it now despite the many-year gap. 

The original take

"Hyotan Jitterbug" was a postwar entry in Tabata's discography created by composer Akira Michinoku (陸奥明) and lyricist Shingo Kato (加藤省吾) in 1947. Likely overshadowed by his later solemn hits, this funky ditty mostly stayed relatively under the radar. That said, I've always known Batayan as a pretty versatile artist - I'm convinced he did any genre as long as he could play it on his guitar, so a swing tune like this just felt very him, no questions asked. What's more, in his unique high tone seemed to be a hint of mischief as he played the role of a carefree drifter with, I'm assuming, a dried gourd filled with sake by his side, enjoying life as it comes. Very Batayan indeed.  

The video above is an instrumental version of "Hyotan Jiruba". It comes from "Batayan no Guitar Meienshu" (バタヤンのギター名演集), released on 18th February 2015, which features Batayan's beloved electric guitar front and centre.

I would like to personally thank the 100 yen
stores for enabling me.

P.S. Ever since I began living on my own, I make it a point to make every house a home. Friends jokingly call it my 'Husbando Shrine' - I insist it's a 'Husbando Shelf'. Either way, it's a must and one of the first things that go up after a move. Priorities, am I right? Recently, I thought I should showcase more bromides, so I've added a couple of fellows to the mix. Since they're the flavours of the season, Batayan and Hai-Katsu have temporarily joined my Big 3. In hindsight, I suppose it was long overdue that I have a Batayan thing displayed. He's been a constant presence since my first foray into ryukoka, after all.