Columbia Nakano Rhythm Boys -- Yurei wa Odoru (幽霊は踊る)

The sun has set and darkness falls

When not even a plant stirs in the deep of the night

Out come the ghosts, bitter and anguished

Spooky.

Personally, I'm one of those folks who's terrified of the paranormal but with a curiosity for the macarbe. Unfortunately, it traps me in the loop of regret over listening to that one scary story that was a little too creepy, then immediately moving on to the next one. It was with this curiosity that "Yurei wa Odoru" (Ghosts dance)  caught my eye when I was checking out some of Tadaharu Nakano's (中野忠晴) prewar works. Thankfully, rather than something that would keep me up at night, he and the rest of the Colombia Nakano Rhythm Boys had me grooving to and chuckling at the silly yet morbid jazzy ditty.

 

I'd actually wanted to save "Yurei wa Odoru" for Halloween season, but I thought now would be just as good a time for a *insert wavy effects* spooky tune. Obon may be over, but its Chinese counterpart, the Hungry Ghost Festival a.k.a. Zhongyuan Festival a.k.a. The Seventh Month (of the lunar calendar), only just began last week, so it's rather fitting. 

If only there was a version with the Nakano Rhythm Boys as ghosties doing the Swing.

The best way I can describe "Yurei wa Odoru" is that it's essentially the Japanese version of the "Spooky Scary Skeletons" song with a theatrical touch featuring ghosts and a nod at Buddhist afterlife beliefs. It begins on a dark and ominous tone with crashing gongs and tolling bells, sounding more like it's your time on earth that has ended rather than announcing the arrival of the dead. But the moment the fellas start cackling like a bunch of mischievous poltergeists, the mood takes a complete U-turn. This is where the Nakano Rhythm Boys give us a quick rundown of what to expect in the Buddhist hells and ask fundamental questions like, "Why aren't ghosts fat?" (Doushite yurei nya futoranai?) to a playful tune with some sinister undercurrents. Never has such a line been more apt for the Hungry Ghost Festival. I'm not of the Buddhist faith so I'm not sure of the details, but, like Obon, this is the period where those who have left us will come back for a visit, and family and believers will provide offerings of food and other random items (iPhones, anyone?) for the visitors. I think this is also the one time they get to actually "eat." So, even though Nakano and the Bois cite the lack of food in hell for the reason ghosts aren't packing on the pounds, fret not, they can finally get their sustenance and hopefully be less salty. (Noelle from 18/12/2023: Just a little mistake on my part, but I found out that this tune was sung by just the Rhythm Boys themselves without Mr. Nakano. So, the one on lead vocals was most likely Rhythm Boys' leader Akiyama.)

"Yurei wa Odoru" was created by Hideo Akiyama (秋山日出夫) in 1939. Akiyama was the tenor in the Colombia Nakano Rhythm Boys, together with fellow tenor Reisuke Harada (原田礼輔), baritone Shinichi Tezuka (手塚慎一), and bass Matsuzo Yamakami (山上松蔵). Members came and went, but these were the main bunch. This was actually a replacement for the original Colombia Rhythm Boys, Colombia Record Japan's answer to American jazz quartet, The Mills Brothers, as they had moved to Polydor Records. And so, a replacement was needed, thus came the Colombia Nakano Rhythm Boys in 1935. So, how does Nakano fit into this? From what I gather from the J-Wiki and the record company's group introduction, Nakano, enamored with American jazz, was behind the move to form a jazz quartet in the first place, and he frequently collaborated with the original Rhythm Boys until their move. So, in the formation of the second group, the quartet was rebranded as the Colombia Nakano Rhythm Boys, and continued mainly performing as Nakano's backup. Later in 1936, a female jazz quartet, the Colombia Nakano Rhythm Sisters, was also created.

On an ending note, about the Hungry Ghost Festival: In Singapore at least, there are these open-air, free-to-watch concerts called getai (song stage) that are held all over the country during this period. Singers dressed in glitzy and gaudy outfits (very enka, when I think about it) perform Chinese hit songs and may do some comedy sets for a mostly alive audience. Yes, mostly. These performances are meant for the visiting dead, which is why the first row of seats are always empty. The video above will give you an idea of what this annual phenomenon is like through the eyes of a pair of getai performers. Seeing as to how lively the shows can get, the folks must be having the time of their lives jiving to the tunes - literally Yurei wa odoru :).