Hachiro Kasuga -- Ruten no Yoru (流転の夜)

I've mentioned some time back that I actually knew Tadaharu Nakano (中野忠晴) as a composer first. His name I often saw attached to tunes by Hachiro Kasuga (春日八郎), Michiya Mihashi (三橋美智也), and their other King Records colleagues, some of these songs becoming massive hits in the later-day enka world. But ever since I began digging into his early-day musical activities, having to reconcile the image of postwar hit-making songwriter Nakano with the prewar slick jazz singer Nakano took a bit of time. Listening some familiar favourites from Hachi and Michi and then realizing its that Mr. Nakano behind the music was mind-blowing. Among the these many pleasant revelations, the one that gave me the biggest reaction was Hachi's "Ruten no Yoru". To help you visualize what that was like, here is an emote: (*´艸`).  

The original take

"Ruten no Yoru" would probably fall within my current Top 10 Hachi songs. So knowing that one of these beloved tunes by an artist that sits squarely at the top of my list composed by a musician who became my latest fixation is nothing short of a happy time. Hence, the expressive reaction to such a mundane piece of information.

"Ruten no Yoru" was released early in Hachi's musical career on August 1955. While the music was done by Mr. Nakano, the lyrics were penned by Tetsuro Fujima (藤間哲郎). From Jisho.org, the term "Ruten" can mean constant change or vicissitudes, a sudden, usually unwelcomed change in circumstances. From my understanding of Fujima's words, our song protagonist faced such an unwelcomed change one night in the form of a heartbreak. This loss seemed to have hit him hard as he's already portrayed to be weary from the get go, and for the rest of the song he struggles to come to terms with the loss. The forlornness of Nakano's melody, derived from the lonesome drone of the flute and languid strings, complements our bummed out hero's state of mind. I also feel that it's a perfect fit for Hachi whose vocal delivery usually expresses sad longing. It's not hard to imagine the protagonist's deflated figure as he wanders aimlessly through a bar-filled alley, try to use alcohol and singing to quell his sadness. Yet, there is also a somewhat carefree and cheerful quality in Nakano's composition that suggests that our protagonist is trying to be positive. Perhaps it's a case of jolly, tough exterior to the depressed, soft interior. 

Oddly enough, this theme of constant change in circumstances and a happy-exterior-sad-interior reminded me of Hachi's own situation at the time. According to his autobiography "Futari no Sakamichi" (ふたりの坂道) (1980) a Hachi who shot to stardom via the popularity of "Otomi-san" (お富さん) was in a pickle. He was glad for the limelight, but the kabuki-themed ditty was a host to heavy criticism for allegedly ruining the minds of young kids and was too simple a tune for Hachi's liking. Hachi didn't want to be remembered for such a song which he felt didn't showcase his musical capabilities. But with its explosive success, how was any other of his works going to surpass that? Was the musical career he fought so hard to achieve going to just fizzle out like a firework? And so, while rattling off the very jolly "Otomi-san" at recitals, he was mostly fretting over his future. Throughout the rest of 1954 and the most of 1955, he hoped each recording session would produce a hit that rivaled the 1954 success. 22 songs were recorded in 1955, "Ruten no Yoru" being one of them, but they just couldn't do it. So I can imagine that Hachi's state of mind may have been similar to our featured tune's protagonist at the time of its recording. Lucky for him, a change in his fortunes came at his 23rd in November of that year with "Wakare no Ippon Sugi" (別れの一本杉). Now, he's remembered as "The Preeminent Enka Singer."

The re-recorded version

In 1972, "Ruten no Yoru" was re-recorded along with Hachi's other major works and appeared in "Kasuga Hachiro Deluxe 3 Shuu" (春日八郎デラックス３集). I'd been listening to this version for the most part until recently when I wanted to hear Mr. Nakano's original melody. Now, I actually prefer the 1955 original. Hachi's vocal quality, while dropping an octave (?), never lost the tune's sadness and the modern take has a richer arrangement. But the variety of sounds from various instruments, coupled with a more interesting, halting arrangement made for a better aural experience for me. Listening to it in the quiet of night makes it particularly atmospheric and listening to it when I'm worn out makes it more resonant.

Finally, to wrap up this article's theme of changing circumstances, let's on touch on Mr. Nakano's transition from vocalist at Columbia Records to full-time composer at King Records after the war. This move seemed to have due to a couple of factors which I gathered from a blog by one named haguruhaguru, who cited a thesis on Nakano by Hiroyuki Kondo (近藤博之) from 2004. One reason was that Mr. Nakano had riled the powers that be in Columbia with his attitude during his heyday, which may have made the company resistant to sign him back on after the war. If I may add to that with what I'd garnered from Gyoji Osada's (長田暁二) "Showa Kayo" (昭和歌謡) (2017): At this very time, many other renowned singers from the prewar era also found themselves untethered as their record companies were literally in shambles from the Tokyo bombings. I remember reading that saucy songstress Noriko Awaya (淡谷のり子) got unceremoniously let go by Columbia via missive with a 100 yen bill attached. Ouch. So, perhaps, this may have compounded with Nakano's rather selfish behaviour, leading to Columbia's decision despite Nakano's decade-or-so-long tenure in the company. 

The other reason cited for Mr. Nakano's move was feeling that his vocal quality had deteriorated. So, rather than roaming the G.I. bases doing jazz gigs like many other jazz musicians and earning far less, he ventured into the beverage business with a friend from his hometown of Ehime in hopes of earning far more. Unfortunately or fortunately, that didn't come to pass so he returned to music to pay off debt incurred from the business venture. Instead of Columbia (due to earlier mentioned possible strained relations), he signed on with King Records in via a recommendation by an acquaintance and the rest was history. Oddly enough, Mr. Nakano signed on to King Records in 1952, which was when Hachi debuted. Coincidence? I think yes. But quite a nice one for a fan of both :). What a fascinating turn of events.

Hiro Tsunoda -- Merry Christmas Baby

 

As I type this, my room is getting ever darker and cooler since the sun is going down a whole lot faster at around 4:30 pm and we're still a few weeks away from reaching the shortest day of the year. Maybe that's not the happiest thing to point out, but it also states that we are approaching the Holidays.

Still, the music can be quite heartwarming at this time of the year which is why we have a Yuletide season on "Kayo Kyoku Plus". For example, I learned about soulful Hiro Tsunoda's（つのだ☆ひろ）"Merry Christmas Baby" from Scott's "Holly Jolly X'masu" podcast several months ago, and I'm happy to say that after bookmarking it all the way back in the spring, it's still with us. YouTube (knock on wood) hasn't pulled it down.

The song was originally on Tsunoda's 1991 "Ballad X'mas" special album. I swear that hearing the groovy tones of the man himself (he also wrote and composed the song) along that urban contemporary arrangement of the time, this could easily be inserted into a GRP Records compilation album. At the time, the label was known mainly for its fusion and what would eventually be called smooth jazz. The images I get while listening to the oh-so-comfy "Merry Christmas Baby" are Norman Rockwell-like, but if everyone is dressed like a yuppie and drinking Chablis.

Kilala & Ulala -- Tuxedo Moon de Yuushoku wo（タキシード・ムーンで夕食を）

 

Over a decade ago, former KKP writer nikala introduced this 1980s aidoru duo named Kilala & Ulala（キララとウララ）who specialized in their own brand of techno kayo, the sub-genre of synthpop-laden tunes covered by various singers and bands during the decade as inspired by acts such as Yellow Magic Orchestra. So, we got examples such as their 1984 debut single "Senti Metal Boy" (センチ・メタル・ボーイ) and "Yume, Fushigi Ikaga" （夢・不思議いかが） from their lone 1985 album "Double Fantasy"（ダブル・ファンタジー）.

Well, I found another track from "Double Fantasy" which is "Tuxedo Moon de Yuushoku wo" (Dinner Under the Tuxedo Moon), written by Yuuho Iwasato（岩里祐穂）and composed by YMO's Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）. Seeing that title for the first time, I was wondering whether there was some sort of "Sailor Moon" connection, but I think the song had come out several years before Naoko Takeuchi's（武内直子）magnum opus was revealed to the world. Perhaps the song was a tribute to the experimental New Wave group Tuxedomoon from San Francisco which formed in 1977, and maybe the ladies were seeking a fantasy date with the band members. Regardless, it's a bubbly and blippity-bloppity number that I think could have gotten a bit more love and fame.

Holly Cole -- The Christmas Blues

 

KKP mascot and aidoru Kayo Kyoku is back in front of a Christmas tree since the final Reminiscings of Youth article for November 2023 will also be the first ROY article for Xmas 2023 on KKP. 

In terms of Canada and jazz, before I heard Michael Bublé, before I heard Diana Krall but after I learned about Oscar Petersen, it was jazz chanteuse Holly Cole. The first time I heard her may have been during my time on the JET Programme or when I got back to Canada. There was a music video (not the one above) where I first saw the Nova Scotia-born Cole but the one song that I've always associated her with is her wonderful cover of the haunting "Calling You" which came out in 1991. I was struck by her gamine beauty and it was like seeing a perfect combination of Audrey Hepburn and Shirley MacLaine.

But I did say that this was going to be a Yuletide-themed ROY article, so I'm going to go with "The Christmas Blues" by the Holly Cole Trio. The song came with the rest of the trio's album "Christmas Blues", their very first recording, in fact, in 1989.  Aaron Davis was on the piano while David Piltch was plucking away on the wood bass. Meanwhile, Cole had her own fine instrument in the form of her voice as she playfully and seductively sang us into relaxation with our mug of cocoa. I was able to get my own copy of the song through an Xmas compilation.

For the longest time, I'd only known the Cole cover but I eventually found out that the original, which was created by Sammy Kahn and David Jack Holt, had been recorded by Dean Martin in October 1953. I'd say that "The Christmas Blues" could be given an honorary status as a typical Christmas kayo kyoku as the protagonist is going through a lonely and partner-less Holiday season while the rest of humanity is enjoying themselves as usual. 

I just had to include this televised version of Dino singing "The Christmas Blues", and I think that may be Kahn himself on the piano. Not sure what it was about Kahn shaking Martin's head vigorously at the end, but I could have imagined Dino screaming "KAHNNNNNN!" years before William Shatner did on "Star Trek II" (sorry...I'll just see myself out there). 😁 Bad joke aside, during my near six decades here on Earth, I only caught the last few years of the musical-variety show era in America but I still have a fond memory of seeing scenes like these. 

Anyways, since Wikipedia only mentioned the year that Cole's version of "The Christmas Blues" was released, I'll just go with some of the award winners at the 1989 Japan Record Awards for the comparison.

Record of the Year: Wink -- Samishii Nettaigyo （淋しい熱帯魚）

Album of the Year: Anri -- Circuit of Rainbow

Best New Artist: Marcia -- Furimukeba Yokohama （ふりむけばヨコハマ）

Dozan Miki (DOZAN11) -- Lifetime Respect

 

Yes, I gather that my three articles for today all have some connection with last night's "Uta Con"（うたコン）episode, but seriously, I have to give my props to the NHK music show because it reacquainted me with a song that I hadn't heard in almost two decades. The worst thing was that I'd also never paid attention to the singer or the title all that much because I was never really much of a reggae fan, so I completely forgot about them.

And yet, I remember the tune for not only that reggae beat but also for the official music video. It was shown weekly for quite a few months on the rankings programs and on the local music video channel on Sunday mornings. That's considering that an intimate environment and nudity were displayed, but I gather that was the point of "Lifetime Respect" by reggae musician, singer-songwriter and author Dozan Miki（三木道三）, who currently goes with the stage name of DOZAN11.

"Lifetime Respect" was Miki's 21st single in a career that began from 1992. It was released in May 2001 and it's an ardent love promise to his dearest sung in the Kansai dialect (Miki was born in Nara), and such is his naked devotion to the lady he loves that he makes it clear as well through the images in the video. The song would become the first Japanese reggae tune to hit No. 1 on Oricon and it became the No. 9 single of that year, going Double Platinum. In July 2001, Miki's first album as a major artist "Lifetime Respect" was released which hit No. 2 on the charts and finished the year ranked at No. 58.

DOZAN11 has continued to release singles and albums up to the present day including one of the former from June 2023 titled "SAGANTOSU Anthem". His most recent album was "Japan be Irie!!" from 2014. Incidentally, back in 1997, there was also a reggae-pop tune that also enjoyed some success on the charts albeit not quite as high as "Lifetime Respect", the ending theme for the long-running series "Odoru Dai Sosasen"（踊る大捜査線....Bayside Shakedown）, "Love Somebody".

Alcohol Kayo by J-Canuck

Doing another reference to last night's "Uta Con"（うたコン）, the episode began with Sayuri Ishikawa's（石川さゆり）non-enka hit, the jazzy "Whiskey ga O-Suki deshou?" (ウィスキーが、お好きでしょ）and the singer naturally sang it in the middle of a whiskey distillery. Not sure if she got free samples afterwards; it certainly couldn't have been beforehand. 

But it did get me to think about another Author's Picks list about kayo kyoku involving alcoholic libations. It's a natural fit, too, since Japan has been said to possess a bar culture. Noting how much the Japanese love their drink whether it be the native sake and shochu or the imported beer, whiskey, cocktails, etc, the culture has basically woven itself into the practice of doing business in the nation. Weirdly enough, I never considered myself even a social drinker. How I (or my liver) managed to survive nearly two decades in Japan, I'll never know but I was practically forced to learn to appreciate beer in mass quantities.

However, before this article ends up as a sermon at Alcoholics Anonymous, let me show you some Alcohol Kayo Kyoku. 

(1990) Sayuri Ishikawa -- Whiskey ga O-Suki deshou? (ウィスキーが、お好きでしょ）

(1991) Takashi Hosokawa -- Oenka, Ikimasu (応援歌、いきます)

(1977) Mieko Nishijima -- Gin Lime （ジンライム）

(1977) Yujiro Ishihara -- Brandy Glass (ブランデーグラス）

(1988) Ikuzo Yoshi -- Sake yo （酒よ）

(1994) Chisato Moritaka -- Kibun Sokai （気分爽快）

Hiroshi Miyama -- Hokkai Minato Bushi（北海港節）

 

Last night's "Uta Con"（うたコン）had a mix of stuff but one highlight was seeing singer-songwriter Takao Horiuchi（堀内孝雄）perform "Shuushifu"（秋止符）, a hit from his days with Alice（アリス）alongside his personal friend and professional partner Shinji Tanimura（谷村新司）who had passed away some weeks ago. The poignant thing was that the two had been thinking about doing a nationwide tour but that plan has obviously had to stop.

Another guest on the show was enka singer Hiroshi Miyama（三山ひろし）who will be celebrating his 15th anniversary in the singing business next year. Last night, he sung his latest single which was released in July this year, "Hokkai Minato Bushi" (Song of a Northern Sea Port). Written by Haku Ide（いではく）and composed by Tetsuya Gen（弦哲也）, I can describe this one in the same way that I did for Miyama's previous tune that I posted earlier this year "Donkozaka"（どんこ坂）: it doesn't get more enka than that.

One of the batteries that powers an enka song is the story of the song's protagonist jumping headfirst into the fray to master his fears and weaknesses against the elements or other things. Not surprisingly then, there have been a number of enka tunes revolving around the nation's fishing industry whose boats often have to deal with stormy seas to get their much-needed catch of seafood. "Kyodai Bune"（兄弟船）by Ichiro Toba（鳥羽一郎）is arguably the most famous.

"Hokkai Minato Bushi" is probably the newest one and as Miyama has noted in interviews, he has to attack the song with brio to properly express the emotions involved within a man in a family line of fishermen providing for his family, despite the risks. The melody by Gen is appropriately intrepid and tough except for a middle part which shows off a calm period...maybe it's clear skies and pristine ocean before the storm rolls in. There doesn't seem to be any particular port being indicated here so the the harbour could be anywhere in Japan's northernmost island of Hokkaido or even in the northern Tohoku region of the main island of Honshu. "Hokkai Minato Bushi" managed to reach No. 21 on Oricon.

Kyary Pamyu Pamyu -- Kimi ni 100 Percent（キミに100パーセント）

 

Considering all of the recent obituary-style articles that I've been posting over the last several weeks here on KKP for singers and songwriters that have suddenly passed away, it's always nice when I can write on a happy event for those people. On my Twitter feed earlier today, I saw a photo of singer and pop culture icon Kyary Pamyu Pamyu（きゃりーぱみゅぱみゅ）all gussied up in a wedding dress alongside a handsome young man, and I had initially pegged it to be some kind of promotion. Well, goofy me...I soon realized that KPP did indeed get married back several months earlier in the spring to actor Shono Hayama（葉山奨之）but apparently the wedding party was only held yesterday on November 27th. There's a link to her Instagram account with the happy couple. My congratulations to the Hayamas and their families.

Well, I was trying to see if I could find something appropriate by her to post in commemoration of this blessed event. At first, I wondered whether I could reach for "Family Party"（ファミリーパーティー）but I'd already written on that several years ago. But then, I found this earlier single titled "Kimi ni 100 Percent".

Written and composed by Yasutaka Nakata（中田ヤスタカ）as Kyary's 4th single from January 2013, as with "Family Party", "Kimi ni 100 Percent" (100 Percent for You) has a connection with the anime "Crayon-shin"（クレヨンしんちゃん）as a theme song. Appropriately and happily kiddie in tone, it's still about a youngling trying to express those budding feelings of amity or even love for a buddy...most likely the former but I think it can still apply to the now-married Kyary Pamyu Pamyu. 

"Kimi ni 100 Percent" was part of a double A-side CD single alongside the song "Furisodation"（ふりそでーしょん）. It hit No. 3 on Oricon and went Gold. Incidentally, I can only wonder what a wedding reception for Kyary Pamyu Pamyu would be like. Ah, also let's not mistake the title for a similarly-titled song, "Kimi wa 1000%"（君は1000％）.

Friends of Earth -- Decline of the City

 

Supposedly by the time I become an octogenarian in the year 2045, this mega-project will have opened somewhere in Tokyo Bay. But at the moment, it looks to be a mere fanciful design on an architect's hard drive. This is Sky Mile Tower, 1700 metres of steel, glass and whatever other materials can be thrown in there that will be built somewhere in Tokyo Bay. It even has its own Wikipedia page. I'm not sure if too many people are aware of this though; I asked my Skype student in Tokyo about it and it was definitely breaking news for him.

But that's been kinda my impression of Japan's capital city for decades. Onwards and upwards. Even during a perceived recession in the nation sometime during my many years there, I never had the impression that Tokyo was in some major economic doldrums. There was always some new steel-and-glass tower going up in a particular area at any one time. And look at the last decade when I've been back here in Toronto; Tokyo has been undergoing some further redevelopments.

So it's rather ironic that I'm introducing this particular song titled "Decline of the City" by the short-lived band Friends of Earth（フレンズ・オブ・アース）or FOE, powered by Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）. I mentioned about them last month through their "In My Jungle", and with "Decline of the City", created as a technopop instrumental designed by FOE member Masatoshi Nishimura（西村昌敏）, it's got some mighty rumbling rhythms underneath those shiny synthesizers with some DJ dance beats in there. It truthfully sounds more like "Rise of the City". It doesn't strike me as being particularly major chord upbeat but it's intrepid in its path going forward which has buildings going up by the street load. 

"Decline of the City" is the final track on the March 1986 12-inch single "F.O.E#1/DECLINE OF O.T.T.". Since I couldn't leave an unknown set of initials alone, I had to find out what that "O.T.T." meant. Hosono was the one who coined the three letters used to describe the music that he's created with a driving feel using a detailed mechanical beat. They stand for "over the top", according to the J-Wiki article on the group.

Miki Matsubara -- Hello Today（ハロー・トゥデイ）

 

Van Paugam let us City Pop fans know today that November 28th is the late Miki Matsubara's（松原みき） birthday. She would have been 64 today. So, if any of you feel like it, play that copy of "Mayonaka no Door"（真夜中のドアー）to your hearts' content.

Last year, I was a day late but I did commemorate her birthday with her 1982 "Bay City Romance", and today I'm doing so with her third single "Hello Today" which was released in April 1980. Written by Yoshiko Miura（三浦徳子）and composed/arranged by Masaaki Omura（大村雅朗）, it's the Matsubara City Pop that everyone loves with plenty of that disco funk goodness and Miki's purringly sultry vocals. The lyrics seem to tell a story of a footloose-and-fancy-free lady enjoying life day-by-day and not even letting potential romance get in the way of her life.

I'm not sure whether "Hello Today" was ever included in Matsubara's original albums but it has popped up in at least one BEST compilation of her works such as her July 2008 "Best Collection" under the Pony Canyon label. Finally, it's poignant to note that not only has Matsubara left this mortal coil, but songwriters Miura and Omura have also passed away with the former's departure just a few weeks ago.

Jun Ariyoshi/Yoshihiro Kai -- Rendezvous（ﾗﾝﾃﾞﾌﾞｰ）

 

Those first few seconds had me wondering whether I was going to get a kayo version of a mariachi song. However, Jun Ariyoshi（有吉ジュン）quickly went into 1950s/1960s pop mode with "Rendezvous", her 2nd single from January 1977. Written and composed by Yoshihiro Kai（甲斐よしひろ）of the Kai Band（甲斐バンド）with arrangement by Koji Makaino（馬飼野康二）, it's a spirited tune that had me thinking of good ol' Richie Cunningham and Lori Beth Allen. 

Ariyoshi's time in the limelight, though, was quite brief. A year after entering ballet school as a junior high sophomore, she became a regular assistant on the NTV show "Zen Nihon Kayo Senshuken"（全日本歌謡選手権...All-Japan Kayo Championship） before making her debut as a singer in 1976. She released a total of five singles up to 1978 and also had a few roles in TV dramas before she called it a day in 1979 and retiring from show business.

Kai himself covered "Rendezvous" himself many years later when he released his October 2011 album "Homecoming KAI BOOTLEG SERIES VOL. 1". This one has got a lot more rock in it along with a bit of hip-hop, thanks to rapper GAKU-MC.

Kuniko Yamada -- Tetsugaku Shiyou（哲学しよう）

 

When it comes to veteran comedienne Kuniko Yamada（山田邦子）, who I saw as the Japanese version of America's Carol Burnett, I mostly remember her time spearheading her own Fuji-TV Wednesday night show "Kuni-chan no Yamada Katsutenai Terebi" (やまだかつてないテレビ....Kuni's Yamada Unprecedented TV) during my days and nights living in the mountains of Gunma Prefecture in the late 1980s going into the 1990s. However, I also remember that in the early years of that decade, Yamada had gotten her start on the popular comedy-variety program, "Oretachi Hyokinzoku" (オレたちひょうきん族....We Are The Wild and Crazy Guys) , also a Fuji-TV property and one that included EPO's cover of "Downtown" as a theme song. Specifically, she had one of her own segments called "Hyokin Ekaki Uta"（ひょうきん絵かき歌...Wild and Crazy Illustration Song） in which she drew some amusing minimalist pictures with a sly twist while a chorus backed her up. I think the above set though was one of the more modest segments. Man, was she a fast talker!

Yamada was also a singer and again, it was mostly on "Kuni-chan no Yamada Katsutenai Terebi" that I saw her perform these somewhat tongue-in-cheek parody tunes, taking affectionate shots at the current hits or even genres. What I hadn't been aware is that she'd been releasing music from time to time since basically her debut in 1981. 

Although, Yamada's day job remained in the comedy field, she had the big-name composers helping out in her tunes such as the late Eiichi Ohtaki（大滝詠一）and Spectrum bassist Naoki Watanabe（渡辺直樹）. In December 1982, Yellow Magic Orchestra's Haruomi Hosono（細野晴臣）wove a simmering synthpop number called "Tetsugaku Shiyou" (Let's Philosophize). Yamada, as she did with her other songs, created the lyrics about being a little over-the-top in trying to seduce a fetching young man. I'm not quite sure at this point how serious or ironic she was being with "Tetsugaku Shiyou", although if I'm going to use the Burnett analogy once more, it would be as if America's veteran comedienne attempted a Carly Simon-type pop song.

Shoji Suzuki and Rhythm Aces -- Jingle Bells

 

Happy Monday! I was actually going to post this one up yesterday but then I got distracted by Keisuke Kuwata & His Friends' "Kissin' Christmas: Christmas dakara janai"（クリスマスだからじゃない）and the story behind it.

I found out about swinging jazz clarinet player Shoji Suzuki（鈴木章治）while I was listening to Scott's podcast "Holly Jolly X'masu" several days ago when he was profiling Suzuki's "Merry Christmas" album from 1963. His group back then was the Dixieland All-Stars and the Christmas stuff on the album did indeed sound like a Yuletide walk through New Orleans.

A couple of years earlier though, the Yokohama native had released a Xmas-themed album titled "Swingin' Christmas" with his Rhythm Aces. What leads off the album is the veteran chestnut "Jingle Bells" and sure enough, Suzuki takes the lead on his clarinet before giving way to the marimba and the piano. Everyone has their time to improvise but things are cut short and sweet at a little under three minutes.

Suzuki actually began his pro career as an alto saxophonist in 1947 and was a member of a number of bands until he led the Rhythm Aces. Depending on which article you read on J-Wiki or Wikipedia, the legendary swing man himself, Benny Goodman came to a Ginza club in 1951 or 1957 to listen to Suzuki and the Rhythm Aces perform and was very impressed with the band. Suzuki was releasing original albums between 1957 and 1992. He passed away at the age of 63 in 1995. Scott has just posted his latest podcast on the entire album, so have a listen to that through the link for the 1961 album above. As well, I posted a ROY article on Duke Ellington's iconic take on "Jingle Bells" last year so have a go at that one, too.

Ikemen 3 -- Koi no Matenrou（恋の摩天楼）

 

The latest mega commercial complex got its grand opening in Tokyo on Friday. Azabudai Hills opened up its doors to the masses and it joins its Hills siblings: Roppongi Hills, Toranomon Hills and Omotesando Hills. There's been a lot of construction and change in my old stomping grounds since my last visit there in 2017, so I've got a feeling that I may need a new guidebook to grope my way around Japan's capital.

So, in tribute to that event, I was searching for any matenrou-based music since I've encountered a few such songs over the years. Well, it didn't take too long before I came across this new tune. "Koi no Matenrou" (Skyscrapers of Love) is a snappy and snazzy song about finding love among those steel and glass towers and holding on for dear life because the couple doesn't know what tomorrow will bring. 

The December 2009 song is so far the only single performed by Ikemen 3（イケメン3）. The three singers involved all have their own KKP files: Daisuke Kitagawa（北川大介）, Hiroshi Takeshima（竹島宏） and Keisuke Yamauchi（山内惠介）. Considering that they were put together as a male enka aidoru trio under the aegis of the predecessor of NHK's "Uta Con"（うたコン）, "Kayo Concert"（歌謡コンサート）, thoughts of Gosanke came to mind. Sure enough, the J-Wiki article for Ikemen 3 were given the nickname of the Heisei Era Gosanke. Not sure if there have been any reunions among the three but now that almost 14 years have passed by, I think the aidoru label can be taken off.

"Koi no Matenrou" was written by Koyomi Asa（麻こよみ）and composed by Kohei Miyuki（幸耕平）. It's again one of those songs that can be quite amorphous in terms of its genre. I can go with neo versions of enka and Mood Kayo but I can also use the convenient term of New Adult Music with a kick of Latin thrown in for good measure. In the end, it does feel like an adventure of romance in the big city.

Keisuke Kuwata & His Friends -- Kissin' Christmas: Christmas dakara janai（クリスマスだからじゃない）

 

I have to make an admission here. I was one of the kids who saw "The Star Wars Holiday Special" in 1978 when it was first broadcast. And even back in the day, when everyone was going gaga over "Star Wars", I was one of the guys who stared aghast at Carrie Fisher singing the famed theme by John Williams at the end of the special. I think I ended up dropping a couple of Ewoks in the pool that night (yes, I know...Ewoks wouldn't show up for another 5 years) However, the holiday special did provide us with the very first appearance of bounty hunter Boba Fett.

Living in Toronto at the time, I never got to see the NTV special "Merry X'mas Show"（メリー・クリスマス・ショー）which was broadcast on Christmas Eve 1986. Reading from the J-Wiki notes for the article on this special, apparently the idea for "Merry X'mas Show" was germinated by rockin' bad boy Koji Kikkawa（吉川晃司）when he approached Southern All Stars' vocalist Keisuke Kuwata（桑田佳祐）. It didn't start well with the former accusing the latter of being one of many artists who made Japanese pop music as boring as condensation and things almost came to blows between the two. Going into the wee hours though, the fight mellowed down into a talk after which Kuwata decided on a plan to get singers and bands which wouldn't normally show up on television to provide a Xmas-themed performance for a couple of hours. The result was so successful that another special was done exactly a year later.

For the finale of the first special in 1986, a song was created specifically for the big ending which would be performed by everyone who appeared. "Kissin' Christmas: Christmas dakara janai" (Not Because It's Christmas) was written by Yumi Matsutoya（松任谷由実）and composed by Kuwata as a romantic Yuletide ballad about a couple sealing their fate with a kiss and insisting that it's not a Xmas thing that has brought them even closer. With KUWATA BAND arranging everything, "Kissin' Christmas" was never made commercially available in the record shops for some reason, perhaps to keep things as special as they could considering all of the people who were in the final performance.

However, the song finally did get included onto a CD through Kuwata's 3rd BEST compilation "I LOVE YOU -now & forever-" from July 2012, but Yuming（ユーミン）wasn't involved in the recording with Kuwata taking care of all vocals. The album was at No. 1 for three weeks running and was the No. 6 release of the year.

Now, tomorrow on November 27th, an online remake of "Kissin' Christmas" is to be sold with Kuwata and Yuming singing together for the first time since that 1986 finale with its CD single equivalent on the shelves as of December 20th. You can also hear some shoutouts to at least one other J-Xmas tune and a kayo commemorating Japanese New Year's.

Tadaharu Nakano -- Rokyoku Blues (浪曲ブルース)/Jazz Rokyoku (ジャズ浪曲)

 Music moves with the times

The times move with music

They follow each other, round and round. What will be in this time? Tango? Blues?

What's that, Mr. Nakano*? You know the answer? Well, c'mon up! The stage is yours. Show us how you combine the 30s' most fashionable genre with the most anachronistic one with the fantastic R. Hatter.

Sometimes, if you want something you
just gotta do it yourself. So, I did.
I'm liking my handmade Nakano bromide.

From my articles in the past year or so, I think I've let on that I like Tadaharu Nakano (中野忠晴). I mean, he was quite spiffy and I always thought he was pretty cute. "China Tango" and his other tango-inspired works undoubtly made him more attractive. What made him a little more than a mainstay on my ryukoka list, however, was his penchant for humour in his smooth, jazzy tunes either on his own or with his jazz quartet, the Columbia Nakano Rhythm Boys. The song that introduced me to that side of him was "Rokyoku Blues."

"Rokyoku Blues"

According to the official rokyoku association's website, this traditional narrative art with shamisen accompaniment originated from the Meiji era, but may have had its roots hundreds of years ago in older narrative art forms like joruri. Also known as naniwabushi, it was a form of entertainment by the people for the people and its topics often featured stories of heroic chauvinism, loyalty, filial piety, romantic tragedies, etc. Proud Edo-era samurai, forlorn ronin, and morally grey yakuza were common protagonists. In the early Showa era (the mid-1920s to the early 1940s), rokyoku was particularly popular, appearing on records and heard on radio waves. It was even promoted by an increasingly nationalistic government because it showcased "appropriate" values. In this very same period but on the opposite side of the coin, jazz and Western culture were all the rage in a nation also trying to play catch up and overtake its Western compatriots. It was modern, it was stylish, it was what you heard in a fashionable Ginza cafe on the gramophone with your coffee. It was the way forward, not like stuffy rokyoku and its feudalistic themes. Naturally, pop music took note of the popularity of both, creating more traditional Japanese-themed songs in the likes of the matatabi kayo genre, but also experimenting with Western sounds like jazz, blues, tango, etc. Often times, these two starkly contrasting types of music were somewhat removed from each other. But sometimes you had a Tadaharu Nakano and a Ryoichi Hattori (服部良一), pioneers of jazz and blues in early Japanese pop music, to bring them together. Many fascinating combos were created and I think it's fair to say that "Rokyoku Blues" was one of them.

Released in August 1939, "Rokyoku Blues" kicks off in dramatic fashion with blaring trumpets and Nakano's booming baritone. His introductory recitation is reminiscent of rokyoku's tanka or "spoken dialogue" section. Despite Mr. Nakano being classically-trained, I thought his attempt at a Japanese-like (nihon cho) delivery filled with kobushi and akusei like a rokyoku artist was pretty solid, even if a little stiff. So far so rokyoku. And then the jazz kicks in jaunty Hattori fashion. Mr. Nakano maintains a bit of that akusei and gives us an animated and rather meta run-down of the tropes of naniwabushi stories and characters. Providing the words was Soanshi Mizuno (水野草庵子... I'm not sure how his first name is pronounced), who was actually known for penning many a rokyoku piece, so we know we're getting the real deal, even if silly. I'm no expert in the genre, but here are the references I could catch: 

1. Asataro Itawari (板割浅太郎) and Mt. Akagi from "Kunisada Chuji" (国定忠治), including a straight-up shout-out to its ryukoka counterpart, Taro Shoji's (東海林太郎) "Akagi no Komoriuta" (赤城の子守唄) 

2. The Tone river, probably a reference to Miki Hirate (平手造酒) in "Tenpo no Suikoden" (天保水滸伝) and/or Mohei Komagata (駒形茂兵衛) in "Ippon-gatana Dohyo Iri" (一本刀土俵入り).

3. The one-eyed rogue of Shizuoka, Mori no Ishimatsu (森の石松) in "Ishimatsu Sanju Ishibune" (石松三十石舟). 

All ninkyo mono (samurai-yakuza-themed stuff), but all some of the most well-loved tales. Also, many of the lines from "Rokyoku Blues" seem to have come from the no.3, like a personal favourite, "Baka wa shinanakya naoranai!" (Stupidity is only cured with death.) Not because I watched/heard the original work or anything, but I simply agree with the sentiment. 

On the note of no.1, even though I'm not an aficionado on Hattori Melody by any stretch, references to other songs within a song he made seemed to be a Hattori-ism, especially if the party-loving composer with the widest grin writes the words himself. "Rokyoku Blues" was written by Mizuno, but seeing as to how "Akagi no Komoriuta" was plonked into a stanza, I can't help but feel that Hattori may have had some say in its creation. That's just my flimsy theory, but maybe there is some evidence...

"Jazz Rokyoku"

On a slightly different note, I actually knew "Rokyoku Blues" as "Jazz Rokyoku." That was because a video with the latter title was the one that caught my attention at first. However, I eventually found out that "Jazz Rokyoku" was a slightly different song and that what I'd been listening to the whole time was actually titled "Rokyoku Blues." Probably a minor mistake on the uploader's part, but I don't blame them since the existence of both is a bit of a strange one and I'm still trying to wrap my head around it myself. 

So, "Jazz Rokyoku" was actually released earlier in 1938 with Hattori in charge of both music and lyrics, and it was recorded by Mr. Nakano with the Rhythm Boys. And then somewhere in the next year or so, Nakano recorded "Rokyoku Blues" on his own with the words by Mizuno. The odd thing is that only "Rokyoku Blues" can be found on Nakano's discography on 78Music, while only "Jazz Rokyoku" can be found in the discography list in Hattori's autobiography "Boku no Ongaku Jinsei" (ぼくの音楽人生).  Nevertheless, I guess you could say this is a case of "Same same but different." Both do sound somewhat similar, although "Jazz" has more raucous percussions and a bossa nova groove to it. "Jazz" is also far less heavy on the explicit rokyoku references. Instead, I think it has naniwabushi theme stereotypes, like the joys and romantic tragedies of daily life. The "Baka wa shinanakya naoranai" is still there, though so thank you R. Hatter. Hattori originally writing "Jazz" was why I'm thinking that it was plausible he had some input in the later day "Blues." But, y'know, I could be wrong. Either way, I am personally more a fan of "Blues" because I do love those on-the-nose shout-outs and its smoother arrangement.

As usual, the historical information on the music industry and society were garnered from my understandings of Kiyomaro Kikuchi's "Showa Enka no Rekishi." 

*Because I don't know if Tadaharu Nakano went by any nickname, I've decided to simply call him Mr. Nakano. But I have to clarify that it's different from Ichiro Fujiyama's "Mr. Fujiyama." The latter was derived from his prim-and-proper style, the former from his suaveness. The other option was "Teddy" because my smooth brain thought Tadaharu > Ted > Teddy. But, y'know, sometimes you just can't let intrusive thoughts like that win.

The Works of Ayumi Date（伊達歩）, aka Shizuka Ijuin（伊集院静）

From Yahoo.jp

Unfortunately, the Japanese music world and the literary world lost a major figure on November 24th. Shizuka Ijuin passed away at the age of 73 from cancer. Born as a 2nd-generation Korean-Japanese in 1950 in Yamaguchi Prefecture, he was known as Cho Chung-rae（조충래）but his Japanese name was Tadaki Nishiyama（西山忠来）. He later became a celebrated fiction author under the pen name of Shizuka Ijuin who won the Naoki Prize and the Yoshikawa Eiji Literary Award.

According to his J-Wiki and Random House files, he wore some other hats such as commercial director, advertising executive and lyricist. For that last occupation, he took on the name Ayumi Date for which he has some representation on the blog. He came up with lyrics for a wide variety of singers in the pop, aidoru, rock and City Pop categories. Here are some of those songs. Of course, I offer my condolences to his family, friends and fans.

(1981) Masahiko Kondo -- Gingiragin ni Sarigenaku （ギンギラギンにさりげなく）

In a casual way, that's my way

Just live your life casually, casually

(I got you baby, I need you baby

I want you baby, Right on!!)

(I got you baby, I need you baby

I want you baby, Right on!!)

(1979) Bread & Butter -- Nagisa ni Ikou （渚に行こう）

I wanna walk together with you

on the beach that hasn't woken up yet

The remaining light of the stars

is on your lips

Kiss me gently

(1979) Yuko Asano -- Summer Champion（サマー・チャンピオン）

Summer Queen, Tempting Summer Queen

Woo Woo Summer Queen Summer Love

When I turn around, she whispers and hugs me

Looking at me with admiration, I will become the one and only champion

(1979) Mari Natsuki -- Wing（ウィング）

Forgotten in the crowd

I feel nostalgia when I go down the stairs

at the small station

I hear "Diana"

When I go up the white hill

The unbearable love

is surrounded by the scent of saffron

EPO -- Shiroi Machi Aoi Kage（白い街 青い影）

 

Happy weekend! Went out earlier today to meet an old friend from Winnipeg for lunch and then returned knowing that I have to launch the 2023 edition of the Xmas season on "Kayo Kyoku Plus". Allow me to bring in once more the unofficial mascot for the blog, Kayo Kyoku「旭花耀」who got her 2nd appearance last Tuesday. This time, though, she's here to also commemorate the Christmas season starting from today and lasting until the end of Christmas Day in a month. It won't be a daily thing but enough songs will be posted to make it clear.

Let's start off with EPO's "Shiroi Machi Aoi Kage" (White Streets, Blue Shadows) which was her 17th single from December 1988. I first heard it on Scott's "Holly Jolly X'masu" podcast from late September since the song was also a part of "Winter Tales" a J-Xmas song compilation that was actually released a month earlier in November by the record company MIDI. A concert version of "Shiroi Machi Aoi Kage" can also heard on the March 1989 "Sparks" which was her first live album.

Written and composed by EPO with Danny Schogger providing the arrangement, the song has got that hint of gospel soul, and as often is the case with a J-Xmas tune, the melody can be cheerful and/or romantic, but the lyrics tell of a breakup happening right on the street. That's a major ouch!😖 But it does sound beautiful especially with Hiroyasu Yaguchi's（矢口博康）saxophone solo. The single peaked at No. 97 on Oricon but "Sparks" did better by placing in at No. 44.

Yutaka Kimura Speaks ~ Japanese City Pop Masterpieces 100: Tatsuro Yamashita -- Circus Town

 

Number: 033

Lyricist: Minako Yoshida

Composer: Tatsuro Yamashita

Arranger: Charles Calello

From Yamashita's 1976 album "Circus Town"

A 16-beat number embellished with that gorgeous opening, "Circus Town" is a solo debut that should be commemorated. Written and composed with the city of New York in mind, it's a song that's associated with the hustle and bustle of the streets. Charles Calello, who had his finger on the pulse of the East Coast pop scene at the time, made a world which is the perfect textbook that combines the dynamism and sophistication that can only be found in the home of metropolitan sound.

The above comes from "Disc Collection Japanese City Pop Revised" (2020).

Mami Koyama -- Distance no Manatsu（ディスタンスの真夏）

 

Man, when Arale-chan（アラレちゃん）wants to funk it up, she really funks it up!

Well, actually I am talking more about Arale-chan's seiyuu Mami Koyama（小山茉美）. Strangely, her J-Wiki profile only lists her anime character songs in her discography and nothing of her records and singles as a pop singer. One album she did put out in 1985 is her "Vivid".

The opening track is "Distance no Manatsu" (Midsummer Distance) which has been described by one commenter as being similar to a Phil Collins song although they didn't identify it. However, I think I know which one it is..."Sussudio", thanks to the keyboard riffs. However, JASRAC lists it as being written by Keiko Aso（麻生圭子）and composed by Etsuko Yamakawa（山川恵津子）, and it's a pretty decent boogying City Pop song of its time. Not sure whether I could ever see Arale-chan, Senbei or the rest of the Penguin Village characters bop to it, but I would be interested in hearing more of this "Vivid".

Milk Talk -- Ah Be Rue

 

As with the previous article's Vantage & The Myracle and their "Lonely Sunday Night", I also discovered the electro boogie duo Milk Talk a few nights ago via a "Japan Times" article that had been published a week ago. Consisting of vocalist Yuqi "Q.i" Shinohara and New Jersey-born multi-instrumentalist Miles "Hair Kid" Ungar, they met back in the middle of the 2010s in New York City and very quickly, they put out their "Plastic New York" as their first song in collaboration.

However, the first song that I've tried out by the duo is "Ah Be Rue" which was released in 2019. The tune, which is a variation on the Japanese verb abiru（浴びる）meaning "to take a shower" or "to bathe in", has a certain leopard-like grace and stealth and hidden power to pounce. I do love the nostalgic funkiness and Q.i's sexy and kittenish vocals. 

Immediately below is the music video for "Ah Be Rue" and then at the bottom is a Studio Funk interview with the duo themselves. I will definitely be covering more of their discography going into the new year.

Vantage & The Myracle feat. Hibiya -- Sunday Lonely Night

 

I mentioned in the previous article involving Rei and Ginger Root's collaboration, "Love is Beautiful", that I had found some gold nuggets past midnight a few days ago. "Love is Beautiful" is indeed one of the nuggets, and another one happens to be the subject of this article. 

When City Pop first became known to the international masses several years ago, enthusiasts absorbed and then sought out their new musical plaything for some time, even traveling to the source nation for singles and albums. Then, some of the more artistic and enterprising folks outside of Japan decided to make their own bona fide City Pop tunes in the 21st century after analyzing the chord progressions and hooks. KKP has posted a few of these including last week's "SHINKIRO" by VTubers Houshou Marine（宝鐘マリン）& Gawr Gura（がうる・ぐら）.

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a lot of information so far on Vantage aside from the fact that they are a Tokyo-based electronic artist who have a wide SNS presence including a YouTube channel and that they have made their own Vaporwave. But last month in October, Vantage & The Myracle released their "...first full authentic City Pop song" known as "Sunday Lonely Night". I'm assuming that Hibiya is the vocalist for the song and on hearing it for the first time, I got those early 1980s Anri（杏里）vibes when she was being helped out by Toshiki Kadomatsu（角松敏生）. The summery disco City Pop is there along with the horns which got me thinking of not only Anri but Tatsuro Yamashita（山下達郎）, too. 

What is also cute is how the music video is done up like a gauzy karaoke video clip after it's been through the ancient VHS machine a few hundred times. Nice to see those 80s examples of technology including the portable radio, the boxy car and even that electric fan running in the lass' room. I've got one of those behind me as well.

Rei featuring Ginger Root -- Love is Beautiful

 

Welcome to another round of Urban Contemporary Fridays on "Kayo Kyoku Plus" and hopefully all of you down in the United States have been able to digest most or all of your turkey dinner in the past 24 hours. I gather then that we are about to enter the Yuletide season. Officially on the blog, we'll be doing that from tomorrow on November 25th so stay tuned for some Xmas songs for the next few weeks leading up to Christmas Day.

A few days ago late at night, I pulled off what I call the equivalent of skipping a stone on the pond at least a few times across to the other bank when I discovered a succession of interesting tunes. Let's say that I didn't get to bed until rather late because I had to peruse these new gems for some time past midnight.

The first one is actually a collaboration of a couple of people who already have representation on KKP: snazzy and twinkly 80s-loving Ginger Root finishing up his Kimiko Takeguchi arc last year and guitar princess Rei who I wrote about a few years ago with her "Lazy Loser". Rei's new mini-album, "VOICE", is due out next week on November 29th but her own YouTube channel has put out the first track's music video in the last couple of weeks.

"Love is Beautiful" is the first track with Ginger Root and Rei working together on the song and the result is a calm and groovy tune combining Rei's slightly husky vocals and strumming guitar with Ginger Root's quintessentially sparkly keyboards. The music video has Ginger ravenously searching music store after music store for that one rare album, something that I can relate to very well after my own occasional quests in the CD store-filled neighbourhood of Shibuya and beyond. I've gotten lucky from time to time. Hama Okamoto from OKAMOTO's is also helping out as well with the music and donuts.

Taro Shoji & Bin Uehara -- Naki Warai no Jinsei (泣き笑ひの人生)

Oh, boy, these past few months have been a doozy. Even though the season has changed to my favourite one, there were just so many events taxing on the mental health both in and out of school that has left me exhausted. But, as it turned out, when your classmates are all grey and your professors can only give the smile of pain (among many other examples around me), I knew I wasn't the only one going through it. On the plus side, I came out of it in one piece and at least autumn break's here for some respite. But in times like this, my encouragement songs have never been more helpful, their encouraging messages is giving me that extra morale boost. One of those songs has been "Naki Warai no Jinsei" (A life of tears and laughter).

 

When I was young, Mom would always rattle off the phrase, "If you fall, pick yourself up," in Mandarin. It was meant to get me, an insolent child who cut up her knees ever so often from running amok, to not cry when being patched up. It worked, and years down the road the mantra still holds up in the context of everyday life events when something doesn't go all that smoothly and you figuratively fall on your face. To pick yourself up no matter how many times you falter is a sentiment that I feel forms the core of enka and the kayo that came before it. Nevertheless, it was a pleasant surprise to hear "Naki Warai no Jinsei" beginning with a phrase that echoed my mother's words: 

Nanatsu koronde yatsu wa okite (Fall seven times, get up eight times)

I believe this originates from the four-character phrase, "Shichiten hakki" (七転八起), literally meaning seven tumbles, eight rises. Uttering those words was the statuesque Taro Shoji (東海林太郎) in his duet with fellow Polydor Records junior Bin Uehara (上原敏). Released in April 1938, "Naki Wari no Jinsei" was penned by Kinya Shimada (島田磬也) and composed by Keio Iida (飯田景応). A collaboration every ryukoka would dream of. But with war already in the offing, singer collabs within the same company were exceedingly common, from duets to chorales. I reckon it's got to do with inspiring national unity for better or for worse... It did make for some dream collaborations like this one, though.

On that note, I actually came across this duet when I was starting to get into Bin-san's stuff and chose him as the subject for one of my senior year papers on media theory. Specifically, I was looking for some of his works that would've possibly inspired optimism and nationalism in its listeners during the late 1930s, i.e. when the Second Sino-Japanese War began and the Pacific War loomed overhead. Long story short, was one of the three songs I picked for analysis, with part of the reason being the quoted phrase. But what does the rest of the song say? From my understanding, we have an exchange between our two protagonists played by Taro and Bin-san, the former, the older of the two, taking on the wiser, more seasoned role, mirroring reality. I'm not exactly what they're supposed to be, but I think they could be wandering nagashi or street musicians. Clearly, it's not the easiest lifestyle and Bin-san's character meekly admits to the strain it causes him. Taro's character, while mostly compassionate, berates his junior with the following:

Shoji: Yowane hakuna yo sumanu janai ka (Don't complain. It's pitiful.)

          Omoe senjo no suwamono wo (Think of the heroes on the battlefield.)

Uehara: Souda. Wakatta. Kyou kara ore mo (Yes, I understand. From now)

             Umare kawatte gambaru ze (I'll turn myself around and work hard.)

Even though "Naki Warai no Jinsei" takes a nationalist turn towards the second half, which you can sort of see in this third stanza, chunks of Shimada's words are particularly resonant in any occasion, such as in this exchange. Honestly, when I'm down and I hear Taro's admonishment (minus the "Omoe..." bit), Bin-san's response becomes mine and it reaffirms my resolve to overcome any obstacle. In the last stanza too, in a paraphrase of the title when Taro goes, "Nake yo, nake, nake, naitara warae" (Cry now, cry and cry. After that, smile), it oddly validates any feelings of sadness and it does turn that frown upside down. 

I can't imagine the number of times I've listened to "Naki Warai no Jinsei" over the past few months and that number is sure to go higher in the coming terms. But it's oddly reassuring to have these two bespectacled Akita natives spurring me on with some familiar encouraging words.

*As a side note, if you're wondering why "笑ひ" is pronounced as "Warai" and not "Warahi," I believe it's because the older writing system was used. In modern day writing it would've been written as "笑い."