Hachiro Kasuga -- Kaze ga Yobu kara (風が呼ぶから)

Today (22nd October) is Hachiro Kasuga's 34th death anniversary, and just a couple of weeks ago, on 9th October, was his 101st birthday. Since I had nothing planned for this Hachi-filled month, I shall commemorate it with a Kasuga Bushi that I've been resonating with as of late: Kaze ga Yobu kara (Called by the Wind).

This one was a slow burn for me. I encountered Kaze ga Yobu kara some time last year and thought it was a pleasant enough listen, especially with the distinctive shifts between the major and minor scales in each of its 3 stanzas. I've also always thought that the phrase "I'll go where the wind takes me" was really cool. It's probably because a lone wolf character I admired from a super sentai series I watched as a kid. This song's title, as it is, already sounds like said phrase. Yet, the song as a whole never really stuck around in my head. That was until I began to sing it at the Kasuga Enka Denshokai karaoke gatherings, which had me paying greater attention to it, and eventually gaining a greater appreciation for it.

Let's take a closer look at Kaze ga Yobu kara. It was released as the B-side to Ore to Kageboshi (俺と影法師) in November 1956. Its lyrics, penned by Takashi Umemoto (梅本たかし), has Hachi singing from the perspective of a wanderer who, seemingly on a whim, found himself in parts unknown in vague pursuit of something - a dream, someone to love, kindred spirits... A carefree vagabond-like figure with just an acoustic guitar on his back (he's likely a drifting nagashi), he seems to have hope in fulfilling these abstract goals, as the swelling strings and accordion played in the major scale Susumu/Shin Yamaguchi's (山口進) composition suggest. Yet, the dramatic dips in mood, caused by the abrupt, albeit temporary, shifts to the minor scale seem to show that our protagonist has his moments of sadness and loneliness. It ain't all sunshine and rainbows. Hachi, with his emotive high tone, effortlessly conveys both of the protagonist's contrasting states of mind.

As one of the Denshokai members aptly put, it can be seen as a song about hope (kibo no uta). Kaze... was released during a time when young hopefuls from all over Japan flooded the major cities for work, play, perhaps, to achieve big aspirations. So, it's possible that some of said demographic might've found some resonance in the tune should they have come across it. Perhaps Hachi may have related to it on some level too, considering he himself was one such figure who came to Tokyo for school and work, and eventually to pursue his dream in spite of the hardships. 

Despite coming into contact with Kaze ga Yobu kara almost 70 years after it hit the shelves, I feel like I see a part of myself in it. Often times, I wonder how I got here. More than being called by the wind, it feels as though I'm a tumbleweed being tossed around by said wind, sometimes going forward, sometimes going backward, sometimes getting caught in trees and rocks. But amidst the trial and tribulations, I guess I never really lost that desire and hope to pursue what I thought were abstract dreams and to encounter kindred spirits. For now, I'm glad that I managed to find some of what I came in search of. Naa, Hacchan?