Shinpei Nakayama & Yaso Saijo -- Kata Tataki（肩たたき）

 

Happy Labour Day! This is the day in tribute to the working class in North America. Of course, being the master of the ham-fisted segue, I can say that after a hard day's work, folks can use a nice massage especially around the shoulders. As someone who's read a few books on the practice and used to undergo regular massage at the neighbourhood clinic in Ichikawa, I remember the masseur at both that clinic and the barber at my regular shop finishing up a session with some tapotement on my shoulders and back. They would just tap away while sounding like some slow maracas.

I've got just the song for you then. Weirdly enough, I heard about this one during last night's episode of "Asaichi"（あさイチ）which had the theme of ground sesame seeds. According to one expert on the topic, the ideal length of time to pound those seeds is to go five verses of this song before saying "thank you" in Japanese and a few more words.

The song is called "Kata Tataki" (Shoulder Tapping) and it is a children's song that was selected by the Agency for Cultural Affairs and the Parents-Teachers Association of Japan in 2006 to be a part of The Collection of 100 Japanese Songs（日本の歌百選）consisting of beloved songs and nursery rhymes. It was actually created in 1923 by famed lyricist Yaso Saijo（西條八十）and composer Shinpei Nakayama（中山晋平）as a song celebrating Mom's hard work and the children recognizing this by offering a shoulder massage. Not sure if Mommy appreciates being told that she's grown a gray hair, though.

Ayako Miyashita/Bonny Jacks/Hibari Misora -- Awate Tokoya（あわて床屋）

 

In all of the years that "Kayo Kyoku Plus" has been around, I've done my fair share of Author's Picks based on certain themes that some of that kayo kyoku has covered such as food and particular regions. But I don't think I have ever encountered an old Japanese pop song that was based on the barbershop experience.

As a bit of an aside, I have to say that one of the many pleasures of living in Japanese society for about a third of my life thus far was going to the barber or hair salon. Was it inexpensive? By no means. My old barber cost me close to 3900 yen a trip and then when my girlfriend at the time introduced me to her friend's salon not far away from my station, that expenditure took things to about 5000 yen. But in both cases, they were worth every yen for me. From the haircut, the shampoo, the shave, the scalp massage and the styling to the seasonal servings of coffee or cold oolong tea, this was simply a regular trip for a haircut in Japan that would probably be considered a top-notch treatment at Truefitt & Hill in downtown Toronto.

By the way, the above video has an Avengers-like meeting between two popular YouTubers. HairCut Harry got to have his experience at the Yamaguchi Barbershop last year.

"Awate Tokoya" (Busy Barbershop) first saw the light of day about a century ago in 1923. Written by Hakushu Kitahara（北原白秋）and composed by Kousaku Yamada（山田耕筰）as a children's song, it was performed by Ayako Miyashita（宮下禮子）*. The lyrics talk of a couple of crabs in the wilderness operating their own barber shop serving customers such as a rabbit, and apparently the business is a thriving one.

Almost forty years later in April 1961, "Awate Tokoya" was brought into the NHK's children song series "Minna no Uta"（みんなのうた）as one of its earliest, if not its earliest, entry with a special brand of animation and the vocal group Bonny Jacks（ボニージャックス）giving a hearty rendition of the animal-based barbershop. Future electronic music master Isao Tomita（冨田勲）handled the arrangement.

Then in 1966, Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）gave her rendition of the song via a snazzy orchestra with a bit of Latin pizzazz and haircut-like percussion. I also picked up on some interesting keyboard work in there, too; not sure whether Tomita was already working with some of those electronics on Misora's version. Of course, others have covered "Awate Tokoya" over the decades.

*According to Jisho.org, there are multiple ways to say the first name. Ayako happens to be the first on the list, so if anyone out there can tell me the proper way to say the singer's name, please let me know.