Yoru ga Kuru (夜がくる）by Asei Kobayashi

   A lot of typical weeaboos fantasies about visiting Japan go something like, “I want to go to Shibuya,” or “I want to visit a maid café.”

Me? I'm a simple man.

I just want to sit down at a old izakaya and enjoy a glass of that good old Suntory Old Whisky.

Suntory it is certainly one of the country’s most famous and recognizable brands. Its commercials are especially iconic—and they happen to be some of my favorite advertisements of all time.

I still remember the first time I saw the classic 1969 commercial. 

A tall foreign traveler walks into what appears to be a traditional Japanese inn. Without needing to say a word, the hostess seems to understand exactly what he wants. Before long, the two are sharing glasses from a bottle of Suntory Old.

It’s a simple commercial, but it’s effortlessly cool and classy. More importantly, its music is unforgettable.

The commercial’s theme,  “Yoru ga Kuru/夜が来る” (The Night Comes.) , written by composer Asei Kobayashi (小林亜星), is a short but catchy combination of bluesy guitar and soulful jazz scatting. The piece was reportedly originally titled “Ningen Mina Kyōdai,” or “All Humans Are Brothers.” Which I think perfectly captures the atmosphere these commercials were trying to create. 

The original vocalist performing the memorable scat singing was reportedly Silas Mosley, an acquaintance of Kobayashi’s. Mosley was also a theology professor at Sophia University and a gospel singer, still looking for photos of the guy but his work can be found in anthology album called "The History of Jazz, The Birth of the Blues" by Jinichi Uekusa (植草甚一).

Over time, “Yoru ga Kuru” became an iconic piece of Japanese popular culture. Suntory has continued using the melody for decades, and it remains closely associated with the brand. There is also a version featuring actual lyrics, sung by Kobayashi himself. That rendition is quite good, but there is something especially grounded and inviting about the original, wordless jingle.

Maybe it’s the simplicity of it. The gentle guitar, the relaxed scatting, and the dimly lit atmosphere make it feel less like an advertisement and more like the beginning of a good evening.

Creating a genuinely memorable commercial jingle is difficult, but Suntory struck gold with this one. Even after all these years, the moment that melody begins, you immediately understand the mood: the day is over, the night has arrived, and it’s time to pour a drink.

Hopefully, one day, I’ll get to sit at a quiet bar in Japan, order a glass of Suntory Old, and hear some old man on guitar singing “Ba di dum dum dum Shoobie da dum” somewhere in the background.

Now that would be a dream come true.

Harumi Miyako -- Tokyo Serenade（東京セレナーデ）

 

The personal early reviews on Jme thus far have been that there's been a slight dearth of kayo programming with NHK's "Hayauta"（はやウタ）and "Shin BS Nihon no Uta"（新・BS日本のうた）not really showing up on the schedule. I'm perhaps not that surprised about the latter since that show is coming from NHK's satellite service and so may not have been licensed or whatnot for Jme.

However, I have tried to fill in the big gap by occasionally bringing in the YouTube videos involving enka and/or Mood Kayo songs, and there are plenty of those to go around thankfully. One nice thing about this is that I've been able to encounter songs that I had yet to see performed on shows like "Uta Con"（うたコン）. Case in point: Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ）"Tokyo Serenade", her 86th single from April 1982. 

Yup, I saw this being performed by Miyako this morning on one of those enka compilation videos, and the music by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）under Hiroshi Takada's（高田弘）arrangement rather brings in some of that sumptuousness of Tokyo nightlife among the corporate execs back in those high-flying 1980s. There is some of it which seems to refer to Frank Nagai and Kazuko Matsuo's（フランク永井・松尾和子）classic Mood Kayo "Tokyo Nightclub" （東京ナイトクラブ）but again Takada's flair with tying it all together also incorporates some of that urbane pop although I wouldn't classify "Tokyo Serenade" a City Pop tune. But I can say that it can qualify as a New Adult Music number.

Takashi Taka's（たかたかし）lyrics certainly talks up a typical Mood Kayo scenario as a couple gets ready for a night of hubba-hubba, and of course, the genre loves to describe the love affair, illicit or otherwise. "Tokyo Serenade" peaked at No. 39 on Oricon. I have to admit that among all the appearances of Miyako throughout the decades of her long and successful career, I've found her time in front of the camera in those early 1980s as the most attractive. There's just something about her straight shoulder-length hair and her makeup back then.

Masato Shimon -- Fireman（ファイヤーマン）

 

All firemen are heroes...that's without question. In Japan though back in the early 1970s, there was a Fireman who was a tokusatsu hero. "Fireman", or as he was known in certain overseas markets: "Magma Man", was a live-action series that premiered in January 1973 and was launched with two other similar series, "Ultraman Taro"（ウルトラマンタロウ）and "Jumborg Ace"（ジャンボーグA）in commemoration of Tsuburaya Productions 10th anniversary.

Ironically though, I never saw an episode of "Fireman". Actually, I remember the character in his manga form when my parents bought me those thick kids' books that were selling at the old Furuya food market in downtown Toronto back in those 1970s. Even back then, I thought that it was rather odd to name a superhero after a well-known essential service for any community, but I was informed that in Japan, firemen were and are known as shouboushi（消防士）, so the character's name was still an exotic one.

Seeing Fireman in action through one of the YouTube videos, I didn't think that there was anything special in his battling of monsters that couldn't have been replaced by one of the Ultramen or I assume Jumborg Ace (since he showed up in that same thick manga book), but variety is the spice of life. The theme song, "Fireman", is the usual heroic ballad of dramatic horns and strings created by composer Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）and lyricist Yu Aku（阿久悠）with perennial kids' hero singer Masato Shimon（子門真人）behind the mike.

Come to think of it, I'll have to take a look at "Jumborg Ace" as well. 

Kenji Sawada -- Namida to Hohoemi（涙と微笑み）

 

It's a bit hard to believe but it's been over a year since the passing of songwriter and actor Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）on May 30th 2021 for which I paid tribute via a Creator article some days following his death at the age of 88. I was given a reminder of Kobayashi when NHK's whimsical foodie "Sarameshi"（サラメシ）show on people and their lunches dedicated the last five minutes of a particular program to him and his favourite restaurant in Tokyo, a place which specializes in German cuisine. The owner there described Kobayashi as being the complete opposite of his most famous acting role as the ever-furious Kantaro Terauchi from the popular mid-1970s TBS drama "Terauchi Kantaro Ikka"（寺内貫太郎一家...Kantaro Terauchi's Family）. Unfortunately, I couldn't find that particular "Sarameshi" episode on YouTube, and it's hard enough to find any "Sarameshi" on the platform, but there are plenty of Kobayashi commercials to be found such as the one above.

Anyways, to give a one-year anniversary tribute to the songwriter, I was looking for one of his creations, and so I found this one that he composed for Kenji Sawada（沢田研二）. Sawada was behind the lyrics for "Namida to Hohoemi" (Tears and Smiles) which, on first listening, struck me as something that had to have been made in the 1980s just from the contemporary arrangement including the keyboards. The bossa infusion is something that has been around kayo almost ever since its genesis in Brazil in the late 1950s, though.

Well, as it turns out, I was off by almost a couple of decades. Actually "Namida to Hohoemi", a tale of loving an already attached woman from afar with a taste of bitterness and jealousy toward the lucky other guy, was created as the final track for Sawada's 36th album "Ii Kaze yo Fuke"（いい風よ吹け...Blow Good Winds） which was released in August 1999. Still, Sawada's heart-on-a-sleeve vocals have been maintained after all those years, and in a way, I thought that the song could also be covered by someone like Koji Tamaki（玉置浩二）of Anzen Chitai（安全地帯）fame. "Ii Kaze you Fuke" managed to hit No. 86 on Oricon.

Ichiro Mizuki -- Yume wo Kachitorou（夢を勝ちとろう）

 

A lot of people had been wondering whether it would be possible, but Tiger Woods has returned to The Masters golf tournament after suffering that horrific car accident about 14 months ago. Although as of this writing, he hasn't exactly been up at the upper echelons of the leaderboard so far, I think his fans are still just happy that he's at Augusta. The above video by the way is of his victory at the 2019 tournament via The Masters YouTube channel.

Except for several days of golf practice with toy plastic clubs in gym class because our gym teacher was such an avid fan, I've never had the chance to go onto the links. It's been vicarious enjoyment via the telly all these years and although there are people who will disagree with me, I've found it rather soothing to watch the pros shoot and putt. Plus, in the early months of the pandemic, it was reassuring to see golf players return to the courses as some of the first athletes to return to regular play.

But as I was watching this year's Masters just before coming onto the blog today, I was left with a question. Have there been any golf-themed anime? Well, the answer was rather obvious since I know that the Japanese have had a long affair with the pastime, and in fact, I remember during the Bubble Era in the 80s when golf club memberships were probably worth more than whole houses here in Toronto (then again, it's probably the other way around now). If the Black Card existed for the major credit card companies back then, it would probably be for those memberships.

I did find a number of golf-themed anime with the first one on the list being "Pro Golfer Saru"（プロゴルファー猿）based on a 1970s manga that ran for the better part of a decade. Apparently, each episode of the anime which ran from 1985 to 1988 was only 15 minutes long and starred a young and very dextrous genius golfer named Sarumaru Sarutani（猿谷猿丸）. Not sure if there were ever a live-action version of the series, but I would have chosen Osakan comedian Takashi Okamura（岡村隆史）to be Saru.

The thing about the manga was that the creator was none other than Fujiko A. Fujio（藤子不二雄Ⓐ）who had passed away just a few days ago. I wrote about another much darker character of his making back on Thursday.

Being a sports-based anime, the opening credits and the theme song were appropriately epic to clearly illustrate the heroic aspects of young Saru. "Yume wo Kachitorou" (Win The Dream) was recorded by seiyuu/singer Ichiro Mizuki（水木一郎）, written by both Fujiko A. Fujio and his professional partner Fujiko F. Fujio（藤子・F・不二雄）under their collaborative nom de plume Fujiko Fujio (藤子不二雄) , and composed by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）.

Sachiko Kobayashi -- Nakase yagatte Kono Yaro（泣かせやがってこのやろう）

 

It's been some years since enka singer, actress and TV personality Sachiko Kobayashi（小林幸子）has appeared on the Kohaku Utagassen. She used to be a perennial participant on the New Year's Eve special with the last several years having her perform the tradition of appearing in increasingly larger dresses/mammoth sets on stage. Frankly, I think the producers let that ritual go on somewhat too long so when she first stopped getting onto the special, I actually breathed some relief.

That doesn't mean that I appreciate her enka abilities any less. She's a fine singer and I have to admit that my heart skipped a beat when her beaming face began the above video. Basically, when it comes to her discography, a lot of folks flock to her hits such as "Omoide Zake"（おもいで酒）, "Tomarigi"（とまり木）and her duet with Katsuhiko Miki（美樹克彦）, "Moshikashite Part 2" （もしかして・パート２）. However, that discography is still plenty long, going right up to her most recent and 99th single in 2020.

So I wanted to see what else she's had in her singing arsenal, and I found this one called "Nakase yagatte Kono Yaro" (Damn You For Making Me Cry). Posted as her 34th single from New Year's Day 1982, this was created by a couple of legends, lyricist Tetsuro Hoshino（星野哲郎）and composer Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）. Those strings and sighing female chorus brought some instant enka nostalgia but I have to admit that reading Hoshino's lyrics left me a bit confused. However, if I'm not mistaken, the story seems to revolve perhaps a couple of brothers or bosom buddies and maybe one of the previously tight tandem is leaving the other for a woman. Of course, that other has been left bereft. It's an interesting combination of fairly rough male language against the sweet arrangement of the music.

The Works of Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）

 

Sad to say but I seem to be seeing and reading about these obituaries of figures in the Japanese music industry all too often these days. This morning, NHK reported the death of songwriter and actor Asei Kobayashi at the age of 88 after he had suffered heart failure on May 30th. I had just written another article regarding one of his creations a little more than a month ago.

My knowledge about Japanese lyricists, composers and arrangers has grown only because of my work on the blog, so before 2012, the name Asei Kobayashi was one that I was barely aware of. In terms of the visual medium of television, however, I've known about Kobayashi for years on sight alone since as a thespian, he became famous for his very first role as Kantaro Terauchi, the stonemason with the volcanic temper from the mid-1970s TBS drama "Terauchi Kantaro Ikka"（寺内貫太郎一家...Kantaro Terauchi's Family）. Looking like the most terrifying and willful Showa Era father, his most famous scene involved him literally tearing up his own living room and painting the walls with his family (albeit in a comical fashion), including young heartthrob singer Hideki Saijo（西城秀樹）. I don't know whether Kobayashi had ever created a song that was recorded by Saijo.

Interestingly enough, from reading an article on this website, I found out that "Terauchi Kantaro Ikka" was famous for tackling some of the social issues of the day, and considering Terauchi's personality, I immediately wondered whether this program was the Japanese equivalent of America's "All in the Family" which was becoming a controversial hit on CBS at the same time.

However, I was to gradually discover that Kobayashi's true forte was as a composer. He was born in August 1932 in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo, and he was named after a playwright that his mother, a member of a drama troupe, had greatly admired. His father was a government official, and it had been his hope that young Asei would become a physician and so the lad attended Keio University. But much to his parents' dismay, he jumped ship so to speak to become a composer under the tutelage of Tadashi Hattori（服部正）.

I was also surprised to find out that the actor behind the fiery Kantaro was the same fellow who created the beloved themes for the following anime among other shows:

Gatchaman (ガッチャマン）(1972) by Masato Shimon

Mahotsukai Sally （魔法使いサリー）(1966) by The Three Graces

Then, Kobayashi composed the song that would be another huge critical and popular hit for enka singer Harumi Miyako（都はるみ）in 1975.

Harumi Miyako -- Kita no Yado Kara （北の宿から）

He also came up with a popular folk song. 

Yuuki Hide, Kotaro Asa and Singers Three -- Hitachi no Ki（日立の樹）(1973)

Kobayashi also composed a lot of commercial songs for various products, and in fact, in the same way he made quite the splash as a first-time thespian in "Terauchi Kantaro Ikka" in the 1970s, he became famous for one of his earliest creations (words and music) for a television ad, "Wansaka Musume"（ワンサカ娘...The Wansaka Girl） for the Renown company which specialized in textiles and clothing.

Originally recorded by Hiroshi Kamayatsu（かまやつひろし）in 1961, "Wansaka Musume" was taken up as the song for Renown and this time it was Mieko Hirota's（弘田三枝子）turn behind the mike in 1964.

Then in 1965, singer and actress Sylvie Vartan performed her own yé-yé cover of "Wansaka Musume". I tried looking it up but I couldn't find out what the wansaka meant. Maybe it's just onomatopoeia but hopefully one of you veteran readers can let me know. Anyways since then, "Wansaka Musume" has been given further covers by acts including Duke Aces（デューク・エイセス）and Ann Lewis（アン・ルイス）.

Kobayashi also had his regular appearances on game shows and his own commercials. He had quite the voice, and I'm not talking about his yelling one from "Terauchi Kantaro Ikka".

My condolences to Kobayashi's family and friends.

Peekaboo & Moondrops -- Terebi Asahi no Uta（テレビ朝日の歌）

 

If someone mentions the television network TV Asahi to me, I immediately think about the anime "Sailor Moon", the long-running music program "Music Station" and then its base of operations in Roppongi Hills, Tokyo. The above is a picture of their souvenir shop. Looking at their Wikipedia and J-Wiki articles last night, I found out that the network had started its existence in 1957 trying to become an educational TV channel under the name of NET-TV or Nihon Educational Television Co., Ltd., perhaps along the same lines as NHK-3 is right now. Within a few years though, it was apparent that the idea wasn't going to work.

It took over a decade but NET-TV was able to transform into a regular commercial TV channel like Fuji-TV and TBS by 1973, and then on April 1 1977, NET-TV changed into TV Asahi.

Now, the reason that I've gone into this preamble about TV Asahi is that last night, I decided on a whim to plug in the term "mukashi no terebi"（昔のテレビ...old television） into the YouTube search engine, and I found this video of the first five minutes of a TV Asahi morning show called "Ohayo Terebi Asahi"（おはようテレビ朝日...Good Morning, TV Asahi）. Of course, with the vast majority of "Kayo Kyoku Plus" being about the nostalgic in music, I am also interested in the nostalgic in media so I was happy to see this quaint morning programming from 1986.

To further illustrate the depth of my geekiness, I've also been interested in the openings and closings of TV stations everywhere during their broadcast day. Now in the above video of "Ohayo Terebi Asahi" at around 4:18, a young keyboardist plays a little ditty and from one of the comments below the video, I found out that the ditty is a rendition of "Terebi Asahi no Uta" (The TV Asahi Song). Surely enough, this has been the sign-on and sign-off song for the network as you can see above for this 1978 sign-on.

"Terebi Asahi no Uta" has been the network song since it made that transition from NET-TV to TV Asahi in 1977. Usually I don't really cover such songs but I then saw the pedigree behind the creation of it. Famous lyricist Yu Aku（阿久悠）and famous composer Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）were the brains and pens behind this cheerful number, and yup, there is a sung version by Peekaboo & Moondrops（ピーカブー & ムーン・ドロップス）which invites viewers and listeners to use the healing power of TV to get out of the doldrums. 

I barely found anything about this group or groups although at least for Peekaboo, the "Kashi GET"（歌詞GET...Lyrics GET） website indicated that it provided a number of other songs, possibly theme tunes for other television shows. Perhaps Peekaboo & Moondrops are a loose conglomeration of studio singers. I don't really know, but "Terebi Asahi no Uta" has gotten me in the nostalgia part of my body with the singers and old-fashioned happy-go-lucky arrangement.

Asei Kobayashi -- Yoru ga Kuru（夜がくる）

 

Over the last several years, I've been seeing these ads in both television and billboards about The Most Interesting Man in the World for Dos Equis beer. He's basically Sean Connery as James Bond when retired for a couple of decades. Along with the various accolades that have been made about him in the commercial above, I can add a variation of this old international joke:

United States: You watch TV.                                                                                                                    

Soviet Union: TV watches you.

Still Soviet Union: TV watches him...gratefully and with his permission.

Well, a few decades before back in the 1990s, there was a series of Suntory Whiskey commercials featuring actor Kyozo Nagatsuka（長塚京三）as The Coolest Section Chief in Japan getting majorly flirted at by far younger women. He emotionally kept his cards very close to his chest, only to show them at the very last moment when he kicked his heels in joy. There was even a gender flip when actress Yuko Tanaka（田中裕子）was getting hit upon by much younger men.

I liked those commercials but also for the song that accompanied them in a variety of arrangements. Last night, I decided to search whether it actually existed as some sort of single. Apparently, the song finally did get onto CD in 2000 in all of its variations and with the full title of "Ningen Mina Kyodai ~ Yoru ga Kuru"（人間みな兄弟～夜がくる...Everyone's A Brother ~ The Night is Coming） but for the sake of this article, I will call it "Yoru ga Kuru" and give both that year 2000 label as well as 1994 since the commercials first came out in that year.

"Yoru ga Kuru" must have made some impression on the viewing audience at large since it not only eventually got its release but it also made its way onto J-Wiki. My favourite version is the one in the video above since it is written, composed and sung by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）. This is the same songwriter and actor behind the original opening theme for the anime "Gatchaman"（ガッチャマン）and for one of enka singer Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ）big hits, "Kita no Yado Kara" （北の宿から）back in the 1970s.

Asei's voice is pleasingly oaken as he describes the coming night and frankly the passage of time and life. Plus, the addition of the violin and the harmonica really does enhance the folksy and bluesy nature of "Yoru ga Kuru", and I get images of him playing this in a homey local bar or restaurant for the regulars...just the kind of place to enjoy some of that Suntory. The whole experience is quite reminiscent of what I can remember of folk/pop singer Roger Whittaker.

I can only hope that for all of us, there will be the times once again when we can all gather in our favourite holes-in-the-wall for some glasses of libation. Until then, stay thirsty my friends!

Reiko Ohara -- Peacock Baby（ピーッコック・ベイビー）

Reiko Ohara（大原麗子）was an actress who passed away almost a decade ago, but pretty much all of my sightings of her were through her appearances on TV variety shows and commercials with the latter on display above. For me, it was her slightly squeaky and sexy voice that I got to know her for.

Although she made her debut in show business back in 1964, she first made her appearance behind a recording mike around March 1968 when she first released her debut single "Peacock Baby". Her vocals weren't all that great but listening to the song created by Chihiro Todaiji and Asei Kobayashi（東大路千弘・小林亜星）, I almost had this overwhelming urge to do the Shimmy and do my Austin Powers impersonation. There's quite a bit of inspiration from Sergio Mendes and Brazil '66. Can you dig it, baby? She would release two more singles in 1978 and 1996 along with an album in 1978, but as you can see from the gaps in releases that singing wasn't really a priority with her.

Yuuki Hide, Kotaro Asa and Singers Three -- Hitachi no Ki（日立の樹）

If memory serves me correctly, our family's very first rice cooker was from Hitachi. I still remember what it looked like: white exterior with black lid. My love of rice (which I have almost daily) is thanks to this vital appliance.

Now, there has been that certain type of commercial that I've been watching on CNN and other American channels over the past few years. You've all probably seen it involving a medicine which touts some amazing new help when the ad starts showing happy and healing folks enjoying a baseball game or a BBQ. Then the announcer suddenly quickens his delivery and blurts out all of the potential side effects (including DEATH) as Dad is grilling his ribs.

Well, when I was in Japan watching the tube, there was also a certain type of commercial that came on which had a sponsoring company for a program devote a minute or so to the nation's many subsidiaries for that company while a cheerful song plays in the background and there is some soothing nature scene. Hitachi was one such company and it had its own super-genki tune to play during its commercials.

Titled "Hitachi no Ki" (The Hitachi Tree), it's a friendly and folksy number that has had various singers and choruses perform it over the decades since its first appearance in 1973. Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）was responsible for the down-home melody while Akira Ito（伊藤アキラ）took care of the lyrics. Apparently, Kobayashi introduced Ito as the lyricist to Hitachi while the commercial was being made up, and while the lyricist was being shown illustrations of a non-descript tree to be used, he understandably asked "What kind of tree is it?". After getting a lot of "I dunno" and "I have no idea" from the staff, Ito was then inspired to write his lyrics with the singer happily wondering aloud about what kind of tree the Hitachi tree was. Not surprisingly, the alternate title for the song has been "Kono Ki Nanno Ki"（この木なんの木...What Kind of Tree Is This Tree?）.

While the first commercial aired for the first couple of years just had an animated tree forming while "Hitachi no Ki" was being played, the second version settled on a grand Albizia saman or rain tree located on Oahu in the state of Hawaii. In Japanese, the tree is known as a monkey pod which sounds a bit more imaginative. And reading through the J-Wiki article for the song, I found out that it has been an attraction for Japanese tourists over the years. In fact, I think the article reported that Hitachi itself has been helping out in its maintenance. Although for a few years in the early 1980s, it was switched to a mango tree on Hawaii Island, a banyan in Singapore and then some tree in California, due to popular demand, the rain tree came back and has stayed so since 1984.

The first six versions of "Hitachi no Ki" were performed by a collaboration among anime/tokusatsu singer Yuuki Hide（ヒデ夕木）, singer/seiyuu Kotaro Asa（朝コータロー）and the female vocal group Singers Three（シンガーズ・スリー）. Since the song's introduction, it has also been used in any events where Hitachi is participating, and it is played every day at noon at Osaka's famous Tsutenkaku Tower（通天閣）since the company advertises there. The J-League soccer team Kashiwa Reysols' supporters often sing (or at least clap vigorously to) "Hitachi no Ki" before games since Hitachi is a major sponsor for the team.

(check from 2:12)

The Three Graces/Hiroko Asakawa/Angerme -- Mahotsukai Sally （魔法使いサリー）

If you were a TV kid like I was, then you would have been very acquainted with "Bewitched", the long-running ABC sitcom from the 60s and 70s starring Elizabeth Montgomery as Samantha Stevens the witch. Sam and the rest of the motley characters including long-suffering hubby Darren, crabby mother Endora, Uncle Arthur, and Dr. Bombay were very welcome folks in my living room way back when. And apparently, the show was quite the hit as well in Japan; I vaguely remember the lovely Ms. Montgomery showing up on a Japanese commercial complete with nose twitch when I was over there in 1972.

Although I have never seen the 1966-1968 anime "Mahotsukai Sally" (Sally The Witch), the theme song has become familiar to me since whenever those anime retrospectives periodically came on TV, the song was perennially on the Top 10 list. I had wondered whether the anime was connected with the American "Bewitched", and according to Wikipedia, the creator of the original manga, Mitsuteru Yokoyama（横山光輝 ）, actually was inspired by "Bewitched" (perhaps I should say bewitched by "Bewitched"). What I was even more surprised was that "Mahotsukai Sally" is supposedly the very first Magical Girl anime to be produced, so I can gather that a whole bunch of Sailors and PreCures would be chanting "We're not worthy" at Sally's dainty feet.

Like the theme for "Bewitched", "Mahotsukai Sally" also has its own jazzy theme although the jazz here is not of the lounge/standard variety but more on the much older Dixieland version. Written by anime producer Takashi Iijima（飯島敬）under his pen name of Kiyoshi Yamamoto（山本清）and composed by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）who would create a big hit for Harumi Miyako（都はるみ）a decade later, the opening theme could also have been one of the first anison earworms especially with those magical words at the beginning. It was sung by The Three Graces（スリー・グレイセス）, a trio consisting of Masae Morimoto, Misao Hoshino and Hanako Shiratori（森本政江・星野操・白鳥華子）, who would handle anison, real-life drama themes and a ton of commercial jingles.

To keep the legacy alive, Sally returned for another 2-year stint along with an updated pop version of the famous theme song in 1989. Saitama-born anison singer Hiroko Asakawa（朝川ひろこ）sang the new version.

Then in July 2015, Angerme (アンジュルム...pronounced as "anjerm", although I can't help but see it as "anger me"), a member group of Hello Project, released their own version of "Mahotsukai Sally" as the coupling song to their 19th single, "Nana Korobi Ya Oki"（七転び八起き...Ups and Downs）. To be honest, I had never heard of these ladies in their current incarnation although their former name of S/Mileage was a tad familiar to me.

Ah, did find an Elizabeth Montgomery ad in Japan.

Kin'ya Aikawa & Midori Utsumi -- Man Man March （マン・マン・マーチ）

Within the last few hours, I've heard about the passing of one of the big faces of Japanese variety television. But to say that Kin'ya (Kinkin) Aikawa （愛川欽也）was just someone on the prime-time variety show circuit would be giving him short shrift. He's been an actor, a voice actor, a radio DJ, a news commentator and a commercial pitchman, and perhaps my list is still not complete. In any case, he was one ubiquitous figure, and considering how often tarento show up on the tube, that is truly saying something.

He also did some singing as well...something that I hadn't been aware of. And since this is a music blog, I wanted to pay some tribute to him through this medium with his 1978 novelty song, "Man Man March". A parody of the typical tokusatsu hero tune, Aikawa sang this with his new second wife, fellow tarento Midori (Keronpa) Utsumi（うつみ宮土理）. There is some Beethoven (and perhaps some Bond as well) in this dedication to a hero who is supposedly faster than a Bullet Train but cuter than a doll. The lyrics also provide an entire Justice League's worth of heroes featuring everyday objects.

Written by Kogo Hotomi（保富康午）and composed by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星）, after having listened to the first few bars which provide a variation of the famed Beethoven's Symphony No. 5, I realized that very part has been used in tons of variety programs over the years.

In my time of watching Japanese variety shows over the decades, there have been a few tentpole TV hosts...premier emcees who have become members of the entire viewing public family. Osaka comedian Sanma Akashiya（明石家さんま）strikes me as being that essentially good but obnoxious neighbour who cannot shut up. The dark sunglassed Tamori（タモリ）is that corporate department chief with the sly sense of humour. And Beat Takeshi（ビートたけし）is that amiable but slightly oddball fellow who always hangs out in your favourite nomiya. Kin'ya Aikawa was the truly avuncular kacho (section chief) who could talk up a storm and be the life of the party...and probably was more than happy to organize a few of them, but nothing fancy. It would be him and his section staff enjoying a few rounds in the local izakaya.

Aikawa had been on TV since the early 1970s, but I think one of the big feathers in his cap was as host of the Fuji-TV variety show, "Naruhodo! The World" (1981-1996), the hybrid travel/quiz program dealing with some of the more interesting places around the planet. Before travel truly became open to the masses in Japan, this show fed the audience with plenty of inspiration.

Personally, though, the Aikawa show that meant the most to me was TV Tokyo's "Shubbotsu! Admatic Tengoku"（出没!アド街ック天国...Pop! Admatic Heaven） (1995-present). Not being a party person at all, I stayed at home most Saturday nights, a pattern that was started early in my Ichikawa life since Saturdays were just a regular work day for me. At 9 p.m., "Admatic" came on and featured a certain neighbourhood in Tokyo revealing some of the atmosphere and notable places in a countdown format such as that really nice ramen shop or that odd antique store. Kinkin was our congenial host as he and his panel of tarento and commentators talked about some of their recommendations and stories about the area. Watching the show every week felt like that virtual stroll, and a few times, I actually got to take the literal stroll through places like Nakano which was at the other end of my subway line, the Tozai Line, all because of that show. I ended up taping a number of episodes and sending the tapes back to Toronto for the parentals to watch.

I'm glad that the show is still going on although I'm sure it's not quite the same after Aikawa left in early March. He passed away on April 16th 2015 at the age of 80.

Good ol' Nakano Broadway
one of my old haunts in Tokyo!

Harumi Miyako -- Kita no Yado Kara （北の宿から）

My knowledge of enka is quite a bit more limited when compared to the pop sectors in kayo kyoku. So, basically my remembrances of certain enka songs are based even more on just pure emotion. Case in point, I've heard Harumi Miyako's（都はるみ） "Kita no Yado Kara" （From An Inn of the North), released in December 1975 and her 66th single, countless times but I didn't really listen to the lyrics until recently. I've always gone by the melody, and the intro for this song is amongst one of the most recognizable in the genre. The song starts with the uncertain strings followed by a pure but lonely section of saxophone and a mandolin-like instrument before the soft and haunting vocals arrive.

The Yu Aku-penned（阿久悠）lyrics and the music composed by Asei Kobayashi（小林亜星） weave an image of a terribly lonely woman up in that northern inn, talking of "....knitting a sweater that she cannot wear..."despite the cold and self-deprecatingly asking her long-gone lover whether "....if it would be OK to die?" Yup....terribly lonely. Without even being aware of the lyrics, though, I got the impression from the music alone of a traditional countryside enka....no hints of raucous drinking at an izakaya in town or standing sternly on the bow of a fishing boat....just a soft delicate song in the winter. However, according to J-Wiki, the late Aku recollected the following:

"I had intended to write of a strong woman, but it ended up being an impression of a sad or scary woman."

"Kita no Yado Kara", despite Aku's later recollection, struck a chord with listeners and critics alike. Winning no less than 6 different awards, including The Japan Record Awards' Grand Prize, it hit the top spot on Oricon, became the 3rd-ranked song for 1976, and just missed out on being in the Top 10 of 1977 for a second year in a row, reaching No. 11.

Masato Shimon with Columbia Yurikago Kai/Kome Kome Club -- Theme from "Gatchaman"(ガッチャマン）

I remember reading the original manga for "Kagaku Ninja Tai Gatchaman"(科学忍者隊ガッチャマン.....Science Ninja Team Gatchaman) back in the early 70s as a kid. At the time I was more of an "Ultraman"fan, so I didn't really give too much devotion to the bird-based superteam at the time. However, one night in the late 70s, I was watching a Buffalo NY channel, WKBW, when I saw a commercial advertising this cartoon. And much to my shock and awe, it turned out to be the characters from "Gatchaman"....named on this side of the Pacific as G-Force with the show being titled "Battle of the Planets". If I'm not mistaken, it was slated for every Thursday night at 7:30.

Of course, as has been the case for many an anime crossing over from Japan to North America, changes had to be made. In the case of "Gatchaman", that included a different instrumental theme song. However, instrumental versions of the original Japanese beginning and ending themes were used throughout "Battle of the Planets".

Anime song and children's song vocalist Masato Shimon（子門真人）, who would later become the singer behind one of the Oricon rankings juggernauts of 1975, "Oyoge! Taiyaki-kun"(およげ！たいやきくん....Swim Taiyaki!), sang the opening theme, "The Gatchaman Song", with a children's chorus group, The Columbia Yurikago Kai （コロンビアゆりかご会）as backup. His machine gun-like staccato delivery of the opening words "Dare da, dare da, dare da!"(Who is it? Who is it? Who is it?) is still recognizable even today, and the song carries that usual brass-and-strings infused urgency that accompanied Japanese superhero theme songs of that time.

The ending theme was titled "Taose Galacta"(倒せ！ギャラクター....Defeat Galacta) in which the Columbia Yurikago Kai did solo duties here. Galacta was the original name for G-Force's enemy of Spectra in "Battle of the Planets". As was also the case with ending themes for anime, "Taose Galacta"was a more gentler and folksier tune, and listening to it brought a lot of memories of my time traveling in Japan right in that year. I recollect that there was a jauntier, more military-sounding instrumental version of this song used whenever the Phoenix launched from its underwater base (I have to admit that I spent many an hour drawing that iconic ship).

Even with all of the changes, I really enjoyed "Battle of the Planets", although I do cringe at some of the 7-Zark-7 insertions.

November 1 2012: OK, I just had to put Kome Kome Club's version of the main theme here....had my hair standing on end, just with the horn section blasting those notes out!