I've been a fan of Japanese popular music for 40 years, and have managed to collect a lot of material during that time. So I decided I wanted to talk about Showa Era music with like-minded fans. My particular era is the 70s and 80s (thus the "kayo kyoku"). The plus part includes a number of songs and artists from the last 30 years and also the early kayo. So, let's talk about New Music, aidoru, City Pop and enka.
Credits
I would like to give credit where credit is due. Videos are from YouTube and other sources such as NicoNico while Oricon rankings and other information are translated from the Japanese Wikipedia unless noted.
The folk duo Buzz（バズ）will always be remembered for their 1972 folk ballad"Ken to Mary ~ Ai to Kaze no yo ni" (ケンとメリー〜愛と風のように〜) which may have been responsible for the sales of many Nissan Skylines and urges to head out to rural Hokkaido. It was quite the majestic hit for Masakazu Togo（東郷昌和）and Hiroshi Koide（小出博志）.
Cue ahead 7 years. Buzz released their February 1979 5th studio album "A New Day A New Time" and one of the tracks is "Toshi wo Totte mo Kodomo no You ni"(I'll Stay a Child Even When I Grow Old). Written by Tetsuya Chiaki（ちあき哲也）and composed by Togo, this is quite the contrast to the contemplative Simon-and-Garfunkel-like"Ken to Mary". It's kinda like Buzz decided to have a good time on that country-variety show "Hee Haw" in the United States and brought some of that mood back to Japan. But hey, the arrangement fits that title as the guys have determined that age is truly just a number. Not sure whether this was used in any commercial for a vitamin drink or rejuvenating skin cream. In a way, it reminds me of both the really happy "Paloma Blanca" and The Beatles' "Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da".
Buzz（バズ）has been the folk duo consisting of Masakazu Togo（東郷昌和）and Hiroshi Koide（小出博志）, famous for "Ken to Mary ~ Ai to Kaze no yo ni" (ケンとメリー〜愛と風のように〜), the song that adorned a commercial for the Nissan Skyline back in the early 1970s and probably had tons of viewers rushing off to Hokkaido. I wrote that article back in early 2017 and since I've also discovered a more City Pop-friendly song by them, "Tokyo Samba"（Tokyoサンバ）that was also released around that time period.
Buzz's initial run together lasted from 1972 to 1982 and their final album before the breakup was "Buzz Again" released in July 1981. From hearing some of the tracks kindly put up by Neon Sono, it looks like Togo and Koide were following the lead of a lot of folk bands and singers from the 1970s such as Off-Course（オフコース）and Iruka（イルカ）as they were trying out some of that City Pop and J-AOR.
Case in point was the first track on "Buzz Again", "Kimagure Kotoba wa Yoshite" (Never Mind the Whimsical Words). Written and composed by Togo, the song does have those folk guitars in there and at least for the first minute and a half, it does sound as if the Japanese folk has yet to leave the duo despite the fact that it's 1981. But then, the melody and arrangement take off into another direction that has me thinking of American soft rock although the placid feeling is maintained, and interestingly enough, I also get vibes of Johnny Nash's"I Can See Clearly Now" and 10cc's"I'm Not In Love".
"Buzz Again" is another album worthy of further exploration. As mentioned in my first article for the duo, after the initial breakup in 1982, Togo and Koide got back together in 2007 and released two more albums.
This is only my second article on the folk duo Buzz（バズ）. Over three years ago, I wrote about Masakazu Togo（東郷昌和）and his partner Hiroshi Koide（小出博志）with their most famous hit, "Ken to Mary ~ Ai to Kaze no yo ni" (ケンとメリー〜愛と風のように〜) from 1972, a most comfortable tune that became famous as the commercial theme for a brand of Nissan automobile.
Well, I found this other song by Buzz from their May 1974 2nd studio album"Requiem The City"（レクヰエム・ザ・シティ）and it has a totally different sensation. "Tokyo Samba" isn't a folk number at all but something to be heard on the car stereo while its owner is having a pleasant morning drive on the Shuto Expressway (perhaps way early in the morning to avoid the rush hour).
In other words, it is a totally wonderful orange juice song to get up at at 'em, and I gather that it was whipped up to match the theme of that album title. Despite one-half of the song title though, it's not so much of a Latin creation (although I can hear some of that Latin guitar and percussion) and maybe more melodically fitting with life described in the other half of the title. Along with the music, the lyrics come off as happy-go-lucky and willing to break the fourth wall in a way as Togo and Koide sing about how much in love they are with "Tokyo Samba". But before you make fun of them, let it be known that they weren't the ones who wrote and composed "Tokyo Samba". Those credits belong to singer-drummer Yukihiro Takahashi（高橋幸宏）, later of Yellow Magic Orchestra. Interestingly enough, "Ken to Mary" was created by Takahashi's brother, Nobuyuki（高橋信之）.
Anyways, I wonder whether "Tokyo Samba" ever got onto the radio since it wasn't a single but a track from an album. I think it would have been great accompaniment for brunch although as always, Japanese radio stations never made it a duty to play the entire length of a song.
Happy Friday, folks! When I made my way to Hokkaido on a short vacation several years ago, I noticed during our landing at Shin-Chitose Airport all of those huge trees speeding past us, and it felt like I was back in Canada again. Perhaps the residents living in Japan's northernmost prefecture are the one section of the demographic that doesn't get all starry-eyed about The Great White North.
I've mentioned about my Hokkaido vacation a few times over the years throughout the blog and to reiterate, I only spent 3 days in the Sapporo area. However since then, coming back to Toronto, some of my translation work has involved articles on Hokkaido tourism. And it seems like one of the highlights out in the countryside is this one lone tree out in the district of Biei, northeast of Sapporo.
And this poplar is called the Ken & Mary tree. The poplar got popular (I really needed to write that!) in the early 1970s since it was used in one of a series of commercials hawking the Nissan Skyline which starred a couple, presumably from America, named Ken & Mary who were traveling through the Japanese archipelago. I'm not sure whether the tree was the only natural feature that had viewers gaining a sudden wanderlust but then it not only stood out literally but also in a pop cultural sense. Mind you, I cannot answer whether there was an entire fleet of Skylines racing toward the Ken & Mary tree after the airing of the ad.
What musically adorned the commercial also helped it out immeasurably apparently. "Ken & Mary ~ Ai to Kaze no yo ni"(Just Like Love & The Wind) was this comfortable folky tune by the duo Buzz (バズ), and it just happened to be their debut single from November 1972. Now the other reason that I bring this song up now, aside from my personal Hokkaido connection is that the night before, is that I had written about Musukko Club's（息っ子クラブ）"Boku-tachi no Season"（僕達のSEASON）. And the composer for that particular aidoru tune was Masakazu Togo（東郷昌和）who happens to be one-half of Buzz along with his partner Hiroshi Koide（小出博志）.
Listening to Togo and Koide sing "Ken & Mary", I got some Simon & Garfunkel vibes. And usually with a Simon & Garfunkel song, it's time to relax in my armchair with a calming cup of tea. "Ken & Mary" has a nice comfy effect on me.
If you can excuse another groaner aside from the poplar gag above, Buzz generated some buzz because of their debut single. It became a hit although it didn't get into the Top 10, peaking at No. 19. But it did sell 330,000 records. Hiromitsu Yamanaka（山中弘光）and Nobuyuki Takahashi（高橋信之）provided the lyrics with the latter also composing the song.
Both Koide and Togo have had prior experience with bands before Buzz came along. Koide started up the band Indian Apple during his time at Tokai University before he and the aforementioned Takahashi launched another band, Stage Fright. As for Togo, he created a band with his junior high school classmate called Buddha's Narcissy. That classmate's name was Yukihiro Takahashi（高橋幸宏）. Yep, it's the same Yukihiro Takahashi who would go on to be part of Yellow Magic Orchestra, and he just happens to be Nobuyuki's younger brother.
It was probably through the Takahashis' fraternal connection that Koide and Togo met. The elder Takahashi produced Buzz and since he also had a hand in the commercial world, he became in charge of coming up with the song for the Nissan Skyline. The rest was history.
Buzz would continue on throughout the 1970s and even provided backup singing for folks such as Yumi Matsutoya（松任谷由実）and Seiko Matsuda（松田聖子）into the 1980s. However, the band initially called it a day in 1982 before getting back together from 2007.
Many years later, actor-singer Masaharu Fukuyama（福山雅治）would perform a cover of "Ken & Mary" for his 2002 album"The Golden Oldies". His rendition would bring even more depth thanks to his richer voice.
To finish, here are some more of the commercials for The Ballad of Ken & Mary. I don't think I would ever make a trip up to Biei specifically to see that tree but if I ever decided to make a tour of Hokkaido, I wouldn't mind a look-see.
