George & Yoshi (George Yamamoto & Ikuzo Yoshi) -- Otona no Tama Ire (大人の玉入れ)

Oooh yeeaaah...😎

I feel like it has been a long time since Ikuzo Yoshi (吉幾三) released anything zany and comical. I believe the last silly tune he came up with was "NDA![んだ！]", the reggae-enka fusion from 2008. It's been the manly or depressing side of enka being touched on since then, that is, until "Otona no Tama Ire" came about in the middle of last month (16th August 2017).

Gotta love that "Otona no Tama Ire" face.

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"Otona no Tama Ire" is a duet between Yoshi and his buddy George (Joji) Yamamoto (山本譲二), and just from the single jacket art with the former in sunglasses and the latter with a backwards cap you can tell that it isn't going to be some cry-in-your-sake or brotherly love enka. As the title implies, "Otona no Tama Ire" is instead about pachinko and a pair of oji-sans who are so obsessed with the game that they'd play it at any given moment. Accompanying the unorthodox (for want of a better word) premises is a glitzy disco score that has a touch of enka, and a whole lot of yelling and cackling. Then there's the hilarious MV to add the cherry on top of the nutso cake that never fails to crack me up. I don't know which is funnier: Yamamoto gloating over a win while Yoshi's face is contorted in disgust, Yoshi trying to walk a dog plushie, or the deliberately unglamourous closeups of their crazed expressions.

According to Yamamoto's blog entry regarding their new single, the idea for "Otona no Tama Ire" came about over some sake when one of them (not sure which one) suggested they'd create a funny song to sing together. The theme of pachinko was decided on after Yamamoto heard what Yoshi had composed, and I guess you could say the rest was history. F.Y.I., the first video is the slightly longer version of the song from Yoshi's record company, while the one here from Yamamoto's only has the starting bit but with additional comments about the MV from the two singers. It's really nice to see them cut loose and have fun again.

Here's a karaoke version of "Otona no Tama Ire". The only full version of the song I could find were karaoke versions, but the guy in this one did a pretty decent job.

Personally, I don't know all that much about pachinko. I've recently read that it's kind of like a pinball machine, but rather than preventing a ball from falling to the bottom, you're supposed to get as many little metal balls into cups (?), which are only slightly bigger than the balls themselves, as you can. Then you can trade whatever you've collected for a prize. Although it seems to be an institution in Japan and there are machines that feature celebrities like Yuzo Kayama (加山雄三) and Kiyoshi Hikawa (氷川きよし), I don't think I'll bother playing it - I don't have such luck or skill when it comes to games like this.

Kenji Kitahara -- Furusato no Hanashi wo Shiyou （ふるさとのはなしをしよう）

Well, Tanabata has come and gone but there is still a lot of summer to be had in Japan, and that means the festival season, and then next month will be the O-Bon vacation season. Everyone and their pet will be heading back to the ol' furusato for some precious days and nights of R&R while simmering in the sun.

The O-Bon holiday never existed for me due to my choice of career. But that was OK since I didn't really have a practical furusato to head home to. Flying back to Toronto was way too expensive in the summer and frankly I was never close enough to my relatives to make the trip to that part of the country. Therefore, August was just another month but considering the craziness of public and private transportation during that time, I didn't really mind staying in The Big Sushi at all, other than the torrid heat and humidity.

Tonight's theme for "Uta Kon"（うたコン）was summer songs. There was a whole variety of hot and sunny tunes representing a number of decades but I was especially drawn to one song from the 1960s that enka singer Takeshi Kitayama（北山たけし）covered tonight.

"Furusato no Hanashi wo Shiyou" (Let's Talk of Home) was originally sung by actor and singer Kenji Kitahara（北原謙二）as one of his trademark tunes in 1965. The instrumentation and the pining for home in the words kinda makes this one another one of those kayo that straddles the fence between enka and Mood Kayo. The important thing, though, is that it hits the Japanese sweet spot of sentimentality and nostalgia for the ol' hometown, and considering the O-Bon holidays, it was well chosen for "Uta Kon" as a summer song.

It also helps that Kitahara sings "Furusato no Hanashi wo Shiyou" with plenty of heart and wishes to return to the hearth, as it were. He may sing the song but the feelings it evokes reminds me of a group of workers just sitting around somewhere in the big city talking about getting that train ride back to the old country to see family and former classmates again. The ballad was written by Noboru Inoue（伊野上のぼる）and composed by Taro Kida（キダ・タロー）.

Kenji Kitahara was born in 1939 in Osaka with his birth name being Kentaro Kitahara（北原謙太郎）. His career began singing in jazz bars before becoming a member of Eiji Suzuki and The Blue Cowboys（鈴木英治とブルー・カウボーイズ）. Then, scouted by a director at Columbia Records, he debuted as a singer in 1961. Although it wasn't for this particular song, Kitahara did make it onto the Kohaku Utagassen twice in 1962 and 1963. He passed away in 2005 at the age of 65.

George Yamamoto（山本譲二）gave his own cover of "Furusato no Hanashi wo Shiyou" in 2004.

George Yamamoto -- Yozakura Aika (夜桜哀歌)

In my opinion, a number of new enka releases this year (2015) are better and more melodious than those from last year, namely Takashi Hosokawa's powerful "Kita Dake" (北岳), Hiroshi Itsuki's (五木ひろし) "Yuhi San San" (夕陽燦燦) that includes an adorable pair of felines in the MV (what's better than Itsuki with cats?) and George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) "Yozakura Aika".

I recall looking forward to hearing the enka crooner's newest single when I saw it being featured about a month or so from its release date (19th August) on his official webpage, with the single's cover having a dapper Yamamoto in The Thinker's pose. When the snippet of the MV came out, I was greeted by Keisuke Hama's very cool and manly score - dramatic strings and the electric guitar wailing which sets a melancholic tone for the song - that I fell in love with immediately. I'm not entirely able to fully interpret lyricist Kimi Takubo's (田久保真見) lyrics, but what I picture is a haggard, overworked figure hunched over his sake at the bar with a bitter and bothered expression on his face as thoughts buzz through his mind - typical enka topic. I'd say "Yozakura Aika" sounds as shibui as Yamamoto himself.

FINALLY, Yamamoto is wearing a nice suit of a solid colour and not some blazer with gaudy patterns and colours! Alright, "Yozakura Aika" is Yamamoto's 75th single and it did alright on the Oricon charts, peaking at 63rd place. I think the highest it got on the enka-yo charts was 4th, which was during the week it was released, which is very respectable; topping the list at that time was Hosokawa's "Kita Dake", just so you know.

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Ack, I really like this song too, but again, I want to wait till my next trip to Japan to get it. However, unlike Hosokawa's single, I'm not sure if I'm able to follow through on that....

George Yamamoto -- Bokyo Shigure (望郷しぐれ)

Since March this year, "Nippon no Uta" has become "Shin Nippon no Uta" (新・BS日本のうた). I haven't yet seen this new season as NHK is still showing episodes from the previous season, but from what I've been seeing from the lineups from the "Shin Nippon no Uta" webpage, besides the word "new" in the show's title, there are a number of changes to the Saturday music program. For starters (literally), there is no more "Meikyoku Eleven", it has been changed to... something else and the 11 songs have been reduced to 9, and the "Special Stage" pairs are now singing tunes that hardly, if ever, get any time in the sun. Some instances include Ikuzo Yoshi's (吉幾三) official debut single during his time as a budding aidoru in the 70's (I am not kidding), and George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) "Bokyo Shigure".

I chanced upon Yamamoto's "Bokyo Shigure" quite a while ago by accident when I was too late in changing to a different track as I was listening to my "George Yamamoto Playlist". It came immediately after the muscular "Yume Kaido" (夢街道), and what prevented me from switching to something else like "Oirase" (奥入瀬) was its dramatic music with a heavy atmosphere, brought to you by Hiroshi Madoka (円広志), that fits Yamamoto's cool and manly demeanor. Well, unfortunately what you hear in the video above is rather tame in comparison to the recorded version.

When Yamamoto first opens his mouth, "Bokyo Shigure" starts off as somewhat gentle as he mournfully murmurs the first few lines, as if he's voicing his pain of missing home to himself or the bartender handing him a glass of brandy on the rocks at a quiet drinking establishment. But at the chorus, the volume of both music and Yamamoto increases as he yells out in indecision - he desperately wants to return to his hometown, but bound by pride, which can be seen in the very last sentence of the song, "Ore wa otoko janai ka?" (Am I not a man?), he is obliged to stay. Reiji Mizuki (水木れいじ) penned the lyrics.

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"Bokyo Shigure" was released on 21st September 1986 as Yamamoto's 19th single, and its actually one of my favourites as it's got the enka singer's contrasting delivery at different parts of the song and the fierce score.

George Yamamoto -- Namonai Hana ni Kanpai wo (名もない花に乾杯を)

"Namonai Hana ni Kanpai wo" is the second song on George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) "Daizenshu" (大全集) 2013 edition, just under the mushy "Hana mo Arashi mo" (花も嵐も), and I admit that the first few seconds of it that sort of resembles a muscle car's engine roaring to life temporarily mislead me into thinking that "Namonai..." is another of Yamamoto's cool, manly tracks, which I was mostly hoping for. Then came the trumpets and the rest of the cheery music with lots of elegantly used strings, a trait I've noticed in many Tetsuya Gen (弦哲也)-composed songs. It was a strange transition, but I'm usually more welcoming to this type of happy-sounding enka so I accepted it quickly.

Rei Shirooka (城岡れい) was responsible for the lyrics to "Namonai...", and from whatever I can make out from it, it doesn't seem to be as happy as its score, but its not particularly sad either. Mostly about dedicating a toast to either a nameless flower or a nameless woman... I don't think its that literal though, so I think he's referring to a woman.

"Namonai..." was released on 1st February 2005 as Yamamoto's 56th single, and is one of his 6 best known hits. Around the time I had begun to like this song, it was just a week or two away from Chinese New Year, and I thought that "Namonai..." really matched the holiday in terms of its music; makes you think of a bunch of people (family members, friends) getting together and having a good time.

www.bellworldmusic.com

That mic drop and salute Yamamoto does in the video gets me every single time...

George Yamamoto -- Hana mo Arashi mo (花も嵐も)

In commemoration of this day that I don't celebrate and still have no idea how its current day "rituals" are related to the Saint Valentine, I'd like to talk about George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) "Hana mo Arashi mo". It has got to be the most sappy yet sweet song that I've ever come across, and that says a lot, coming from someone who had Aska's ballads on constant replay for the past number of years, and I thought he was mushy!

The man behind the lyrics of Yamamoto's best known hit was Takashi Taka (たかたかし). I much prefer calling his name in the Japanese way though, Taka Takashi, for various reasons. For one, it's really fun to say consecutively. Anyway, like your typical Enka ballad, "Hana mo Arashi mo" centers around the relationship between a man and his wife. Despite trials and tribulations, good times (Hana) and bad (Arashi), he will always love her and protect her even if it means risking his life, that they will always be happy as long as they've got each other. A lovely set of lyrics that would make one go, "Aw, that's so sweet!". But the line that just completes this honey-doused jelly donut of a song like a sugar-encrusted chocolate bar (actually, just imagining this concoction is making me sick) would be the last line of the chorus...

Omae wa ore no  Omae wa ore no                        You are my  You are my
Ore no takara mono                                              My precious/treasure

Now ain't that just the sweetest thing? I don't know anything about relationships, but I think that any recipient of the song would be quite pleased or delighted.

Tetsuya Gen (弦哲也) was responsible for composing the music for "Hana mo Arashi mo". It sounds rather grand with the blare of the trumpets and rolling drums throughout, making the song like our protagonist's triumphant declaration of his undying love for his loved one. Yamamoto also belted out the words with such emotion and in such an exuberant manner, adding to the dramatic effect. I guess that's why I like this guy quite a bit, he's capable of singing both sappy love songs and gritty, manly ones.

Where I had learnt the meaning of the song.

"Hana mo Arashi mo" was released 15 years ago in on 1st February 2000. And by the way, Gen and Taka had paired multiple times to spawn many of Yamamoto's singles, with a number of them becoming hits.

Still really cool. I wouldn't say suave,
just cool.

blogs.yahoo.co.jp

George Yamamoto -- Oirase (奥入瀬)

On Sunday, during an episode of this travelogue  "Japan Hour" on Channel News Asia - it's the only thing I'd watch on that channel - that featured Aomori, I had myself a good look at one of the prefecture's natural prides, the Oirase river. The hosts were there on a hike in early summer, so you could see the very green foliage hanging over and surrounding the gently flowing stream. I'm usually not the outdoor-sy type, but such scenery really makes me want to just get out there and join the fellas on their hike to admire its beauty.

That brings me to the song of the day, George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) "Oirase", which is based on this very river that drains from Lake Towada. I've been to the lake once a number of years ago in winter... there were dozens upon dozens of black and white swans, and ducks skimming along the frigid water's surface. I wonder if they were looking for handouts.

Anyway, just like the real thing, "Oirase" sounded really comfortable and relaxing with its easy pace and overall soft feel. This song may most likely be considered an Enka song from its lyrics, which I'm guessing is mostly about our protagonist saying his goodbyes to his lover, and hopes that one day they'll have the chance to meet again... by the river, I reckon. There is also a shout out to the Asura no nagare, mighty stunning in autumn, I must add. However, it hardly sounds like one with the un-enka-like score (by the late Nobuyuki Sakuraba (桜庭伸幸)) and Yamamoto, who I would usually consider quite Enka, sang in such a way that you could hardly hear the genre's trademark singing style's strong vibrato/peaks and dips... it sounded like a Pop song, or at least a Kayokyoku.

"Oirase" is a pretty good song to listen to if you just want to wind down after a long day. You know, like playing at a low volume at home while you kick back and relax with a cup of tea. Or in my case, it helps me take my mind off things during the long train rides home after a harrowing day of the nightmare spawn: Molecular and Cell Biology or Biochemistry. Urk, the thought of those things sends shivers down my spine. Just listening to Yamamoto's smooth, deep vocals already calms the nerves...

There's no write up on Yamamoto's 27th single (released on 21/6/1992) , but the J-Wiki page on the singer mentioned that "Oirase" is one of the handful of representative singles he's got under his belt... 6 in total, including this one.

Oh wow.

www.suruga-ya.jp

Norisaburo & George Yamamoto -- 浪漫-ROMAN-

Here's something you don't hear everyday... Enka-hip-hop fusion. And yet the strange combination worked out perfectly for polished and serious Enka crooner George Yamamoto (山本譲二), and part of the owarai act Tunnels, Noritake Kinashi (木梨憲武). Together, they had formed a one-time duo Norisaburo (憲三郎) and George (ジョージ) Yamamoto to sing a song that is 'Roman'.

Although the title literally means 'Romance', it has no semblance to a sappy love song and it doesn't touch on the romance between a man and a woman. Instead, 'Roman' revolves around the love and camaraderie between two friends. It sort of matches the pretty manly music with the powerful sting of the electric guitar and typical hip-hop beat. This was all done by none other than Joji Hara (原譲二), aka Saburo Kitajima (北島三郎) - probably why the score had such a strong Enka accent to it - though Kinashi provided the lyrics' draft.

'Roman' was released in 1996 under the hilarious label of 'OYAJI (old man) RECORDS' (Pony Canyon) and it did pretty well on the charts, peaking at 25th on the regular one and 1st on the Enka/Kayokyoku one. It eventually sold around 230 000 copies and won the 'Planning Award' at the 38th Japan Record Awards. Yamamoto and Kinashi had also sung this song at the 47th Kohaku.

I've seen 'Roman' sung by Yamamoto with other Enka singers (not with Kinashi, unfortunately), but as I've mentioned above, its a song on friendship between 2 fellows. So I would have to say its best sung with his buddy Ikuzo Yoshi (吉幾三), you can check it out in the link below. Also, when those 2 are paired up you're most likely going to have a good performance with bantering and silly shenanigans.

(Sorry but the video has been taken down.)

Here's the video where I first heard the song. It's just with Yamamoto alone (actually not), but it was where I had decided to label him as 'Cool'. 

Huh, Kinashi's impression of Sabu-chan!

                                                 campingcar.shumilog.com

George Yamamoto -- Yume Kaido (夢街道)

There is a word that can sum up George Yamamoto's (山本譲二) 35th single.

Cool.

I had only known Yamamoto for his intense breakthrough hit 'Michinoku Hitoritabi' and 'Roman -ROMAN-', the rather hippity-hop sounding duet between him and half of the owarai duo Tunnels, Noritake Kinashi (木梨憲武).

But when I was looking through the Enka singer's discography (helps to give new song suggestions), I came across the title of this song that I've seen pop up from time to time. So finally I had decided to not be lazy and listen to it and it did not disappoint.

With the trumpets coming on first before that electric guitar portion - that's the best part! Or at least that's what I think. Then we have the very tanned - not sure if its his natural skin colour, or just too much sun from golfing - Yamamoto dressed in a dapper suit with that little smile of his while crooning away.

'Yume Kaido' was released in 1995 on the 5th of July and was Yamamoto's second attempt at writing his own song under his pen name, Goro Koto (琴 五郎) and with his former mentor, Saburo Kitajima (北島三郎) doing/providing the draft for the lyrics. His first go at it was his 31st single in 1994 'Kanmon kaikyo'. Huh, I didn't know he writes his own songs...

There was no mention of how well this song did on the charts, but I'm assuming it fared quite well since 'Yume Kaido' allowed Yamamoto to win 'Best Singer' at the 37th Japan Record Awards. But despite its accolades, he never sung it during his 13 appearances at the Kohaku.

Link above is another of his performances of this song (it's deleted, unfortunately). That mic drop and casual salute at the end makes me want to say Kakkoi ne~... ... What? It's not weird...! I just appreciate his style, that's all...

http://item.rakuten.co.jp/eiyodo/10007694/

                                                            

Joji Yamamoto -- Michinoku Hitori Tabi（みちのくひとり旅）

This is another one of the entries from that 1981 Kohaku Utagassen（第32回紅白歌合戦） that has been stuck in my mind for over 30 years. The first four singers (Toshihiko Tahara, Naoko Kawai, Masahiko Kondo and Hitomi Ishikawa) were the aidoru, but then out came this strapping young man in a white tux, looking like he either got demobilized from the Self-Defense Forces or stepped away from a baseball team. As soon as the music came on, I knew he would be the first enka singer of the long night.

Joji Yamamoto（山本譲二） gave this muscular performance of what would be his trademark song, "Michinoku Hitori Tabi". I wasn't quite sure about how to translate the title. "Hitori Tabi"was easy enough since it means a lone trip. But Michinoku could geographically refer to a whole chunk of Japan's Tohoku (Northeast) region, or poetically refer to the Heian Era's version of the end of the world. Lyrically, it could go either way. In any case, Yamamoto sings about how he would be happy if he died here and pines about a woman that he may have lost. The performance is very much a manly man's approach....how a lot of male enka singers like to portray themselves, whether as pensive hunks in leather jackets stomping through the forest or as salt-weathered fishing boat captains at the bow of their vessels. It's kinda like the Japanese equivalent of cowboys or Marlboro Men.

Yamamoto's life could have been made into an enka song. Born in Shimonoseki, Yamaguchi Prefecture in 1950, he was one of the players on a high school baseball team that made it into the national championships at Koshien Stadium in Osaka. However, his heart was set on becoming an enka singer. So, he went up to Tokyo and went through a whole series of odd jobs, including being a busboy at a nightclub where he had to drink down any abandoned mugs of beer...even though cigarette butts were inside. After damaging his liver, he scampered back home but after getting some tough love from his mother, he returned to the big city for another stab at stardom.

He had been strumming his guitar at a small pub in Tokyo for a couple of years when songwriter Keisuke Hama（浜圭介）, a frequent visitor to the pub, gave him his chance.　Yamamoto was given the stage name Haruki Date（伊達春樹） (supposedly as a humourous take on Dirty Harry) and released his first single, "Yogiri no Anata"（夜霧のあなた....Night Fog You) in 1974. It flopped, leaving Yamamoto at a precipice of sorts.

Desperate, he begged enka legend Saburo Kitajima（北島三郎） dozens of times for his help. Finally one day, Kitajima thrust his bag out at him. For the next few years, Yamamoto would become his attendant; in Japanese, that would be translated as "kaban-mochi"（鞄持ち） or bagholder. Presumably, Kitajima in return gave his young disciple the teachings of enka. In 1976, Yamamoto won on a talent contest program 10 weeks in a row while singing songs like "Omoide Misaki"(おもいで岬....Cape of Memories） and "Naka no Shima Blues"（中の嶋ブルース....Internal Island Blues）. But the really big breakthrough hadn't happened yet.

Finally in August 1980, he released "Michinoku Hitori Tabi". Kitajima basically told Yamamoto that if this one didn't sell, Yamamoto should just quit show business. It took a very long while but almost a year later in May 1981, the song finally broke into the Oricon rankings at No. 96. And four months later, it would break into the Top 10 at No. 8 and then peaking at No. 4. Talk about the long way to success! And it actually received the Long Seller Prize at the Japan Record Awards. For 1981, "Michinoku Hitori Tabi"would become the 16th-ranked song, and even the year after, it was ranked No. 69 for 1982.

And of course, there was the Kohaku appearance. At the end of the performance, Kitajima himself comes out to congratulate his young Padawan.

Since the televised versions are always truncated, here is the full version of the song. Feel that yamatodamashii（大和魂....Japanese spirit) swell up in you!