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.
Watching "Uta Con"（うたコン）earlier today, I saw that the husband-and-wife folk duo Humbert Humbert（ハンバート ハンバート）were back to perform what has probably become their most famous work, "Warattari Korondari"（笑ったり転んだり）which is also the reassuring theme song for the current NHK morning serial drama "Bakebake"（ばけばけ...The Ghost Writer's Wife）. That will wrap up by the end of this month, and to me, it's been the asadora that has really zipped by as in "I can't believe it's already finishing!" although it did start up all the way back at the end of September.
Maybe it's because the show has basically stayed within one time period instead of going through decades of time and the fact that any turbulent crises were pretty minor and quickly resolved, but it's also been one of the more comfortable and comedic serials that I've seen. Apparently, tourism to the city of Matsue where the story has mostly been based enjoyed a nice bump in tourism. Plus, I think the main character Heavin-sensei's pronunciation of "subarashii" has been copied in jest a number of times.
Just wanted to get my thoughts on "Bakebake" out of the way. In any case, enka singer Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）was back on the show as well to perform her latest single which came out at the end of January, "Tabiji" (The Journey). According to the Teichiku Records Tendo YouTube channel (where the above video originates), "Tabiji" completes the trilogy of Showa Era-inspired songs which includes "Showa Katagi"（昭和かたぎ）and "Showa Gokoro"（昭和ごころ）.
Written by Reiji Mizuki（水木れいじ ）and composed by Hideo Mizumori（水森かおり）, "Tabiji" really does sound like an enka tune out of the last few decades of Showa. Maybe the only thing that's missing is a mournful background chorus. From what I've understood of the lyrics thus far is that a couple married for many years is looking back on their own journey together and haven't regretted the path they've taken. I'm hoping that will also be the case with Heavin-sensei and Toki by the end of "Bakebake".
As of last year's appearance, enka singer Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）has been on NHK's Kohaku Utagassen a total of 29 times so far dating all the way back to 1993. Following further tradition, she once again released a new song last month.
Tendo's 81st single from January 15th is "Showa Gokoro" (The Heart of Showa) which seems to come in line with her previous single a year back "Showa Katagi"（昭和かたぎ）. Written by Reiji Mizuki（水木れいじ）and composed by Hideo Mizumori（水森英夫）, there's a lot of metaphor within the lyrics as the Showa era (1925-1989) is seen as this older but more-than-welcome traveler arriving at the station of Reiwa (the current era) to bring back some of those laughing and crying sepia-toned memories.
"Showa Gokoro" is a stately song with plenty of that sleeve-grabbing emotion that is de rigueur for any enka tune, and the way that Tendo delivers it brings some of those memories of Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）, the Queen of Kayo Kyoku who Tendo has often been compared to. The single managed to reach No. 21 on Oricon.
Well, here I was last night stating that my previous Author's Pick was going to the final one for 2024, and then this opportunity comes along. Four weeks to go...what else can happen?
First off, congratulations to Japan for getting that UNESCO recognition for traditional sake brewing as an Intangible Cultural Asset. All those who have been steady viewers of KKP probably realize that I don't drink a whole lot but I have appreciated the higher brands of sake such as Kubota and Hakkaisan. One Cup Ozeki...not so much.
In any case, in commemoration of the news, I'm providing my own list of "sake" songs.
It was a pretty good night on "Uta Con"（うたコン）. One of my favourites, Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）, was there and there was a segment of the singers covering some old kayo kyoku. I was surprised and then not surprised to hear the late great Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）covering the recently departed Shinji Tanimura's（谷村新司）"Subaru"（昴）. If anyone could do additional justice to the song besides the original singer, it would be the Queen of Kayo Kyoku.
Speaking of whom, veteran enka singer Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）, someone that members of my family have dubbed the heir apparent for Misora, made her appearance. She did her own cover of Kenji Sawada's（沢田研二）1975"Toki no Sugi Yuku Mama ni"（時の過ぎゆくままに） and it was nice to hear her tackle a non-enka tune.
However, enka is her realm after all so later on in the program, Tendo featured her newest release "Showa Katagi" which was made known to all a week ago as her 81st single. With that proud melody by Hideo Mizumori（水森英夫）spearheaded by that sharp trumpet, I had assumed that with the title, the song was a tribute to the Showa era, something that has been done by other singers over the past few years.
But actually, when I looked up the second word katagi in the language banks, I found out that the term means "person in a respectable occupation" or "honest, decent". Looking through the lyrics by Reiji Mizuki（水木れいじ）, it's about a woman in love with her man in some small village or town. The trade that the man is involved in isn't known but he's putting in a hard day's work each and every day and perhaps the song is just as much about the impression of a Showa era guy: decent, hard-working if taciturn. I gather that the song title can be translated as "A Hard-Working Showa Man".
Kinda taking off in another tangent here but in recent years, whenever I think of the typical Showa era guy, I'm often reminded of Komi-san's father although seeing that the anime is based in contemporary times, he's really a Heisei era guy. Maybe he would have spent his earliest years as a kid in Showa. As he has been depicted so far, he hasn't exploded in rage either.
The great Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）appeared on the latest "Uta Con"（うたコン）episode a couple of days ago to perform her most recent single which was released last month. I saw on the screen and J-Wiki that it was Akimitsu Honma（本間昭光）who composed and arranged it. I'm beginning to believe that Honma could be the new version of the late Kyohei Tsutsumi（筒美京平）who was also a composer and arranger of many songs throughout many Japanese genres. Honma looks to be in the same mold as someone who helped arrange the funky Masayuki Suzuki（鈴木雅之）contributions to the "Kaguya-sama"anime franchise such as "DADDY! DADDY! DO!" and create the 80s synthpop/New Wave tunes for Ai Furihata（降幡愛）such as "CITY".
Now it looks like enka is Honma's latest genre to explore. He composed and arranged Tendo's "Hoshimizake" (Drinking While Viewing the Stars), and it might be more accurate to say that the song is a smooth blend of enka and pop especially in those opening notes. But the whole effect is as soothing and refreshing as a sake commercial set by a quiet stream of the freshest water. Kiyoshi Matsuo（松尾潔）was responsible for the lyrics.
In fact, I'm surprised that I haven't yet heard of any sake company using "Hoshimizake" as its campaign song. Just bring a friend, an ochoko-and-tokkuri set, a bottle of the finest Juyondai and good memories while the song is playing.
In recent months, "Kayo Kyoku Plus" has covered enka singer Yoshimi Tendo's（天童よしみ）more recent discography in the 21sth century. However, I've now got the opportunity to go a little further back finally when it comes to her songs.
The reason is that I was able to catch the NHK regular special "Waga Kokoro no Osaka Melody"（わが心の大阪メロディー...The Osaka Melodies of Our Hearts） the other night, and of course, anyone who's anyone in the Japanese music world from the Kansai district appeared to perform. One of those must-appears happened to be Tendo who hails from the ancestral home of my family, Wakayama Prefecture.
Possessing one of the finest voices this side of Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）, Tendo performed the song "Chindo Monogatari" (The Tale of Jindo Island) which was released as her 28th single from February 1996. Written and composed by veteran Daisaburo Nakayama（中山大三郎）, who had come up with the lyrics for Chiyoko Nakamura's（中村千代子）"Jinsei Iroiro"（人生いろいろ）and Takashi Hosokawa's（細川たかし）"Onna no Juujiro"（女の十字路）, the singer delivers a smooth heartfelt message of yearning for a loved one separated by an ocean with South Korea's third-largest island as the motif.
My highlights for "Chindo Monogatari" include those strings, that trumpet and that singing by Tendo. The singer can provide plenty of throat-rumbling brio into other songs but for this particular enka, I was pleasantly surprised by her clear and smooth vocals this time around. They could be compared with the finest sake, if I can make that analogy.
The song peaked at No. 35 on Oricon but more importantly, it provided Tendo with her first million-seller with more than 1.3 million copies sold. It also earned her a Best Performance prize at the Japan Record Awards at the end of 1996. With her career going all the way back to 1970, I ought to check out one of her very early singles when she was just a teenager.
For the first time in over 2 months, NHK's"Uta Kon"（うたコン）refrained from its regimen of several weeks of viewer requests and past video footage, and finally put on a live show onstage. Mind you, it was just the house band and no orchestra, and of course, there was no audience, but it was a start at having something close to the old days of multiple singing guests appear while the hosts sat appreciatively in the seats with some chats. In a way, it was rather cozy seeing singers such as Kiyoshi Hikawa（氷川きよし）and Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）talking about the past few months in isolation.
Ah, speaking of Yoshimi Tendo, one of the grande dames of enka performed her 75th and latest single from March 2020, "Hinode Mae". Initially, I took a look at the arrangement of the title in its native Japanese and wondered it would be translated as either "Before the Sunrise" or "Home Delivery of the Sun". Y'know, I think that I'll tempt fate and go with the former. The short version of the music video above pretty much proves my choice anyways.
"Hinode Mae", written by Reiji Mizuki（水木れいじ）and composed by Masato Sugimoto（杉本眞人）, is truly a grand enka, a traditional ballad that sounds tailor-made for the late Hibari Misora（美空ひばり）to whom Tendo has often been compared. It gives great tribute to the wonder of nature and the push for people to take those long strides forward into life. The electric guitar, the timpani and the low brass really punch the message through while the singer gives a performance that would probably have Misora nod in affirmation wherever she is now.
With the 70th edition of the Kohaku Utagassen just three days away, I was looking down the lineup on the Red and White teams. One current perennial participant has been Yoshimi Tendo（天童よしみ）, an enka singer that is on my parents' favourite list, and my parents are quite particular about who they like even among the traditional performers.
According to the Red team list, Tendo is slated to perform "Osaka Koi Shigure" (The Seasonal Rains of Osaka Love), her 74th single and her most recent release from June 2019. Written and composed by Yoshiko Hanzaki（半崎美子）, aka The Shopping Mall Diva in Taiwan, I can't really categorize this as an enka tune, though. It's got an old-style Western blues-and-soul tone and it sounds like something that veteran Akiko Wada（和田アキ子）would tackle.
However, Tendo's full-bodied vocals are more than up for the challenge. With the liberal usage of the Kansai dialect in Hanzaki's lyrics, "Osaka Koi Shigure" really gives off that robust vibe about the trials and tribulations of love in Japan's second-largest city in terms of area.
Though I don't think Hanzaki herself has released her own cover of "Osaka Koi Shigure", I wanted to show a somewhat more melancholy but no less bluesy performance by the songwriter herself. Will be looking forward to Tendo's take on New Year's Eve. In any case, in that article featuring Hanzaki, I mentioned that perhaps someday she would make her own way to the Shibuya stage for the Kohaku. Well, she won't be doing that this year at least, but in a way, she will have representation due to work on the song.
That expression hanamichi has become quite the popular expression in enka songs and their titles. It may have started out as that elevated walkway through the audience in a kabuki performance, and according to jisho.org, it's also been defined as "an honourable end to a career", but I think most people would see it as "the righteous road to glory"...not an end to anything at all.
Kiyoshi Hikawa（氷川きよし）has his "Shoubu no Hanamichi"（勝負の花道）and TV Tokyo had its long-running kayo program "Enka no Hanamichi"（演歌の花道）. One of the last Japanese dramas that I enjoyed was even titled "O-Mizu no Hanamichi"（お水の花道）.
And on last week's "Uta Kon"（うたコン）, I came across Yoshimi Tendo's（天童よしみ）"Anta no Hanamichi" (Your Road to Glory) for the first time. Sheepishly, I have to admit that this is my first Tendo article, and that's while believing that the little lady with the big voice from my ancestral homeland of Wakayama Prefecture is arguably the premier songstress of enka right now.
Her 43rd single from January 2002 is a triumphant enka...as in make-way-for-the-Queen triumphant as Tendo strides proudly on that hanamichi. To explain a bit about the anta part, the word refers to a more intimate use of anata or you as in I'm thinking that Ryutaro Kinoshita's（木下龍太郎）lyrics refer to a wife supporting her husband on that path. Traditionally speaking, perhaps the wife may be walking behind her man but the way the song sounds, I think both of them are walking side by side as equal partners.
Composer Sanechika Ando（安藤実親）makes "Anta no Hanamichi" as jaunty as a summer festival song, and Tendo takes it and runs away with it on the stage. Nothing somber to be experienced here. Life is to be savored and celebrated. In the years since its release, I'm sure that the song has become a true rouser at her concerts.
I feel like I haven't done a pun/play on words in my articles for a while, so I'm making up for it by... putting it in this article's title! It's "Enka" plus "Encouragement" to give you "Enka-ragement"... *Jazz hands*
OK, nonsense aside, a common question I'm being posed with whenever I were to tell people I like enka is, "Why?!" This inquiry is as simple as it gets but it tends to have me stumped and unable to give a proper answer besides, "I don't know", as I never really gave it much thought. Lately though, I have been raking the inner depths of my mind to figure out why I strangely enjoy this genre of music after being told that there is definitely a reason for it. I mean, definitely more to just seeing geriatrics warble tunes far older than me in a (sometimes) strange manner, right? Well, at this point I have come up with a couple of answers:
1. Enka is usually depressing in terms of its story line. It often has the character in question drinking his or her liver to death and sounding like they're gonna start rolling on the ground in figurative agony (maybe physical agony too?). While I cannot readily associate to such situations, I feel like I can somewhat relate to the angst being delivered when I hit rough patches. Lines like "Watashi baka yo ne, obaka-san yo ne" (from "Kokoro Nokori") and "Iya desu ne, baka desu ne" (from "Miren Gokoro") do sound amusing, but can be quite relevant at times...
2. The genre can also have its lighter side. I've come to realise that there are tunes that have the protagonist persevering through tough times or striving to achieve their dreams - the road may be bumpy, but there's always that light at the end of the tunnel. Then there are also the melodies that get me pumped up. Such enka do give me that extra nudge I need when I face some uncertainties - feels better than wallowing in a pit of despair.
With that being said, and as my title and short prologue have implied, I have decided to a list on the enka I rely on for a little encouragement. So far, five songs have been picked out of many such "Enka-ragement" songs I listen to and they aren't listed in a particular order. Judging from a few of my previous articles, I think you may be able to guess what one of them would be.
To begin, here is Tendo's hit featuring that feisty Osakan spirit. What I enjoy about it is that it starts off as your typical self-loathing enka, but soon the character determines to not let the incident overcome her. The unwillingness to give up despite hitting a wall is highlighted when Tendo growls out "Maketara akan" with gusto. One's got to move on with life eventually and no use wallowing in despair. Oh, and I just learnt that the title of the song is "Tonbori Ninjo" rather than "Dotonbori Ninjo" as I had initially thought.
Kiyoshi Hikawa (氷川きよし) -- Genkai Funauta (玄海船歌)
Gritty, sea-faring enka are usually quite apt for encouragement. They mostly focus on the trials of working on the high sea and having to bite the bullet to bring a substantial haul back to shore. What made me choose Hikawa's boisterous "Genkai Funauta" out of the others I know is the line "Naku na makeru na yowane wo hakuna" which, if I'm not wrong, means something on the line of "Don't cry, don't lose, don't complain". Definitely an effective line to slap me back into my senses when I'm beginning to retreat back into my shell when doing work.
Well, this entry and the next one on this list are more of a combination of both my reasons for liking enka rather than just one of them. Yoshi's "Kadode" is pretty bleak as our main guy finds his life a drag due to the struggles he faces, but he steels himself to rise above them. This one's similar to "Tonbori Ninjo", but I tend to pick "Kadode" more often due to the stronger melody. I am still unable to find Yoshi's version so I've put up Kouhei Fukuda's take on it instead, however, I prefer Yoshi's gravelly and intense delivery that feels more... real... for want of a better word. Plus the "Yoisho!!" that's roared in the original is quite the morale booster.
Just the title, "Nigate Nandayo" (It's Tough/Difficult), was enough to have me going back to it when I'm not having the best of days. No, it's not because I'm feeling homesick like the guy Hachi sings about. It's because of its consolatory aspect towards the end of the song. The customers of a bar assure the weeping protagonist, a singer, that it's alright for him to get emotional as they too feel the same way. I guess it makes me feel better that there are people on the same boat as I am, and that there's nothing wrong in feeling down from time to time.
Pretty sure you saw this one coming - it's my ultimate o-enka (応援歌). "Osho" is about one oozing with confidence over his shogi skills and Muchi's image while performing reflects this. Combined with the regal melody that makes one feel like they can conquer anything (perhaps just me?), "Osho" instills a decent amount of courage and fighting spirit in me when I need it.
Well, that's the end of this list. I may consider doing a list of enka that focus more on my first reason for liking the genre sometime, but it's not a concrete idea as of yet. If you'd like to, do share any songs you listen to for some encouragement.
Yoshimi Tendo (天童よしみ) was one of those singers whom I'd acknowledge for having an amazing voice and would be glad to see them on regular music shows like "Kayo Concert" as I think they can pull of pretty much any kind enka/Mood Kayo. But other than that, my interest in the likes of Tendo usually ends about there because I haven't yet found a song under their own repertoire that I like a lot. Other singers in this category include Aya Shimazu (島津亜矢) and Kouhei Fukuda (福田こうへい).
A few weeks ago during the Osaka Special on "Kayo Concert", Tendo graduated from that category, so to speak, when she sang one of her signature tunes, "Tonbori Ninjo". I did hear it on last year's edition, but I only paid attention to it recently... Mostly because "Juso no Yoru" (十三の夜) - again - and "Osho" (王将) were not sung; needless to say I was not particularly pleased about that. Well, listening to "Tonbori Ninjo" sort of cheered me up.
What drew me to Tendo's hit from December1985 this time was the contrast between its elegant melody by composer Toshiaki Yamada (年秋山田) and the lady's fruity and powerful vocals that gives "Tonbori Ninjo" an edge. And I noticed that this contrast is more prevalent when Tendo sings this song later in her career. Though she sounded as impressive as she does now, I feel that her current voice has more depth than it did back then; perhaps due to cigarettes and consuming some of the hard stuff, plus the added confidence from years in show business. That reminds me of Takashi Hosokawa (細川たかし).
Writing the lyrics to "Tonbori Ninjo" was Kahoru Wakayama (若山かほる). As you can already see from the title, it features a popular area in the Minami part (entertainment district) of Osaka that would seem like a good place for foodies to gather due to the number of restaurants there, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization website - probably why the song regularly appears on the Osaka Special. Anyway, from what I gather from the lyrics, it looks to be about an Osakan woman in Tokyo trying to get over the one who got away and encouraging herself to be strong. Tendo's growling delivery at the chorus makes our heroine in "Tonbori Ninjo" appear more determined and confident that she'll rise above her predicament rather than brooding and sulking over her sake.
Tendo, born in Wakayama, began singing at a young age after being influenced by her music-loving father, and she won a couple of singing competitions, including "Nodojiman". In 1970, she debuted as Yoshimi Yoshida (吉田よしみ). She changed her stage name to what it is now in 1972, but did not do particularly well in the years that followed. From the J-wiki page I think I read that she was contemplating on giving up all together. And then came "Tonbori Ninjo" years later which slowly became popular with the crowd and she regained her popularity. I also read that another enka singer, Goro Kagami (鏡五郎), had sung this song too in 1986, but it didn't do as well. Unfortunately I'm not able to find his version. Tendo sang this song on the Kohakutwice, during her 5th appearance in 2000 and 13thappearance in 2008. Speaking of Tendo on the Kohaku Utagassen, she'll be on tonight for her 20th appearance singing one of Hibari Misora's (美空ひばり) invigorating hits, "Jinsei Ichiro" (人生一路). I'll be looking forward to that!
