Kyu Sakamoto-The original singer for the vastly popular Japanese song "Sukiyaki"

A youthful looking, smiling Kyu Sakamoto as seen

 in this B&W photo to promote his songs

                                 Kyu Sakamoto and his sister. He was the
                                     youngest of 9 children in the family.

In the 1960s the Japanese song named “Sukiyaki” was immensely popular amongst the pop crazed youngsters. It hit the listening pop scene at the radio stations by storm quickly and no sooner it was selling to the tune of 10million records, and it peaked at 13million copies eventually. It was in June 1963 when Sukiyaki the super Japanese hit reached no. 1 at the US BillBoard Hit 100. The singer Kyu Sakamoto 坂本 九 was an energetic, passionate singer with his own brand of chic and hic in his 60s’ flamboyant style captured millions of young hearts especially his country’s screaming girls. His name ‘Kyu’ meant that he was the number 9^th child born into the family. (His mother remarried and so he had few natural and half brothers and sisters.) Japan was recovering gradually yet surely from the aftermath of the World War Two. The presence of the US military force was an eventual phenomenon after the nation’s disastrous defeat when it was bestowed with two mass destructive atomic bombs, one each at Hiroshima and Nagasaki. The phenomenal success of the song 'Sukiyaki' surprised the Westerners.

The original record cover for Sukiyaki

He looked just like any aspiring young Asian

 man who wanted to excel in popular music

When the owner of the British Pye Records, Louis Benjamin visited Japan in 1963 he found the song ‘Ue o muite arukō" ("I look up when I walk") catchy and could easily be followed to sing along. A bemused Benjamin brought the song back to UK to try his luck and almost immediately the song hit Europe and the US shore with immense popularity. Louis Benjamin changed the name of the song to a more acceptable title ‘Sukiyaki’ though the word had got nothing to do with the song. ‘Sukiyaki’ could mean the name of a favorite household dish of ‘steam-boat’ for the Japanese in the winter.  Since the song enjoyed a maiden international success, Kyu Sakamoto began his world tour to visit Europe and the US from mid-1963 to the beginning of 1964.

                  Even whilst entering middle age, Sakamoto still exuded his
                                    charm as a handsome entertainer

Sakamoto joined a local band in 1958 when he was just 16 year old. He had learned to play the trumpet at school, and taught himself guitar and piano. Due to feuding relationship for prominence with other band members that usually ended up with fist fights, Kyu Sakamoto left the band in the same year to further his studies at a university. The study came to an abrupt end when the band ‘Danny Lida and the Paradise King’ he joined at the same time won an award with him singing as the lead singer, gaining them a contract with JVC Records. Soon after Sakamoto left the band and began his solo career in singing with a contract with Toshiba Records Company. From 1961-1985 Sakamoto enjoyed an entertainment career as solo singers untill his sudden demise in a plane crash in 1985. It was reported that he managed to scribble some lines of words to his wife and daughters moments before the tragedy took place. He married his wife Yukiko Kashiwagi in 1971. They had two daughters, Hanako and Maiko Sakamoto.

                              A happy family picture taken at a Japanese shrine

The Japanese government honoured Kyu Sakamoto for his contribution to national fame by issuing a stamp, commemorating him and the song he made famous - Sukiyaki. He was buried at the temple ground of Minato, Tokyo. 

                  His final resting place. Kyu Sakamoto was interred here at
                          Chokoku-ji Temple ground, Minato, near Tokyo.

Now let us enjoy the ever catchy, slow-tempo rock melody of ‘Sukiyaki’. Sing along and have fun, since the lyrics are there to enlighten you a bit. For the senior citizens, it’s down memory lane. For the younger folks, aren’t you game enough to try new things, listening to oldies enjoyed by your parents?

Log into the URLs and enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xUA-DcW1lFc

This youtube clip was produced in Black and White,

rather blurry, but the song played was the original stuff.

You’ll see young and suave Kyu Sakamoto singing at his best.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=As_RXzCyA74

This youtube clip provides you the lyrics both in Romanized Japanese

and the English translation at the same time.  

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JJ91ikAhJ5Q

This youtube clip shows how a Sunday Japanese street scene goes with the mainly youngsters showing off their best in singing and dancing, in Tokyo’s famous Yoyogi Park. There is also one White men’s band playing the song ‘Sukiyaki’. Lots of hip-hop wannabes are trying their best to gain attention.

The lyrics? Help yourself by turning on your speakers and click the Youtube URL no. 2 posted here.

Alan CY Kok