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Episode 9 – Takao Hirata and Sellstars

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Welcome to Episode 9 of Holly Jolly X’masu! In this episode, I talk about an overlooked classic from 1972, “Merry Christmas From Sellstars,” by Takao Hirata and Sellstars. This is an album I discovered quite by accident. Its unassuming cover, which looks like a big square of loose-leaf paper, is one I passed by several times before curiosity finally got the best of me. I’m glad I gave it a chance because it’s a wonderful album.

Takao Hirata and Sellstars were a two-hit wonder from early 70s Japan. They managed to put together a fantastic album whose overall quality more than makes up for its brief, 31-minute runtime. The main attractions are the two medleys, but the remainder of the album is nearly as enjoyable, delivering an early 70s, Sergio Medes-esque Yuletide sampler that stays just funky enough to avoid falling into an Easy Listening lull. It’s a great blend of styles and I’ve listened to it countless times since I got it.

After toiling in obscurity for a few years, Takao Hirata burst onto the scene in 1971 with a huge hit, “The Devil is Hard,” then had a whirlwind of a year in 1972, releasing four full LPs and an even bigger hit, “The Bee Musashi Is Dead.” Their star quickly faded after that, but they remained popular enough with their fans to stage a fairly successful comeback in the 90s, and they enjoyed several years of success on the concert trail.

As I mention in this episode, “Merry Christmas From Sellstars” really exemplifies why I collect these albums and do this podcast. One of the things I’ve always enjoyed most about collecting Christmas music is when someone online uncovers a forgotten, long lost song or album. Occasionally, something really great will come to light, like Joseph Washington Jr.’s “Merry Christmas from Joseph,” an extremely obscure, 1980’s R&B album that got a proper re-release a few years ago. With the Japanese Christmas music, almost everything I’ve purchased would be considered obscure or unknown in the US. What pleases me the most, though, are the albums that are little known and hard to find even in Japan.

While “Merry Christmas From Sellstars” is far from the most obscure album I’ve found, it’s one that I’m certain hasn’t been heard much, if at all, in the US. It’s never been rereleased and can’t be streamed. It’s not listed on Discogs and you’re probably not going to see it on eBay. Tracking down and buying the nearly 50-year-old vinyl is truly the only way to hear it. For me, playing an album like this the first time is a real delight, especially when the music turns out to be as good as this is. An even bigger thrill, though, is putting together a podcast episode about it and sharing it with others. I might not have the biggest listenership in the world, and I don’t have any illusions about making money from this, but I truly enjoy getting to present these artists to those of you who are listening.

As I mentioned in the episode, here’s the link to the video of Chieko Baisho’s “Reminiscence,” followed by Takao Hirata and Sellstars’ hits, “The Devil is Hard,” and “The Bee Musashi Is Dead”:

Chieko Baisho, “Reminiscence”

Takao Hirata and Sellstars, “The Devil is Hard”

Takao Hirata and Sellstars, “The Bee Musashi Is Dead”

As always, thanks for listening. Next month, I’ll be featuring the 1986 compilation, “Winter Lounge.” There were some fantastic Christmas compilations put out in Japan in the 80’s, and this is one of the best. It features a diverse array of artists and includes one of my favorite Japanese Christmas songs. You don’t want to miss it. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or recommendations, feel free to send them my way. Also, be sure to check out some of the other Christmas podcasts mentioned in this month’s episodes. They’re a great way to keep Christmas going year-round.

Any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If you’d like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.

Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. Any donations received will be put towards purchasing new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

Listen to this episode of the Holly Jolly Xmasu Podcast
Author: Holly Jolly X’masu
Title: Episode 9 – Takao Hirata and Sellstars
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Christmas Tenor Mood

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Welcome to Episode 8 of Holly Jolly X’masu! In this episode, I talk about the phenomenal 1968 album, “Christmas Tenor Mood” by the Nakamura Hachidai Quintet and Hidehiko Matsumoto. I’ve been looking forward to this album, not just because of how great the music is, but because of its pedigree. As I doing my research, I discovered that Hidehiko Matsumoto was one of the premiere tenor sax players of the 20th century. What really pleased me most, though, was finding out that Nakamura Hachidai had co-written “Sukiyaki.”

A few months ago, I looked up “Sukiyaki” on YouTube one night. This was right in the middle of the initial quarantine and we were starting to deal with everything my oldest daughter was going to be missing out on during her senior year of high school. She loved the song when she was younger, which could be part of why I wanted to hear it that night. For whatever reason, I clicked on the lyric video.

The Japanese title is “Ue o Muite Arukou,” which translates to “I Look Up As I Walk.” The song starts:

I look up as I walk

So the tears won’t fall

Remembering those spring days

And tonight, I am all alone

 

With all that was going on, the lyrics really got to me. I’ll admit, I had to look up a bit. It struck me that the song fit what everyone on the planet was going through at that moment. We were facing a global crisis and having to deal with circumstances nobody envisioned. Countless people in every country were having to get through each day, one step at a time, looking up as they walked, or doing whatever else they could to cope and get by. And we were all trying to remember a better, normal spring.

 

I look up as I walk

Counting the stars with tearful eyes

Remembering those summer days

And tonight, I am all alone

 

I thought it was uncanny how well that song fit, and that I chose to listen to it just when I did. I listened to it quite a bit over the following week. Not long after that, I was exchanging emails with a friend in Japan. We were comparing notes on how COVID was impacting us. If any good thing came from all this, it’s that it gave every single person on the planet some common ground. It might be awful, but it’s something we’re all experiencing at the same time. After telling me about how things were going for him, he told me there was a song that was helping him get through it. He said, “It’s a Japanese song, but you might know it as ‘Sukiyaki.’” I couldn’t get over the fact that the two of us were about 6,500 miles apart, and from completely different cultures, but we’d both turned to the same song for some relief from the insanity we were both facing.

 

Happiness lies beyond the clouds

Happiness lies above the sky

 

A couple months later, as I started researching this episode, I was delighted to discover its connection to “Sukiyaki.” Seeing how Nakamura Hachidai kept popping up over the last few months, I started to reflect on how important these shared experiences are. While COVID is terrible, my hope is that we all retain a sense of commonality once we get past it. It might not have disrupted everyone’s lives to the same degree, but everyone on the planet has been impacted to some degree. It’s given us all something to talk about, cry about and even laugh about together. With any luck, it will lead to at least a little togetherness and understanding.

 

I look up as I walk

So that the tears won’t fall

But the tears well up as I walk

For tonight I am all alone

 

As always, thanks for listening. Next month, I’ll be featuring the 1972 album, “Merry Christmas from Sellstars,” by Takao Hirata and Sellstars. This is probably the most obscure album I’ve featured so far and I’m pretty excited about it. It’s a blend of late 60s Now Sound music and early 70s Funk. It’s a lot of fun and one you’ll want to hear. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or recommendations, feel free to send them my way. Also, be sure to check out some of the other Christmas podcasts mentioned in this month’s episodes. They’re a great way to keep Christmas going year-round.

Any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If you’d like to recommend a song or album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.

Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. Any donations received will be put towards purchasing new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

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Author: Holly Jolly X’masu
Title: Christmas Tenor Mood
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Episode 7 – Flying Dog Christmas

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Welcome to Episode 7 of Holly Jolly X’masu! In this episode, I cover the 2014 compilation, “Flying Dog Christmas,” from Flying Dog records. I figured this would be a good choice for August, expecting to be in the dog days of summer, but ended up recording it during a stretch of fall-like weather.

I didn’t realize it at the time I chose it that all the songs were taken from Anime. I’ve never really gotten into Anime so I’m not familiar with any of the shows or characters. Forgive me if I messed up some of the pronunciations.

I also have to apologize for how I sound, at least in the first part of the episode. I was coming out of a horrible stretch of insomnia when I recorded it and I didn’t realize how much I sounded like a zombie until I was editing it.

As we enter the Ber Months, I’ll be covering some absolutely exceptional albums. I’ve been learning the ropes over the last few months and feel a lot more comfortable with this than I did back in April. I’ve also added some really remarkable albums to my collection and I’m eager to start sharing them with you. As much as I enjoy the music I’ve already discussed, I’m extremely excited about the albums I have in store. A couple of them are albums I’ve mentioned already, or that are somewhat familiar to real diehard Christmas music collectors, others are albums that are obscure even in Japan. I’ll be discussing everything from Jazz and Funk, to early 70s Now Sound Pop and one of my favorite 80s compilations. A bit further down the road, I’ll be covering a couple of early 70s boy bands and one of the top Japanese female vocalists of the 20th century.

As always, thanks for listening. Next month, I’ll be featuring the album, “Christmas Tenor Mood” by the Nakamura Hachidai Quintet and Hidehiko Matsumoto. This is one of the best Japanese albums I own. It’s an exceptional Christmas Jazz album, and something you don’t want to miss. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or recommendations, feel free to send them my way.

Any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If you’d like to recommend an album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.

Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. Any donations received will be put towards purchasing new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. You can also find me on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. And if you get a chance, leave me a review on iTunes. Thanks!

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Author: Holly Jolly X’masu
Title: Episode 7 – Flying Dog Christmas
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Episode 6 – Christmas In July

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Episode 6 - Christmas In July
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Welcome to Episode 6 of Holly Jolly X’masu! This being my first Christmas in July episode, I wanted to do something special. I covered a variety of summer-themed or summery-sounding Christmas songs instead of a single album. Considering the current state of the world, I wanted to stick with mostly upbeat songs. I’ll feature the downbeat songs next year.

For anyone who’s ever wondered about the origins of Christmas in July, the earliest reference comes from the 1892 opera, Werther, which featured a scene with children rehearsing a Christmas song in July. In my house when I was a kid, that was just a normal day, but in the opera, it prompts one pre-ghost Scrooge of a character to remark, “When you sing Christmas in July, you rush the season.”

The first known celebration of Christmas in July allegedly took place in 1933 at Keystone Camp in Brevard, NC. The camp’s founder, Fannie Holt, decided to stage a Christmas celebration for her campers, complete with Santa, a tree, presents, carolers and even fake snow. The tradition evolved from there and the camp still celebrates it to this day.

The idea first gained some national attention in 1940 with the release Preston Sturges’ Christmas in July. Despite the title, the movie doesn’t feature an actual Christmas celebration, but instead is about a man who mistakenly believes he won $25,000 in a contest and then goes on a Christmas-like shopping spree, buying gifts for his family and friends.

A handful of other local celebrations took place in the 1940s. By 1950, advertisers in America had taken hold of the idea and were using it as a summertime marketing tool. The idea has grown from there, so that now you have networks showing Christmas movies and specials, people decorating their houses, and podcasters creating special episodes. However you choose to observe it, it’s a fun way to divert your attention from the summer heat.

In this episode, I feature ten Christmas songs from ten different artists, each with a summery or tropical feel, or a direct mention of summer. I would include links to where you can buy them, but none of them are available new or streaming in the US. I’ve included the songs, artists and albums below. You can find some of them on Amazon, although you’ll likely have to pay quite a bit to get them.

1. Halcali – Strawberry Chips (Sutoroberīchippusu / ストロベリーチップス), from their 2003 single, Strawberry Chips

2. Akiko Kobayashi – Midsummer Silent Night (Manatsu No Silent Night / 真夏のsilent Night), from the 1989 album, Merry Christmas To You, by Funhouse Ladies Vocal.

3. Yuki Uchida – Tight T-Shirt (Tīshatsu De Gyutto / Tシャツでギュッと), from her 1995 album, Merry Christmas For You.

4. Ginji Ito – Santa Claus In A Red Bikini (Makkana Bikini No Santakurōsu / まっ赤なビキニのサンタクロース), from his 1982 album, Baby Blue.

5. Junko Yamamoto – St. Martin’s Summer (Sento Māchin No Natsu / セント・マーチンの夏), from her 1994 album, Junko Yamamoto.

6. Eri Hiramatsu – Holy! Hot Christmas ~Eve No Toubousha~, From her 1993 album, Ichiya Ichidai Ni Yumemikei.

7. MAX – Midsummer Eve (Manatsu No Eve / 真夏のイヴ), from their 2001 album, Feel So Right.

8. Mutant Monster Beach Party – Boys, Cars, Surf And Christmas, from the 1993 CD re-release of the 1987 classic, Mint Sound’s X’mas Album.

9. Kuwata Band – Merry X’mas In Summer, from their 1986 single, Merry X’mas in Summer. One thing I need to point out about this song is that, in the episode, I said it was originally by Teresa Teng. This was based on multiple sources I found beforehand that listed her as the lyricist and referred to her cover as the original. As it turns out, Keisuke Kuwata wrote the song and Kuwata Band was the first to perform it. Teresa Teng wrote the Chinese lyrics and released it on her album, Drunken Tango, later that same year.

10. Hi-Fi Set – Christmas In July (7 Tsuki No Kurisumasu / 7月のクリスマス), from their 1984 album, Pasadena Park.

As mentioned in the show, here’s the link to Robbie Nevil’s version of Merry X’mas in Summer, as well as a link to Halcali’s video for Strawberry Chips:

Robbie Nevil’s “Merry Christmas In Summer”

Halcali’s “Strawberry Chips”

As always, thanks for listening. Next month, I’ll be talking about the 2014 compilation, Flying Dog Christmas. In the meantime, if you have any suggestions or recommendations, feel free to send them my way.

Any feedback on this episode would be appreciated. If you’d like to recommend an album for a future episode, drop me a line and let me know.

Remember, I’ve added a button to my Ko-fi page. If you’d like to support me one cup of coffee at a time, a donation is only $3. Any donations received will be put towards purchasing new Japanese Christmas music to review for future episodes. Thanks!

Listen to this episode of the Holly Jolly Xmasu Podcast
Author: Holly Jolly X’masu
Title: Episode 6 – Christmas In July
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