Hello Traveler, and welcome to Japan!
If you haven’t already met, I’d like to introduce you to Shigeo Naka, a contemporary guitarist with a strong love and affinity for the sounds of the early 60s. The music on this album is a nostalgic trip to an exciting time for baby boomer bands, when Japan exploded with creativity along with the rest of the planet.
Japan popularized the inexpensive compact AM radio, and the sounds of the world filled the ears of Japanese teenagers, who were quick to pick up the trends and assimilate them within their culture. Amongst the most popular styles playing on international airwaves were the surf and instrumental sounds– with no lyrics to cross the language barrier– coming from America Britain and beyond. Bands like The Ventures, The Shadows and The Spotniks gave birth to Eleki, with it's focus on strong melody and a hyped up guitar as the lead voice. This led musicians like Takeshi Terauchi, The Sharp Five, Yuzo Kayama (Japan’s answer to Elvis Presley) and many more to release records with a distinctly Japanese feel, that, unfortunately, were slow to leave the Japanese archipelago.
Shigeo Naka is much too young to have been around for the first wave of Eleki bands. As a young guitar prodigy, his tastes were wide and he immersed himself in all manner of rock. His big break came when he put together an instrumental group called The Surf Coasters, which went on to release 25 albums after making a popular debut on a Japanese Star Search style show. The Surf Coasters were met with critical and fan love, and have toured the world, with Naka as lead guitarist and songwriter. As a first call session guitarist, Shigeo showed his range backing hard rock as well as power pop artists.
“Nippon Eleki Beat” is Shigeo Naka’s fourth solo album, and he returns to the sounds that first inspired him. With one original, the rest are covers of some of his favorite 60s songs done in the Eleki style. The opener “Karasu” (meaning “crow”) and track 5, “Rainy Pavement” were originally moody vocals sung by the legendary Yuzo Kayama. Track 2 is The Sharp Five’s “Golden Guitar,” which has become one of the most recognizable Eleki songs around the world. Track 3, “Bombay Duck” is a bit more obscure, but has been covered by both The Shadows and The Ventures. “Furimuite Kyoto” is an original song by Naka, written for the kimono singer Madoka Ogino, and her vocal version is also included as a bonus track. (You will notice Miss Ogino as the cover model of this album.) Track 7 comes all the way from Sweden’s The Spotniks, who, together with The Shadows and The Ventures, are counted as one of the most famous instrumental bands of the 1960s. Track 7, “Blue Rainbow" was a vocal song originally recorded by legendary Japanese GS band The Blue Comets and was a hit in 1968.
As you enjoy your travels though the monumental cities and sweeping countrysides of Japan, let the music of Shigeo Naka be your soundtrack, calling forth an optimistic time of discovery and harmony.
–Ferenc Dobronyi January, 2019
1- Rainy Pavement - Yuzo Kayam vocal
2- Golden Guitar - Sharp Five
3- Bombay Duck - Shadows/Ventures
4-Furimuite Kyoto - Shigeo Naka
5- Karasu - Yuzo Kayam vocal
6- Blue Rainbow - The Blue Comets vocal
7- Jupiter Special - The Spotniks
8-Furimuite Kyoto Vocal - Shigeo Naka
