2003 MARCH 21 #080
Andy Williams - Let's Dance/Sutekina Sora O/Itsudemo
On one of my first visits to the massive sprawling temple market at Shitenouji in Osaka, an Aladdin's cave of previously enjoyed vinyl, medicine of dubious origins (scary looking roots and animal parts) and other junk from the last hundred years or so, after swimming through a sea of rekkids that had long slipped out of its sleeves I came across an unusual item: A picture disc with Andy Williams on it. I did a good deal with an old man who was standing near the rekkids - he appeared to be the owner.
I didn't even read what was on it. I thought it was beautiful as a thing. I don't really know why I was so attracted to it but I knew it needed saving. I'm not a huge Andy Williams fan but when I listened to the record I found the 3 short songs on the Japanese side oddly compelling. "Hawaiian Wedding Song", which is on the other side, I may have listened to once. I see it occasionally in the flea markets but it's always way overpriced.
- Your man in Japan, Sem Sinatra, Osaka, Japan, March 2003, Year of the gray-haired friendly dog
TT-3:25 / 4.7MB / 192kbps 44.1khz
from the promo 7", "Sings in Japanese"
(Image courtesy of Sem Sinatra)
Max Swanson writes:
I wonder if this isn't a commercial on disk, with the
Hawaiian Wedding Song as a bonus. I'm thinking this because:
First, the repeated word "aginomoto," is one
of the few Japanese words I know. My brother, who has
traveled in the country, told me it's a form of MSG, used
as a flavoring in many dishes. And then there's the Firesign
Theater's album, "Not Insane, where Young-Guy, Moto
Detective, declaims: "Barrel full of deadly *aginomoto*
set to go off at end of meal!" Musically, the frequent
truncating of the usual 4-bar phrase is often done in
commercials to save time. The listener is just supposed
to pick up the extra beats, though it drives me and any
other musician nuts! More Linguistic Reasons: The product
itself would be called, "My Family." Yes, the
actual name would be English. One hot July Saturday, as
my aforementioned brother, Steve, made a late appearance
at my dad's new lake cabin, he brought and began reading
aloud from a book called "Japanese Jive". Steve's
Scottish Terrier, after four hours in the car, ten proceeded
to take a chunk out of Sister Martha's finger. Meanwhile
Steve kept reading to me from "Japanese Jive."
I've forgotten the author, but the book's central thesis
is that English is often used for cultural leavening of
advertisements, though the wording selected may seem strange
to a native English speaker; thus, "My Family,"
could be about any kind of product. The dog has left this
earthly plane, but all other characters mentioned are
alive and well. Why have I gone on so about this? Really
couldn't say. You can send it anywhere in cyberspace.
It may be a bumpy ride; so let's just flow with the tide.
Suzanne Baumann writes:
In response to the comment above, the author of "Japanese
Jive" is Caroline McKeldin. A fine, fine book it
is!