'Sayonara' 60s Music: American/Japanese Influence, Marlon Brando, James Mitchener, Irving Berlin, Miyoshi Umeki, The Quests, Tracy Huang.

The Quests: 'Sayonara'. YouTube 

Video By: Famous or Forgotten Music.

Listen to the Jimmy Chan organ solo!

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J-Pop or Japanese popular music reminds me of two songs significantly Japanese, but neither is J-Pop. One of these songs became popular because of Marlon Brando's encounter with Miyoshi Umeki and Hollywood's exotica about everything eastern.

'Sayonara' the movie (1957), from the book by James Mitchener and 'Sayonara' the song by famous lyricist, Irving Berlin, encompassed everything that was stereo-typical about the Japanese in the eyes of the Americans. 

"Sayonara, Japanese goodbye

Whisper sayonara, but you mustn't cry

No more we stop to see pretty cherry blossom

No more we 'neath the trees, looking at the sky..." .

But the public absorbed the song like tears to tissue paper and it became a hit in Singapore in the late 50s and lingering beyond the 60s. And Brando's line, "Well, that's the cutest thing I ever saw honey..." after listening to the song, confirmed America's ideas about Eastern people and culture. Definitely the mysterious East.

The original version by Miiko Ta'aka, is from the soundtrack of the film, while the one played on radio was by Miyoshi Umeki. Her 45 rpm vinyl, Sayonara - Japanese Farewell Song - has, Be Sweet Tonight on its flipside (Mercury 71216). Both versions are great to listen to.

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It is still a popular song and there were numerous covers done in Asia. Singapore pop band, The Quests, did an instrumental version in the 60s and in the 70s. Listen to the solo interlude by Jimmy Chan. He's playing from the heart.

Tracy Huang our beautiful, sophisticated recording artiste did a cover too. These two are the popular versions. The book by Mitchener?  A good read indeed.

Sayonara 黃露儀 sung by: Tracy Huang. 

YouTube Video by: wang0928051789

The book! 

A stock phrase, "When 

East meets West"

Miyoshi Umeki sings SAYONARA - 

YouTube video by: dfactoryusa.

The English language performance of the Irving Berlin song, "Sayonara" was from the December 1957 movie of the same name, She performed a different version in the movie. Eddie Fisher released a version prior to the movie coming out which stole some of her thunder. She also performed a different song called Sayonara (The Japanese Farewell Song) in 1956.

Image: http://www.imdb.com/title

Original article: Andy Lim Collection.

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at least credit the blog and me because copying is stealing.

Andy.