The Landscape of Lyrics Spelled Out on the Stage of the Showa Period: The Songs and Words of Tetsuro Hoshino (Late 1960s)

The Landscape of Lyrics Spelled Out on the Stage of the Showa Period: The Songs and Words of Tetsuro Hoshino (Late 1960s)

In the late 1960s, Japan was recovering from the postwar turmoil and experiencing rapid economic growth. In the midst of this time, lyricist Tetsuro Hoshino captured the joys, anger, sorrows, and joys of the common people in his poetry, and delivered masterpieces that struck a chord with many people. Kiyoko Suizenji's "March of 365 Steps" was widely loved as an uplifting song about living positively. On the other hand, "Namida-bune" and "Bros. Ningi" with Saburo Kitajima portray the emotional landscape of men in the Showa period, such as parting and giri (duty and humanity), in passionate language. In "Married Couple Spring and Autumn," Hoshino describes family affairs with lyrics extolling the virtues of domestic help, and in Koji Tsuruta's "Otoko no Blues," he depicts the back of a man who is saddened by the lack of words. Hoshino's lyrics were imbued with the shadows of life and sincerity, and all were close to the hearts of the common people of the time. The world depicte
d through his songs was the very human condition of the Showa era.