The Pride of Tailcoats, the Resounding Voice of Akagi: A Portrait of Prewar Japan in the Person of Taro Tokai (1898-1947)

The Pride of Tailcoats, the Resounding Voice of Akagi: A Portrait of Prewar Japan in the Person of Taro Tokai (1898-1947)

In the early Showa period (1926-1989), the Japanese music world was in the midst of a chaotic mixture of Western music, nankyoku (traditional Japanese ballads), and newer songs. Taro Tokai Rin, wearing roid glasses, a tailcoat, and standing erect and immobile, emerged as a rare figure singing using classical vocalization. After graduating from Waseda University, he worked for the South Manchuria Railway but could not give up his dream of music, and in 1934 he made a name for himself with "Akagi no Komoriuta" (Akagi Lullaby). In 1935, he recorded one hundred and seven songs in a single year, and even called it the "Tokaibayashi Era," a period of prosperity.

In 1939, he released his masterpiece "Meigetsu Akagisan" (Meigetsu Akagisan), and its lyrics and verses, which emphasize righteousness and compassion, resonated with the spirit of the Japanese people during the war years. As the wartime atmosphere of the Sino-Japanese War intensified, Tokaibayashi's dignified appearance and singing voice symbolized the nation's "ideal man.

On the other hand, he was diagnosed with rectal cancer in 1938, and underwent several surgeries, and continued to perform on stage with a bleached skin while wearing a colostomy. In 1947, he gave a successful 25th anniversary performance in Asakusa, and his attitude and determination attracted many people. He was truly a "sincere poet" born in the Showa era, who devoted his life to singing and made it his mission to perform on stage.