4th installment: Kenji Endo

Hello.
My name is Hoshino, and I work at Advance Guitars in Shinjuku Ward, Tokyo (Shin-Okubo).

This series, "Advance Guitars Hoshino's Folk Journey ~Folk Songs and Acoustic Guitars~," explores the trajectory of "folk songs" that captivated Japan from the late 1960s to the 1970s, and up to the new music of the 1980s, starting from the simple question, "Whose songs were they, and what kind of acoustic guitars were they played on?" and focusing on the artists and guitars used in folk songs.

Behind the scenes of these famous songs, what kind of guitars were chosen, what intentions were behind their selection, and what kind of tones were they producing?
As a professional music store employee, I deepen my knowledge through my writing, drawing on my meticulous perspective and my inquisitive spirit as a pure music fan.

When people hear the term "acoustic guitar," many might imagine a quiet and gentle sound. However, the guitar played by Kenji Endo (nicknamed "Enken") shatters that image in an instant. What kind of guitar did Kenji Endo love in the streets of Kichijoji, and how did he create that one-of-a-kind "explosive sound"? We will unravel the passionate relationship between him and his guitar.

*From "AERA: Kenji Endo, the 'Pure Musician Who Matches Words and Sound,' Revisits His Origins"

In 1969, Kenji Endo made his debut with "It's True / The Cat is Sleeping."
Among them, "Honto da yo" (It's True) is played in fingerstyle and is a song that gives the impression of being bluesy, composed only of Em and D chords.
The song is simple, composed of a tonic (Em) and a dominant (D), yet it alternates between stability and instability, and I felt that Kenji Endo's passionate vocals, along with the lyrics, really resonated with me.

*From Disk Union's "It's True"

1969, the year Kenji Endo made his debut, was also the year when protest songs (songs with an anti-war or student movement background) by artists such as Tomoya Takaishi and Nobuyasu Okabayashi were gaining popularity among the public. While folk guitarists were pouring their passionate feelings and emotions into their songs, blending them with the historical context, Kenji Endo took to the stage with the stance of expressing his pure emotions and personal daily life through songs, based on his belief in "pure music."
One song that exemplifies this is "Curry Rice," released in 1972.

The lyrics depict the everyday life of making curry rice, but a part of the lyrics, "I was lying down watching TV when someone suddenly cut open their stomach," incorporates the "Mishima Incident," which became a social phenomenon in 1971, suggesting that this song is sung from a completely different perspective than a protest song.

Interestingly, the 1971 album version of "Curry Rice" features members of Happy End (Haruomi Hosono, Shigeru Suzuki, and Takashi Matsumoto) and is primarily an acoustic guitar-based recording, while the 1972 single version includes the Happy End members plus Masahiro Takekawa on violin, resulting in a more emotionally charged arrangement.

*From Disk Union's "Curry Rice"

*From "The History of Rakan Studio and Kichijoji"

From the late 1960s to the early 1970s, Shinjuku in Tokyo was brimming with the energy of young people fueled by folk guerrillas and student movements, but gradually, restrictions from state power tightened, and the atmosphere became increasingly bleak.
The people, who had expressed anti-war sentiments and labor songs through their music, began to gather along the Chuo Line in search of a place where they could freely express themselves.
In the 1970s, Kichijoji was different from the popular area it is today, lined with large commercial facilities and with high rent prices. It was a quiet suburban town with abundant greenery, and rents were about five to seven times cheaper than they are today. Young musicians, manga artists, and theater troupe members flocked to the area, and it is said that a community of artists naturally grew there.

Kenji Endo spread his music from his base in Kichijoji, and behind this was the existence of a legendary rock café.

"Rock Cafe OZ"
Opened in June 1972, the venue has hosted numerous renowned artists, including Kenji Endo, Sadistic Mika Band, Masato Minami, and Les Rallizes Dénudés.
In September 1973, it closed after only about a year and three months, but it was loved by many fans as a sacred place in the history of underground rock.

The name "Rock Cafe OZ" seems to originate from the classic film "The Wizard of Oz" and the magazine "OZ," which spearheaded London's youth culture in the 1960s and 70s, promoting psychedelic art and underground ideology.

After that, he continued to be active at places like "STAR PINE'S CAFE" and "Gwarando".

※From Heibonsha's "Back Then, There Was a 'Gwarando' in Kichijoji"

In particular, at Guarandou (commonly known as BLUES HALL/Musashino Kayakuko Guarandou), not only Kenji Endo but also artists who were active in the Chuo Line area at the time, such as Wataru Takada and Masato Tomobe, put on passionate live performances.
Furthermore, Kenji Endo participated in "Musashino Tanpopo Dan," a group formed by musicians who gathered at Gwarando, and performed live with Furuiido (a duo of Yoshitaro Kanazaki and Reiichi Nakaiido) before their debut, thus etching his name into the history of underground folk music.

The numerous musical instruments that Kenji Endo acquired throughout his life were not merely tools, but perhaps an extension of his body, a way to express the cries of his very being.
He continued to confront the world with just a guitar, but I imagine that at the heart of his music was an incredibly gentle and deeply personal perspective.
I feel that the place where he focused his gaze most intensely was Kichijoji, the town he loved dearly.

And above all, what gently eased his tense expressions was the presence of his beloved cat, Nezumi.
"Nezumi" was named with the hope that she would become a cat that was good at catching mice, but later her landlord found out and she could no longer be kept, so she was entrusted to Haruomi Hosono of Happy End and raised with great care.

The peaceful time he spent connecting with tiny, wordless creatures continued to provide him with boundless inspiration and pure energy for music.
A street corner in Kichijoji, and the presence of a cat that whimsically seeks out affection.
I felt that at the starting point of Kenji Endo's music, which produced sounds that seemed to shake the universe, there were always these precious fragments of everyday life.

The first guitar Kenji Endo purchased in 1966 was a Yamaha F180 (nicknamed "Yamaha Ichiro").
It seems that their debut single, "Honto da yo / Neko ga Nemutteru," was composed using this guitar.
The sturdiness and powerful sound inherent in a plywood body may have matched the sound that Kenji Endo was looking for.
As proof of this, Kenji Endo owns three other Yamaha FG180s. (Yamaha Jiro, Yamaha Saburo, Yamaha Shiro)
Both Yamaha Jiro and Saburo's guitars are Red Label models, and damage from picking can be seen around the soundhole, indicating their vigorous playing.

Kenji Endo's YAMAHA FG180 (Ichiro Yamaha) is an early model because it has the YAMAHA logo, the YAMAHA FG180s (Jiro and Saburo Yamaha) are both early models, and the YAMAHA FG180 (Shiro Yamaha) is a later model because it has a tuning fork logo.

*The photo is for illustrative purposes only. (1966-1967 YAMAHA FG-180 "Light Green Label")

This guitar came into Kenji Endo's possession in April 1970.
This Martin D-35 is said to have been acquired from its original owner, Nobuyasu Okabayashi.
Perhaps because this was Kenji Endo's second guitar, he used it on many stages.
As evidence of this, the D-35 owned by Kenji Endo bears picking marks around the soundhole, suggesting powerful playing.

*The photo is for illustrative purposes only. (1969 Martin D-35)

This is the same guitar that was used in the song "Ameagari no Birugai" (A City After the Rain), which is included in the 1999 album "Enken no Yojohan Rock" (Enken's Four-and-a-Half Tatami Mat Rock).
One of the specification changes made to the D-18 in 1966 was a change in the pickguard design.
The specifications changed from a tortoiseshell pickguard to a black pickguard, but since Kenji Endo's D-18 has a tortoiseshell pickguard, I suspect it is probably an early 1967 model from before the specification change.
Also, in 1967, the truss rod embedded in the neck changed from a T-steel bar to a square rod, but considering the specifications of the pickguard, it is likely that it was a T-steel bar.

*The photo is for illustrative purposes only. (1967 Martin D-18)

This particular unit was originally purchased in Hawaii by actor Shiro Sano, and later bought by Kenji Endo.
The D-28S is characterized by its slotted headstock, 12-fret joint, and sloping shoulder body shape, but the D-28S owned by Kenji Endo has closed-back tuners.RecruitFurthermore, since it had open-back tuners, which were used in regular models sold from around 1967 to 1970, I speculated that this particular unit might be from the 1970s.

*The photo is for illustrative purposes only. (1970 Martin D-28S)

We welcome your requests for future musicians you'd like us to cover, stories related to folk music, and anything else you'd like us to share. For me, firsthand accounts like "I actually saw it back then" or "I heard the sound of this guitar at that concert" are incredibly valuable and serve as the best textbook. If you have any suggestions, please feel free to contact Hoshino at Advance Guitars.

✉️ aco@tcgakki.com

Well then, see you again in the next episode of "Hoshino's Folk Music Journey"!