Japrocksampler: How the Post-War Japanese Blew Their Minds on Rock 'n' Roll

by Julian Cope

In the 1960s rock ‘n’ roll music began crossing the Atlantic Ocean—with The Beatles and The Who leading the British Invasion of the United States—and the Pacific Ocean, as American and European rock slowly began to take hold in Japan. This insightful study from visionary rock musician Julian Cope explores what really happened when Western music met Eastern shores. The clash between traditional Japanese values and the wild renegades of 1960s and 1970s rock ‘n’ roll is examined, and the seminal artists in Japanese post-World War II culture are all covered. From itinerate art-house poets to violent refusenik bands with penchants for plane hijacking, this is the story of the Japanese youths and musicians who simultaneously revolutionized a musical genre and the culture of a nation.

Genres: Music, Nonfiction, Japan, History, Asia, Japanese Literature, Collections

302 pages, Paperback

First published September 3, 2007

About the author

Julian Cope (born Julian David Cope, on 21 October 1957) is a British rock musician, author, antiquary, musicologist, poet and cultural commentator. Originally coming to prominence in 1978 as the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band The Teardrop Explodes, he has followed a solo career since 1983 and initiated musical side projects such as Queen Elizabeth, Brain Donor and Black Sheep. Additional to his own work as a musician, Cope remains an avid champion of obscure and underground music.
Cope is also a recognised authority on Neolithic culture, an outspoken political and cultural activist, and a fierce critic of contemporary Western society (with a noted and public interest in occultism, paganism and Goddess worship).

As an author and commentator, he has written two successive volumes of autobiography called Head-On (1994) and Repossessed (1999); two volumes of archaeology called The Modern Antiquarian (1998) and The Megalithic European (2004); and three volumes of musicology called Krautrocksampler (1995), Japrocksampler (2007) and Detroitrocksampler.

Reviews

[Tosh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Julian Cope, cult-like British rocker galore who can actually put sentences together and does it well has written a great book on 60's crazy Japanese rock n' roll. Something that is actually quite close to my heart.

Now, silly me, I thought for sure Cope would write on the obvious (YMO) or on Hosono, Sakamoto, and maybe even the great and uber-fantastic Jun Togawa. But no!

Cope comes up with crazy bands for instance like the Flowers Travellin' Band - which sounds so insanely fantastic I am going to get their album right now. What makes this such a fantastic read is that Cope is really into it - and he has a good gasp on counter-culture Japanese aesthetics. He gives a bit of (fascinating) history of the Group Sounds movement in Commerical Japanese rock - and how that foundation was layed out for some of the 'out there' bands during the early 70's, late 60's.

This is the ultimate record music lovin' nerd stuff - but Cope is such a delightful presence on these pages. Sort of like a grand host who takes you by the hand and just enjoys the reader's excitement with respect to exposing one to another world.

I go to Japan often and for sure will take his recommendations seriously while record hunting in Shinjuku and Shibuya.

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first chapter is Yoko Ono's first husband emptying their cutlery drawer into a piano and bashing out some John Cage I-Ching freak beats while she records the flushing of the toilets. Meanwhile, artists are locking out the public and releasing a single cockroach on to the gallery floor.

Then there's the Eleki Boom and all the young men are trying to be The Shadows. Absolutely no one's singing. Everyone goes mental when The Ventures tour.

The Beatles are invented and Japan falls in love with Group Sounds: young men, suits, guitars, shaking your head and going "yeah, yeah, yeah". The Spiders, The Jaguars, The Tigers, The Cougars, The Lions ... the list goes on. The Lancers have a track called "I Know You Love Nuts About Him" which is cute. Everyone makes cheesy movies.

It has to be said that Julian's rather rude at this point about the Group Sounds scene in general and Kenji 'Julie' Sawada of The Tigers in particular. "The Tigers' five years at the top of the Group Sounds scene had, however, only been sustained by Sawada's ruthless dedication to the sell-out, and this was by now the only route he knew." "that fey MOR clown Julie Sawada, whose career had risen higher with every cynical step he'd taken away from his rock'n'roll routes." "unlike media whores such as the Tigers' Julie Sawada who would dress and act in any manner that their management requested," ... Gosh! And old Julie is almost the only person I'd met before. He's Osamu in the "Kyoko's House" segment of "Mishima: A Life in Four Chapters": http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Oc4_2W...

After Group Sounds? "Hair" is coming! The brighter of the Group Sounds band members try to get parts. But then there's a drug bust and the whole production is closed down. Hippies throng Tokyo and those with a harder edge and notions of being folk guerillas go to Les Rallizes Denudes gigs, where you know something's gone wrong if a tune is discernible amongst the screaming feedback. Then their bassist and his Japanese Red Army chums hijack a plane and head to North Korea. Some of them are still there, poor things, and desperate for a life in a Japanese prison.

New Rock emerges: festival bands, untitled tracks lasting for over 20 minutes. Very progressive and everyone dreaming that they, too, could one day support Emerson, Lake and Palmer's Canadian tour...

This is the bit Julian was most interested in, and he gives us a chapter each on the Flower Travellin' Band, Speed, Glue and Shinki, and the Taj Mahal Travellers.

After this, I have to admit to fading in/out. There was something about radical theatre music, jazz ...

I listened to very many of Julian's recommendations on youtube and can tell you that I am now the proud owner of a secondhand copy of Flower Travellin' Band's "Satori".

[Matthew · Rating 4 out of 5]

more music historians should write with extreme predjudice, we might read their books.

[Víctor Soho · Rating 5 out of 5]

Alucinante. Recomendadísimo a calquera persoa interesade na música xaponesa. Non só é un ensaio cun coñecemento enciclopédico alucinante —volverei as súas listas e recomendacións unha e outra vez—, ademáis é unha gran análise das capacidades da arte, concretamente a música, de traballar como elemento disruptivo da sociedade e un retrato alucinante da xuventude do Xapón da post-guerra. Directo a ser dos meus libros sobre música favoritos.

[unevendesk · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good if you like Japanese music/weird music. Prob unnecessary for everyone else.

[Beck Clegg · Rating 4 out of 5]

What were they cooking over there

[Benjamin Stevens · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book serves as much more of a dry read on the history and personal stories of some very eccentric and at times righteous Japanese outsider rockers. However the color that Julian Cope brings to Head On, Repossessed, and Copendium is in somewhat shorter supply. I know he wants to treat these guys with the respect they deserve over just being his usual wacky self and honestly I wouldn't have known any of these bands without the book so I should just be quiet.

[rob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great starting point for those curious about the now-defunct greats of the past, from Rallizes and their hikikomori frontman to Pepe and his howling stories about walking drugstores. Some have said that Cope's writing sits between tedium and masturbatory glee, and I tend to agree. Those who read Krautrocksampler will notice the many parallels Cope tries (sometimes successfully, sometimes not) to make between the two alternative scenes, sometimes letting his own language trip him up. By the time he said "sub-sub-sub-Cosmic Jokers" for the 4th time, I was thinking of all the drinking game rules that could be made about coping with long exposure to UV rays (staring at sun similar to reading this book) and the -ahem- "Ur-babel" of Cope's writing. It leaves nothing to be wanted on the solo, but the rhythm and factual beats are sometimes pushed back in the wall of sound that screaming about your favorite bands makes--fair enough, I guess. Something to be said of this fun, and you can see Cope's passion in his writing. Check out how you feel about these bands, then check the top 50 "mini-reviews" in the back, read one or two, and see if you'd like to dig further. Recommend the music HARDD--I just don't want to be blamed when your teardrop explodes.

[Eric Hewes · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is dense, packed with bands and musical references that, for the first time initiate, are difficult to break into. but if you listen and read, taking time to digest each chapter and explore the discussed artists at a leisurely pace, this book is an absolute gold mine. it's part compendium part history part gonzo journalism and it's utterly brilliant.

In particular Flower travelling band's "satori" has opened up a whole new vain of musical exploration for me. simultaneously revitalizing my interest in psychedelic rock and explaining how far eastern instruments like the biwa koto and shimasen link with modern rock & metal a link i've always felt but never found evidence for.

Julian cope deconstructs these links though explorations of various Japanese experimental artists, theatre groups & producers to set the stage for the blooming of a particularly Japanese rock scene, mercifully weeding through the hundreds of cheap imitations and focusing on bands with high levels of originality and or execution.

No doubt I'll be referring back to the book for several years to come as I slowly work my way through the musical maze of J-rock, jazz and experimental electronica.

[Gemma Montfort · Rating 3 out of 5]

Curiós relat sobre la música rock al Japó. El llibre se centra en grups que van ser rellevants a nivell musical durant els anys 50, 60 i 70.

Julian Cope ens parla d'artistes mediàtics a occident com Yoko Ono i mediàtics al Japó, com Moriaki Wakabayashi, més conegut per haver segrestat un avió de la JAL amb la Japan Red Army que per formar part del mític grup Les Rallizes Dénudés (aquesta història bé val el seu propi llibre). Tot i que la majoria de músics que hi apareixen viuen al marge de la popularitat.

Trobo que el llibre és una mica irregular: hi ha capítols on es fa pesat perquè és una enumeració de discos, noms i grups, i d'altres, super entretinguts perquè s'hi expliquen vivences i anècdotes curioses dels artistes.

A més, hi ha alguns errors pel que fa a fets històrics i cultura japonesa. Per exemple, quan explica la Batalla de Sanrizuka, se'ns diu que la revolta es va produir perquè els pagesos estaven en contra de l'ampliació de Haneda i, no és així, estaven en contra de la construcció de Narita.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Postwar Japan soaked up western culture like a sponge. What it did with it after is the story of this book. We meet many Avant-Garde composers and artists (including a young, neurotic Yoko Ono before she met the famous John) as they work their butts off to get some recognition in the West, and particularly in the US. But as the music evolves, so does the realization by Japanese artists that they don't need the recognition as much as they need their own sounds. This book goes as deeply as I've ever seen into how different cultures listen to music and emphasize different sounds, different energies and emotions, to create something entirely independent of the music that influenced it.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cope makes it clear that this is an idiosyncratic and personal take on a very narrow strip of music, and Japrocksampler is all the better for that. Unlike some of the music described, this is a breezy read, nothing erudite in like The Wire. It's also fairly episodic and the chapter on Experimental Japan (1961-69) is recommended for its efforts at piecing together a narrative while those chapters on Les Rallizes Denudes and Speed, Glue & Shinki are a must for the raw guffaws.

[Pearce · Rating 3 out of 5]

If you want recommendations for Japanese prog, hard rock & psychedelic records, this is a funny, idiosyncratic and generally entertaining read and you'll find yourself looking up youtube clips of the artists and albums within.

If you want facts, look elsewhere - Cope has admitted that he made up a lot it up, including inventing some bands and creating fictional backstories for some of the real people involved.

[Kid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not sure how Julian Cope managed to make the incredible music he categorizes dull but he does. I love his writing on Headheritage.com - you should check it out. This book is good as a reference for checking out crazy records - but as a read it's surprisingly tiresome.

[Fritz · Rating 1 out of 5]

Mostly devolves into Julian Cope wanking over his record collection.

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

A compulsively thorough, maniacally verbose work of extreme nerd-love... Just not MY nerd-love.

[Hex75 · Rating 4 out of 5]

per arrivare a dare la caccia a dischi usciti e diffusi solo in giappone negli anni '70 bisogna essere divorati da una curiosità musicale inappagabile, che non prevede di porsi limiti di spese di frustrazioni e non arretra difronte alla scarsità di fonti reperibili: nel caso si decide di afrontare una simile ricerca "japrocksampler" è il libro definitivo, nonchè probabilmente l'unico non in giaponese sull'argomento.
cope mette da parte lo stile usato in "krautrocksampler", analizzando la storia della musica rock giapponese a partire dal contesto in cui viene ad evolversi, cercando quindi di spiegarne la storia vera e propria (magari analizzandola nel raffronto con ciò che accadeva all'estero, come fa ottimamente parlando del '68), la scena artistica e culturale (che discreto peso avranno nella musica rock nipponica: si vedano le schede su j.a.cesar e sui tokyo kid brothers, ma non solo...), oltre a mondi limitrofi come la musica di ricerca e il jazz, arrivando quindi a spiegare il giappone in un modo sicuramente inedito nella critica rock, raramente attenta ad analizzare la società in cui le scene musicali si sviluppano.
insomma, "japrocksampler" è lontanissimo dai deliri lisergici di "krautrocksampler", e forse è più vicino al cope che studia i megaliti di "the modern antiquarian", a suo modo stimato anche da chi certe cose le studia per mestiere e non per hobby; e forse proprio per questo il libro potrebbe rivelarsi lettura godibile anche per chi del rock giapponese è -ed intende continuare ad essere- felicemente ignaro ma ha voglia di leggere un testo sulla musica che sappia essere intrigante e divertente, documentato senza sembrare saccente, frutto di una passione sincera e non un tentativo di creare una moda nuova intorno a una delle poche scene musicali rimaste quasi inesplorate.
al di la del contenuto, poi, cope si rivela scrittore sempre più sicuro di se, capace con poche frasi di portarti dentro uno studio di registrazione, dietro le quinte dell'edizione giapponese di "hair" o sul palco di un festival: a questo punto non vedo l'ora che si decida ad esordire anche come romanziere...

[S Shah · Rating 5 out of 5]

Having lived in Japan and heard tales of many of these bands, it was fascinating to read about them in my first language. Cope's crispy dry humor makes the text not only informative, but entertaining. Sadly, the book leads to a wishlist of unobtainable, or nearly unobtainable recordings. The bright spot here is that there really are just a few stand-out masterpieces with much of the rest primarily relevant context. That surrounding atmosphere can be quite entertaining in its own right, but pay attention to the albums he not merely recommends, but raves about. Cope comes across rather raving from the start and occasionally it seems the worse it is, the more he likes it, however like the Japanese psyche, Cope loves a valiant loser.

Warning, you will not find anything about Gackt, Baby Metal, or much of anything that hit the collective consciousness through mass media. He doesn't even mention RC Succession, or Yosui Ino'e. This book is about underground freakers and for people who, like Cope, love the weird and unsung. Cope's definition of "rock" is wide, but his interests have a low ceiling. Just look at the cover. You probably can judge this book fairly well by that photo.

[Benny · Rating 3 out of 5]

Julian Cope, de guru van de alternatieve muziekscene in Groot-Brittannië, heeft een voorliefde voor vreemde en obscure muziek. Weird shit, zeg maar. Na zijn verkenning van de ‘krautrock’ duikt hij nu in de Japanse muziekwereld.

Japrocksampler, met de naakte bikers van the Flower Travellin’ Band op de kaft, is geen boek voor doetjes. Cope onderzoekt “how the post-war Japanese blew their minds on rock’n’roll”. Cope schrijft bevlogen. Hij graaft diep en heeft oog voor de context, maar is vooral erg gepassioneerd en heerlijk subjectief. Hij slaat je om de oren met verwijzingen en knipoogjes. Grappen en grollen voor de insiders, maar als je hier net zo in thuis bent, toch vooral…heel vreemd, allemaal.

Niet voor iedereen dus, maar onmisbaar als je je hierin wil verdiepen. De bijgevoegde playlist speelt daarbij een belangrijke rol.

[Alex McLean · Rating 4 out of 5]

I took my time reading this one as I was trying to listen to as many of the bands named as I could possibly find on Spotify/YouTube. The level of depth that Cope provides throughout this book is incredible, especially if you are a fan of underground music in general. At the same time, I can see how the depth could be a little bit off putting for fans who are just looking for a few new music recommendations.

While there are parts of this book that have proven to be sensationalised/hyperbolised (particularly in relation to the ever secretive Les Rallizes Dénudés) it doesn’t undermine the utility of Cope’s sampler as a singular resource for learning about post-war Japanese rock/experimental music.

[Jon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Though I'm still hoping to come across as reasonably priced copy of Krautrocksampler (or until Cope changes his mind about a reprint), this follow-up about the music of post-war Japan is really great. And it's so much more than just a list, he really gives great context as to how the specific culture fed into this music. Written in a style that is both highly informative and quite funny, this is well worth reading for anyone curious about Blues Creation, Les Rallizes Denudes, Far East Family Band and other Japanese rock searchers.

[Corby Plumb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent reference to a scene that few knew little about until the Archdrude put in the major work as he did with Krautrocksampler. The chapters on major players like Flower Travelin Band and Les Rallizes are obviously essential but his attention to lesser known lights as J.A. Caesar, the Far East Family and Mako will lead many music listeners to search them out.

[Miguel Sánchez · Rating 3 out of 5]

El libro es muy interesante, pero se puede hacer un poco de bola para los que, como yo, no estén muy familiarizados con el rock nipón más allá de lo superficial. Considero que la lista del top 50 del autor es una joya para ir indagando en esta peculiar escena.

Desde ya me declaro fan de los directos de Taj Mahal Travellers.

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

Julian Cope's thoroughly researched and exhaustive history of post-war Japanese rock and roll music. Indispensable for anyone interested in finding out more about the Nipponese take on the music of the west.

[Sarah]

Recommended by a friend and I really wanted to learn about this topic. But the writing made me crazy so I put it down, intending to go back and finish. Alas, I don't actually think I will. It's time to admit it.

[Douglas Roberts · Rating 5 out of 5]

I keep coming back to this book. Cope is a maniacal obsessive who writes like a true fan, his love for the music is obvious, the attention to historical detail is deep. I've discovered so much music through this book, music that is part of my everyday life. Thoroughly recommended.

[Erik Carter · Rating 4 out of 5]

found out about a bunch of cool bands, julian cope is a weird writer to be sure

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

absolutely audacious and stupid and exaggerated and fabricated and i wouldnt have it any other way
group sounds forever baby

[Lourens Van Hoorn · Rating 4 out of 5]

Leuke schrijver over een leuk onderwerp. Enige nadeel dat ik weinig must listens eruit heb

[Maur0cio · Rating 3 out of 5]

"Only barbarians are able to rejuvenate a world in the throes of collapsing civilisation." F. Engels