Oshi-Katsu Chronicle: The 1960s — The Beatles Arrive, 300+ Group Sounds Bands and TV Takes Over

In 1960s Japan, television spread into homes, and singers and animated characters became part of the living room. In 1963 came the TV anime Tetsuwan Atom (Astro Boy), whose hero is a boy-shaped robot.

In 1966 the British rock band the Beatles made their first visit to Japan. Homegrown bands playing electric guitars appeared one after another as well, drawing fervent young crowds.

The 1960s at a glanceThe living-room decade

1961Shabondama HolidayA weekly music variety show begins
1963Tetsuwan AtomTV anime begins; Sukiyaki tops Billboard
1964Budokan opensBuilt for the Tokyo Olympics judo events
1966The Beatles at BudokanUltraman also begins
1967Late-night radioPack in Music and All Night Nippon
1968Tigers at BudokanShonen Jump launches

Television, radio and live halls each added a new way to follow your oshi.

Two women in the 1960s enjoying music on a record player

The “Gosanke” Singers, and Kyu Sakamoto’s Worldwide Hit

Yukio Hashi, Kazuo Funaki and Teruhiko Saigo were known as the “Gosanke,” or Big Three, and drew teenage female fans. Hashi won the newcomer award at the Japan Record Awards in 1960 for “Itako Gasa.” Funaki’s 1963 debut song “Koko San-nensei” (Third-Year High School Student), sung in a school uniform, and Saigo’s 1964 hit “Kimi Dake o” (Only You) also became huge sellers. (Japan Composers Association, 1960; 1963, both in Japanese)

Weekly television shows where viewers could see their favorite singers from the living room also took hold. On Nippon Television’s music variety show Shabondama Holiday (Soap Bubble Holiday), which began in June 1961, the twin duo the Peanuts and Hana Hajime and the Crazy Cats performed Western pop numbers and comedy sketches. (Broadcast Library: Shabondama Holiday, in Japanese)

Overseas, Kyu Sakamoto’s “Ue o Muite Arukou” (I Look Up as I Walk, lyrics by Rokusuke Ei, music by Hachidai Nakamura) was released under the title “Sukiyaki.” In June 1963 it took No. 1 for three straight weeks on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. (Universal Music Japan, in Japanese)

Group Sounds Take Off, and Bands Get Their Own Oshi

In the late 1960s, bands that played their own electric guitars and drums while singing sparked a nationwide boom. The genre was called “group sounds,” or “GS” for short. At its peak from 1967 to 1969, more than 100 groups made record debuts and over 300 bands were active across the country. (NHK Archives: “Group Sounds Craze”, in Japanese)

Bands and songs that drew fans in the GS boom

The Spiders"Yuhi ga Naite Iru" (The Sunset Is Crying): A 1966 hit. With members including Masaaki Sakai, Jun Inoue and Hiroshi Kamayatsu, the band helped lead the GS boom.
The Tigers"Hana no Kubikazari" (Flower Necklace): They debuted in February 1967 with "Boku no Mary" (My Mary) and drew overwhelming popularity around Kenji Sawada ("Julie").
The Tempters"Emerald no Densetsu" (Legend of the Emerald): It hit No. 1 on the Oricon chart in 1968, and vocalist Kenichi Hagiwara ("Shoken") won a fervent following.

(The Spiders; The Tigers; The Tempters, all in Japanese)

The Beatles Play Budokan, and Japanese Bands Take the Same Stage

The Nippon Budokan in Tokyo’s Kitanomaru Park opened in October 1964 as the judo venue for the Tokyo Olympics. It was originally built as a hall for Japanese martial arts. (Nippon Budokan, in Japanese)

From June 30 to July 2, 1966, the Beatles played five shows there on their first visit to Japan. Each performance ran about 35 minutes and 11 songs. Amid objections to electric music being played in a hall of martial arts, the concerts went ahead under tight security mobilizing a cumulative 35,000 police officers. (Record of the Japan visit, in Japanese)

Two milestones at one venueBudokan before and after 1966

1964

Built for martial arts

Opened for the Tokyo Olympics judo events
Not yet a music hall

June 30 to July 2, 1966

The Beatles

Five shows in total
About 35 minutes and 11 songs each
Held under tight security

1968

The Tigers

First Japanese band to hold a solo concert there
Fans gathered for a domestic band

A martial-arts hall became a place where fans gather for music.

Watching Atom and Ultraman on TV Every Week

On January 1, 1963, the TV anime Tetsuwan Atom (Astro Boy) premiered on the Fuji TV network. Japan’s first 30-minute serialized TV anime reached a peak rating of 40.7%, and children eagerly collected the Atom stickers included with sponsor Meiji Seika’s “Marble Chocolate.” (Osamu Tezuka official site, in Japanese)

That November Toei Animation’s Okami Shonen Ken (Wolf Boy Ken) began airing, followed in July 1966 by Tsuburaya Productions’ special-effects series Ultraman. (Toei Animation, in Japanese; Explainer on the kaiju boom, in Japanese)

Illustrated monster encyclopedias listing each creature’s height, weight and origin, along with soft vinyl (“sofubi”) monster figures, sold briskly at toy shops.

Underlying the reach of these programs was the rapid spread of television sets into households. According to Central Research Services, the household penetration rate for black-and-white TVs rose from 25.5% in 1959 to 92.7% in 1969. (Central Research Services, in Japanese)

Song shows reached living rooms nationwide as well, and the 14th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen on New Year’s Eve 1963 recorded a household rating of 81.4% in the Kanto region. That figure represents the share of surveyed households, not individuals. (Ratings record, in Japanese)

Cinema Audiences Shrink, and Baseball Broadcasts Become a Home Pleasure

Total annual cinema admissions, about 1.014 billion in 1960, fell to about 284 million in 1969. The number of movie theaters nationwide also dropped by half, from 7,457 to 3,602. As television reached nearly every home, the habit of going to the movies changed markedly. (Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan, in Japanese)

The screen moves homeTelevision up, cinema down

25.5% to 92.7%: Black-and-white TV household penetration, 1959 to 1969
1.014 billion to 284 million: Annual cinema admissions, 1960 to 1969
7,457 to 3,602: Number of cinemas

Sources: Central Research Services (TV households, in Japanese); Motion Picture Producers Association of Japan (cinemas, in Japanese)

In professional baseball, meanwhile, the Yomiuri Giants—led by Sadaharu Oh and Shigeo Nagashima, the “ON Cannon”—won nine straight Japan Series championships starting in 1965. Known as “V9,” the streak lasted until 1973 and made evening baseball broadcasts a staple of the family living room. (Yomiuri Giants, in Japanese)

Late-Night Radio Contributions, and Magazines That Make Sound

In July 1967 TBS Radio’s Pack in Music began, followed in October by Nippon Broadcasting’s All Night Nippon. Young listeners placed compact transistor radios on their desks late at night, listening to hosts’ talk and music while writing request postcards. (All Night Nippon 55th Anniversary History, in Japanese)

Magazines that played sound also drew fans. Asahi Sonorama, launched in 1959, included thin vinyl “sonosheet” flexi-discs as supplements, allowing children who could not afford expensive records to get anime and tokusatsu theme songs along with a magazine and play them at home. (National Diet Library, in Japanese)

Among boys’ manga magazines, Shueisha’s Shonen Jump launched in July 1968 as a twice-monthly and went weekly in October 1969, alongside a wave of sports manga such as Kyojin no Hoshi (Star of the Giants) and Ashita no Joe (Tomorrow’s Joe). (Shueisha: 55th anniversary article, in Japanese)

Key Events of the Decade

The decade when television began delivering your favorites to the living room every week

1960At the 2nd Japan Record Awards, Yukio Hashi wins the New Artist Award for "Itako Gasa"Music
June 1961"Shabondama Holiday" begins broadcasting, with The Peanuts as its starsMedia
Jan. 1963"Tetsuwan Atom" (Astro Boy) begins airing (produced by Mushi Production, on the Fuji TV network)Anime
June 1963Kyu Sakamoto's "Ue o Muite Aruko" (Sukiyaki) hits No. 1 on the US Billboard chartMusic
Nov. 1963Toei Doga's "Okami Shonen Ken" begins airing, the studio's first TV seriesAnime
Dec. 1963The 14th NHK Kohaku Uta Gassen reaches a viewer rating of 81.4%Media
Sept. 1964The "Miyuki-zoku" of Ginza's Miyuki-dori are rounded up by police all at onceFans
Oct. 1964The Nippon Budokan opens as the judo venue for the Tokyo OlympicsSports
Oct. 1964The Tokyo Olympics open, and Japan wins 16 gold, 5 silver and 8 bronze medalsSports
1965The Yomiuri Giants begin their nine straight Japan Series titles (V9)Sports
June-July 1966The Beatles visit Japan for the first time and play five shows at the Nippon BudokanMusic
July 1966"Ultraman" begins airing, leading into the first kaiju (monster) boomAnime
Feb. 1967The Tigers debut with "Boku no Marie"Music
Oct. 1967Nippon Broadcasting System's "All Night Nippon" begins broadcastingMedia
Mar. 1968The Tigers become the first Japanese band to play the BudokanMusic
May 1968Shueisha launches Shonen Jump (published twice a month)Media

Words of the Era

Words of the era: entertainment and everyday life

Gosanke (the "Big Three"): The name for Yukio Hashi, Kazuo Funaki and Teruhiko Saigo. They won the support of teenage female fans
Group Sounds: Popular songs performed by bands built around electric guitars. It grew into a major boom from around 1966
Miyuki-zoku (the Miyuki tribe): Young people who gathered on Ginza's Miyuki-dori in 1964. They were known for their distinctive clothing
Kaiju boom (monster boom): The popularity of monsters that began with "Ultra Q" and "Ultraman." Illustrated guides and soft vinyl figures spread

In the chart, Miyuki-zoku is the name for young people who gathered on Ginza’s Miyuki Street in the summer of 1964 in Ivy Look and other distinctive outfits. It is not a word for a fan organization of any particular singer. (NHK Archives: “Miyuki-zoku Appear in Ginza”, in Japanese)

In the next installment, the 1970s, idol support groups and anime fan activity spread, and the pleasure of carrying music around on cassette arrives.

FAQ

What kind of decade were the 1960s in oshi-katsu history?

It was the decade television became the center of fan support. The household penetration rate for black-and-white TVs rose from 25.5% in 1959 to 92.7% in 1969, and more people enjoyed their oshi's appearances on screen at set times every week.

Who were the Gosanke ("Big Three")?

The name for Yukio Hashi, Kazuo Funaki and Teruhiko Saigo, who won the support of teenage female fans in the 1960s. Hashi received the newcomer award at the 2nd Japan Record Awards in 1960 for "Itako Gasa."

How big was the group sounds boom?

It was a huge craze from 1967 to 1969, and at its peak there are said to have been more than 300 groups. By around the summer of 1968, when the boom peaked, more than 100 groups had made their record debuts.

When did the Beatles play in Japan?

They visited from June 29 to July 3, 1966, and gave five shows at the Nippon Budokan: the night of June 30, day and night on July 1, and day and night on July 2. Each show ran about 35 minutes and 11 songs.

How did 1960s fans connect with each other?

Through fan club newsletters and pen pals, magazines' reader-contribution pages, and fan letters. In 1967, late-night broadcasts such as All Night Nippon began, adding a place where you could send a postcard and have your own words go out on the airwaves.

Where did 1960s TV anime begin?

Tetsuwan Atom (Astro Boy), which began airing on the Fuji TV network on January 1, 1963, is regarded as Japan's first serialized animated series made for television. It recorded a peak domestic rating of 40.7%.