In Memoriam Column: Ichiro Mizuki and Hiroaki Watanabe - The Men Who Pioneered Tomorrow's Anime Songs [Ryozo Fuwa's "Anime no otto" Vol. 13

The sad news that arrived on December 12, 2022, just as the end of the year was drawing near, must have taken everyone by surprise. It was reported that Ichiro Mizuki, the king of anime songs, nicknamed "Aniki," passed away on December 6.

Mr. Mizuki announced his vocal cord failure paralysis in April 2021. He announced on July 26 of this year that he had been diagnosed with lung cancer with brain metastasis and lymph node metastasis in the course of his examination and treatment. She commented, "While facing this disease, I would like to continue my activities with the goal of being active for the rest of my life." Mizuki had expressed his strong will to face the cancer by commenting, "I would like to continue my activities with the goal of being active for the rest of my life while facing this disease. In the fall, his condition became more severe, and he became confined to a wheelchair, but he continued to record for television and never gave up on performing on stage. I believe that many people were greatly moved by her efforts.

When Mr. Mizuki announced his cancer in July, he was reminded of the words "active throughout life" by the image of composer Hiroaki Watanabe, who had passed away a month earlier on June 23 at the age of 96. Upon parting with his "mentor," with whom he had built a 50-year relationship as the composer of Mr. Mizuki's masterpiece "Mazinger Z" (1972), Mr. Mizuki made the following comment.

His songs, including Mazinger Z, have transcended time and borders, and are loved by fans all over the world. If I had not met Sensei, I would not be where I am today. He has remained active throughout his life. Thank you very much for all you have done for me. I pray from the bottom of my heart that you may rest in peace."

Mr. Watanabe's way of life and the way he ended his life must have been a great example to Mr. Mizuki.

Ichiro Mizuki's encounter with Mr. Watanabe dates back to the tokusatsu drama "Android Kikaider," which began airing in July 1972.

The character "Hakaider" appears at the very end of the story. Mr. Watanabe wrote and arranged the music and Mr. Mizuki sang the vocals for two insert songs, "Hakaider's Song" and "Saburo's Theme," which serve as the theme for the song. Together, they created the musical image of Hakaider, ......, a character who became a pioneer of dark heroes in Japanese tokusatsu programming and later became so popular that he was made into a stand-alone movie for the theater. This is how the two met.

Reference movie "Mazinger Z INFINITY Version

In December of the same year, "Mazinger Z" began broadcasting. There is a famous episode about the theme song of "Mazinger Z." The song that was originally planned was rejected, and the famous opening theme song "Mazinger Z" was an alternative theme song that Mr. Watanabe completed in only three days. Z!" and the "Z" pose he struck with his fingertips, which became a trademark of Mr. Mizuki's, and which has become a signature song that has spread the power of anime songs around the world, was completed in an extraordinary rush job, which also shows the fateful "connection" between Mr. Watanabe and Mr. Mizuki.

The rejected song was used as the "Z Theme," which is played in every Mazinger Z scene, and left a strong impression on the children of the time with its slightly mature and meaningful lyrics, "Even if human life is exhausted, the power of immortality is Mazinger Z." The song was also used as the theme song of the Mazinger Z movie.

This is a characteristic musical style heard in Japanese animation and special effects, especially in the music of hero and robot works. The starting point for this breakthrough may have been "Android Kikaider" and "Mazinger Z" written by Mr. Watanabe. ...... I talked about this in an article I contributed to Akiba Research Institute in remembrance of Mr. Watanabe, " [Ryozo Fuwa's "Anime no otto" Vol. 12] Even if Human Life is Breathless - A Compilation of the Immortal "Chumei Sound" "Chumei 90 SONGS Commemorating Watanabe Chumei's Graduated Life"". I also talked about this in "Chumai 90 Songs", a compilation of immortal "Chumai Sound".

In this way, Mr. Mizuki was an important partner of Mr. Watanabe in both of these works that revolutionized anime songs. Their partnership continued with "Inazuman" (1973), "Great Mazinger" (1974), "Inazuman F" (1974), "Steel Jeeg" (1975), "Akumizer 3" (1975), "Magne Robo Ga Keen" (1976), "Great Iron Man 17" (1977), and Baseball Madness" (1977), "Goshin Sentai Mekander Robo" (1977), "Battle Fever J" (1979), etc. (including insert songs), together they laid the groundwork for "TV cartoon songs" to be recognized as "anime songs" in the world.

There is no doubt that the work of these two artists in the 1970s was the driving force that paved the way for the long and distant future of anime songs, which continues to this day.

In the 80s, however, the world of anime songs entered a period of change in many ways, with the entry of new record companies, the emergence of new anime song singers, and tie-ups with J-POP artists and idols, etc. The record company that produced the numerous Soraaki anime songs mentioned above and to which Mr. Mizuki belonged, Nippon Columbia, the record company to which Mr. Mizuki belonged and which produced many of the aforementioned Space Time anime songs, was no longer the "absolute king of the anime song world" as it had been in the 1970s, and an era of rivalry between the best of the best had arrived. Mizuki, who was now in his late thirties, later said that he was having a hard time coping with the gradual decrease in the number of theme songs for TV programs.

The same was true for Mr. Watanabe, as a new generation of composers and arrangers began to emerge, and he received fewer orders for a full set of theme songs, insert songs, and music for dramatic accompaniment. Mr. Watanabe, who did not belong to a music agency and did not have a manager, confesses that there was a time when, even though he was a veteran at the age of 60, he was still making sales calls to record companies on his own. Even for two people who embody the history of anime songs, their musical lives were not always smooth sailing, and there were times when they had to endure patiently.

In the late 1990s, the "Super Robot Taisen" video game series brought about a turning point in their careers. The appearance of "Mazinger Z" and other robot animation and hero works from the past in video games drew attention to the music of Mr. Watanabe and Mr. Mizuki, which led to not only a reevaluation of the old works, but also a new wave of popularity, beginning with "Super Robot Wars F" (1997) image song "Hot Blood for Courage" and "Mazinkaiser" and continuing with "Super Robot Spirits" (1998) and "Super Robot Spirits" (1999). Super Robot Spirits" (1998) CM song "Soul of Steel", "Super Hero Operation" (1999) theme song "Super Hero Operation! Shine! Super Hero" (1999), and other new songs with the inscription "Composed by: Watanabe Spaceaki, Sung by: Mizuki Ichiro" were created one after another.

This momentum has continued through the "ROBONATION SUPER LIVE" and "SUPER ROBOT SPIRIT" LIVE events, and has been carried over to the "ANIME JAPAN FES" series, which has expanded to include Sentai, anime songs, and heroes, and continues to this day.

Seizing this opportunity, Mizuki called for the "preservation of the good old anime song spirit for the 21st century," leading to the formation of the anime song singing group "JAM Project," which played a role in reorganizing the anime song world in the 2000s and beyond.

The reason why Showa-era anime songs from the 70s and 80s are still loved by the Heisei generation can be found at ....... The "Super Robo Movement" that took place at the end of the 90s may have been the trigger for this baton passing on. It was not only in the golden age of the 1970s that these two pioneered the future of anime songs.

Songs with the imprint of "Composed by: Watanabe Spaceaki, Sung by: Mizuki Ichiro" continued to be created, such as "Shinkon Goudan Na! (2003, 2004), "Juken Sentai Gekiranger" (2007), "Kaizoku Sentai Gokaiger" (2011), etc., as well as the theme song and insert songs for Bunka Hoso's "Kenichi Suzumura/Hiroshi Kamiya no Kamen Rajiranger (Toei approved)" and "Emergency transmission! Rajiranger" (2013), NHK Radio's "Anison Academy" school song (2017), and many other collaborations that have been realized with respect from the younger generation of creators who admire Mr. Watanabe as a legend and Mr. Mizuki as an aniki.

In addition, some collaborations have expanded beyond the framework of anime songs, such as "Chojo Gosei Tamenobune V" (2016), the theme song for Hirosaki Castle in Hirosaki City, Aomori Prefecture, which was composed by heroes from six prefectures in the Tohoku region in the wake of the Great East Japan Earthquake. In "Tohoku Goshin Miraigar" (2012), a theme song written by Mr. Watanabe to send a cheer to the children in the disaster-stricken areas, and accompanied by Mr. Mizuki's soulful vocals, was born. The heart-wrenching and passionate song brought tears to many people's eyes.

After the "Anime Song BIG3 Super Live 2022" with Mitsuko Horie and Hironobu Kageyama in Komoro, Nagano Prefecture on November 23, "Ichiro Mizuki/Mitsuko Horie Futari no Anime Son #19" (Yomiuri Otemachi Hall, Tokyo) on November 27 was the last stage for Mr. Mizuki.

He was originally scheduled to perform at the December 2 "Memorial Concert for Spaceman Watanabe" (NHK Hall, Tokyo), but unfortunately that was not to be. At first, there was no Mizuki's name on the list of performers for this concert, and we wondered if it would be difficult for him to appear, but at the end of October, he was announced as an additional performer, and everyone was in sincere admiration for his indomitable spirit.

However, on the day of the event, Mr. Mizuki was nowhere to be seen on stage at NHK Hall, and the composer Toshiyuki Watanabe (son of Hiroaki Watanabe), who served as musical director and conductor, informed us that he was unable to perform due to a doctor's stop. Mr. Mizuki himself had strongly expressed his intention to perform, but when he explained that he was going to perform at ......, everyone in the audience surely received the spirit of "active for life" and prayed for Mr. Mizuki. Only four days later, Mr. Mizuki was called to heaven.

Some may think that it must have been regrettable for him not to be able to give the memorial concert for the late Dr. Hiroaki Watanabe as his last performance at ....... However, Mr. Mizuki probably did not think of it as his "last concert," but rather he had his sights set on the next stage as well. I believe that this is what Mr. Mizuki was aiming for in his "lifetime of active work. We can only regret that even Mr. Mizuki passed away in the year of the commemorative "50th anniversary of Mazinger Z" and less than half a year after Mr. Watanabe's passing. ...... However, it was precisely after Mr. Watanabe's passing that Mr. Mizuki was able to solidify his will to "work throughout one's life," and I am sure it was a fulfilling six months for him as he devoted his life to fulfilling the life he had set out to lead.

The song "Mazinger Z Theme," which was created through the joint efforts of Mr. Mizuki and Mr. Watanabe, has gained a greater presence and remains in our hearts even though it once suffered from a bad fate, is truly heartbreaking. It is the end of the year. Both Mr. Watanabe and Mr. Mizuki have passed away, and we can no longer listen to their new works, but I believe that what we can do, and what only we can do, is to continue listening to, telling stories about, and singing the songs they left behind for a long time to come, as we have received so much from them.

(Text: Ryozo Fuwa)