Kiyoshiro Imawano (Mainichi)
Kiyoshiro Imawano, a rock and roll singer known for his trademark lyrics and original stage costumes, passed away Saturday from lymphatic cancer. He was 58.
Imawano was born Kiyoshi Kurihara in Tokyo. In 1968 he formed the band RC Succession with his junior high school classmates, and debuted in 1970 with the song "Takarakuji wa Kawanai." He followed up with hits such as 1972's "Boku no Sukina Sensei" and 1980's "Ame Agari no Yozora ni."
In 1982, Imawano teamed up with Ryuichi Sakamoto to release the single "I-ke-na-i Rouge Magic," which became a phenomenon in Japan. Hailed as a Japanese "rock god," Imawano performed concerts, and also appeared in commercials and films.
Imawano, who believed that "music should be the stimulus of the era," also performed songs with a political message. At one point, sales of his anti-nuclear power album "Covers," and that of an album that included a punk version of "Kimi ga Yo," Japan's national anthem, were temporarily suspended. At a concert in 2003 that was being broadcast live on an FM radio station, he suddenly sang the national anthem and "Akogare no Kita-Chosen," or "Longing for North Korea," forcing the radio station to cut off its broadcast.
Imawano was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx in July 2006 and admitted to hospital. After treatment, he held a comeback concert at Tokyo's Budokan in February 2008. However, in July of the same year, it was confirmed that the cancer had spread to one of his pelvic bones, and Imawano was forced to put his career on hold to undergo radiation therapy.
A funeral service will be held on May 9 at 1 p.m., at Aoyama Sougisho in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Imawano is survived by his wife, Keiko Kurihara.
Copyright 2009 The Mainichi Newspapers
May 4, 2009
JAPAN: Rock star Kiyoshiro Imawano dies at 58
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OSAKA / The Mainichi Daily News / May 4, 2009
Kiyoshiro Imawano (Mainichi)
Kiyoshiro Imawano, a rock and roll singer known for his trademark lyrics and original stage costumes, passed away Saturday from lymphatic cancer. He was 58.
Imawano was born Kiyoshi Kurihara in Tokyo. In 1968 he formed the band RC Succession with his junior high school classmates, and debuted in 1970 with the song "Takarakuji wa Kawanai." He followed up with hits such as 1972's "Boku no Sukina Sensei" and 1980's "Ame Agari no Yozora ni."
In 1982, Imawano teamed up with Ryuichi Sakamoto to release the single "I-ke-na-i Rouge Magic," which became a phenomenon in Japan. Hailed as a Japanese "rock god," Imawano performed concerts, and also appeared in commercials and films.
Imawano, who believed that "music should be the stimulus of the era," also performed songs with a political message. At one point, sales of his anti-nuclear power album "Covers," and that of an album that included a punk version of "Kimi ga Yo," Japan's national anthem, were temporarily suspended. At a concert in 2003 that was being broadcast live on an FM radio station, he suddenly sang the national anthem and "Akogare no Kita-Chosen," or "Longing for North Korea," forcing the radio station to cut off its broadcast.
Imawano was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx in July 2006 and admitted to hospital. After treatment, he held a comeback concert at Tokyo's Budokan in February 2008. However, in July of the same year, it was confirmed that the cancer had spread to one of his pelvic bones, and Imawano was forced to put his career on hold to undergo radiation therapy.
A funeral service will be held on May 9 at 1 p.m., at Aoyama Sougisho in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Imawano is survived by his wife, Keiko Kurihara.
Copyright 2009 The Mainichi Newspapers
Kiyoshiro Imawano (Mainichi)
Kiyoshiro Imawano, a rock and roll singer known for his trademark lyrics and original stage costumes, passed away Saturday from lymphatic cancer. He was 58.
Imawano was born Kiyoshi Kurihara in Tokyo. In 1968 he formed the band RC Succession with his junior high school classmates, and debuted in 1970 with the song "Takarakuji wa Kawanai." He followed up with hits such as 1972's "Boku no Sukina Sensei" and 1980's "Ame Agari no Yozora ni."
In 1982, Imawano teamed up with Ryuichi Sakamoto to release the single "I-ke-na-i Rouge Magic," which became a phenomenon in Japan. Hailed as a Japanese "rock god," Imawano performed concerts, and also appeared in commercials and films.
Imawano, who believed that "music should be the stimulus of the era," also performed songs with a political message. At one point, sales of his anti-nuclear power album "Covers," and that of an album that included a punk version of "Kimi ga Yo," Japan's national anthem, were temporarily suspended. At a concert in 2003 that was being broadcast live on an FM radio station, he suddenly sang the national anthem and "Akogare no Kita-Chosen," or "Longing for North Korea," forcing the radio station to cut off its broadcast.
Imawano was diagnosed with cancer of the larynx in July 2006 and admitted to hospital. After treatment, he held a comeback concert at Tokyo's Budokan in February 2008. However, in July of the same year, it was confirmed that the cancer had spread to one of his pelvic bones, and Imawano was forced to put his career on hold to undergo radiation therapy.
A funeral service will be held on May 9 at 1 p.m., at Aoyama Sougisho in Tokyo's Minato Ward. Imawano is survived by his wife, Keiko Kurihara.
Copyright 2009 The Mainichi Newspapers
