are a Japanese pop and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band, who were one of the top bands performing in the

Group Sounds , often abbreviated as GS, is a genre of Japanese rock music which became popular in the mid to late 1960s and initiated the fusion of Japanese '' kayōkyoku'' music and Western rock music. Their music production techniques were regarded as playi ...

scene in the late 1960s.

Career

The band formed in November 1966 in

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

, and initially comprised locally born singer Tokimune "Dave" Hirao (November 17, 1944 – November 10, 2008), guitarist Eddie Ban (born June 22, 1947),

Hawaii Hawaii ( ; haw, Hawaii or ) is a state in the Western United States, located in the Pacific Ocean about from the U.S. mainland. It is the only U.S. state outside North America, the only state that is an archipelago, and the only stat ...

an-born guitarist Kenneth Ito (January 1, 1946 – March 2, 1997), bassist Masayoshi "Louis" Kabe (November 5, 1948 – September 26, 2020), and drummer Mamoru Manu (June 3, 1949 – September 2020). Hirao had previously sung in local band The Sphinx, and had recently traveled to the US, as had Ban who returned to Japan with one of the first

fuzzbox Distortion and overdrive are forms of audio signal processing used to alter the sound of amplified electric musical instruments, usually by increasing their gain, producing a "fuzzy", "growling", or "gritty" tone. Distortion is most commonly ...

es in the country. The new band initially called themselves Group & I, and were influenced by the

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock 'n' roll, or rock 'n roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from Africa ...

music broadcast on the

Far East Network The Far East Network (FEN) was a network of American military radio and television stations, primarily serving U.S. Forces in Japan, Okinawa, the Philippines, and Guam. Overview Now known as the American Forces Network-Japan (AFN-Japan), wit ...

from the local

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cla ...

base at Honmoku, and more generally by contacts made with Americans and others in the port city of Yokohama.Julian Cope, ''The Golden Cups'', at Japrocksampler.com
Retrieved 10 February 2013 Nippop.com, The Golden Cups
Retrieved 10 February 2013 They began playing sets consisting of covers of American pop and rock hits such as "

Hey Joe "Hey Joe" is an American song from the 1960s that has become a rock standard and has been performed in many musical styles by hundreds of different artists. The lyrics tell of a man who is on the run and planning to head to Mexico after shooting ...

", "

Got My Mojo Workin' "Got My Mojo Working" is a blues song written by Preston "Red" Foster and first recorded by R&B singer Ann Cole in 1956. Foster's lyrics describe several amulets or talismans, called ''mojo'', which are associated with hoodoo, an early African ...

" and "

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". They became the house band at the Golden Cup

discotheque A nightclub (music club, discothèque, disco club, or simply club) is an entertainment venue during nighttime comprising a dance floor, lightshow, and a stage for live music or a disc jockey (DJ) who plays recorded music. Nightclubs gene ...

close to the US Army base, and the club's owner persuaded them to change their name to the Golden Cups. The band also soon won a regular place on the NHK-TV morning show, ''Young 720'', and a recording deal with the Capitol label owned by

Toshiba , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure system ...

. In June 1967, they released their first single, "Itoshi No Jizabel" / "Hiwa Mata Noboru". The record label compelled the group to record bland pop songs written by staff songwriters for most of their A-sides, only allowing them free rein on the records' B-sides and some album tracks. The same approach was imposed on their performances, with the band obliged to play pop ballads at their major concerts, while playing eccentric

garage band Garage rock (sometimes called garage punk or 60s punk) is a raw and energetic style of rock and roll that flourished in the mid-1960s, most notably in the United States and Canada, and has experienced a series of subsequent revivals. The sty ...

covers and hard rock when appearing in small clubs. They released their first album, ''The Golden Cups Album'', in March 1968, and had their biggest pop hit, "Nagai Kami No Shoujo" ("Girl With Long Hair") soon afterwards. Kenneth Ito traveled to Hawaii in mid-1968, and was not allowed a visa to return to Japan. He was replaced by keyboard player Mickey Yoshino, in time to record the band's second album ''The Golden Cups Album Vol. 2''. This again featured covers of American pop hits like "

Woman, Woman "Woman, Woman" is the debut single by Gary Puckett & The Union Gap, from their 1968 debut album '' Woman, Woman''. It was written and composed by Jim Glaser and Jimmy Payne, and uses session musicians from The Wrecking Crew. Like most of the band ...

" alongside more adventurous numbers, producing what

Julian Cope Julian David Cope (born 21 October 1957) is an English musician and author. He was the singer and songwriter in Liverpool post-punk band the Teardrop Explodes and has followed a solo career since 1983 in addition to working on musical side proj ...

has called "a schizophrenic stalemate". Their next album was a live recording, ''Blues Message'', on which the band performed versions of most of the tracks on the

Paul Butterfield Blues Band Paul Vaughn Butterfield (December 17, 1942May 4, 1987) was an American blues harmonica player, singer and band leader. After early training as a classical flautist, he developed an interest in blues harmonica. He explored the blues scene in his n ...

's album '' East-West''. In 1969, Eddie Ban left the group to form his own band, and Louis Kabe took over on guitar. Later albums included ''Super Live Session'', heavily influenced by the album '' Super Session'' by

Al Kooper Al Kooper (born Alan Peter Kuperschmidt; February 5, 1944) is a retired American songwriter, record producer and musician, known for organizing Blood, Sweat & Tears, although he did not stay with the group long enough to share its popularity. ...

and

Mike Bloomfield Michael Bernard Bloomfield (July 28, 1943 – February 15, 1981) was an American guitarist and composer, born in Chicago, Illinois, who became one of the first popular music superstars of the 1960s to earn his reputation almost entirely on his ...

; ''Recital'', which featured orchestral versions of some of the group's hits; and ''Live Album with the Golden Cups'', described by Julian Cope as "abominable". During this period the band underwent many personnel changes, with only Hirao and Kabe remaining constant. On

New Year's Eve In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Eve, also known as Old Year's Day or Saint Sylvester's Day in many countries, is the evening or the entire day of the last day of the year, on 31 December. The last day of the year is commonly referred to ...

1971/72, the band were playing in a club in

Okinawa is a prefecture of Japan. Okinawa Prefecture is the southernmost and westernmost prefecture of Japan, has a population of 1,457,162 (as of 2 February 2020) and a geographic area of 2,281 km2 (880 sq mi). Naha is the capital and largest city ...

when the building caught fire and burned to the ground, taking all of the band's equipment and possessions with it. Although the group members were unharmed, they split up immediately afterwards.

Aftermath

Louis Kabe later led the band Speed, Glue and Shinki, and was then a member of rock band Pink Cloud. Kenneth Ito died in 1997. In 2003, most of the band's original members reunited for a concert in Yokohama, released as a live album. A full-length documentary about the band, ''The Golden Cups One More Time'', was released in late 2004 and was followed by further concerts. Dave Hirao died as a result of

oesophageal cancer Esophageal cancer is cancer arising from the esophagus—the food pipe that runs between the throat and the stomach. Symptoms often include difficulty in swallowing and weight loss. Other symptoms may include pain when swallowing, a hoarse voice ...

in 2008 at the age of 63. Tokyograph, ''Golden Cups' Dave Hirao dies from cancer'', 10 November 2008
Retrieved 10 February 2013

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Golden Cups, The Japanese rock music groups Musical groups from Kanagawa Prefecture Japanese garage rock groups