恋の花 (Flowers of Love)

Recorded music from Okinawa evolved extremely quickly. The first generation, according to those who taxonomize these things, started in the post-war 1950s. Elder Okinawans, eager to preserve their culture in the midst of a homogenizing Japan, started a folk song boom that wove music from the Okinawa Islands into the fabric of popular music. The second wave, active in the 1970s and influenced by the music of mainland Japan (which was increasingly absorbing from American music), incorporated rock music into Okinawan melody as they wrote brand new songs. Yoriko Ganeko belongs to the following epoch. The so-called third generation fully embraced the language of popular music, but maintained an interest in the folk songs of generations past. Most songs on the album are traditional tunes, but with elements of swinging jazz, rock, and electronic music. (Extremely prolific producer Akira Inoue lends his talents for the arrangements.) It’s difficult to preserve old traditions against the weathering of time, but Flowers of Love shows it’s possible if you let a little bit of the present mingle with the past.