The Jacks, originally known as "Nightingale", began their career in 1966 as a folk trio. After jazz drummer Takasuke Kida joined the group they headed into a new musical direction. Vacant World, released in 1968 as Karappo No Sekai (Vacant World) or Jacks no Sekai (Jacks' World) in Japanese, is widely seen as one of the most important Japanese albums. The song "Vacant World" (or "Karappo no Sekai" in Japanese) was famously banned from Japanese airwaves due to lyrical content. The Jacks' musical legacy has carried on in Japan despite the fact that their career was quite short, disbanding shortly before the release of their second studio album Super Session (Jacks No Kiseki in Japanese).
After the breakup of Jacks, singer Yoshio Hayakawa released one acclaimed solo album before retiring from music, only to reemerge again as a solo artist during the 1990s. Drummer Takasuke Kida died in a car accident in 1980. æ°Žæ© æ„怫 (Mizuhashi, Haruo) Japanese guitarist, well-known in Jacks, and later, music producer. Born February 2, 1949. Died August 5, 2018.
Jacks played in a distinct musical style fused with ambient psychedelic, surf, folk and jazz. The group had a dark, introspective sound with an exploratory, improvisational edge and sometimes headed into moody instrumental excursions. The Jacks typically employed reverb, tremolo and subtle fuzz-guitar and also utilized the vibraphone, organ and wind instruments such as the flute. Lead singer Yoshio Hayakawa sung in Japanese and typically ranged from a low, calm and tranquil voice to throaty, desperate sounding wails. Similarly, drummer Takasuke Kida would follow suit, going from subtle jazzy sounding fills to complicated, offbeat rhythms and manic cymbal crashes.
Personnel
Yoshio Hayakawa â vocals, rhythm guitar
Haruo Mizuhashi â lead guitar, vocals
Hitoshi Tanino â Fender bass, upright bass
Takasuke Kida â drums, flute, vibraphone
Discography
Albums
Vacant World [Jacks No Sekai] (Toshiba Express, September 1968)
Super Session [Jacks No Kiseki] (Toshiba Express, October 1969)
Jacks' Greatest Hits (Toshiba Express, 1972)
Live '68 (H.A.F., 1973 - fan club release)
Echoes In The Radio (radio sessions) (Toshiba Eastworld, June 1986)
Vacant World and Super Session are in print by EMI Japan.
Singles
"Karappo No Sekai" b/w "Iikodane" (Takt/Million, March 1968)
"Marianne" b/w "Tokei Wo Tomete" (Takt Million, May 1968)
"Karappo No Sekai" b/w "Tokei Wo Tomete" (Columbia, September 1968)
"Kono Michi" b/w "Karappo No Sekai" (album version) (Toshiba Express, October 1968)
"Joe's Rock" b/w "Flower" (Toshiba Express, October 1969)
ăžăŁăăŻăč - âJacksâ have always been an outsider group in Japanese music, too original to fit under the Group Sounds moniker of the times. Their music was often slow, dramatic and morbid.
In 1965 Yoshio Hayakawa and fellow classmate Suehiro Takahashi were in a folk group called Eri Matsubara and the Folktorio Nightingale [not sure of that first word - kana is ăă©ăŒăŻăăȘăȘă»ăă€ăăłăČăŒă«]. After graduation in the summer of 1966, Hayakawa and Takahashi performed as a duo at their university with the name âJacksâ. The following year they became a quartet with Hitoshi Tanino playing bass and Takasuke Kida on drums. Takahashi soon left the group so Haruo Mizuhashi joined on lead guitar. Each member would make major contributions to Jacks unique melange of styles:
Yoshio Hayakawa (æ©ć·çŸ©ć€«) â vocals, rhythm guitar - Hayakayaâs singing is always expressive and often distraught with emotion; I would guess his vocal style (and lyrical subject matter) owes more to Japanese enka ballads than âfolkâ.
Haruo Mizuhashi (æ°Žæ©æ„怫) â lead guitar, vocals - Haruo Mizuhashi definitely plugged into the sounds coming from California in 1967, especially Barry Meltonâs playing on Country Joe and the Fishâs first LP Electric Music for the Mind and Body. He makes good use of contrasting delicate passages with discordant stabs of solos and riffs.
Hitoshi Tanino (è°·éăČăšă) â Fender bass, upright bass - Taninoâs bass playing is original and solid and he was their second most active songwriter after Hayakawa.
Takasuke Kida (æšç°é«ä») â drums, flute, vibraphone, tenor saxophone - Takasuke Kidaâs jazz-influenced drumming gives a special fury to the songs with wild fills and orchestral effects.
They made at least three appearances on NHK networkâs radio show Folk Village, including February and June of 1967 and January of 1968. Seven songs from these shows survive on the LP Echoes in the Radio released in 1986, but I havenât heard this yet. All these songs would be revisited by the band for studio recordings in the next year.
In the summer of 1967, they did well in a contest sponsored by Yamaha. Whether through attention from the radio show, the Yamaha contest or some other source, they were hired for the soundtrack of Koji Wakamatsuâs film Harakashi Onna (A Womb for Let), a film unavailable on DVD in the U.S. to my knowledge.
In one long session at Meguro Studio on February 3, 1968 they cut twenty tracks for the film. Most of these were released on two LPs released in 1986, Realization and Remains but the complete session is now on CD, Selected Masterpieces by Koji Wakamatsu film music series: Harakashi Onna.
A number of these songs would be re-cut for later single and LP releases: âMarianneâ (ăăȘăąăłă), âGloomy Flowerâ (èŁćăăźćŁçŻ), and âIn the Broken Mirrorâ (ăăăéĄăźäžăă). âDm 4-50â would be revisited on the Super Session LP in much abridged form - here the band stretches out with a long solo passage and slower pace.
âOmae wa Hinagikuâ (ăćăŻăČăȘè), âGone My Yumikoâ (ç±çŸćăŻăăȘă) and âJijoku No Kisetsuâ (ć°çăźćŁçŻ) would not be revisited in the studio, but each was a feature of their live and radio shows.
âVacant Worldâ (ăăăŁăœăźäžç / Karappo no Sekai) is present, but only as an airy instrumental. Instrumentals take up half the session. âTeki Wa Toku Niâ (æ”ăŻé ăă«) is slow and has a bleating saxophone throughout. âUmi to Onnanokoâ (æ”·ăšć„łăźć) is also a slow instrumental, but nicely atmospheric. In addition there are six instrumentals written by Haruo Mizuhashi, of which âM-19â is one of the best.
Glory
Jacks Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword
His truth is marching on
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps
His day is marching on
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
His truth is marching on
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
His truth is marching on
The song "Glory" by Jacks is a tribute to the Lord, and the lyrics explain how the singer has seen His glory and power. The first stanza speaks of the Lord's arrival, and how He will trample out the winepress - this is referring to a passage in the Book of Revelation where Jesus comes to Earth and fights against evil. The second line of the first stanza refers to a passage in the Book of Isaiah where God says He will trample His enemies with His wrath. The singer then talks about how the Lord has unleashed His swift sword, which refers to another passage in the Book of Revelation where it talks about a sword coming out of the Lord's mouth. The final line of the stanza speaks to the fact that the Lord's truth is always marching on, even in the face of adversity.
The chorus of the song is repeated three times, and reinforces the idea that the Lord's truth is always marching on. The second stanza speaks of the Lord's presence in a hundred different camps, and something of an altar has been built for Him. The lamp imagery suggests that even in the darkest and most trying of times, the Lord's truth will still be present and visible to those who seek it. The final repetition of the chorus then brings the song to a close, leaving the listener with the message that the Lord's truth is an unstoppable force.
Line by Line Meaning
Mine eyes have seen the glory of the coming of the Lord
I have personally witnessed the magnificence and power of the Lord as He approaches.
He is trampling out the vintage where the grapes of wrath are stored
He is destroying the sin and wickedness that has been stored up, like grapes waiting to be harvested and turned into wine.
He hath loosed the fateful lightning of His terrible swift sword
He has unleashed His divine wrath and punishment with lightning-fast speed, like a sword cutting through the air.
His truth is marching on
His gospel and message of salvation are spreading and gaining momentum, unencumbered by any obstacles.
Glory, glory, Hallelujah
Praise and honor to the Lord!
I have seen Him in the watch fires of a hundred circling camps
I have seen evidence of His presence and protection in the many camps and military outposts throughout the land.
They have builded Him an altar in the evening dews and damps
The people have erected an altar to worship and honor Him, even in difficult and uncomfortable conditions.
I can read His righteous sentence by the dim and flaring lamps
Even in the darkness and uncertainty of life, I can discern His fair and just verdicts and pronouncements.
His day is marching on
The day of His ultimate triumph and victory is approaching inexorably, without fail.
Lyrics © RESERVOIR MEDIA MANAGEMENT INC
Written by: Julia Ward Howe, William Steffe
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Martha Ibarra
Y esta banda me hace sentir orgullosa de ser Queretana:D!
Giselle Ramirez
Tengo que admitir que todas sus canciones son perfectas!
đđđ
Lupita Torres
Cielos son realmente increĂbles, me encantaron todas sus canciones ojalĂĄ que los pueda ver en vivo
ximena maval
Todas sus canciones son increĂbles, me encantaron, es la primera vez que los escucho !!! <3 Tienen buen estilo, tocan muuuy bien...
Jacks
te amamos mucho :3
ximena maval
Ojala que si. Los escucho desde Cordoba, Veracruz. Ojala pueda verlos pronto en Puebla, en Veracruz o hasta Mexico :3 <3 me han traumado sus canciones, buenisimas de verdad! @JacksÂ
Jacks
@ximena maval que bonito comentario! esperamos algĂșn dĂa en tu ciudad, en donde vives? :) sigue la fiesta en https://twitter.com/JacksMX
Dann Luna
Los comencé a escuchar hace poco y créanme que me encanto su estilo ustedes son geniales sigan asà muy buenas canciones
Espero pronto saquen mas Saludos!
Pepe Gam
JamĂĄs pensĂ© que un grupo que desconocĂa y tocara en el Rockoahuila de mi ciudad serĂa uno de mis grupos preferidos.....Se rifan y esperemos que vuelvan pronto con su energĂa y su gran mĂșsica!
Jacks
@Jose Gamino No hay nada que queramos mas que regresar a ustedes!