Anak (息子) by Freddie Aguilar, Polydor Records Japan (Mercari)
Probably the most famous pop song that came out of the Philippines is Freddie Aguilar’s Anak, subsequently recorded by many different artists in many parts of the world.
In Japan, the song was introduced to the public on the NHK program News Center 9:00 in July 1978. From then on, it became very popular, with at least two Japanese covers recorded by local artists: Tokiko Kato and Jiro Sugita.
Anak means “child” in Filipino; in the Japanese versions it is called 息子 (Musuko), which means “son”.
A quick search on Mercari and Yahoo Auctions reveals several record singles from those two artists, but there are more still from Aguilar himself.
There’s no way to be sure but I would guess that there are probably more original records of Anak (both single and album) remaining in Japan than there are in the Philippines. Even a few records sold on Carousell are Japanese versions.
Anak (息子) by Freddie Aguilar, Polydor Records Japan (Mercari)
My interest in this particular record is the write-up which provides us with an interesting piece of commentary from Japan about this song (translated into English from the original Japanese):
Suddenly, a worldwide hit song has been born in the Philippines!
It is a simple, melodious song with a touch of melancholy, titled “Anak” by the up-and-coming singer-songwriter Freddie Aguilar. This song, which tells the story of a parent grieving for his son, has sold 600,000 copies in the Philippines.
This is of course the highest-selling record in the Philippines, and it has already become a hot topic not only in the Philippines, but also throughout Europe and the United States, with big artists in Europe and America starting to record the song one after another. It is also currently popular in Japan, and Tokiko Kato’s Japanese version will be released at the same time.
NHK’s “News Center 9:00” also reported on this big hit from the Philippines and due to a flood of inquiries from viewers they even had to rebroadcast it, which was an unusual occurrence. Perhaps the simple melody that we need in this noisy modern society is what made this song such a hit.
Freddie Aguilar (real name Ferdinand P. Aguilar), who wrote and sang this song, is a rising star singer-songwriter born on February 5, 1953. He worked as an engineer after completing his studies in Electronic Engineering in 1972, but his love of singing led him to start singing at a folk music venues in Manila.
He sang at a club in Olongapo City until 1976, but returned to the folk music venues in Manila in 1977, but what really propelled him to stardom in the folk music world was his top prize at the 1st Metropolitan Manila Popular Music Festival held on March 3 this year.
Aguilar’s performance of “Anak”, which he composed himself, moved the audience that filled the Folk Arts Theater and the viewers watching the live broadcast on TV. The First Lady of the Philippines (Imelda) Marcos, who is well-versed in the arts and is famous for nurturing artists, also gave Aguilar generous words of praise.
The song was immediately recorded and released on March 27th, and quickly rose up the hit charts as soon as it was released. Three months later it was awarded a platinum disc.
On April 25th, an album with all songs written by him under the main title “Anak” was released (released in Japan on September 21st, record number MPF1190, cassette CPG5055), and he is currently very active, appearing on TV and radio, and performing in concerts.
He is also currently working on his second album, “Buhay”.
Anak (息子) by Freddie Aguilar (Side A: Anak; Side B: Anak Ng Mahirap) (Mercari)
A bit surprising but there are also several records from Asin, like those below. The Filipino lyrics are printed at the back with katakana readings for the Japanese to read through. There are also translations of key Filipino words in the song.
I find it amusing that Lolita Carbon’s profile includes her height and weight.^^
● Real Name: Lolita ● Born in Philippines, 21 years old ● Guitar, flute ● 160cm, 43kg
Anak (息子) by Asin (Lolita Carbon), Record City Japan (Mercari)
Anak (息子) by Asin (Lolita Carbon) (Side A: Anak; Side B: Masdan Mo) (Mercari)
Below is the original write-up in Japanese of Freddie Aguilar’s record. It’s interesting that the text uses フィリッピン (Firippin) for Philippines, instead of the modern-use フィリピン (Firipin).
突如フィリッピンより世界的大ヒット曲生まれる‼それは、新鋭シンガー・ソング・ライター、フレディー・アギラーの歌う「"ANAK"息子」とタイトルされた、哀愁をおびた実に素朴でメロディアスな曲である。親が息子のことを想い悲しむという内容を持ったこの曲は、フィリッピンで現在60万枚の売上げを記録した。勿論この記録はフィリッピンのレコード売れ上げ最高のもので 、すでにフィリッピン国内は勿論のこと、 ヨーロッパ全域とアメリカで話題になっており、 ヨーロッパ及びアメリクの大物アーティストが 続々とこの曲のレコーディングを開始している。日本国内に於いても現在話題の渦中にあり、同時期に加 藤登紀子の日本語も発売される。NHKの"ニュース・センター・９時"於いても、フィリッピンでの大ヒットの様子を報告し、視聴者からの問い合わせ移殺到に依リ、再放送するという異例のことも起こった。この喧騒に囲まれた現代社会で、我々が必要としてぃる素朴なメロディーが、この曲をブームにまでした要因があるのかも知れなをい。
この曲 を作り歌ったフレディー・アギラー(本名フェルディナンド・P.・アギラ―）は、1953年2月5日生まれの新鋭シンガー・ソング・ライター。1972年電子工学科の課程を修了後技術者として働いていたが、歌を歌うことが好きな彼は、マ二ラのフォーク・ライブ・ハウスで歌い始める。その後1976年までオロンガポ市のクラブで歌っていたが、1977年には再びマニラのフォーク・ライブ・ハウスに戻った。何といっても彼をフォーク界のスターダムにのし上げたのは、今年3月3日に行われた第1回メトロポリタン・マニラ・ポビュラー・ミュージック・フェスティヴァルでの上位入賞であろう。
自ら作曲したこの「アナック(息子)」でエントリーしたアギラーのパフォーマンスはフォーク・アーツ・シアターを、埋めつくした聴衆と、TV中継を見ていた視聴者達を感動させ、芸術に造詣が深く、また芸術家を育てる事でも有名なマルコス・フィリッピン大統領夫人も、アギラーに賞讃の言葉を惜しみなくおくった。そして、すぐさまこの曲はレコーディングされ、3月27日に発売されるやヒット・チャートを急上昇、３ヶ月後にはプラチナ・ディスクを獲得している。4月25日には「アナック(息子)」をメイン・タイトルとした全曲自作のアルバムが発売され(日本では9月21日発売、レコード番号MPF1190、カセットCPG5055)、現在はTVラジオ出演に、またコンサートにと大活曜中。さらにセカンド・アルバム"Buhay"も目下制作中である。