The Yoshiwara pleasure quarter of old Edo was a glittering world where Japanese arts — calligraphy, waka poetry, shamisen, song, and koto — flourished in concentrated form. At the same time, it was a place where courtesans lived like "birds in a cage," unable to leave freely until the end of their contract period or until a patron paid to release them.
The album edo-yoshiwara-monogatari-ha-uta-ko-uta-ga-tsumugu-yukaku (江戸吉原物語―端唄・小唄が紡ぐ遊郭の光と影―) captures the varied emotions of the courtesans who lived strong, resilient, and beautiful lives within that environment. It brings together performances of ko-uta and ha-uta by Fujimoto Fumikichi and shamisen artist Umekichi, among others, and includes rare audio sources that had only been released on vinyl and were previously unavailable on CD.
The jacket artwork uses the ukiyo-e painting Mitate Kantan by Kitagawa Utamaro, which depicts a courtesan dreaming of being ransomed by a patron (held in the collection of the Chiba City Museum of Art).
Title: edo-yoshiwara-monogatari-ha-uta-ko-uta-ga-tsumugu-yukaku (江戸吉原物語―端唄・小唄が紡ぐ遊郭の光と影―)
Release Date: March 18, 2026
Catalog Number: COKM-46264
Track List:
- Okuri – Yoshiwara Geigi Renchu ◎
- Ume wa Saita ka – Umekichi
- Fukagawa – Kanda Fukumaru
- Namiki Komagata – Umekichi
- Ozashiki (Tomonako to Sawagi) – Yoshiwara Geigi Renchu ◎
- Hana wa Ueno – Fujimoto Fumikichi
- Yozakura – Fujimoto Fumikichi ◎
- Sakura Miyo tote – Mori Taeko ◎
- Muragarasu – Yamaga Tamaji ◎
- Samidare (Ike no Makomo) – Fujimoto Fumikichi
- Ukara Ukara – Koma Iku ◎
- Ume ga E no – Umekichi
- Itsushika ni – Yoshimura Riu ◎
- Namida Kakushite – Shitaya Kotsuru ◎
- Kyara no Kaori – Umekichi
- Asaku tomo to Nushisan to – Akasaka Koume ◎
- Sekare – Kouta Fumiko ◎
- Shinobu Kojiji to Pinto Sunete wa – Fujimoto Fumikichi ◎
- Hitorine to Muri na Shubi shite – Kasuga Toyo
- Hanashirakete – Shitaya Kotsuru ◎
- Bin no Hotsure – Umekichi
- Futari ga Naka wo to Kesa no Wakare – Kasuga Toyo
- Mata no Omi wo – Shitaya Kotsuru ◎
- Ume ni mo Haru – Fujimoto Fumikichi
- Yuki wa Shinshin – Umekichi
- Yuki no Ashita no Itsuzuke – Kasuga Toyo Tsuma
- Harukaze ga Soyo Soyo to – Umekichi
- Harusame – Kanda Fukumaru
- Meguru Hi – Kouta Fumiko ◎
- Kokoro de Tomete – Kouta Fumiko ◎
- Kago no Tori – Fujimoto Fumikichi ◎
- Yoshiwara Teshime – Yoshiwara Geigi Renchu ◎
Bonus Track:
- Shinonome Bushi – Umekichi
◎ Tracks not previously released on CD
Streaming is now available via the link below:
