The sadness that was sung then still resonates to this day...listen to the cries of the lost piranhas!
The "Piranha Gang" was formed in 1975, mainly by actors affiliated with Toei. The so-called "big room" actors who played the roles of the ones who get killed, the villains, and the enemies in movies and TV dramas naturally gathered together for a drinking party. One member, Shiga Masaru, dreamed of one day stealing the lead role, so he named it the "Piranha Club". Later, producers Nakajima Sadao and Watase Tsunehiko became the initiators and the "Toei Piranha Gang" was formed.
The times were favorable for the Piranha Gang. With the appearance of Kawatani Takuzo and Murota Hideo in the Nippon Television drama "Mae-Ryuu Ofukurosama" that began airing in October 1975, other members of the group gradually began to attract attention. With the release of films such as "Runaway Panic: The Great Clash" and "Mad Beast" (both released in 1976), in which actors from the group played the main characters, the Piranha Gang boom grew even more, and in 1977, the movie "Piranha Gang: Dabo Shirt no Ten" was released, starring the entire group. This work was the idea of making a Piranha Gang record, which was heard by folk singer Mikami Hiroshi, who was also active as an actor, while drinking with Watase Tsunehiko, and was realized by Bellwood Records, and was released in April 1977. Mikami Hiroshi wrote and composed the lyrics and music for 11 songs, except for M-2 "Murauta -Washa Shiran Bushi-" and M-4 "Me (Leo)". Jun Sato and Ryuichi Sakamoto were in charge of arrangement and keyboards, and other talented players such as Shuichi Murakami, Tetsuro Kashibuchi, Tsugutoshi Goto, and Nobu Saito participated in the performance.
