Kenji Sawada

Artist: Kenji Sawada . 沢田 研二

LP: 7" single

Song: "Beautiful Lady"

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Formerly of the '60s Japanese rock band The Tigers, Kenji Sawada was nicknamed "Julie" due to his immense affection for this famous actress and singer. According to Sawada's Wikipedia page here, it was common for Japanese pop idols of the late '60s to adopt nicknames that were, for reasons Wikipedia does not explain, often popular girl names from the English-language. An actor as well as singer, Kenji Sawada appeared in Paul Schrader's MISHIMA: A LIFE IN FOUR CHAPTERS (1985) and Miike Takashi's wonderfully bizarre THE HAPPINESS OF THE KATAKURIS (2001), a project that was likely of particular interest to "Julie" because of its allusions to his favorite actress' most popular and enduring film.

 [ Kenji Sawada . 沢田 研二 ]