“Made in Japan”
Buck Owens and the Buckaroos
Written by Bob Morris and Faye Morris
Billboard
#1 (1 week)
July 15, 1972
“He was like a brother, a son, and a best friend. Something I never said before, maybe I couldn’t, but I think my music life ended when he died. Oh yeah, I carried on and I existed, but the real joy and love, the real lightning and thunder is gone forever.” – Buck Owens on Don Rich.
“Made in Japan” was something of a comeback record for Buck Owens, and by the time it reached No. 1, Don Rich was the only original Buckaroo still recording with Owens. Rich had just finished in the studio with Owens when he died on the way home, his motorcycle crashing into the median of a highway.
His death would’ve been a tragedy at any time, but it coming as Owens had re-established himself as a creative force to be reckoned with changed the course of country music history. But they didn’t know that at the time, of course, and “Made in Japan” just sounds like the innovative California country record that it is.
I especially like the subtlety of the approach, using just a hint of Eastern instrumentation to elevate a simple country record. Owens sounds suitably heartsick, and given how easy it would’ve been to make this story an overseas one night stand, I appreciate how he played against expectations here. It’s the woman who is already committed to another man, and Owens is the one who gets his heart broken.
Buck earned four additional top ten hits through the end of 1974, but a few scant years later, he was effectively retired from being a recording artist. He left Capitol in 1975 and recorded a pair of albums for Warner Bros. right after. Beyond 1977, Owens primarily resurfaced on duets, starting with an Emmylou Harris collaboration in 1979 and culminating in another comeback as he returned to No. 1 with Dwight Yoakam in 1988.
“Made in Japan” gets an A.
Every No. 1 Single of the Seventies
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I found this song through the Kentucky Headhunters’ cover on their “Big Boss Man” album in 2006.
I think it’s an extremely tasteful use of Japanese imagery (and the pentatonic scale!) to color an evergreen country song setup. Sometimes depictions of other countries in media don’t age well, but this one holds up extremely well.