Sorry for the long delay in posts, but we keep getting distracted by other things and forgetting to update the blog.
Here’s a sweet song by Betsy & Chris, who were a popular singing duo from Hawaii that made it big in Japan in the early 1970s.
Betsy Curtis and Chris Rolseth were part of the Kaillua High-School Madrigals who toured Japan singing Hawaiian folk songs in the late 1960s under the direction of Shigeru Hotoke. While they were there, Denon Columbia Japan were so impressed by the girls that they offered them a record deal singing Japanese folk music.
In 1970 they released the beautiful folk song Shiroi Iro Wa Koi Bito No Iro (a.k.a. Colors of Love) which was written by the Japanese songwriter Kazuhiko Kato. The song was a huge hit and it quickly made Betsy & Chris one of the most popular singing duos in Japan.
Their Japanese singing skills were very impressive and the girls spent the next 5 years recording music and touring in Japan where they had great success singing Japanese language songs. Betsy & Chris released nine albums in Japan, but unfortunately they couldn’t seem to find the same kind of success in the US.
Betsy & Chris - Shiroi Iro Wa Koi Bito No Iro (1970)
Betsy Curtis of Betsy & Chris fame is still recording and performing music. You can find out more about her as well as Betsy & Chris on her official website:
- Betsyko
just discoverede this blog. wow,so much cool classic japanese music here.
Comment by mhr_kara — June 7, 2007 @ 4:30 pm
Thanks for another great post. I really enjoy your blog–just wish you updated more often.
Comment by Max — June 13, 2007 @ 1:17 am
Great post! I just heard B&C recently on one of the Columbia singles comps, but that video is absolutely sublime!
Comment by easytempo — June 20, 2007 @ 1:41 am
Amazing!
Absolutely Amazing!
Thanks.
Comment by Traitor Vic — June 24, 2007 @ 7:03 am
thanks so much for this great post. Chris Mullen is actually my mom—it was so exciting for me to see her live in the video!
Comment by Sara Mullen — June 27, 2007 @ 7:18 pm
thanks so much for this great post. Chris Mullen is actually my mom—it was so exciting for me to see her live in the video!
Comment by Sara Mullen — June 27, 2007 @ 7:19 pm
Beautiful song and a beautiful performance - thank you for sharing!
Comment by Matt — June 28, 2007 @ 3:51 am
Thanks a lot for all the nice comments! I’m glad you enjoyed this great folk song by Besty & Chris.
Sara - Many thanks for taking the time to stop by and say hello. Please give your mom our best and let her know that she’s getting new fans all the time! She’s a talented lady.
Comment by T3rtium Quid — June 29, 2007 @ 5:52 pm
Oh my gosh! I remember hearing this on a tv special long ago when I was in elementary school. At that time I was so confused - “They’re not Jpns, but they’re singing in Jpns??” Lol…. This is such a beautiful song. Thank you!
Comment by Nina — August 4, 2007 @ 6:19 pm
Aloha from Hawaii! Thanks so much for posting this blog. It is amazing to see pictures and hear our music from so long ago, here on the internet! Chris and I had some amazing adventures together in Japan, and I always enjoyed singing and recording together…It makes me feel quite sentimental. Again, Mahalo!
Betsy Curtis.
Comment by Betsy Curtis — September 1, 2008 @ 9:24 pm
Hey everyone! Betsy’s daughter here–thought I’d jump the daughter/fan bandwagon with Sara! I love this video, and am so glad to see it reaching new sites and being shown to new listeners! These classics never get old! And if you want to see more, go check out my mom’s site! We’ve even got a video up on youtube of us singing this song in Japan not too long ago!
Thanks so much for putting this up, and to everyone who commented! Mahalo nui loa!
Comment by Emma Curtis — October 12, 2008 @ 8:11 am