JET Leads Intoxicated Japanese in Chorus of "Different Strokes" Theme Song

"It was the greatest moment of my life," proclaimed, Dick Gozinya, 30, of Aho-Cho, Hokkaido. On a lonely Hokkaido Saturday night the young Gozinya found himself drinking in the local snack-bar of his small economically depressed town. As is always the case, the local drunk rednecks were urging Dick to sing them something on the karaoke machine. Despite Dick's reluctance, he eventually acquiesced, and agreed to one song.

Upon flipping through the dog-eared karaoke book, Dick just happened upon on old ditty he had almost all but forgotten: the theme song for the 80's hit TV show "Different Strokes." "Wow! I thought," said Dick. "These Japanese karaoke books really do have some random selections." Dick couldn't resist the temptation. He had witnessed on repeated occasions the shocking applause that the "Ghost Busters" theme tune had gotten. Why not give this one a try, he thought.

"So I shouted out the song i.d. number to the bar master," said Dick, "and, well, the rest is Aho-cho history." What Dick had unexpectedly stumbled upon, was the most positively received song in town history. "It brought down the house," said Dick with obvious pride. "They loved it! We had a true intercultural bonding. It was magical. When I hit the chorus, the bar went absolutely nuts!"

The reason behind the Japanese love of western show tunes might just be found in their own native breed of pop music. The simplistic chord structures and melodic arrangements of J-pop, as it is often referred, hold striking similarities to the advertising and TV show jingles of the west.

"My only advise," said Dick, with a genuine look, "is when in doubt, break out a show tune. The response will amaze you. Trust me. It will be a winner."