Rats & Star

Overview

Rats & Star (ラッツ&スター) was a Japanese male vocal group specializing in doo-wop and soul-influenced music. Originally known as Chanels (later spelled Shanels), they adopted the name Rats & Star in March 1983. Led by Masayuki Suzuki, they were known for four lead vocalists wearing blackface-style makeup and for a lineup that reached ten members. The group has been inactive since 1986 but has never formally disbanded.

Career

Formation and amateur years

In September 1975, Suzuki formed Chanels with Masashi Tashiro, Yoshio Sato and Hiroyuki Kuboki. The name came from the American oldies act Sha Na Na and the doo-wop group The Channels, and the group began as a Sha Na Na cover band. They appeared on the TV show Ginza NOW! in 1976 and in 1977 reached the finals of Yamaha's EastWest '77 amateur contest, winning a prize alongside Southern All Stars and Casiopea. They also began working with Eiichi Ohtaki, appearing on the 1978 album LET'S ONDO AGAIN. Tatsuro Yamashita recognized them early on.

Debut as Chanels

They debuted in February 1980 as a ten-piece act. Their debut single "Runaway" sold over a million copies and sparked a doo-wop boom in Japan. That year they performed at the Whisky A Go Go in Los Angeles. In August 1980 several members were referred to prosecutors over an incident following a concert, leading to a six-month suspension; they returned the next year with "Machikado Twilight". In 1982 the spelling changed from CHANELS to SHANELS.

Becoming Rats & Star

In March 1983, with the Sayonara Chanels Fair, the group ended its Chanels identity and renamed itself Rats & Star, reportedly because of complaints from the French fashion house Chanel. Their first single under the new name, "Me-Gumi no Hito", sold 800,000 copies. The name means "sewer rats and a star" and is a palindrome. In July 1983 they performed at ALL NIGHT NIPPON SUPER FES. '83 with Ohtaki and Southern All Stars. After the keyboardist and bassist left, the group became an eight-piece, and in 1984 they appeared regularly on Fuji TV's Manga Chop '84. The album SOUL VACATION came out in 1983, followed by SEE THROUGH and 14 CARATS in 1984.

Hiatus and reunion

In 1985 five members held a joint wedding at Tokyo's Hie Shrine, generating wide publicity. Suzuki debuted as a solo artist in 1986 and the members pursued separate paths. The duet "Lonely Chaplin" with Suzuki's older sister Kiyomi Suzuki became a hit and a karaoke duet staple. In 1996, the Year of the Rat, the members reunited for a limited run, releasing the Ohtaki-produced single "Yume de Aetara", touring nationwide and making their first appearance on the 47th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen with that song. The albums SING! SING! SING! (1995), BACK TO THE BASIC (1996) and The LEGEND (2003) also appear in their discography.

2000s and later

In April 2006, Suzuki, Sato and Kuwano teamed up with Tetsuya Murakami and Yuji Sakai of the Gospellers as Gosperats. Kuwano has said the group never disbanded and that any return would be a "reassembling" rather than a reunion.

Musical style

Their sound centers on doo-wop, R&B and soul, built on four-part vocal harmony across lead, tenor and bass roles. Collaboration with Eiichi Ohtaki was a recurring feature of their career.

Members

Masayuki Suzuki (lead vocal), Masashi Tashiro (tenor vocal), Nobuyoshi Kuwano (trumpet, vocal), Yoshio Sato (bass vocal), Hiroyuki Kuboki (tenor vocal), Ryoichi Izumo (guitar, vocal) and Kiyotaka Shinpo (drums, vocal).