is a 1971 single released by the Japanese duo Jiros. Released on February 5, 1971, it ranked eleventh in Oricon charts, selling a total of 196,000 copies. The song was adapted into a movie with the same name in 1973.
Background In the early 1970s, when "Children Who Don't Know War" was released, the United States of America found itself in the midst of the Vietnam War. Though Japan wasn't directly involved in the conflict, the country allowed the stationing of American troops on Japanese soil, a decision which was met with internal criticism coming mainly from the country's intellectual elite, composed of academics and students, who upheld deep rooted anti-war beliefs, mainly due to Japan's experience during World War II.
The song was composed to express a mild anti-war message, but it was later regarded by Kitayama as a puerile effort to satirize, and rebel against, the contempt felt by older generations who experienced World War II for younger people born in the post-war period – who were denounced for weak-mindedness and lack of self-discipline. Though the duo never bore any affiliation to the pacifist movement, the song became indelibly attached to the movement, and its title became an iconic expression, used in sports,The song was parodied in the year of 1985 and released under the title anime,In the first Urusei Yatsura movie magazines,, in an article entitled books and newspaper articles., published on the Sankei Shinbun.
Track listings A side – Lyrics: , Composition: , Arrangement: B side – Lyrics: , Composition: , Arrangement:
See also 1971 in Japanese music
References