Frank Chickens

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Kazuko Hohki (with Tomoko Minamazaki and Ray Hogan) in rehearsal with Frank Chickens in 1998

Frank Chickens were a mostly all-women, Anglo-Japanese musical group based in London and performing songs mainly in English from 1982 to about 2001.

Founder members of Frank Chickens were Kazuko Hohki and Kazumi Taguchi. Taguchi was later replaced by Atsuko Kamura and then Chika Nakagawa and others in the 1990s. Their songs were often about Japanese social conditions and constrictions, particularly for women, as well as the experience of Japanese people in England with Hohki often cracking jokes and making funny observations between songs at live gigs. They were also noted for their lightshows, costumes and audience participation in certain songs. They mainly performed to pre-recorded backing tapes but were often supported by live instruments, including various Asian traditional wind instruments played by Clive Bell.

Their best known song was "We Are Ninja (Not Geisha)", which they continued to perform at every gig. A version of the track produced by Fink appeared on the Ninja Tune compilation Xen Cuts in 2000. The single "Blue Canary" was number 42 in BBC DJ John Peel's Festive Fifty, a poll of his listeners' favourite tracks of the year, in 1984. They also recorded several sessions for Peel's show on BBC Radio 1.

They were a part of Red Wedge in the 1980s and toured extensively in the UK and abroad. They were on the bill at the infamous Farewell to the GLC concert in 1986. They also supported The Smiths and other major bands on a few occasions. In 1984, they were nominated for the Perrier Award at the Edinburgh Fringe.

Their numbers swelled from the original duo until there were often as many as eight people on stage by the late 1990s, including their only ever male and non-Japanese member, guitarist Ray Hogan. Other regulars were Yumi Hara, Tomoko Minamazaki and Akiko Sato. The band also organised workshops in performance for young people.

Although they are no longer performing regularly, they still make occasional appearances as Frank Chickens. Kazuko Hohki continues to perform one-woman multimedia shows in Britain. She is also a writer and theatre director.

[edit] Discography

Singles

"We Are Ninja" / "Fujiama Mama", (1984)
"We Are Ninja (Not Geisha)", (1984)
"Blue Canary", (1984)
"Blue Canary" (12"), (1984)
"Yellow Toast", (1987)
"Do the Karaoke" / "Jackie Chan", (1989)
"Annabella" / "Different", (1996)

Albums

We Are Frank Chickens, (1984)
Get Chickenized, (1987)
The Best of Frank Chickens, (1987)
Club Monkey, (1988)
Pretty Frank Chickens, (199?) [only released in Japan]
Yukasita - Underfloor World, (1997)

Compilations

The 90 Days - The Original Soundtrack, (1992) Contributed 3 tracks.
Xen Cuts (2000), contained new version of We Are Ninja (Not Geisha).

[edit] Film appearances

Frank Chickens appear as themselves in the Shunichi Nagasaki 1985 short film London Calling.

Kazuko Hohki appears in the 1993 documentary The Good Wife of Tokyo, directed by Kim Longinotto, which also featured fellow band member Chika Nakagawa as well as Hohki's husband, record producer Grant Showbiz. The film includes footage of a Frank Chickens tour of Japan.