Finger 5

Although labeled "the Japanese Jackson 5," Finger 5 never produced a Far Eastern Michael Jackson; they instead mirrored the model of five siblings delivering Motown-styled soul and R&B material, Jackson 5 covers included, to J-pop listeners. Younger Japanese audiences embraced them heartily during the mid-'70s, yet the craze endured only a few seasons.

A first version of the act took shape when Okinawa siblings Kazuo, Mitsuo, and Masao, born in 1955, 1957, and 1959, began appearing as All Brothers inside their father's bar, a spot popular with soldiers from the nearby American base. The trio enjoyed modest local success, captured a talent-contest prize, and relocated to Tokyo in 1970, but King Records singles issued under the name Baby Brothers failed to register with domestic listeners, even while the group remained welcome on military bases around the capital. In 1972 the outfit shifted to Philips, incorporated eleven-year-old Akira and his ten-year-old sister Taeko, and reintroduced itself as Finger 5. Television exposure promptly triggered a surge of requests; the follow-up single "Kojin Jugyo" (1973) moved close to one and a half million copies. Trademark track "Koi no Dial 6700" (1973) and "Gakuen Tengoku" (1974) likewise achieved million-selling status, rendering Finger 5 a national sensation; for a time even Akira's oversized glasses set a brief fashion trend.

Throughout the 1973-1975 peak the quintet kept releasing singles, maintained a heavy television schedule, and toured relentlessly, sharing stages with Canadian teen idols the DeFranco Family in 1974. The punishing J-pop workload, already taxing for adult performers, proved unsustainable for teenagers: during one concert Akira collapsed onstage and required hospitalization, while rumors circulated that management had urged him to take female hormones to postpone pubertal changes. Kazuo departed in 1975 and cousin Minoru Gushiken stepped in; later that year the group left Japan for the United States in search of artistic growth. Upon returning in 1976 they found themselves no longer in demand, and subsequent singles failed to sell. Finger 5 formally disbanded in 1978. Members pursued separate paths ranging from hairdressing to politics and mounted six reunion attempts from the 1980s through the 2000s, most under variant names such as Fingers and Finger 5 Soul Band, yet only the 2003 celebration marking the band's thirtieth anniversary met with notable response.