When it comes to my favourite Japanese pro wrestlers, Genichiro Tenryu is right up near the top of the list. His entrance theme is right up there with the best of them too. It has a fascinating origin, starting with a 1978 children’s book by an Italian author and then via a legendary Japanese Jazz fusion musician. This is the origin of Thunderstorm.

Thunder Storm’s story begins with a children’s book – 1978’s The Rainbow Goblins. Written by Italian author Ul de Rico, the Rainbow Goblins is a psychadelic, somewhat dark tale of a group of hungry goblins on a hunt to eat a rainbow. 

“The goblins were awakened, when it began to thunder in the distance”

The book’s third act opens with an almighty thunderstorm as the goblins prep their attack on the rainbow.. It’s this page that leads legendary Japanese guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka to create the song Thunderstorm in a wonderful 68 minutes of meandering jazz fusion.

Takanaka is hailed as a bit of a guitar legend, his sound having heavily influenced Japan’s City Pop genre. He’s quite prolific too, having released dozens of albums over a near 50-year career starting back in 1976. He’s still going today, touring both in japan and internationally.  

Rainbow Goblins was his ninth album, released in 1981. Each track begins with a short narration from the book itself, by British narrator Roy Garner. Garner’s narration style will feel right at home to anyone brought up on British children’s TV like Thomas the Tank Engine or Mr Benn.. 

“And all the goblins danced and pranced around in glee, for they knew after the wildest morning rainbow comes the most beautiful rainbow” 

Thunderstorm is Takanaka’s interpretation of the storm as it rolls through. Its menacing guitar riff is accompanied by bombastic crashes of percussion. Quite simply, it’s a banger and fits the attitude, moveset and weight that Tenryu carried himself with in the ring brilliantly.

Takanaka also performed the entire album live at Budokan Hall in 1981 in a special audio visual set The Rainbow Goblins Story – a performance that’s highly regarded. The rendition here of Thunderstorm, with accompanying lightning laser lights, as Takanaka and band play in full goblin head masks simply has to be seen:

And finally, the man himself played live for the crowd at Tenryu’s retirement bout against Kazuchika Okada in Tenryu Project’s Revolution FINAL show: