Korea's aging country music scene and the disappearance of Kimchi Kitty

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Mon, October 2, 2023 | 10:22

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Korea's aging country music scene and the disappearance of Kimchi Kitty

Posted : 2023-03-21 16:09

Updated : 2023-03-27 01:40

Jo Young-gil appears on a Korean Grand Ole Opry poster, with Kimchi Kitty on the left. / Courtesy of Jo Young-gil

By Martin Limon

The Korean Grand Ole Opry performed on most of the over 50 U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) bases spread throughout South Korea from the early 1970s until well into the 1990s. They were a massive hit, playing in the officers' clubs for generals and colonels as well as for senior NCOs, and even in the enlisted clubs for the lonely privates far from home.

Jo Young-gil formed the group and he led them through hundreds of performances from as far north as the Joint Security Area (JSA), literally in the DMZ, to as far south as Busan on the southeastern tip of the Korean Peninsula. He's 82 years old now and I recently had the opportunity to speak to him by phone. He still has the verve of youth and even though he modestly claims that his command of English has deteriorated, he still speaks it very well ― unexpectedly, with what seems to be a Tennessee accent.

As a teen, Jo was fascinated by the American pop music he heard on AFKN radio. He taught himself to play his favorite tunes on guitar ― and sing them in English. This led to a visit by a Korean talent agent and soon he was introduced to country and western music. Add in Jo's own natural flair as a performer ― including comedy ― and soon the Korean Grand Ole Opry show was formed: Six male musicians and two female singers, all decked out in traditional American country garb.

The country and western music genre was in the process of revitalizing itself in the 1970s. Performers such as Charlie Rich, Charley Pride, Waylon Jennings, Willie Nelson, Tanya Tucker, Loretta Lynn, Freddy Fender and Johnny Rodriguez ― to name a few ― had numerous hit songs. And then of course there was the performer who stood above them all: Tammy Wynette, with her massive hit song "Stand by Your Man."

The Grand Ole Opry covered them all, and covered them well, but the performer who stands out in my memory was the gorgeous and talented young woman known only as Kimchi Kitty. Nobody could belt out a romantic ballad better than she could. And so it was her duty to sing "Stand by Your Man," each and every time the band performed. And she did, driving the standing-room-only crowds of young American GIs mad with her heartfelt rendition.

After suffering through an ill-fated and short-lived marriage, Kimchi Kitty quit the band and then disappeared suddenly. In the mid-1980s, Jo went looking for her, hoping to get her to rejoin the group, but to no avail. He couldn't find her and she left no traces of her whereabouts.

Still, the Grand Ole Opry soldiered on, finding excellent musicians to replace the original members who left the band for various reasons, until finally the bookings trailed off and the band stopped performing in the mid-1990s. But in their heyday they were sought after on every USFK compound in the country for not only club dates but also outdoor events such as summer carnivals and ceremonies honoring the U.S. Marines from Okinawa who landed on the beach on the eastern coast during the annual joint South Korea-U.S. military exercise known as Team Spirit.

For those of us American GIs who were stationed in Korea during that time, and were fortunate enough to see the Grand Ole Opry, we still have fond memories of the moments of great joy they brought to us one and all.

Martin Limon is a full-time writer having published several novels set in Korea's modern past, featuring CID detectives Sueno and Bascom. He spent 20 years in the military, 10 of which were in Korea on three tours: 1968-69, 1973-76 and 1977-80. Limon's short story, "Kimchi Kitty," appears in the March/April 2023 issue of the Alfred Hitchcock Mystery Magazine.

jdunbar@koreatimes.co.kr