 In addition to his well-known ballads, he was strongly influenced by his father's experience as a victim of radiation poisoning following the atomic bombing of Hiroshima in 1945, and many of his songs have a very strong protest song tone, likely the most of any "big name" singer in Japan.He has written music for many other artists, including Momoe Yamaguchi, and Akiko Wada.He is affectionately referred to as "Hamasho" by many of his fans.