Japan

[Fulham Road Lights]

Any fans out there? I got Tin Drum a couple months back and today I got Quiet Life. I'm quite into the New Wave/Romantic scene anyway so I'm kinda surprised it took me this long to discover them. I'm quite intrigued by David Sylvian's collaborations with Robert Fripp as well. What's your favourite stuff by them/why?

 

[nightingale+therose]

Any fans out there? I got Tin Drum a couple months back and today I got Quiet Life. I'm quite into the New Wave/Romantic scene anyway so I'm kinda surprised it took me this long to discover them. I'm quite intrigued by David Sylvian's collaborations with Robert Fripp as well. What's your favourite stuff by them/why?

FRL, so funny that you'd post this - i've recently been inflicting Japan onto a friends facebook site!

I love Japan - everything from Adolescent Sex to Bamboo Houses... love the early Sakamoto/Sylvian collaborations and like some of the Sylvian solo stuff too.

Best album is definitely Tin Drum, but In Vogue is great and Gentlemen is worth buying just for nightporter.. The early Hansa stuff which was New York Dolls influenced is really good..

Have you noticed how Nick Rhodes managed to rip off the more commercial elements of Japan for Duran? Was hilarious when Rhodes started turning into Sylvian for a wee while back there in the 80's!

If you like Mick Karn's bass, you might want to give Dali's Car a try - it was a short lived collaboration between Karn and Pete Murphy (from Bauhaus). You might also want to pick up some Rain Tree Crow, which was effectively Japan reunited under a different name (cause Sylvian refused to allow the old name of Japan to be used).

Favourite tracks for me are (everything on tin drum) Halloween, Quiet Life, Nightporter, European Son, The Unconventional, Adolescent Sex, Lovers on Main Street.... What are your favourites so far?

If you're having difficulty finding anything PM me, and i'll try to get downloads to you (sorry, i recently gave my duplicate CD's to local Cat's Protection)

PS: Obscure Alternatives is rubbish.
PPS: I worked in London at the turn of the century... one day, i was busy going about my research and a bloke walked into my library... he was a dead ringer for Sylvian. I shit you not, slip on shoes, baggy jacket and wonderous cheekbones... anyway, I called Mr Nightie immediately to tell him of my good fortune in seeing this bloke, and to tell him i hoped i wouldn't be home for the evening... unfortunately, the Sylvianesque bloke heard me and ran away screaming!

Cheers

 

[anon x]

I worked in London at the turn of the century... one day, i was busy going about my research and a bloke walked into my library... he was a dead ringer for Sylvian. I shit you not, slip on shoes, baggy jacket and wonderous cheekbones... anyway, I called Mr Nightie immediately to tell him of my good fortune in seeing this bloke, and to tell him i hoped i wouldn't be home for the evening... unfortunately, the Sylvianesque bloke heard me and ran away screaming!

I like your wee stories.

 

[[email protected]]

Still have a LOT of time for Sylvian/Japan here....Brilliant band....


I took a friend to see Japan in ( I think) 1982, at Lverpool Empire for his birthday treat.
He was a Massive Japan fan, and also dressed Dangerously close to how David Sylvian did at the time, and carried it off magnificently....lots of female admirers haunted him in Liverpools "Alternative" nightclubs at the time..( and a few Males, but thats not really relevant here....)
Anyway, After the Japan gig, the band were supposed to do a "Personal appearance" at a club called "Cagneys"...

Only Steve Jansen and Mick Karn actually showed up....

My mate and me joined the queue to meet them, and the look on Steve Jansens face when he saw my mate walk in was priceless!!! ( And Mick Karns...) we got a few things signed, and shook hands, and...I am sure that Steve said to Mick on the way out "....Wow!! I thought that was really David!!!).

PS, during my time as a DJ, wayyy back in the day, I used to finish my "Set" with Rain tree Crow's "Black Water".
Still a beautiful song.....

PPS, as good a "Sylvian" impersonator as my mate was, he thought the lyrics to "Adolescent sex" were:-

" get on up, get on up, get on up, Taking The Child Home"....!!!

 

[Kewpie]

Still have a LOT of time for Sylvian / Japan here. Brilliant band.


I took a friend to see Japan in (I think) 1982, at Liverpool Empire for his birthday treat.
He was a Massive Japan fan, and also dressed Dangerously close to how David Sylvian did at the time, and carried it off magnificently.

lots of female admirers haunted him in Liverpools "Alternative" nightclubs at the time (and a few Males, but thats not really relevant here.)
Anyway, After the Japan gig, the band were supposed to do a "Personal appearance" at a club called "Cagneys".

Only Steve Jansen and Mick Karn actually showed up.

My mate and me joined the queue to meet them, and the look on Steve Jansens face when he saw my mate walk in was priceless!!! (And Mick Karns) we got a few things signed, and shook hands, and I am sure that Steve said to Mick on the way out " Wow!! I thought that was really David!!!"

I'd like to see a photogrophic evidence of your mate who impersonated Sylvian.

 

[[email protected]]

Hi Kewpie,
Unfortunately, I no longer have any photo's of him.....we lost touch quite some time ago, But there was ONE specific photo I remember, where he was wearing Spectacles ( with no glass in) to achieve the "Sylvian" persona....
Wish I had a copy to post here.....it was a really smart portrait shot...
( ...Last I heard, he was almost Bald, and terribly, terribly thin....( he wasn't into drugs.....just generally looked unwell...) and trying to organise a 40th birthday "Re-Union" party with all his old friends....But, because of the way he abandoned us all, None of us could be bothered to attend.

 

[Kewpie]

Hi Kewpie,
Unfortunately, I no longer have any photo's of him.....we lost touch quite some time ago, But there was ONE specific photo I remember, where he was wearing Spectacles ( with no glass in) to achieve the "Sylvian" persona....
Wish I had a copy to post here.....it was a really smart portrait shot...
( ...Last I heard, he was almost Bald, and terribly, terribly thin....( he wasn't into drugs.....just generally looked unwell...) and trying to organise a 40th birthday "Re-Union" party with all his old friends....But, because of the way he abandoned us all, None of us could be bothered to attend.

Thanks Dave, hope you'll patch up with your mate at some point.

Life is too short, I hate myself not sending a PM to Mel earlier.

 

[Qvist]

Any fans out there? I got Tin Drum a couple months back and today I got Quiet Life. I'm quite into the New Wave/Romantic scene anyway so I'm kinda surprised it took me this long to discover them. I'm quite intrigued by David Sylvian's collaborations with Robert Fripp as well. What's your favourite stuff by them/why?

Hehe, Japan was one of mid-teens biggies, right up there with The Smiths and Bowie. They haven't faded much. Personally I actually prefer their live album Oil on Canvas, which sounds better than their somewhat dry studio recordings, is excellent technically (which wasn't always the case with live recordings during the 80s) and contains nearly all of their best songs.

Of Sylvian's solo stuff, I much prefer Secrets of the Beehive, because it consists throughout of strong songs, has an incomparably nice autumny feel to it and has an instrumentation that makes it more alive than the rather austere Brilliant Trees or the overly new-agey Gone to Earth. I don't know his later albums nearly as well, but what I've heard of them hasn't been as interesting as those first three.

cheers

 

[nightingale+therose]

I like your wee stories.

^^ tis the honest truth *blushing uncontrollably whilst in police restraint cuffs*

 

[nightingale+therose]

He was a Massive Japan fan, and also dressed Dangerously close to how David Sylvian did at the time, and carried it off magnificently....lots of female admirers haunted him in Liverpools "Alternative" nightclubs at the time..( and a few Males, but thats not really relevant here....)

I'd like to see a photogrophic evidence of your mate who impersonated Sylvian.

- you must befriend this bloke again - i too would like the documentary evidence of his hotness - an address would be nice too

Also, Dave - are you a Bauhaus fan (well, the David Jay name suggests so, maybe it's your real name though)...

Personally I actually prefer their live album Oil on Canvas, which sounds better than their somewhat dry studio recordings,

Totally agree that Oil On Canvas is a masterpiece

 

[[email protected]]

Hi again Nightingale, and Kewpie...

I lost touch in the late 80's with the chap.. he moved to southport (UK) with his new girlfriend and dropped all of his old friends completely...no phone calls , posttcards or letters...No contact address...Nothing.

A few years later, we were told by his brother that his girlfriend ( By now his wife) had died, and he was ( PLEEASSSSE pardon this pun "Drowning in Nostalgia", and dearly wished to meet up with the old crowd again....
but, because of the way he had treated us all, we didn't bother with trying to "Re-connect" with him. ( he always was a bit "Ruthless" with the way he USED friends for his own gain anyway...the utter cad....).

I did have a few Bauhaus records ( and I think that "Dali's car" was a good album...) but I'm not really a massive fan...

The "Jay" comes from my days as a DJ....Dave Jay had a better "Ring" to it than my original surname, and it has just sort of stuck with me....

I DO have a few photos of the Sylvian-esque one still, just when he was in everyday disguise ( ...Still quite a Hottie, a LOT of Ladies agreed with that statement at the time....)..If I can find a suitably "Droolable" one, I will try to post a link....But the "Sylvian"- istic proof I do not have.

PS, I wouldn't mind "Bumping into" him again....he still owes me Thirty quid !!!

 

[nightingale+therose]

PS, I wouldn't mind "Bumping into" him again....he still owes me Thirty quid !!!

Facebook him - we all put youthful pictures up on FB and hide the more shameful 'today' shots, so that nobody knows we've gotten ugly with age!!

Cheers Dave - i found your post mighty funny!

 

[Fulham Road Lights]

FRL, so funny that you'd post this - i've recently been inflicting Japan onto a friends facebook site!

I love Japan - everything from Adolescent Sex to Bamboo Houses... love the early Sakamoto/Sylvian collaborations and like some of the Sylvian solo stuff too.

Best album is definitely Tin Drum, but In Vogue is great and Gentlemen is worth buying just for nightporter.. The early Hansa stuff which was New York Dolls influenced is really good..

Have you noticed how Nick Rhodes managed to rip off the more commercial elements of Japan for Duran? Was hilarious when Rhodes started turning into Sylvian for a wee while back there in the 80's!

If you like Mick Karn's bass, you might want to give Dali's Car a try - it was a short lived collaboration between Karn and Pete Murphy (from Bauhaus). You might also want to pick up some Rain Tree Crow, which was effectively Japan reunited under a different name (cause Sylvian refused to allow the old name of Japan to be used).

Favourite tracks for me are (everything on tin drum) Halloween, Quiet Life, Nightporter, European Son, The Unconventional, Adolescent Sex, Lovers on Main Street.... What are your favourites so far?

If you're having difficulty finding anything PM me, and i'll try to get downloads to you (sorry, i recently gave my duplicate CD's to local Cat's Protection)

PS: Obscure Alternatives is rubbish.
PPS: I worked in London at the turn of the century... one day, i was busy going about my research and a bloke walked into my library... he was a dead ringer for Sylvian. I shit you not, slip on shoes, baggy jacket and wonderous cheekbones... anyway, I called Mr Nightie immediately to tell him of my good fortune in seeing this bloke, and to tell him i hoped i wouldn't be home for the evening... unfortunately, the Sylvianesque bloke heard me and ran away screaming!

Cheers

Cheers for this response, I wasn't expecting anyone to give me anything with this detail! I don't know Quiet Life well enough yet to comment on it, but my favourite tracks off Tin Drum are Art of Parties (I love how bombastic it is, really reminds me of the Great Curve by Talking Heads and Remain In Light in general tbh) and Canton which is majestic. The whole album is great though, and I also love Quiet Life even off a couple of listens. I'm a newcomer to Japan but I have lofty ambitions in my fandom! They could well be my new favourite band quite soon

 

[[email protected]]

Cheers Nightingale!!
glad you enjoyed my "Reminiscenses" !!
here's another....
me and a mate ( No, Not HIM....) went to see David Sylvian in Manchester apollo ( about 1989/90...).

The audience was made up of a quite a few "Sylvian" lookalikes.....( from the "Japan" era style...)

When the house lights dimmed, and the band started playing, ( with a lengthy, quite boring actually instrumental tune...), everyone was looking expectantly to the "Wings", waiting for the golden one to appear onstage...

It turned out he was already up there anyway, plonking away on "Australian Bongo's " or somesuch, in the background....nobody had recognised him!!...( he was dressed rather scruffily ( For an award winning sexual Icon, that is.....he looked more like "Rigsby" from the Rising damp TV show...with LONG Dark hair in a Ponytail).
When everyone eventually realised it was David, the applause was deafening...

It was a great gig, but just a tad too "Serious".....we were all supposed to marvel In Awe at the Middle-eight semi- octave breaks, Huge gaps of Silence, and the astonishing use of banging a bucket with a hairbrush type Musical Genius that was unfolding....

A lady seated in front of us told my mate to shut up, as we were ( rather rudely, admittedly...I apologise now, looking back.....) being slightly "Boisterous"....we expected to hear at least ONE Japan song....we eventually got an astonishingly beautiful version of "Nightporter"..).
And the Lady threatened to set her husband on my mate..... Me, being the diplomat out of us, patiently resolved the situation, and we tried to keep quiet for the duration of the concert. No blows were exchanged...happily.
We didn't enjoy the gig at the time, but a few days later we realised it had indeed been a brilliant show indeedy.

Just off upstairs now, to dig out "Polaroids" CD......


PS, I have tried FaceBook, but ( believe it or not...) My Sylvian-esque friends REAL Name ( Honestly!!!) Is/was JOHN SMITH......do the math!!!!
And, not all on FaceBook have profile pics....Gonna be a Loooonggg Job tracking him down!!!
...If anyone's still interested in my "Rantings", I'll tell ya about the "Acid House" illegal party we organised in Abersoch, when we played "Secrets of the Beehive"...in full.....!!!
Ahh!! you HAD ta be there!!

PPS, ...Mick Karn doing the sort of "Spider Scuttle" sideways across the front of the stage in 1982 was one of the best things I have ever saw on a concert stage!!!!

 

[[email protected]]

Back again...
since this thread started, I have been Trawling Youtube.......I just GOTTA get me a copy of "Obscure alternatives".....anyone interested in a swap for a cassette of Japan Live in Holland ?? ( date unknown....but I think it is pretty early in their career.... they do a cover of a "Rolling Stones " song.... the title of which fails to spring to mind at the moment....) . PM If ya wanna....Thanx....also,.. the "Adolescent Sex" album would find a loving home here........Doesn't have to be "Original" copies ( Wink wink.....) cheers in advance!!!
Dave.
In finishing ( for Now, anyway...) can i just say/sing that

#Sometimes.....I feel so low.....oh ho ho!!#
Happy Japanning!!!