Aketa No Mise (“The Open Store”) is out in west Tokyo, not far from Nishi-Ogikubo station. The Ogikubo area was well known in the 1960s as a gathering spot for hippies, artists, political dissidents and drop-outs and you can get a taste of this scene at Aketa no Mise. It’s a great basement jazz club with no pretensions or care for current trends, a space solely concerned with creative expression via music. The live acts they book are on the experimental/free side, which is unfortunately all too rare these days. Owner Aketagawa-san, who runs the ocarina-shop across the street as well as overseeing the Aketa Discs independent label, keeps the schedule diverse and interesting; last time I dropped by in the afternoon there was a trio rehearsal going on between a tympani drummer, electric guitarist and a female vocalist.
That’s not to say there aren’t some unpleasant things about the club. It’s down in the basement and as a result is very dark and damp, and the cans of Sapporo beer were kind of warm..never acceptable, even a place devoted to free jazz! But those minor points aside, I love this joint. There are too many jazz clubs around Tokyo that feature the same vocal + quartet singing the same standards, night after night. Knowing there is a place like Aketa no Mise still in business is comforting to all jazz fans who want to keep the spirit of improvisation alive.
吐夢 (Pronounced “To-mu” or just “Tom”) is unique in a couple of ways. Its got two rooms with large tables in both along with one long counter; they cook up a lot of fairly good food (rare to get tasty grub in jazz joints); there are about a hundred signed baseballs up on the top shelf above the bar, right over about 3000+ albums; it has a very spacious vibe that you don’t get at most jazz bars in the center of Tokyo.
吐夢 has been in Asagaya for more than forty years and is well known by most locals. The music almost always fits the mood; when it’s quiet and fairly empty you get some slow burning blues or hard-bop. When it’s packed and noisy you get some hard-swinging soul-jazz or even big band. It’s a good place for larger groups who want to drink a bit but still get to hear some swinging tunes. One of my favorite of many great jazz bars along the JR Chuo railway line.
Extra star for having a special 400 yen happy hour for glasses of Ebisu draft beer. Bargain for a jazz bar. See more pics of Tom over at Tokyo Jazz Joints.
S.U.B. Store (Small Unique Bookstore) is a very hip new hybrid cafe/bar/gallery/bookstore/recordstore/live space in the always vibrant Koenji neighborhood in west Tokyo. It was opened early in 2016 by the husband & wife team of Andhika from Indonesia, and Kumi from Japan, two welcoming hosts who are happy to talk music and more with the customers.
The shop is warm and funky with a counter bar facing a small kitchen on the right side, some racks with used vinyl on sale along the opposite wall. One part of the wall space in the center is used for various small exhibitions, and on the left side of the room by the window are DJ decks and a space for live performances. It sounds like it would be too busy and cluttered but it’s all laid out so you don’t feel boxed in at all, with the large window letting in plenty of natural light.
Andhika and Kumi are making an effort to put on a variety of events in SUB Store including live music (jazzy and otherwise), DJ nights and film showings, in addition to opening for lunch (look for the very good Indonesian dishes on the menu) and afternoon cafe time. The music is a mix of jazz and contemporary grooves, though you’re likely to hear a lot of genres from their collection of records and CDs. Andhika told me they even hosted Indonesian jazz guitarist Tesla Manaf for a show during his recent tour of Japan. They’re happy to host any kind of evening though so feel free to ask them about setting up any event you’d like to do. SUB Store is a very welcome new spot for music and art fans in Tokyo.
SOMETIME Kichijoji (they use all caps..) opened in 1975 and still packs people in every night of the week. As the name says it’s in Kichijoji, an area in Western Tokyo that has long been known for being a jazz ‘town’, though there are fewer joints now than there were in the golden days of the 60s and 70s.
SOMETIME though is without a doubt the center of the Kichijoji jazz community, a great place to dive into the local scene. There are usually different Japanese musicians playing every night, all genres featured. The official name ‘Piano Hall SOMETIME’ refers more to the look of the place rather than about the music. The big black grand piano does dominate the center of the room (there is no stage), but it’s not at all a ‘piano bar’. Customers sit at the counter around the open-space, or look down on the musicians from seats in the loft.
There’s a real speakeasy feel to the place when it’s full and the musicians are out on the floor tearing it up. Even better for the poorer/cheaper jazz fan is the live charge. Gigs can be as cheap as ￥1600, and that covers you for all the sets in the evening (unlike many big-name chain clubs.) SOMETIME is a great place to kick off a night in Kichijoji, and I’d recommend the Sunday afternoon lunch sessions or even just cafe time as well. Photos of SOMETIME over at Tokyo Jazz Joints.
Opened in 2010, Juha is a small but lively coffee shop about 5 minutes walk from Nishi-Ogikubo Station on the JR Chuo Line. It’s named after a film by Finnish Director Aki Kaurismaki, (there is a huge Karurismaki poster on the wall as well as photo book on the shelf).
The music was random but excellent; some mid-period Coltrane playing when we walked in then all the way to Anita O’Day after that, some hard-bop by Cedar Walton on vinyl followed those up. I couldn’t see the collection as it’s hidden somewhere behind the counter but based on these choices the owners obviously know their jazz.
Juha has great (if expensive) coffee and a very warm & friendly vibe; no coincidence that most of the customers on a Saturday afternoon were ladies. It’s a nice addition to the jazz cafe scene.
Tam’s Bar is a tiny basement bar that seats no more than ten people at a time. As the sign brightly states, it opened in 1984 and features Jazz and Soul. I was a bit surprised to walk in and not see the usual one-thousand or so albums packed into a shelf behind the bar, instead there were just a couple dozen CDs and an MP3 player. The charming and chatty owner Oikawa-san informed me that she used to have a big vinyl collection but due to space issues, she converted to CDs several years back. This was not so encouraging but when the next random tune came up and I heard the first notes of ‘In A Silent Way’ by Miles Davis, my faith was restored.
Tam’s seems like a very ‘regular’s only/mostly’ joint but Oikawa-san was so friendly and welcoming that I won’t hesitate to drop by again when in the neighborhood. ￥1000 sit-down charge plus the usual beer and whiskey prices. Oikawa-san didn’t have any business cards left when I visited and said she ‘gave up halfway’ making a homepage. I’ll get the phone number and complete address during my next visit!
Maze is a very hip soul music bar located right in the middle of the Koenji Pal Arcade ‘shoutengai’ (shopping street). Morita-san the owner has been running it for about 30 years, while also operating the soba noodle shop down on the first floor. He doesn’t have many DJ nights these days but still has a nice vinyl collection and is even open to regulars putting on their iPod playlists, as long as the music is funky.
It’s a fairly large bar, dark and with an extensive liquor selection. A 1971 Soul Train DVD was playing on the big screen when I dropped by, and Morita-san was chatty and warm. Highly recommended for soul fans. And yes, it’s named after the band ‘Maze’. Open from 8pm most nights.
Note: Closed in early 2015. I guess he couldn’t get many customers after all…
Cafe Ellington was opened in June 2012 by the warm and chatty Onodera-san, a retired apparel merchant. It’s a small, non-smoking cafe open from 3pm-10pm, with a simple drinks menu of coffee, tea, beer, whiskey and sherry. The shape is a bit odd with some rather too-large tables making it a but cluttered, but the coffee is good and the speakers excellent.
Onodera-san doesn’t keep a huge collection of vinyl in the place, only about 300 at a time. He rotates the play list bringing from his collection at home, mostly standard jazz with nothing too “heavy”. He was playing a wonderful Roland Hanna/George Mraz duo album when I visited recently. Onodera-san hasn’t put up a website or used any social media to promote the place so the cafe is not well known, even among some Asagaya residents. It’s a relaxing spot for an afternoon coffee or early drink so I hope he builds the customer base up.
Misty is a small cafe located in the heart of Asagaya’s old style “shotengai” (shopping street). It’s both a lunch-time cafe and afternoon jazz coffee spot; the food menu is very extensive and the gourmet coffee from around the world is delicious.
The problem is unfortunately the music..despite having a beautiful collection of vintage jazz albums on the wall, including classics as well as more obscure avante-garde albums, the CD playing last time I went in was a wretched smooth jazz compilation. Even worse came after when they put on one of those “Rod Stewart Tries To Sing the Jazz Standards” CDs from a few years ago..unlistenable crap (and I love old Rod Stewart!) They also do something I find very annoying, playing a separate concert DVD on the TV screen with the sound turned off. Have never understood why places do this..
This situation may have been only for the more casual Saturday afternoon customers. It was crowded and I coudn’t get to speak with the owner or staff the way I usually do. If you’re in Asagaya I still recommend Misty for the coffee alone..just hope they keep the smooth jazz off. I will try and stop by again soon on a weekday to inquire about the musical selections.
Nadja is a great little cafe in Koenji that stands out for its tasty lunch menu, especially the Malaysian style curry. Was busy the time I dropped by so need a return visit to chat with the owner and get the real lowdown, but Nadja is a great stop for lunch and coffee before a heavy music night in Koenji. Beginner jazz fans especially welcome!
Kissa Seikatsu (喫茶生活 “Cafe Lifestyle”) is a gem of a place a few mins walk from Higashi-Koenji station on the Marunouchi Subway Line. It’s very tiny with less than 10 seats at the counter and two small tables. A lot of floor space is taken up by the huge bags of coffee beans from Ethiopia, Brazil, Indonesia and other spots round the world. Opened in 1998, owner Toda-san is a bit of a coffee specialist and has on offer a bewildering number of blends.
There are a lot of nice album covers on the wall, a rack of magazines, books and board-games for customers to use at will, and the place is non-snoking so it smells gorgeous from all the coffee beans. Kissa Seikatsu is a great joint for some quiet reading or thinking time, just don’t expect much conversation from Toda-san. His direct quote to me was a polite but firm “I don’t really communicate with the customers. Just make the coffee and put on records.” And he does that with no days off as the place is open from 10am to midnight every day of the year.
Masuda-san sadly passed away in 2012.
Stardust is an old bar, first opened in Asagaya in 1971 by the very chatty Masuda Junko-san. It’s been at its current spot for about fifteen years and has a steady customer base of mostly locals. It’s a dark basement bar with beautiful photos of jazz greats all around the place (as well as randomly hung American flag). The kind of bar that would have been plentiful back in the 60s and 70s but now is becoming all too rare.
Masuda-san plays all genres of jazz and is happy to take requests. Just be ready to wait awhile for your drinks while she chats away happily to you in Japanese (whether you can speak it or not!) Lovely lady and a lovely bar.
Tiny club in jazz rich Asagaya, Manhattan is always worth stopping by. All-night jam sessions three times a month.
Rooster is a great little live-house that features jazz, blues, funk, New Orleans..basically all the best stuff. They have a 2nd small space on the north side of the station too, for jam sessions and extra gigs.