Zaby
The store was supposed to open at 12 o'clock, but when I got there, it seemed like they were opening at 1 o'clock. I killed time in other shops in the building and visited again. Back in the old days when "Jamaica" was located underground in the "Toei" building on Minami Ichijo Street, I visited a few times, but this was my first visit since they moved, probably about 27-28 years ago. In Sapporo, this place is known for attracting music enthusiasts with a "super" level of passion for music. The previous location had a strict "no talking" policy, but now it seems that it's not the case. The Sanjo Mimasu Building houses many shops that operate at night, and most of them are not open at this time. Among them, "Jamaica" quietly starts operating from midday. When I arrived, there were no customers, just one person later. I sat at the counter and ordered a "hot coffee" for 550 yen. I'm not sure how it works, but the coffee appeared from behind the curtain within seconds... Could it be instant coffee? (laughs) As I sipped the coffee, the music playing was by "Louis Smith," a trumpet player who I think passed away recently. When I looked it up, it turned out to be a story from two years ago. I enjoyed the rich sound of the JBL Paragon while browsing on my smartphone when a customer arrived. This customer turned out to be a troublemaker as they kept coughing and sniffing, disturbing the high-quality music. It was the worst. When I was young, I started learning the piano, which led me to immerse myself in music. In high school, I started listening to Jazz, and I often listened to saxophone and trumpet pieces. In Japan, Sadao Watanabe was popular, and I even played the saxophone in a brass band but couldn't get into classical music, so I quit after a few months. These days, I love the piano, and I listened to the late Bill Evans endlessly. Recently, I've been hooked on "H ZETT M," a member of the keyboardist "PE'Z" led by Shiina Ringo of Tokyo Jihen. I'm fully immersed in this astonishingly crazy unit "H ZETT TORIO." When they have live performances near Sapporo, I try to get tickets and attend. I spent about an hour relaxing there. This place, along with "BOSSA" and "slow boat," the shop of the late Jazz pianist Ryō Fukui, who continued to work in Sapporo and passed away a few years ago (I personally liked the accordion...), is an essential part of Sapporo's Jazz scene. Next time, I'll go at night and have a drink.