J.J. Vicars: Blog

Lynyrd Skynyrd toured Japan in 1977 playing 5 nights, Jan 14th -18th & 21st at Nakano Sun Plaza in Tokyo and Osaka Koseinenkinkaikan Hall. It was the only time the original band played there. Opening for them was Japan's top Southern Rock band, Idlewild South. Music Life was the major Rock magazine in Japan at the time, their equivalent of England's Melody Maker. When looking for someone to interview Skynyrd for a feature article they decided to let Idlewild South have free reign. Who better to interview Skynyrd for Music Life? It proved to be a good choice; rather than answering cookie-cutter questions from a journalist Ronnie Van Zant, Allen Collins and Artimus Pyle sat down for some friendly conversation with musicians who had embraced the Southern Rock style during it's heyday and were eager meet their heroes. The result was a very candid, informal article that did the band justice.

Ronnie James is living the dream that all musicians who grew up listening to the Roots Rock revival of Austin during the 80's dream of. While living in California he began his road career with Little Charlie & the Nightcats before playing with the Fabulous Thunderbirds which led to his current gig as Jimmie Vaughan's bassist. Along the way he's shared the stage and studio with a Who's Who of Blues legends, most notably the time he spent with the late Bill Willis in Vaughan's band. Now a mainstay in Austin, he sat down in early April 2010 to share his story..."As far as playing the first thing was guitar, like most kids. I liked sports and tried to be good at it but was terrible. Then got a guitar and realized I couldn't play ERUPTION. That and Van Halen's version of ICE CREAM MAN, those two solos, I thought if I could just figure those two out I'd have it made. I don't know if anybody's every figured it out properly."His introduction to Blues and Roots music was standard for his generation, [...]

JoJo Billingsley was my favorite Honkette. Watching video clips of the original Lynyrd Skynyrd she immediately stands out among the backing vocalists. She has that look in her eye of being a real character, someone who eats life. Reading about Skynyrd she came across as a tough chick who could drink the boys under the table and didn't take shit off anybody. Listening close to the backing vocals she sang closely with Ronnie Van Zant, often doubling his parts on songs such as TUESDAY'S GONE.In 2008 Darren Howells, at the time editor for Blues Matters magazine, asked me to write an article on Skynyrd. Wanting to avoid the usual cliches (mention of the plane crash was taboo for my article) I wanted to detail how this group combined the Blues, Country and Gospel of their southern backgrounds with the current sounds of the time they grew up in (most notably the British Invasion) to create a body of work that has become as much an American icon as Chevy, football and apple pie. I had had a couple [...]

One of the biggest cultural gaps I find being an American in Japan is old people. As much as they get on my nerves I do admire the old cockroaches. Constantly bumbling around, yakking at the top of their lungs early in the morning, completely self-absorbed... gawd, they can be annoying! On the other hand, being over 80 years old and having the energy of a teenager is something I almost never see back home. It demonstrates the cultural difference in attitudes regarding age.For the sake of simplicity, the U.S. has two basic cultural foundations that inform the society. Christianity preaches original sin while Atheism is the Darwinian/Freudian model that life is a meaningless accident, the subconscious is a harbor for suppressed emotions, and entropy is the rule. At the core of both models human beings are viewed as inherently flawed creatures. Despite U.S. politics I would like to believe otherwise.In a country where religion is minimal, fundamentalism is unheard of, and Zen Buddhism is the [...]

Coffee shops over here are not like back home. They serve real coffee. The ones back home serve sugary coffee-flavored drinks with high fructose corn syrup and extra whip cream. Suburbanites in sloppy clothes indulging in a 'brand experience'.

The coffee shops here are descendants of European cafes. Cappuccino is served as it has been for over a century- shot of espresso with steamed milk. Iced coffee is just that- chilled coffee over ice. Other drinks stick to the same elegant simplicity, decorated with complementing flavors. Sugar is used as sweetener, not a base, and you can actually taste the coffee. Frozen drinks follow the same guidelines in a blender with ice. If it ain't broke, don't fix it.

The decor is often European in style, usually French or Italian. Jazz plays over the sound system; Errol Garner and Miles Davis are staples and Kenny G is thankfully absent. Unlike the 'brand' chains back home (unfortunately proliferating here as well) there is a smoking section. Good coffee goes hand in hand with a good smoke. This is where I sit, cigarillo in one hand and pen in the other.  

Outside the window is a bustling metropolis. Endless restaurants, bars and shops crammed into every nook and cranny, buildings 5-10 stories high. Beyond are the skyscrapers of the business district. The streets are alive; business men in black suits and white shirts with pale pink ties, college kids in reggae threads and rectangle glasses, slender women in colorful dresses and heels with their hair and makeup done perfectly. During these rare moments my cranky homesickness is gone and I dig being an ex-pat.