Jimmy Sakurai at Bauhaus in Roppongi
Jimmy Sakurai brought his Led Zep wizardry to Roppongi before the Bonham tour.
Jimmy Sakurai and Celebration Daze at Bauhaus in Roppongi, Tokyo, Japan on 4th November 2024
Jimmy Sakurai, aka Mr Jimmy, is about to kick off a North American tour with Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening. Before getting on a plane to start tour rehearsals in Nashville, Jimmy did a special performance with the Japanese band Celebration Daze. This was the band’s final gig on the “Good Rockin’ Daze Tour”.
Bauhaus, a basement rock club in Roppongi, is a terrific intimate venue with a seated audience. It is perfect for a Mr Jimmy performance where a big chunk of the audience consists of Led Zeppelin aficionados. It is the type of fans that have studied Jimmy Page and Led Zeppelin for decades. At a Mr Jimmy show, they pay attention to every detail. Jimmy Sakurai knows it as he too is a Led Zep scholar who cares about the details. Jimmy believes that the art of Led Zeppelin must be evaluated and performed in the same sense as traditional musical masterpieces. He always aims to perform according to the original intentions of the composers. He studies live recordings of Led Zeppelin to recreate the band’s live performances rather than copy the audio recordings.
As expected, this evening in Roppongi Jimmy’s talent delighted both the die-hard Led Zep fans and the more casual music fans. In 2024, Jimmy Sakurai does Jimmy Page better than Jimmy Page does. The trio of Japanese musicians in Celebration Daze – Yoko Kubota (vocals), Ryota Terasawa (bass) and Motonosuke Higuchi (drums) – are all top-notch. Performing with Jimmy lifts these fine musicians a few levels. The chemistry between Jimmy and the band is strong. Having a female lead vocalist in a Led Zeppelin revival band is unconventional and brave. But Yoko is a terrific singer and performer who does the legacy justice.
They opened the show strong with “We’re Gonna Groove” and “I Can’t Quit You Baby”, two cover songs Led Zeppelin performed live and recorded in the studio. Then followed “Celebration Day” and “Dazed and Confused”. the two songs that gave this revival band its name. Highlights of the set included “Lemon Song”, “Black Dog” and “Heartbreaker”. The encore was pure Led Zep bliss: “Immigrant Song”, “Whole Lotta Love” and “Rock and Roll”.
Backstage after the show, Jimmy was all smiles. He’s more than ready for the upcoming tour with Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening. Congratulations to all the fans in North America who will experience a Jimmy Sakurai on top form. Let’s see if Mr Jimmy can bring Jason Bonham to Japan for a tour.
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