June Yamagishi (山岸潤史, born Junshi Yamagishi, June 6, 1953) is a Japanese guitarist based in

New Orleans, Louisiana New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. He is the guitarist for bands Papa Grows Funk and

the Wild Magnolias The Wild Magnolias are a Mardi Gras Indian tribe who also record and play as a funk musical act from New Orleans, Louisiana. History Origins A group calling itself the Wild Magnolias, participating in the local " Indian masking" traditions an ...

History

Yamagishi was born in Ise City, Mie Prefecture,

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. He has been active in the Japanese blues and jazz scene since the early 1970s. In 1972, he formed the West Road Blues Band in

Kyoto Kyoto (; Japanese: , ''Kyōto'' ), officially , is the capital city of Kyoto Prefecture in Japan. Located in the Kansai region on the island of Honshu, Kyoto forms a part of the Keihanshin metropolitan area along with Osaka and Kobe. , the ci ...

along with vocalist Takashi "Hotoke" Nagai, guitarist Shinji Shiotsugu, bassist Tadashi Kobori, and drummer Teruo Matsumoto. The band soon became one of the main acts in then thriving blues scene in the

Kansai region The or the , lies in the southern-central region of Japan's main island Honshū. The region includes the prefectures of Nara, Wakayama, Kyoto, Osaka, Hyōgo and Shiga, often also Mie, sometimes Fukui, Tokushima and Tottori. The metropolita ...

. In 1975, Yamagishi went on to join a soul band named So Bad Revue, and in 1979, he released the first album under his name titled ''Really?!''. During the 1980s, he played with bands Myx and Chickenshack (a Japanese band different from the British

Chicken Shack Chicken Shack are a British blues band, founded in the mid-1960s by Stan Webb (guitar and vocals), Andy Silvester (bass guitar), and Alan Morley (drums), who were later joined by Christine Perfect (later McVie) (vocals and keyboards) in 1967. ...

) and in the 1990s, he formed the Band of Pleasure with guitarist David T. Walker and drummer

James Gadson James Gadson ( James Edward Gadson; born June 17, 1939) is an American drummer and session musician. Beginning his career in the late 1960s, Gadson has since become one of the most-recorded drummers in the history of R&B. He is also a singer and ...

and released three albums before they disbanded. In 1995, Yamagishi left his well-established career behind in Japan to live in New Orleans where he still lives today. Since he found his home in the Crescent City, he has played with musicians including

Earl King Earl Silas Johnson IV (February 7, 1934 – April 17, 2003),
known as Earl King, was an American singer, guit ...

Henry Butler Henry Butler (September 21, 1948 – July 2, 2018) was an American jazz and blues pianist. He learned piano, drums, and saxophone in school. He received a college degree and graduate degree and taught at the New Orleans Center for Creative ...

, Davell Crawford,

Marva Wright Marva Wright (born Marva Maria Williams, March 20, 1948 – March 23, 2010) was an American blues singer. Biography Born in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States, to mother Mattie P. Gilbert, and father Reverend Arthur Williams on March 2 ...

, George Porter Jr. among many others aside from the two groups he has been a member of. In 2007, he reunited with West Road Blues Band guitarist Shinji Shiotsugu to record ''Together Again - Blues in New Orleans''. It was an all blues album recorded in New Orleans, with support from the local musicians including John Gros and Marva Wright. Yamagishi appeared as himself in two episodes of the HBO series '' Treme''. In the episode titled "Santa Claus, Do You Ever Get The Blues" (season 2, episode 4, 2011) he auditioned for the band The Soul Apostles, and after playing the songs "Fire on The Bayou" and "

Love and Happiness "Love and Happiness" is a 1972 song by Al Green from his album '' I'm Still in Love with You''. Green co-wrote the song with Teenie Hodges. It was released as a single in the United Kingdom on London Records in 1973 and in the United States on Hi ...

" he was successfully employed. He also appeared in the episode titled "Tipitina" (season 3, episode 10, 2012). On June 7, 2012, he played the Melting Point in

Athens, Georgia Athens, officially Athens–Clarke County, is a consolidated city-county and college town in the U.S. state of Georgia. Athens lies about northeast of downtown Atlanta, and is a satellite city of the capital. The University of Georgia, the sta ...

, along with

Martha Reeves Martha Rose Reeves (born July 18, 1941) is an American R&B and pop singer. She is the lead singer of the Motown girl group Martha and the Vandellas which scored over a dozen hit singles, including "Come and Get These Memories", " Nowhere to R ...

Randall Bramblett Randall Bramblett (born 1948) is an American musician and singer-songwriter, whose career as a solo artist, session player, and touring musician, has spanned more than three decades. He has worked with Gregg Allman, Bonnie Raitt, Goose Creek S ...

, and a host of other musicians celebrating the 60th birthday of Ike Stubblefield. In February, 2018, Funk on Da Table, Yamagishi's new band consisting of Japanese and American musicians made a tour debut. They released their first CD ''Live at Tipitina's'' the following year. Other members of the group were Kenken (bass), John "Papa" Gros (keyboards) and Nikki Glaspie (drums). Other bands and artists Yamagishi has played with include Corey Henry's Treme Funktet, Davell Crawford,

, and George Porter Jr.

Discography

Solo

*1979: ''Really?!'' (Flying Dog) *1981: ''All the Same'' (Invitation) *1988: ''Give This Love'' (Try M) *1993: ''Jack of the Blues'' (BMG Victor) *1994: ''Smokin' Hole'' (BMG Victor) *2007: ''Together Again - Blues in New Orleans'' (Victor Entertainment), with Shinji Shiotsugu

West Road Blues Band

*1973: ''Live In Magazine No.1/2'' (Chu Chu Record) *1975: ''Blues Power'' (Bourbon) *1975: ''Live in Kyoto'' (Bourbon) *1984: ''Junction'' (Invitation) *1995: ''Live in New York'' (Zain)

Sooo Baad Revue

*1976: ''Sooo Baad Revue'' (Nippon Phonogram) *1977: ''Live'' (Nippon Phonogram)

Chickenshack

*1986: ''Chickenshack I'' (Meldac) *1986: ''Chickenshack II'' (Meldac) *1986: ''Urban Square (original soundtrack)'' (Meldac) *1987: ''Loving Power'' (Meldac) *1987: ''Chickenshack III'' (Meldac) *1988: ''Chickenshack IV'' (Meldac) *1989: ''Chickenshack V'' (Meldac) *1990: ''Loving Power II'' (Meldac) *1990: ''Chickenshack VI'' (Meldac)

Band of Pleasure

*1992: ''Live at Kirin Plaza'' *1994: ''Band of Pleasure'' *1995: ''A Tiny Step''

The Wild Magnolias

*1996: ''1313 Hoodoo Street'' (AIM) *1999: ''Life Is a Carnival'' (Metro Blue) *2002: ''30 Years & Still Wild'' (AIM)

Papa Grows Funk

*2001: ''Doin It *2003: ''Shakin *2006: ''Live at the Leaf'' *2007: ''Mr. Patterson's Hat'' *2012: ''Needle in the Groove''

Funk On Da Table

*2019 ''Live At Tipitina's'' (VIVID SOUND)

References

External links

Funk on Da Table official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yamagishi, June 1953 births Living people Japanese guitarists Rhythm and blues musicians from New Orleans Blues musicians from New Orleans Guitarists from Louisiana 20th-century American guitarists