Ito San on harmonica, Ryuji on lead guitar, Butch on drums and Mr. Mikami on bass, play a gig at the Hoochie-Coochie near Shibuya on February 28, 2005. (Photo; P.T. C.)
Blues guitarist Ryuji Fujihara is a luminary of the Kanto area blues scene.
He likes to play songs by B. B. King, Otis Rush and a wide range of others. He is influenced by the Chicago Blues but sometimes he writes his own songs or comes up with unheard material, and produces a blend that is popular with the crowd.
Ryuji Fujihara, resides near Yokohama and hails from Gifu Prefecture. He moved to Tokyo in the mid '90s and taught English and worked at eigoMEDIA. It was at this software company, eigoMEDIA, that I worked with him and we discovered our mutual interest in music.
Blues Guitarist Ryuji (Dragon) Fujihara
As the new century started Ryuji discovered his gift for the blues and is now playing regular gigs around Yokohama and Tokyo. He has played at places like the Checkerboard in Asagaya, Tokyo and the Blue Heat in Shibuya, Tokyo.
A few of the dates he played were;
On October 6, 2002 at the Blue Heat in Shibuya he put on a jam session.
At a gig on July 25, 2003 at the Checkerboard in Asagaya, Ryuji played lead guitar, San played bass and Nakayama San played drums. I attended this gig and recorded it on MD. One of the songs they played was 'Every Night About This Time' by Fats Domino.
On October 3, 2003, Ryuji did a show.
On November 8, 2003 he did a gig at the Checkerboard in Asagaya. Ryuji played lead guitar, Mikami San played bass, Arisaka San played drums and Sakamoto San played keyboard. I attended this gig and took photos for this page (see below and above).
On May 2, 2004 at the Blue Heat in Shibuya he put on a jam session and I recorded a couple of songs on my MD recorder.
On February 28, 2005 he did a gig at the Hoochie-Coochie in Daikanyama-Chou by Shibuya in Tokyo. Ryuji played lead guitar, Mikami San played bass, Butch played drums and Ito San played harmonica. I attended this gig and took photos for this page (see below and above).
On April 21, 2005 he did a gig at the Hoochie-Coochie near Shibuya. Ryuji played lead guitar, Mikami San played bass, Butch played drums . I attended this gig and took photos and I recorded a couple of songs on my MD recorder.
On Saturday July 23, 2005 he did a gig at the Checkerboard in Asagaya. Ryuji played lead guitar, Mikami San played bass, Butch? played drums. I could not attended this gig because of a magnitude 5 earthquake that stopped the trains. Ryuji and his blues connections will soon start work on a CD. This CD could include one of my own compositions entitled 'Closet People.' We recorded this song in June and July of 2002.
You can hear 'Closet People' on this player from Project Overseer Production.
There is more info about it and it can also be heard on Trick T. Olly's site on POP - http://www.projectoverseer.biz/music/members/243/
He also plays electric rythem and lead on my song Talking Night & Day. This song can be heard on my SoundClick site which you can get to by the link at the bottom of this page.
Ryuji can be contacted by E-Mail via this address; dragon1975ryuji@yahoo.co.jp.
Thanks go to Ryuji Fujihara for giving insight into the group Tama and Japanese music. See the Tama pages. We hope to record some Tama songs soon.
- Patrick Thomas Connolly - August 2002, November 15, 2003 and December 26 2005.
This photograph was taken in 1998 at the side of Ruyji's residence, of that time, in Chiba. At Ryuji's place we recorded two primitive takes of my song 'Nina' on July 17 1998 and on August 16, 1998 we recorded a primitive take of another of my songs
'Two way Street.' The photograph was likely taken on one of these days.
Ryuji playing the Checkerboard on November 8, 2003, in Asagaya, Tokyo. Ryuji playing lead guitar (left), Mikami San playing bass (center), Arisaka San playing drums (right) and Sakamoto San playing keyboard (below right only his hat - sorry). (Photo by P. T. Connolly)
Yokohama Blues Jam
This is Take 7 of 9 of Yokohama Blues Jam by Ryuji (Dragon) Fujiwara.
Recorded January 5, 2007 at Ryuji's apartment in Yokohama.
Ryuji plays an original lead guitar over Trick T Olly's strumming of standard 12 blues x3.
Trick T Olly lives in Chiba Ken which is on the opposite side, of Tokyo, to Yokohama in Kanagawa Ken.
We did this little thing so Ryuji could have just a little something to start out on the net with. Bryan Anthony Claremont
Bryan Anthony Claremont is based in Ottawa, Canada and he is the administrator of the Wickman Music site.
On the topic about one of his career highlights, Bryan writes that he was "on stage, as a husband and wife duo called HEAVEN AND EARTH, at the Ottawa Beatles Convention headlined by the, incredible PETE BEST BAND. ... Pete was the former drummer for the Beatles before Ringo came along and replaced him, and ... It is sufficient, that our paths crossed momentarily and that I had the privilege of being on the same stage, ... with one of the originators of the Band which eventually took the world by storm during that which we called the British Invasion.
Bryan Anthony is a prolific composer and I do not think anyone could ever keep track of all his songs. What I can do that is unique to this site is to do a list of some of the songs he composed.
I never skated on the Rideau Canal with Bryan, so he could not be included in my song 'Skating On Rideau Ice' however he was a busker in Ottawa when I was there and so I put him in my other Ottawa song 'Sound Waves From The By-Ward Market' which can be read and heard on my SoundClick site (Click the button at the bottom of this page). I was honored when Bryan wrote a song that included me called, "When Patrick Was There".
See Bryan's Wickman Music That introduces Indie Artists, such as myself; Trick T. Olly.
See Bryan Anthony's SoundClick where he has music, pictures and a message Board.
A little list of some of the song composed by Bryan Anthony
Songs that were on SoundClick;
When Patrick Was There / Out Here (A Spaceman's Song) / The Moon In June / I Was Afraid / Nursery Cryme / Pray To / Walk Across The Sky / I've Seen A Light / Crazies Are Coming / I'm A Buzzsaw Baby / It's A Nightmare / The Way Out (instrumental) / A Martian Chronicle (instrumental) / Dancers In The Red Dust (instrumental) / Like Always (Bryan goes country) / The Ocean Is Blue / (I Am) The Flicker Man / Dead Dog Gone Lame / Let's Live Together / Who Killed The Nightingale / My Lovely Lady / Rise And Shine / Here I Am (Just Another Man) / Put It In The Blues / Bring On The Gravy / No Mercy / I Could Have Been Anything / Don't Tell Me Lies / Leave It Alone (Version 1 & 2) / Listen Jet / The Scarecrow / True Spirit / Out Of The Blue / CHINA ROAD (Early recording made in 1980) / Into The Slipstream / Over My Head / No Blue Thing / Roll Dem Bones / CRY CRY CRY / The Big Beat (instrumental) / Under The Blue Sky / Dance On A Volcano / Boohoo Crying Over You / She Is The Honey / Oh By Jinogo / Look At The Pinheads / Living In A jungle / Charming Blues / Happy Vibes / Kingdom Come / Farmer In The Sky / Ten Thousand Weeping Angels / Is That Yours Too? / The Mechanic's Room (Mix 1 & 2) / A New Peak In Lowdown / Pandora's Day Off / Plasma Blue / My Slippery Wet Suit (instrumental) / Sticky Dance / HUSH / Santana Banana / Sun Wind And Rain /
Songs posted on SoundClick in April & May 2006 - From the 'That Satin Glow' CD;
Running Back To You / That Satin Glow (with Terry Craig) / Can't You See / Play Me A Django Song (with Terry Craig) / Didn't You Know
Songs posted on SoundClick in March 2006 - From the 'Feeling Down In Dirty Town' CD;
Feeling Down In Dirty Town / A Going Concern / A Gift From Above / Nails Of Icy Rain / Destination Blue (written by Vonee Rose) / Meet You Half Way / I Don't Waana Be Here Anymore / Suddenly Blue / I'll Be Your Best Friend / They Hurt You / We Will Love You Forever
Songs posted on SoundClick in January 2006 - From the 'A New Peak In Lowdown' CD;
Up Against The Wonderwall / A Delightful Tonic
Posted December 2005; All Hands On Deck
Songs that are on his 'Out Of The Blue' CD which was recorded summer/fall, 1995 (Songs not listed above are in bold.);
Out Of The Blue / Leave It Alone / Love And Devotion / China Road / Into The Slipstream / I'm A Buzzsaw Baby / Santana Banana / Over My Head / Soul Searching / No Blue Thing / Roll Dem Bones / Cry Cry Cry / The Big Beat /
Songs that were listed on his Jinju site;
For No Good Reason / After All / (Daddy Had) A Bone Oh His Own /
Songs that I remember In my head or have on tape;
So Sentimental / Ain't No Flies In My Beer (The world is alright tonight) / Walk On the Moon / Do you Ever Think About Me? (You are the type of girl that puts a fellow down)/
Links - The Trick T. Olly Ring of Musical Friends -
This page was spun by Patrick T. Connolly in 2002. It was revised in November of 2003. Also December 26, 2005, January 2, 2006, and lastly updated on September 28, 2006 .
This page has had
hits since November 15, 2003.
Ryuji Fujihara playing the Checkerboard on November 8, 2003, in Asagaya, Tokyo.
This photograph was taken in 1998 at the side of Ruyji's residence, of that time, in Chiba. At Ryuji's place we recorded two primitive takes of my song 'Nina' on July 17 1998 and on August 16, 1998 we recorded a primitive take of another of my songs
'Two way Street.' The photograph was likely taken on one of these days.
Graphic by Michael Peace .
