Words by Rafe Arnott, photography courtesy of Katsumasa Kusunose.
UPDATED: January 21, 2022– Jazz City Store is now taking pre-orders for Jazz Kissa 2014 Vol.2 at the Jazz City Store.
Jazz City Store is now taking pre-orders for an exclusive photo book on Tokyo jazz kissaten by photographer Katsumasa Kusunose. The latest instalment in his Jazz Kissa series, Jazz Kissa 2014 Vol.1, features 144 pages packed with Kusunose’s extraordinary images chronicling kissaten still operating in Japan and some that have since disappeared forever. I’ve written before about kissaten, or kissa (small, independently-owned and specialized cafés which serve tea, coffee or alcohol where one may listen to jazz LPs playing through rare vintage sound systems) and also interviewed Kusunose previously about his work documenting them HERE and HERE.
Photo Above: Jazz Kissa 2014 Vol.1 is the first of two volumes showcasing Kusunose's work in 2014. Volume 2 is expected in December, 2021.
For those unfamiliar with the phenomenon of kissa, Kusunose related their rise to prominence starting in 1929 with a café called Black Bird in Tokyo. Following its success, other kissa opened in Tokyo, Yokohama and Kobe. Before WWII started, jazz kissa throughout the country had amassed a huge amount of vinyl, but when fighting broke out with the United States in 1941, listening to jazz LPs – American jazz in particular – became illegal. It was viewed as music of the enemy, and the Japanese government ordered the abolishment of millions of albums. Many shops and collectors, however, did not comply with the order and secreted them away until the war was over.
Photo Above: Jazz Kissa 2014 Vol.1 is now available to pre-order from the Jazz City Store website. See below for link.
Following WWII, the jazz kissa returned and continued to gain popularity throughout the ’50s and ’60s, bolstered by jazz artists who were making their way across the Pacific to Japan for tours. Acts like Art Blakey and The Jazz Messengers, in particular, had a lasting musical impact on Japanese music culture. When one adds in the cost of a U.S. jazz pressing being equivalent to a week's pay for the average salaryman in Japan at the time, it becomes clear why these cafes gained notoriety. Anyone could walk in and listen to several albums on a large-scale, audiophile sound system for the price of a cup of coffee.
You can pre-order your copy of Jazz Kissa 2014 Vol.1 HERE.
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