A LITTLE BIT ABOUT MYSELF...

Masahiro Sumori send a message
Born in Tokyo, Japan, 1967

Current residence: Tokyo
Favorite Blues Artists
Just to name a few...
Otis Rush, Albert King, Sunnyland Slim, Charles Brown, Sonny Rhodes, Sleepy John Estes, Cephas & Wiggins, Johnny Winter, Washboard Sam, Charlie Musselwhite, Blind Joe Hill, Dinah Washington, Etta James...

I am a music writer mainly writing about blues and the music of New Orleans and Louisiana. The magazines I've written for include Blues & Soul Records, Music Magazine, Guitar Magazine, Real Blues (Canada), and Record Collectors. I also had the pleasure to write a short note in a Blues article of LIFE magazine in the U.S.

I have always been interested in music since when I was little, but probably it was when I was living in Los Angeles (78-80) that I really got into listening to music. At that time I was mainly into rock such as Led Zeppelin, The Eagles, Cheap Trick, The Who, etc., but around the same time I also listened to Elvis a lot which may have been my first music that is close to Blues.

When I was 15, I wandered into the Blues world by trying to trace the roots of Eric Clapton. I looked for the records of the Blues artists he had covered (ie. Elmore James, Robert Johnson, Sleepy John Estes, and many others) and fell in love with them right away. From then on I guided myself deeper into the Blues and never looked back. In 1984, I went to see John Lee Hooker when he toured Japan, and that was the first live Blues that I experienced. It was a thrill to see the living legend, and that made my interest in the Blues even stronger.

I got my first guitar at age 15, but it was when I was 17 that I really started to play it. I heard the album "Freddy King Sings" and was facinated by Freddie's simple yet exciting guitar licks, and I just had to play some myself. I still may be at the beginner's level, but I very much enjoy playing.

Maybe I am a little weird since I joined the symphony orchestra (I played viola) when I got into college instead of doing something relating to Blues music. Well, I am basically interested in every type of music, and I didn't want to limit myself to playing (or listening to) just one type. Probably I was an outlaw in the orchestra, but my attempt to play boogie with my viola never went that far...

After graduating from college in 1989, I started to work full-time and also began to write music articles for magazines and records companies in Japan.

As of 2023, I mainly write for Blues & Soul Records published by Two Virgins Co., Ltd.

In 2022, John Wirt's book "Huey 'Piano' Smith and the Rocking Pneumonia Blues" was published in Japanese, my first work as a book translator.


Some of the artists I have interviewed: Otis Rush, Peter Green, Bernard Allison, The funky Meters, Snooks Eaglin, Cephas & Wiggins, Keb' Mo', Sonny Landreth, Cyril Neville, Big Chief Monk Boudreaux, Syl Johnson, Bobby Rush, Ironing Board Sam, Nappy Brown, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Robert Cray, John Lee Hooker, Washboard Chaz, Rockin' Johnny Burgin, Ken "Sugar Brown" Kawashima, The Holmes Brothers, Hubert Sumlin, Diunna Greenleaf, Tommy McLain & C.C. Adcock
My guitar: Gibson Les Paul STD (Cherry Sunburst), Fender Japan Strat (White)
My computer: MacBook Pro (been a Mac user since 1990)
MY (NON-BLUES) ALL-TIME FAVORITES:
Derek & The Dominos: Layla And Other Assorted Love Songs
Pink Floyd: The Dark Side Of The Moon
The Eagles: Long Run
The Allman Brothers Band: Live At The Fillmore East
The Guess Who: Canned Wheat
Bob Marley & The Wailers: Exodus
Jo Mama: Jo Mama
Jackson Browne: Late for the Sky
Carole King: Thoroughbred
Foghat: Energized
Led Zeppelin: Led Zeppelin II
Los Lobos: ...And A Time To Dance
The Beat Farmers: Tales of the New West
SOME OF MY WORKS
"200CD Blues" (Rippu Shobo, 1997) coauthored book
"Document of Japan Tours of Bluesmen 1971-2002" (Blues Interactions, 2003) coauthored book
"The World of Blues - An Official Guide" (Blues Interactions, 2004) coauthored book
"New Orleans Music Guide Book"(Blues Interactions, 2007) coauthored book
"CROSSBEAT Presents New Orleans Sound: In Tribute to Allen Toussaint" (Shinko Music, 2016) coauthored book
"Blues & Soul Records"(Two Virgins) bi-monthly magazine
"Black Music Review" (Space Shower Networks) monthly magazine
"Guitar Magazine" (Ritto Music) monthly magazine
"プレイヤー" (Player Corporation) monthly magazine
"Blues Guitar Book" (Shinko Music)
"Music Magazine" (Music Magazine) monthly magazine
"Record Collectors" (Music Magazine) monthly magazine
"Real Blues Magazine" (Real Blues Magazine, Canada) monthly magazine
"Park Tower Bleus Festival" (Artist biographies for flyers and websites)
"Japan America Southern Society (JASS) Newsletter"
"Mainichi Mook: Blues Guitar Bible" (Mainichi Shimbun, 2012)
"Huey 'Piano' Smith and the Rocking Pneumonia Blues" (DU BOOKS) Japanese translation of an English book, author-John Wirt






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