Dear sir Yamashita, You have been my greatest inspiration ever since I discovered your music in 2001. I was honoured to meet you in Germany at two of your concerts (Dusseldorf and Dortmund). Your playing has influenced me in so many ways. Thank you for all the beautiful music.
When Herbie Hancock announced his name before his performance of the verve jazz awards ceremony and pronounced it yosh-key yo-mosh-ta not yomashita ( that was his Homage to bud Powell as Japan's premier jazz pianist looking back on the concert from the 90's I really had no idea how much. Musical mileage he has logged with albums far as the 1960's and he was not showing his age back when so I. Really never thought of him as. Being so long lived he has a legacy of music already. Spawning generation of musical talent I certainly was influenced by the enigmatic. And gifted maestro
Dear Yamashita, I knew you from records, but I first heard you live in Kassel (Germany) in 1989. and we had a nice char! I love your music.! Correction: In Munich, a couple of years earlier. Behind me was a gang of German Beer Jazz fans, who commented on these short Japanese guys, bowing so politely. The fact that the drum set had fastened to the stage with duct tape should have warned them. They left as soon as your music started!
