Skip to main content

Maverick Ad

Home

Main navigation

  • Home
  • Cover Stories
  • Features
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Cashbox Legacy Awards
  • Past Covers
  • Weekly Archive
RUNES FOR ONE MORE: ZEP REVIVAL ACT MR. JIMMY SUMMONS THE SPIRIT OF ’73

Breadcrumb

  • Home
  • RUNES FOR ONE MORE: ZEP REVIVAL ACT MR. JIMMY SUMMONS THE SPIRIT OF ’73
Mr. Jimmy
Fri Jun 28, 2024
Cashbox Canada

August 8, 9, 10 at 7:00pmET
Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, 6 Sakura Way (formerly Garamond Court), Toronto, ON M3C 1Z5

Tickets available here: jccc.on.ca/event/2024/08/mr-jimmy-live-kobayashi-hall

Sometimes the song really does remain the same—all the way down to the last wildly bent guitar note and subtle rustle of a satin jacket against a 1959 Les Paul. It’s something Toronto audiences are about to find out, as Led Zeppelin revivalists Mr. Jimmy take over Kobayashi Hall for an absolutely uncanny trip back to the days when giants truly walked the Earth (and the rest of us got happily Trampled Underfoot).

Presented by the Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre, the concerts will lavishly recreate the mighty Zep’s historic 1973 three-night stand at New York’s Madison Square Garden—the same shows captured for posterity in the immortal concert film The Song Remains the Same and on its classic soundtrack album. On Aug. 8, 9 and 10 of this year, Mr. Jimmy band members Akio “Mr. Jimmy” Sakurai (lead guitar), August Young (vocals), Alexis Angel (bass guitar) and George Fludas (drums) will stun the Toronto crowd with a performance extravaganza that replicates every nuance of those classic shows, from the peerless musicianship to the vintage equipment, wardrobe, lighting and staging. It’s a pitch-perfect spectacle of sight and sound that’s going to leave fans of the prototypical arena band plenty dazed all right, but less confused than simply awestruck.

Nothing less should be expected of Sakurai, a former kimono maker (and the offspring of same) who has spent three decades mimicking the music and mannerisms of Zeppelin guitar god Jimmy Page to a T. Having fallen under the spell of the human riff machine at age 17, Sakurai has not only played and replayed Page’s parts until physical graffiti became muscle memory, but learned to move and even look like the iconic axeman to the point where the devil himself would do a double take.

For the first 20 years, Sakurai was content to ply his purist’s trade in tiny Tokyo clubs —until one fateful night when Page himself showed up to watch, listen and ultimately give his enthusiastic blessing. The experience spurred Sakurai to relocate to Los Angeles and turn his six-string idolatry into a full-time career.

What happened next is chronicled in the movie Mr. Jimmy, an eight-years-in-the-making documentary that recently played the Toronto Japanese Film Festival. With a fly-on-the-wall immediacy that’s been praised by Rolling Stone and The Hollywood Reporter, the film shows how Sakurai’s American stint with the L.A. outfit Led Zepagain was only a stepping stone on the way to founding Mr. Jimmy, a passion project that’s brought his ongoing obsession to full flower, and with the most meticulous detail. As the Toronto audience is about to discover, the Mr. Jimmy experience isn’t merely a live re-creation of album tracks every FM listener knows by heart, but a reverent summoning of the particular power of Zep in concert, as orchestrated by a disciple who’s studied live bootlegs and other artifacts of the era with the devout diligence of a seminarian.

“To play this music in a lackluster way would be inexcusable,” Sakurai says. “I just want to express the magic of Jimmy Page.”

Proceeds from the shows will go to supporting the not-for-profit Japanese Canadian Cultural Centre. Tickets for the Kobayashi Hall shows range from $125 to $500, with VIP and meet-and-greet packages offering perks like exclusive rehearsal access, a photo session with the band shot by Rush cover photographer Yosh Inouye, and keepsake commemorative merch.

In the meantime, Mr. Jimmy the movie will be screened June 28 at the Martha’s Vineyard Film Center in Martha’s Vineyard, Massachusetts, and on Sept. 19 at The Whale Theatre in Greystones, Ireland. And Sakurai has shows booked for fall with another band he now happens to play for: Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Evening. Yes, all those years of study have earned him the endorsement of more than one member of the family. As Robert Plant himself might say, that’s the way.

The Front Row VIP tickets include:
Front row ticket
Exclusive afternoon rehearsal access
Archival quality studio portrait with you and Jimmy by iconic Rush photographer Yosh Inouye
Mr. Jimmy Live at Kobayashi Hall T-shirt, poster and program
Post-show reception with band and special guests, including hosted bar
One-year JCCC membership for member discounts and the inside track on upcoming JCCC events and performances (registration via jccc@jccc.on.ca with proof of purchase).

Add-on for all ticket levels – Meet and Greet Package ($100+HST – purchase available at venue) includes:
Mr. Jimmy Live at Kobayashi Hall T-shirt
Photo on your camera with Jimmy and the band
Autographed show poster
Exclusive vintage-style show program

Reviews
Album
Mr. Jimmy
Month: May 2022
Osaka Popstar Anime-Punk Rock Collective Osaka Popstar Reveal Animated Music Video for Catchy…
Ranee Lee JUNO-Winning Vocalist Ranee Lee Honours Céline Dion with New Album, Because…
Canadian Alt-Rockers Season Of The Senses Are “Ever”-Present With Release of New Single! Canadian Alt-Rockers Season Of The Senses Are “Ever”-Present With Release of New…
Powerhouse Canadian R&B Singer Simone Miller Reveals Heart-Wrenching New Rekease, “Older” Powerhouse Canadian R&B Singer Simone Miller Reveals Heart-Wrenching…
Grunge Alt-Rocker Sivan Langer Reveals Electrifying New Rock Anthem in “Three Monkey Song” Grunge Alt-Rocker Sivan Langer Reveals Electrifying New Rock Anthem in “…
Son of James Release, “Mama Never Told Me” Against Alarming Rise of Asian-Canadian Hate Crimes Son of James Release, “Mama Never Told Me” Against Alarming Rise of Asian-…
Philadelphia Pop Songstress Zula Palmer Instills Thoughtful Disquietude with Dark New Single, “Wife” Philadelphia Pop Songstress Zula Palmer Instills Thoughtful Disquietude with…
August, Yours Truly Unveils Hypnotizing New Spoken Word Single, “Easy Listening” August, Yours Truly Unveils Hypnotizing New Spoken Word Single, “Easy…
Blues Diva Angelique Francis Lays Down the Law in Less Than Sixty Seconds with “Take Command” Blues Diva Angelique Francis Lays Down the Law in Less Than Sixty Seconds with “…
Coco Méliès Award-Winning Ensemble Coco Méliès Assure that “Remorse Will End” with…
Alt-Folk Artist Jackie K Pays Tribute to the Healing Power of the Outdoors in New Single, “Green Heals Me” Alt-Folk Artist Jackie K Pays Tribute to the Healing Power of the Outdoors…
Breakthrough Pop Artist Michael Graff Stashes Good Times In Nostalgic New Single, “History” Breakthrough Pop Artist Michael Graff Stashes Good Times In Nostalgic New…
Tate Irving Tells an Up-Tempo Tale of Hardship & Growth in New Single, “She Said” Tate Irving Tells an Up-Tempo Tale of Hardship & Growth in New Single, “She Said”
Singer/Songwriter Duo Twisted Royalty Take Destiny by the Horn with Groovy New Song, “Unicorn” Singer/Songwriter Duo Twisted Royalty Take Destiny by the Horn with Groovy…
Month: Jun 2022
Coheed and Cambria Rockers Coheed and Cambria Reveal New Track, “Comatose”

Pagination

  • First page « First
  • Previous page ‹ Previous
  • …
  • Page 68
  • Page 69
  • Page 70
  • Page 71
  • Current page 72
  • Page 73
  • Page 74
  • Page 75
  • Page 76
  • …
  • Next page Next ›
  • Last page Last »

CEO/PUBLISHER/EDITOR IN CHIEF
SANDY GRAHAM

email:sandygrahamemg@gmail.com 

Canadian Journalists:

Contributing Journalist - Canada and Global
Don Graham
email: dongrahamwriter@gmail.com

Contributing Journalist - Canada and Global
Lisa Hartt
email: lisahartt87@hotmail.com

Contributing Journalist - Canada 
Michael Williams
email: greydread@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

International Journalists:

Contributing Journalist - Sweden
Malin Osth
email: malin@musicdays.se

Contributing Journalist - Sweden
Jonas Tancred
email: jonas@musicdays.se

Contributing Journalist - USA
Rob Durkee 
email: rockster2746@gmail.com

 

 

 

 

 

 

Web Developer/Technical Support
Chris Wardman

email: info@chriswardman.com
website: chriswardman.com

Cashbox Cover Design and Graphic Artist
Jain McMillan

email: jainmcmillan@gmail.com

Contributing Photographer 
Tracey Savein - South Paw Productions
southpawproductions@rogers.com

 

 

 

Footer menu

  • Home
  • Features
  • News
  • Reviews
  • Cashbox Archive
  • Issue Archive
  • Past Covers