Tuesday in Tokyo....What to wear to the Auto Show?

Today we had our last full day in Japan all mapped out. We were going to start at the John Lennon museum, have lunch, attend the Tokyo International Auto Show and have good Japanese dinner to celebrate our tour. Somehow Yoko decided that Tuesdays are good days to be closed (?) so the museum was out. We got directions to the auto show from the nice girl at the front desk. She told us the JR train ride would take about 40 minutes. It took over an hour and several transfers but we made it. This show is immense, probably the premiere auto show in the world as it happens every three years. Every car, truck and motorcycle manufacturer is presented there (except KTM). The future of the automobile is bright and shiny, powered by fuel cell technology. Small is in and if one man has anything to say about it, guys ill be dressing in red rubber skirts and yellow stockings (like he did...wha???). I shot so many pictures, I feel like a freelance photog for Car and Driver. After the show,we had a traditional Japanese meal in Tokyo and toasted our great fortune for having been blessed with such a wonderful trip, great audiences, new fans and friends and memories that will last a lifetime. Peace Rick

No Gig Today So We Climbed a Mountain

After finishing my solo show at the Gazebo in Osaka, Mike, Jimmy and I boarded the bullet train for Fuji. It was dark when we arrived so they had no idea what was in store for them. When the sun came up, we hired a driver and began the long trek to the mountain. Because of recent snowfall we couldn't drive past the half way point so we got out and walked. I felt like we were on a National Geographic expedition. The wind was blowing about 40 knots and the paths were nothing but sharp volcanic stones. We hiked up to one of the three domes. This is one beautiful and spiritual place to say the least. I look forward to returning soon.
Peace, Rick

Blarney Stone - Craziness -Little Sleep - Acoustic...What???

Last night we played the last band-date in Japan at the Blarney Stone in Osaka. When my agent said he booked this date, I was a little confused. Would a pub crowd be open to original music? Would things devolve into a drunken bar brawl? I am happy to say that none of that happened. What did happen was a party started from the first song with the entire audience dancing in front of the stage. To make things more interesting is they were having a Halloween bash so people were arriving in all kinds of wild regalia. I lost count after four encores at the shows end and we had so much fun we stuck around till the early morning hours visiting. I knew I had an afternoon solo show so I needed to get some sleep. The solo at a cool cofee house called Gazebo show kicked off the release of my new album "Living in the Acoustic Projects" to the Japanese market. Everything went well and the reception to the new material was gratifying. After that it was off to the bullet train for a two-hour ride to Fuji where we intend on climbing Mt Fuji in the morning before heading to Tokyo and back home to the states. One last thing, I received an email that my dear friend and old songwriting partner Phil Platten is in a hospice with cancer and is not expected to make it beyond a couple of days. I called from here and spoke to him and told him that I sung our song "Putting Out a Fire on a Burning Bridge" today to which he said, "Don't ever put out that fire Rick". Please pray for Phil and his family. peace Rick

Nara-Nara-NARA!!!!!

Last night we played in Nara at a great venue called Neverland. This was my second time here and it was sort of a homecoming. Some of the tracks from last year's Live in Japan album were recorded here and last nights audience reinforced why. The fans in Nara are some of the nicest people I have ever played for and they love to ROCK! It was raining when we took the hour long train ride to Nara for sound check however, we had decided that we wanted to see the largest Buddha in the world which is also housed in the world's largest wooden structure. After a quick sound check and a few photos with a wacky girl group, we headed for the temple across town. When we played here last year I didn't gt a chance to see the surroundings because is was nightfall when we arrived. This time, I got to see the beautiful rolling hillsides which reminded me of PA. The temple was closing at 5pm so we only had about 15 minutes to blow though and take pictures. This thing is huge, the fingers are the size of a human, just awesome! After the quick tour we had time to grab a meal. Well, the other guys did as they chose a place that served only fried food, yuck! The show was a blast and we ran out of CDs, tshirts and posters as the fans lined up at the meet and greet. After we got back to the hotel we took a few minutes to post two songs from our show at Nagoya earlier in the tour. You can watch them by clicking here http://www.soundingrick.com/vox.wmv Tonight we play the last band-show in Japan at a place in Osaka called the Blarney Stone, pass the Guiness bro! Peace, love and blah, blah, blah! Rick

昨夜、私たちに大きな会場で遊んで奈良ネバーランドと呼ばれます。ここで私は、この2回目の帰省だった並べ替えます。いくつかのトラックに住んでいるから、昨年の日本を記録したアルバムをここで最後の夜の観客はなぜ補強します。奈良のファンは、いくつかの素晴らしい人たちと私が今までに彼らのために愛を演じロック！雨が降ったときだった私たちは、時間の長い列車の旅のために奈良サウンドチェックしかし、私たちはそのことを決めたのを見たかった私たちは、世界最大の仏でも保管して、世界最大の木造建築物です。クイックサウンドチェックの後、いくつかの写真をワッキーの女の子グループ、私たちの町に向かって寺に渡った。ここで私は昨年プレーしたとき私たちませんでしたグアテマラする機会を参照して環境だったため、夕暮れ時には、私たちに到着しました。このとき、私はこれを参照して美しいローリングhillsidesを思い出したのパー。同寺で閉会午後5時だったので、約15分しかなかった打撃にかかわらず、写真を撮っています。このことは、巨額のは、人間の指の大きさは、ただイケてる！クイックツアー後、私たちは食事の時間をつかみました。うーん、ほかの人を選んだようでした場所のみを提供して揚げ物、ゲッ！ショーだったと発破枚がなくなってしまった私たちは、シャツやポスターとして、ファンと並んであいさつを満たしています。後にホテルに戻りました。数分後に私たちは2つの曲を投稿するから初期の段階で、私たちのショー名古屋ツアーがあります。ここをクリックして見ることができた http://www.soundingrick.com/vox.wmv今夜再生の最後のバンド、日本での場所を示す大阪ブラーニー石と呼ばれ、ギネスに渡すのbro ！平和、愛とblah 、 blah 、 blah ！リック

Kyoto and Vox Hall

Ask any touring musician and they will tell you that they live for the time they are on stage. Outside of those rare minutes, the time spent on the road can be about as exciting as watching the grass grow. Some opt to sleep the hours away between shows while others watch TV or surf the net, but not us. Every day we are trying experience as much Japanese culture as we can cram into the few hours we have before sound check and then the show. Today was no different. I am confident that we walked over 10 miles! We started on the bullet train to Kyoto then walked to Nijo Castle a 16th century wonder. The ornate interiors were pretty cool (definitely not Ikea...LOL). Nijo is also known for its' "Nightingale Floors" designed to warn of intruders. I wondered why the floors were so squeaky....! Also, while we were there, this young Japanese boy came up to me and introduced himself then proceeded to question me. He was reading the questions off a worksheet from English Class. It was a special moment as he tried out his second langage on me (see photo at top). The sprawling grounds took over three hours to navigate at which time we started to head towards the train station where I stored some of my things in a locker. The problem was, I couldn't seem to remember what train station I put them in. So after walking for hours I was rushing around trying to find not only the right train station (in a city the size of Chicago), but also the right locker!!! Oh, this was all within minutes of our scheduled sound check at the venue....yikes! We located my stuff and made our way to Vox Hall. What a cool venue! The room consists of several tears (balconies) of seats lifting up from the stage. After sound check we toured another shrine called the Yasaka Shrine. This is located in the Gion District of Kyoto. Guess how we ended up there? These guys (Mike and Jimmy) wanted to go to a traditional Japanese Tea served by Geishas! As we hard core rockers walked around looking for the elusive tea house (hmmm), we came upon the shrine by accident. The show was killer tonight. The band was as tight as ever and the other bands we shared the bill with were utterly phenomenal! The audience was really cool and we made some new friends. Tomorrow we head for Nara to do a show at the famous Neverland.
Yes, some other musicians might sit in their rooms as they wait for the ride to sound check. Some might sleep, some might read, but in the Sounding Rick Army, we walk miles and miles seeking tea with a Geisha girl. I think I'm gonna soak my feet! Peace, love and pass the Splenda! Rick

かれらはいかなる質問ツーリング音楽家彼らのために生きることを教え、彼らはステージ上での時間です。これら以外の希少分で、時間を費やしたとして、道路についてはエキサイティングにすることができ、草の成長を見ています。 optをいくつかの睡眠時間の間の距離を示しながら、ネットサーフィンや他のテレビを見る、ではなくています。毎日しようと私たちは日本の文化としての経験をできるだけ多く詰め込むことができ、私たちは数時間前にサウンドチェックして、その後表示されます。今日はありません異なっています。私は確信して歩いて10マイル以上！私たちは、新幹線を始めた京都を歩いてそれから二城16世紀のだろう。華美なインテリアが、かなりクール（イケア間違いない...ロル川）します。二にも有名な"ナイチンゲールフロア"の侵入を警告するよう設計されます。私のフロアだったので不思議に思ったのはなぜきしん....!また、私たちはそこに、この若い日本人の男の子がやってきて紹介してくれと自分自身に質問して次に進みます。彼は読んでのワークシートからの質問に英語の授業を切りました。特別な瞬間だったとして彼は彼の2つ目のアウトしようとしてくれlangage （写真の上部を参照してください） 。壮大な理由で、 3時間を引き継いナビゲートを始めたその時に私たちの方へ向かう鉄道駅のどこに保存することをいくつかのロッカーます。この問題は、私ができなかったことを覚えておくように入れます。だから私鉄道駅を歩いた後、急いでいた時の周りを探そうとしてだけでなく鉄道駅の右側（シカゴ市の大きさ）だけでなく、その右ロッカー！ ！ ！ああ、これは数分以内にすべてのサウンドをチェックする予定で、会場....くそ！私たちの前に位置する方法を私のものともしもしホールします。どのような涼しい会場！涙にはいくつかの部屋（バルコニー）からの議席を獲得するの解除する段階にあります。サウンドチェック後に別の神社ツアー私たちの村神社と呼ばれます。これは京都の祇園に位置しています。推測どのように上伸して引けたんだろう？これらの人（マイクとジミー）に行きたいと願っ提供され、日本の伝統的なお茶の芸者くらい！ハードコアロックバンドとして私たちの周りを探して歩いた玉虫色のティーハウス（うーん）に来た時、神社の偶然でした。今夜のショーは殺人犯だ。タイトなバンドだったとして、これまでのように私たちのバンドを共有し、他の法案では全く驚異的な！観客は本当にクールな私たちはいくつかの新しい友達とします。明日のために私たちの頭を表示する際には、奈良の有名なネバーランドます。 はい、いくつかの他のミュージシャンかもしれない自分の部屋に座るように乗るのを待つの音を確認してください。いくつかの睡眠かもしれない、いくつかの読みかもしれないけれど、軍のリック響き、私たちを求めて何マイルも歩いて、芸者とお茶をします。わたしゃ浸されていることだと思う足！平和、愛とスプレンダ合格！リック