I used to like jazz club Overseas in Osaka. Just a small place but very nice people. Also in Tokyo all my best experiences were at small intimate places where you got to know the owners or at least have a nice conversation about jazz with them.

I've been having trouble finding good ones in Tokyo. Blue Note Tokyo seems nice but is pricey and often sold out far in advance. I've seen some others I'd like to go to, but they double as cigar bars and my lungs don't enjoy smoke.

It seemed to me every "X" doubled as a "Smoking X" in Tokyo...

Being jetlagged and people-watching in a coffee shop as Tokyo woke up was eye opening. Newspapers and cigarettes wall to wall.

Especially since Paris was substantially less smokey, for all the French stereotypes.

I had a really nice time seeing a jazz show at the Tower records last year. It was completely by chance, just happened to be there right when it happened. But I would like to be more intentional this next time. Thanks for your notes.

I saw a guy play jazz in Miami two months ago and he lives in Tokyo. I'm going to see what he's up to and where he plays. Email me if you want to know what I find out.

They don't want tourists in them.

You don't necessarily need to see live jazz to have some great jazz experiences in Japan.

Type in "Jazz Kissa" on google maps when you're wandering around these towns and you'll find little bars with great hifi setups that exclusively play jazz music. The reviews are pretty good for figuring out if they're worth a stop or not.

I made an effort to stop by a few on my last trip and had some great experiences.

Paul Krugman linked to a few Japanese groups that post their performances on Youtube...

That's terrific. I love this.

We saw a sax quintet play at The Pit Inn in October, it's a nice little basement club