Jimi Yamagishi Talkstory CD

With over 3 decades in the music industry, Jimi Yamagishi is truly one of those who can honestly say “Been there, done that” for almost every aspect of the music industry.Born in East LA, a Japanese American in a predominantly Hispanic neighborhood, Jimi got plenty of cross-cultural exposure, which is reflected in his life & his music.Starting off playing guitar at church during the Jesus Movement of the 70’s, he started writing his own material & formed a band to play it, touring the California coast, sharing the stage with Love Song, Karen Lafferty, Mustard Seed Faith & some of the biggest names in Christian music of the day.Having a day job working as a guitar tech for a major instrument wholesaler led Jimi to opening a shop of his own, repairing & building custom instruments for artists like Andrew Gold, The Go-Gos, Earth Wind & Fire & many others. Occasionally, this meant going to major recording studios where he learned the art of recording, leading to starting a small label, & being one of it’s primary engineers & producers. After producing dozens of other artists & recording with several bands, (including Selah Café & Sandy Liu, also here on CD baby) Jimi’s friends & fans kept buggin’ him to record some of the material he’s done in local coffeehouses & churches as a solo acoustic artist.So, after several format changes & lots of small setbacks, TALKSTORY is finally here.TALKSTORY is a Hawaiian term, describing the times when friends gather around to hang out & discuss whatever is on their minds. Here, Jimi’s conversational writing style brings you right into his backyard, as he shares slices of life, telling stories in each song, with a stylistic diversity that comes from savoring the flavor of a wide range of life experience.Starting with the title cut, Jimi’s warm voice & clear guitar work provide a foundation that runs throughout this collection.Talkstory is a song about friends, & for many baby boomers, a reminder of how precious those moments become as we grow older. Musically, many have compared this one to the music of Cecilio & Kapono or the Beamer Brothers. The slack-key instrumental “Song of the Carpenter” finishes this collection, and bookends the island flavor, like the rice on a musubi. The stuff in the middle is different. The swingin’ jazz of “God’ll be Around, followed by the rockabilly “Guitarpickin’ Preacher” tells you right away that this collection is about the SONGS, & does not follow the conventional idea of marketing to a specific style of music. Jimi is a SONGWRITER with a deeply rooted faith that is also evident here. In fact, many of his songs are used in regular church services. “Born to Serve You” is one of those, with it’s simple, easy to sing message.The country twang of “Ignorance is Bliss” brings a little humor to the serious issue of bigotry, one of the things Jimi has experienced firsthand. “Star” is the classic Hollywood story, with a reminder that regardless of how successful we are perceived to be, we’re all important in God’s big picture.And the big picture is what it’s all about. Talkstory is about a life to be shared, one songwriter’s view of the world, and the infinite possibilities available to each of us, if we just take time to listen.