ROUTE 17 Rock’n’Roll ORCHESTRA
To kick off the day on the Green Stage, we had the indomitable Route 17 Rock and Roll Orchestra. Named after Highway 17 that leads to Naeba, this band performs only at Fuji Rock and is full of Japan’s rock and roll royalty. Led by drummer Junzi Ikehata, the band was back this year with four special guests. The first of the guests is Tortoise Matsumoto, with his signature slightly husky voice. However, it’s the chorus girls Mikuni Dolls that start the song off, dancing and singing to the swinging rock and roll number that’s interspersed with snarls of brass. The second a straight 1960’s number, the marauding bass and keyboards parts the highlight as the other instruments race after them.
The following song features first solo from Kunikazu Tanaka on tenor sax, showing off the individual skill present in this orchestra. The last song from Tortoise is a pumping party number with psych riffs starting the song off, a much more modern take on rock and roll. The guest vocalist changes and the silver fox Kouji Kikkawa comes on. It’s straight into the twist and turn of Elvis ‘Ain’t Nothing But a Hound Dog’, with Kouji slowing down down for the climax and dragging it out beautifully. The next song of ‘Be My Baby’ shows off the new addition to the Green Stage, a protruding section of the stage running out into the audience that Kouji uses to show off his hip gyration and pumping while singing.
There’s a break from the guests with two Mikuni Doll led numbers, the second of which ‘Can’t Live without You Babe’ being the highlight of the trio’s soaring voices and lithe dancing. The third guest, Shigeru Izumiya, is the oldest and maybe this shows with the first song being a pure rock and roll number. His song is almost Springsteen-ish in sound, a real ensemble number that sees the brass and guitars get a real workout. His second song is a slower peaceful number, a heartfelt number which sees the band dial back to just a few instruments and his still strong voice soaring out over the mountains.
The last guest is the ever cool Reichi ‘Chabo’ Nakaido. His songs are original material, singing about the festival itself, the summer and the atmosphere here. It also sees solos from a number of instruments, from alto saxophone to guitar. This all comes to a head with the last song ‘Summertime Blues’ that sees all the guests invited on stage. It’s a fitting end to the concert with its comradeship, big rock and roll sound and smiling faces. With one final bow, the orchestra took its leave for one more year.
