Jan Linton
Encyclopedia
Jan Linton is a singer, musician and producer
from Warrington
, England
, who helped internationalize the music scene in Tokyo
, Japan
.
from the age of four, moving briefly onto piano
, before discovering pop music and electric guitar
as a teenager. When he was 17 years old, his first synthesizer
exploded, leading him to try bass guitar
instead.
After graduating from Birmingham University, he left for Japan in January 1990 after encouragement from P-Model
`s Tatsuya Kikuchi then subsequently Susumu Hirasawa
, and secured a recording agreement from King Records after just three days. The project combined electronics with Asian pop and a world music
flavor, including a performance by violinist and Chinese Kokyu
player Masatsugu Shinozaki (who performed on the soundtrack to "The Last Emperor
"). A change in A/R
management delayed Linton's first CD, "Oinaru Sekai (TrueNirvana)"; it was finally released at the end of 1992. The producer also worked with the Japanese boy band SMAP
,with the result that the album swung between electro-pop and Asian World Music. The album was sung in ten languages, including Japanese.
In 1993 Roger Eno
introduced Linton to the renowned guitarist and artist Bill Nelson (musician)
, whom Linton had been a fan of since his university days. Nelson contributed guitar to some new tracks Linton was recording. One was released by Sony
in 1994 on an album which sold 15,000 copies. This established Linton as one of the few non-Japanese musicians in the Japanese scene of the time, which centered on clubs such as "Julianas", modeled superficially on British style "raves". However, Linton's track "6 Ritual" was clearly going in a different direction.
From 1994-1997 his releases were sporadic, as the Japanese scene had moved into instrumental techno and Linton was mainly a singer at the time. Only one track, the jungle (music) styled "Jungle Friends" was released on 12 inch vinyl from Ummo Records.
In 1998 his instrumental piece "Sarajevo" was chosen to open a Princess Diana tribute/charity album sponsored by the British Embassy, and it sold five thousand copies, even though the CD had no label or distribution at all. In 1999 he was able to release an EP of earlier tracks, and Sony Asia Pacific later marketed it. Linton formed a band called "dr jan guru" which played frequently at large venues. Under the band's name, he released three albums over the next few years: starting with "Alienshamanism" in 2000 However, the live members often changed and rarely appeared on the albums; instead, a number of well-known musicians contributed to the recording sessions, such as Duran Duran
's John Taylor
. The albums also included reworkings of the unreleased tracks Linton had recorded with Bill Nelson.
Linton made several releases in 2000 in the UK, Japan, and Europe. The singles "Inner Sanctum" ("Can't you feel") and "Sarajevo" were both number one hits on the MP3 electronic music charts in several countries. Linton also released the first of a series of experimental albums under his own name, on the "Kaerucafe" label, which is noted for experimental and sampling CDs. Inspired by the notoriously difficult to program Yamaha DX7
synthesizer as used by Brian Eno
, "Music for Aliens" was the best selling sampling CD in national stores such as Yamaha
. In 2001 a collaborative project with the former Japan (band)
and Porcupine Tree
synthesist, Richard Barbieri
, was again marketed as a sampling CD and titled "Cosmic Prophets". This became a cult classic, and is still available on the UK Burning Shed
label.
In 2003 Linton signed a European distribution contract for a compilation of new, unreleased, and re-recorded tracks. The album "Communion" included a cover of "Dark Entries
" by Bauhaus
; of John Taylor's "King Porn" (which the band had been playing since two concerts in International Stadium Yokohama
in 2001); and a track of Linton's, "Lose Yourself With Me", which Taylor also played bass on. The album was released as by Jan Linton/dr jan guru.
In 2004 King Records signed Linton to make another album as "dr jan guru" again. Entitled "Planet Japan", it was in a rock/cyberpunk style (such as a cover version of the John Foxx
period Ultravox
song Hiroshima Mon Amour
), and the controversial subject matter—Linton's occasionally bitter experiences in Tokyo—caused a slight stir in the Japanese media. Featuring the former Japan (band)
and Ippu-Do guitarist Masami Tsuchiya
, Hoppy Kamiyama
, and sounds from Richard Barbieri
, (one instrumental, "Sequential Sakura" was credited as a Barbieri/Linton joint composition), it was released by King after being recorded in just seven weeks, an experience which exhausted Linton.
A UK promotional video (and later, CD/DVD single) of a drum n bass reworking of Bauhaus
`s Dark Entries
(from the "Communion" album) followed, but due to label disputes was never fully released. This marks the last use of the name "dr jan guru" to date.
He moved back to the UK in 2005 to study for a Master of Arts degree in music technology at a university in England
while supplying sounds for Roland
's new sampler and demonstrating Roland
and Digital Stage`s Motion Dive Tokyo Console VJ software throughout 2006. A chance meeting in Bath with Leo Abrahams
led to collaboration on "Anemone" and "The Kindness of Strangers", but other than the former, all of Linton`s academic output from this period remains unreleased. In 2007 he translated the lyrics for various songs by Susumu Hirasawa
into English, more than a decade since the two had last been in contact.
In early 2011, Entropy Records released Linton`s 2009-2010 reworkings of the sounds of FM3
`s Buddha Machine versions 1 and 2, but following the 9.0 magnitude
Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
and subsequent releases of radioactive materials in Japan (where Linton had returned to in 2007) delayed the release until late March.
"The Eternal Desire Machines of Dr Jan" EP 1999 (GVM0010)
"Inner Sanctum (Can't You Feel)" Single 2000 (Groove 052)
"Music for Aliens" album (Kaerucafe 0104)
"Alienshamanism" album 2000-1 (Nap/25 FO26)
"Selected Esoterica" album 2003 (kaerucafe 28186842354)
"Communion" album 2003 (Explosion RT0005)
"Planet Japan" album 2004 (King Records KICP1014)
"Buddha Machine Music" mini album 2011 (Entropy Records EM 007)
COLLABORATIONS/REMIXES/PRODUCTION
John Taylor
- "King Porn/King Porn instrumental" 2001 on "Retreat Into Art" (TTP1201A)
with Richard Barbieri
- "Cosmic Prophets" 2001 (Kaerucafe 0130)
Frameshift- "Ruff wiv Da Smoove" 2002 (Kaerucafe 0143)
with Leo Abrahams
- "Anemone" (2007)
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
from Warrington
Warrington
Warrington is a town, borough and unitary authority area of Cheshire, England. It stands on the banks of the River Mersey, which is tidal to the west of the weir at Howley. It lies 16 miles east of Liverpool, 19 miles west of Manchester and 8 miles south of St Helens...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, who helped internationalize the music scene in Tokyo
Tokyo
, ; officially , is one of the 47 prefectures of Japan. Tokyo is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan. It is the seat of the Japanese government and the Imperial Palace, and the home of the Japanese Imperial Family...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
.
Biography
Jan Linton studied violinViolin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
from the age of four, moving briefly onto piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, before discovering pop music and electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
as a teenager. When he was 17 years old, his first synthesizer
Synthesizer
A synthesizer is an electronic instrument capable of producing sounds by generating electrical signals of different frequencies. These electrical signals are played through a loudspeaker or set of headphones...
exploded, leading him to try bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
instead.
After graduating from Birmingham University, he left for Japan in January 1990 after encouragement from P-Model
P-Model
P-Model was a Japanese New Wave synth-rock & techno-pop band started in 1979 by frontman Susumu Hirasawa. The band has included many lineup revisions over the years but Hirasawa was always at the helm of operations...
`s Tatsuya Kikuchi then subsequently Susumu Hirasawa
Susumu Hirasawa
is a Japanese electropop artist and composer.In 1972, he enrolled at . From 1972 to 1978, he performed in his first band Mandrake, a progressive rock group influenced by King Crimson and Yes. In 1979 he formed a New Wave synth-rock & techno-pop band called P-Model, along with two former members of...
, and secured a recording agreement from King Records after just three days. The project combined electronics with Asian pop and a world music
World music
World music is a term with widely varying definitions, often encompassing music which is primarily identified as another genre. This is evidenced by world music definitions such as "all of the music in the world" or "somebody else's local music"...
flavor, including a performance by violinist and Chinese Kokyu
Kokyu
The is a traditional Japanese string instrument, the only one played with a bow. Although it was introduced to Japan from China along with the shamisen, its material, shape, and sound are unique to Japan...
player Masatsugu Shinozaki (who performed on the soundtrack to "The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor
The Last Emperor is a 1987 biopic about the life of Puyi, the last Emperor of China, whose autobiography was the basis for the screenplay written by Mark Peploe and Bernardo Bertolucci. Independently produced by Jeremy Thomas, it was directed by Bertolucci and released in 1987 by Columbia Pictures...
"). A change in A/R
A&R
Artists and repertoire is the division of a record label that is responsible for talent scouting and overseeing the artistic development of recording artists. It also acts as a liaison between artists and the record label.- Finding talent :...
management delayed Linton's first CD, "Oinaru Sekai (TrueNirvana)"; it was finally released at the end of 1992. The producer also worked with the Japanese boy band SMAP
SMAP
SMAP is a Japanese boy band formed by Johnny & Associates. While originally consisting of six members, the current group members are Masahiro Nakai, Takuya Kimura, Goro Inagaki, Tsuyoshi Kusanagi, and Shingo Katori...
,with the result that the album swung between electro-pop and Asian World Music. The album was sung in ten languages, including Japanese.
In 1993 Roger Eno
Roger Eno
Roger Eugene Eno was born in Woodbridge, England in 1959. He is known primarily as an ambient composer.He began euphonium lessons at twelve and at sixteen entered Colchester College to study music...
introduced Linton to the renowned guitarist and artist Bill Nelson (musician)
Bill Nelson (musician)
Bill Nelson is an English guitarist, songwriter, producer, painter and experimental musician...
, whom Linton had been a fan of since his university days. Nelson contributed guitar to some new tracks Linton was recording. One was released by Sony
Sony
, commonly referred to as Sony, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan and the world's fifth largest media conglomerate measured by revenues....
in 1994 on an album which sold 15,000 copies. This established Linton as one of the few non-Japanese musicians in the Japanese scene of the time, which centered on clubs such as "Julianas", modeled superficially on British style "raves". However, Linton's track "6 Ritual" was clearly going in a different direction.
From 1994-1997 his releases were sporadic, as the Japanese scene had moved into instrumental techno and Linton was mainly a singer at the time. Only one track, the jungle (music) styled "Jungle Friends" was released on 12 inch vinyl from Ummo Records.
In 1998 his instrumental piece "Sarajevo" was chosen to open a Princess Diana tribute/charity album sponsored by the British Embassy, and it sold five thousand copies, even though the CD had no label or distribution at all. In 1999 he was able to release an EP of earlier tracks, and Sony Asia Pacific later marketed it. Linton formed a band called "dr jan guru" which played frequently at large venues. Under the band's name, he released three albums over the next few years: starting with "Alienshamanism" in 2000 However, the live members often changed and rarely appeared on the albums; instead, a number of well-known musicians contributed to the recording sessions, such as Duran Duran
Duran Duran
Duran Duran are an English band, formed in Birmingham in 1978. They were one of the most successful bands of the 1980s and a leading band in the MTV-driven "Second British Invasion" of the United States...
's John Taylor
Nigel John Taylor
John Taylor is an English musician who is best known as the bass guitarist and co-founder of pop rock band Duran Duran....
. The albums also included reworkings of the unreleased tracks Linton had recorded with Bill Nelson.
Linton made several releases in 2000 in the UK, Japan, and Europe. The singles "Inner Sanctum" ("Can't you feel") and "Sarajevo" were both number one hits on the MP3 electronic music charts in several countries. Linton also released the first of a series of experimental albums under his own name, on the "Kaerucafe" label, which is noted for experimental and sampling CDs. Inspired by the notoriously difficult to program Yamaha DX7
Yamaha DX7
The Yamaha DX7 is an FM Digital Synthesizer manufactured by the Yamaha Corporation from 1983 to 1986. It was the first commercially successful digital synthesizer. Its distinctive sound can be heard on many recordings, especially Pop music from the 1980s...
synthesizer as used by Brian Eno
Brian Eno
Brian Peter George St. John le Baptiste de la Salle Eno , commonly known as Brian Eno or simply as Eno , is an English musician, composer, record producer, singer and visual artist, known as one of the principal innovators of ambient music.Eno studied at Colchester Institute art school in Essex,...
, "Music for Aliens" was the best selling sampling CD in national stores such as Yamaha
Yamaha
Yamaha may refer to:* Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services** Yamaha Motor Company, a Japanese motorized vehicle-producing company...
. In 2001 a collaborative project with the former Japan (band)
Japan (band)
Japan were a British New Wave group, formed in 1974 in Catford, South London. The band achieved success in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when they were often associated with the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement .- History :The band began as a group of friends...
and Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree
Porcupine Tree is a progressive rock band formed by Steven Wilson in 1987 in Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire, England. Their music is difficult to categorise, being associated with both psychedelic rock and progressive rock, yet having been influenced by trance, krautrock and ambient due to Steven...
synthesist, Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri, is an English synthesiser player, keyboardist and composer. He was educated at Catford Boys' School, Catford, South East London...
, was again marketed as a sampling CD and titled "Cosmic Prophets". This became a cult classic, and is still available on the UK Burning Shed
Burning Shed
Burning Shed is an independent record label established in April 2001 by musicians Tim Bowness and Peter Chilvers, in association with duplication company manager and former Noisebox Records boss, Pete Morgan....
label.
In 2003 Linton signed a European distribution contract for a compilation of new, unreleased, and re-recorded tracks. The album "Communion" included a cover of "Dark Entries
Dark Entries
"Dark Entries" is the second single released by British gothic rock band Bauhaus. It showcases the guitar playing of Daniel Ash and tight rhythm section of David J and Kevin Haskins...
" by Bauhaus
Bauhaus
', commonly known simply as Bauhaus, was a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught. It operated from 1919 to 1933. At that time the German term stood for "School of Building".The Bauhaus school was founded by...
; of John Taylor's "King Porn" (which the band had been playing since two concerts in International Stadium Yokohama
Nissan Stadium
The is a sports venue in Yokohama, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan.The Yokohama City Office planned multi purpose about the rest place for flood by the Tsurumi River, which included the construction of the main stadium of major sport events - the 53rd National Sports Festival of Japan in Kanagawa...
in 2001); and a track of Linton's, "Lose Yourself With Me", which Taylor also played bass on. The album was released as by Jan Linton/dr jan guru.
In 2004 King Records signed Linton to make another album as "dr jan guru" again. Entitled "Planet Japan", it was in a rock/cyberpunk style (such as a cover version of the John Foxx
John Foxx
John Foxx is an English singer, artist, photographer and teacher. He was the original lead singer of the band Ultravox before being replaced by Midge Ure, when he left to embark on a solo career in 1979...
period Ultravox
Ultravox
Ultravox is a British New Wave rock band. They were one of the primary exponents of the British electronic pop music movement of the late 1970s/early 1980s. The band was particularly associated with the New Romantic and New Wave movements....
song Hiroshima Mon Amour
Hiroshima Mon Amour
Hiroshima mon amour is an acclaimed 1959 drama film directed by French film director Alain Resnais, with a screenplay by Marguerite Duras. It is the documentation of an intensely personal conversation between a French-Japanese couple about memory and forgetfulness...
), and the controversial subject matter—Linton's occasionally bitter experiences in Tokyo—caused a slight stir in the Japanese media. Featuring the former Japan (band)
Japan (band)
Japan were a British New Wave group, formed in 1974 in Catford, South London. The band achieved success in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when they were often associated with the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement .- History :The band began as a group of friends...
and Ippu-Do guitarist Masami Tsuchiya
Masami Tsuchiya
Masami Tsuchiya is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician. He came to prominence in the late 1970s as the lead vocalist and guitarist in the group Ippu-Do. His subsequent output includes solo work and collaborations...
, Hoppy Kamiyama
Hoppy Kamiyama
Hoppy Kamiyama is a Japanese keyboardist and music producer who has worked with artists such as eX-Girl, Bradford Reed, Bill Laswell, Jan Linton, Marc Ribot, Hugh Hopper/Elton Dean and Damo Suzuki.- Biography :...
, and sounds from Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri, is an English synthesiser player, keyboardist and composer. He was educated at Catford Boys' School, Catford, South East London...
, (one instrumental, "Sequential Sakura" was credited as a Barbieri/Linton joint composition), it was released by King after being recorded in just seven weeks, an experience which exhausted Linton.
A UK promotional video (and later, CD/DVD single) of a drum n bass reworking of Bauhaus
Bauhaus
', commonly known simply as Bauhaus, was a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts, and was famous for the approach to design that it publicized and taught. It operated from 1919 to 1933. At that time the German term stood for "School of Building".The Bauhaus school was founded by...
`s Dark Entries
Dark Entries
"Dark Entries" is the second single released by British gothic rock band Bauhaus. It showcases the guitar playing of Daniel Ash and tight rhythm section of David J and Kevin Haskins...
(from the "Communion" album) followed, but due to label disputes was never fully released. This marks the last use of the name "dr jan guru" to date.
He moved back to the UK in 2005 to study for a Master of Arts degree in music technology at a university in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
while supplying sounds for Roland
Roland
Roland was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. Historically, Roland was military governor of the Breton March, with responsibility for defending the frontier of Francia against the Bretons...
's new sampler and demonstrating Roland
Roland
Roland was a Frankish military leader under Charlemagne who became one of the principal figures in the literary cycle known as the Matter of France. Historically, Roland was military governor of the Breton March, with responsibility for defending the frontier of Francia against the Bretons...
and Digital Stage`s Motion Dive Tokyo Console VJ software throughout 2006. A chance meeting in Bath with Leo Abrahams
Leo Abrahams
Leo Abrahams is a British musician, composer, and producer. He has collaborated with a multitude of professional musicians, including Brian Eno, Imogen Heap, Jarvis Cocker, Carl Barât, and Paul Simon. After attending the Royal Academy of Music in England, he started his musical career by touring as...
led to collaboration on "Anemone" and "The Kindness of Strangers", but other than the former, all of Linton`s academic output from this period remains unreleased. In 2007 he translated the lyrics for various songs by Susumu Hirasawa
Susumu Hirasawa
is a Japanese electropop artist and composer.In 1972, he enrolled at . From 1972 to 1978, he performed in his first band Mandrake, a progressive rock group influenced by King Crimson and Yes. In 1979 he formed a New Wave synth-rock & techno-pop band called P-Model, along with two former members of...
into English, more than a decade since the two had last been in contact.
In early 2011, Entropy Records released Linton`s 2009-2010 reworkings of the sounds of FM3
FM3
FM3 is the Beijing-based music duo of Christiaan Virant and Zhang Jian. They are considered among the pioneers of electronic music in China.. Since 1999, Virant and Jian have been making meditative music by combining the sound of Chinese classical instruments with modern digital techniques.Their...
`s Buddha Machine versions 1 and 2, but following the 9.0 magnitude
Moment magnitude scale
The moment magnitude scale is used by seismologists to measure the size of earthquakes in terms of the energy released. The magnitude is based on the seismic moment of the earthquake, which is equal to the rigidity of the Earth multiplied by the average amount of slip on the fault and the size of...
Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami
The 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tohoku, also known as the 2011 Tohoku earthquake, or the Great East Japan Earthquake, was a magnitude 9.0 undersea megathrust earthquake off the coast of Japan that occurred at 14:46 JST on Friday, 11 March 2011, with the epicenter approximately east...
and subsequent releases of radioactive materials in Japan (where Linton had returned to in 2007) delayed the release until late March.
Discography
"Oinaru Sekai (TrueNirvana)" album (Polystar HI-1023)"The Eternal Desire Machines of Dr Jan" EP 1999 (GVM0010)
"Inner Sanctum (Can't You Feel)" Single 2000 (Groove 052)
"Music for Aliens" album (Kaerucafe 0104)
"Alienshamanism" album 2000-1 (Nap/25 FO26)
"Selected Esoterica" album 2003 (kaerucafe 28186842354)
"Communion" album 2003 (Explosion RT0005)
"Planet Japan" album 2004 (King Records KICP1014)
"Buddha Machine Music" mini album 2011 (Entropy Records EM 007)
COLLABORATIONS/REMIXES/PRODUCTION
John Taylor
Nigel John Taylor
John Taylor is an English musician who is best known as the bass guitarist and co-founder of pop rock band Duran Duran....
- "King Porn/King Porn instrumental" 2001 on "Retreat Into Art" (TTP1201A)
with Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri
Richard Barbieri, is an English synthesiser player, keyboardist and composer. He was educated at Catford Boys' School, Catford, South East London...
- "Cosmic Prophets" 2001 (Kaerucafe 0130)
Frameshift- "Ruff wiv Da Smoove" 2002 (Kaerucafe 0143)
with Leo Abrahams
Leo Abrahams
Leo Abrahams is a British musician, composer, and producer. He has collaborated with a multitude of professional musicians, including Brian Eno, Imogen Heap, Jarvis Cocker, Carl Barât, and Paul Simon. After attending the Royal Academy of Music in England, he started his musical career by touring as...
- "Anemone" (2007)