making the world more happyfunsmile at the following venues:

saturday, september 27, 11:30am
new york anime festival
jacob javits center, 655 W34th street
admission: $40/day, $55/weekend pass
come check out all the anime fun, along with happyfunsmile, love etc, mc chris, samurai sword soul, and voltaire! tons of special guests!

thursday, october 30, 9pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
we're back! come join brian, akiko, and kaori, and welcome back brazil's favorite enka crooner, rodrigo! we're welcoming a whole new crowd of musicians to the happyfunsmile gang, so come check it out! preview your halloween costumes for all of us as we jam out. free as always and make sure you tip the bartenders!


past performances:

sunday, 2008 july 27, 12pm
senshin buddhist temple
1331 w 37th st
los angeles, california 90007
admission: free, but donations accepted
the last performance of the tour and it was a great one! we performed out in the senshin plaza to an appreciative audience, with dancing to the obon favorites! thanks to reverend kodani for bringing us out! it was a very special performance for us and we were all a bit wistful as we ended the performance and ended the tour.

saturday, 2008 july 26, evening after obon around 9pm
oiwake
122 japanese village plz mall
los angeles, california 90012
after the obon, we hurried over to oiwake and played two sets for the post-obon gig! the sakiokas and yokoyamas were there, as were the ibanez family. later, bryan and chiemi stopped by and we had a great and exhausting evening.

saturday, 2008 july 26, 6pm
los angeles higashi honganji obon festival
505 e 3rd st
los angeles, california 90013
admission: free
food booths, games, performances all day, including chikara taiko, hereandnow, taikoproject, halau hula moani’a’ala anuhoa, fujima kansei odori kai, bombu and kitsune taiko, and us!!! it was such a fun obon festival and we have tons of people to thank, including rinban ito, shin ito, dave, and all the volunteers at the higashi honganji! we had friends and family there and we all had an amazing time!!!

friday, 2008 july 25, 1:45pm
keiro
325 south boyle ave
los angeles, california 90033
this was another meaningful performance. we performed for the nikkei seniors at keiro and brian was getting a lot of laughs with his mc'ing. we got quite a few people to dance along with us and we brought down the house with hai sore made yo. thanks to yumi for bringing us out! afterwards, we headed over to bryan and chiemi, our gracious and generous hosts in los angeles. oh man...and they had the full set-up for rock star with two guitar controllers, mic, and a drum kit!

thursday, 2008 july 24, 9:30pm
echo curio
1519 sunset blvd
echo park, california 90026
admission: five bucks
this bar was awesome, just like a curio shop. after a delicious dinner of tamales and papusas, we shared the stage with nightflight jesus, white noise supremacists, and warm kaiser. it was a fun evening and we headed back to ryan's place in the pacific palisades. awesome view!

tuesday, 2008 july 22, 3pm
fuji towers
690 north 5th st
san jose, california 95112
we drove down to san jose and headed over to japantown in san jose. we stopped by fosters freeze for a yummy lunch of corn dogs and ice cream! we shuttled over to fuji towers, where we set up in the outdoor gazebo. it was an incredibly beautiful setting and we had a lot of fun performing for the residents. thanks to sumi and frances for bringing us out! this was a special performance for wynn, who grew up in san jose and apparently caused some havoc during his boy scout years. later, we spent some time by the hotel pool and some of us met up with ali's cousins. others went straight to bed. the next day we drove down to ryan's place and had another incredible bbq!

monday, 2008 july 21, 10am
kimochi
1715 buchanan st
san francisco, california 94115
thanks to grace and linda for bringing us out to kimochi! it was a beautiful room with a very nice grand piano. it was an intimate performance and we got a few residents to dance with us during tokyo ondo and tanko bushi! quite a memorable and meaningful performance for us. afterwards, we headed back to jenna and kevin's place, and then went out for some awesome vietnamese pho!

sunday, 2008 july 20, 12:30pm
san francisco obon festival
1881 pine st
san francisco, california 94109
admission: free
the san francisco obon festival was a ton of fun! brrr...a little chilly in san francisco, but it was a welcome change. thanks to mc jeffrey for organizing everything and tim for the sound support! we got the dancing started with 1+1 ondo, tokyo ondo, aiue ondo, and tanko bushi! it was a beautiful day and the sun even peaked out from the clouds!!! we met up with jenna and kevin, our wonderful hosts in san francisco, and settled in for a tekka maki dinner and rock star on wii.

saturday, 2008 july 19, 2pm
san francisco obon festival
1881 pine st
san francisco, california 94109
admission: free
we wandered into the ginza bazaar and freaked out when we saw all the amazing food! after a quick snack, we opened up the ginza bazaar with a 45-minute performance. thanks to nanayo and rev abiko for all your support and bringing us out to san francisco!!! after the performance, we drove back to the sakkal compound in sancramento and had an amazing bbq. thanks to the sakkal family!



sunday, 2008 july 13, 1pm
new york obon festival
bryant park at 42nd st
admission: free
it's obon time again! come join the new york buddhist church and the japanese american community as we get out our bon-odori digs! plenty of taiko, with soh daiko and hoh daiko, and dancing led by the tachibana dance group!

sunday, 2008 june 1, 3:45pm
japan day
central park, east meadow at 99th st and 5th ave
admission: free
we'll be performing in the afternoon, along with such groups as soh daiko, cobu, leonard eto, samurai sword soul, gaijin a go go, halcali, and shota shimizu. lots of activities, booths, food, and an omikoshi parade, so come join the fun! special thanks to eriko at gorgeous entertainment.

saturday, 2008 may 31, 7pm
chinatown sunset cinema series
columbus park pavilion grounds, 67 mulberry st
admission: free
we'll be heralding the first movie in the chinatown sunset cinema series, with free films scheduled throughout the summer. we start playing at 7pm, and as the sun sets, they'll start the movie nana. sponsored by aaari and chinatown partnership ldc, with special thanks to antony wong!

sunday, 2008 may 18, 2pm
new york buddhist church
332 riverside drive
admission: free but donations will be gratefully accepted
it's sangha day at the new york buddhist church! we'll be performing for the sangha and raising some money for our summer obon tour. get ready for some enka, bon-odori, food, and fun! this will be a pot-luck lunch, so please bring your favorite dish, big or small, and special thanks to the adult buddhist association for hosting us.

friday, 2008 may 9, 7:45pm
knitting factory
74 leonard street between church/broadway
admission: $10
we'll be sharing the stage with ladybug, love etc, and zan. we're super-excited about this gig and hope you can come down to hear us at the knit! presented by those purveyors of j-punk and j-rock, karaterice. the show starts at 7:30pm with the duo ladybug, and then we hit the stage around 7:45pm.

friday, 2008 april 18, 6:45pm
columbia university sakura matsuri
broadway and 114th st
admission: free
we're back at columbia university for their annual sakura matsuri. we'll be celebrating in the middle of the plaza along with their taiko group, gagaku ensemble, food booths, and other activities. sponsored in part by the music department and columbia japan society, with special thanks to professor david novak!

saturday, 2008 april 12, 3pm and 4:30pm
washington dc sakura matsuri
12th st and pennsylvania ave nw
admission: free
we'll be performing on the j-pop and pennsylvania ave stages, so please tell your friends! special thanks to reiko hirai and the japan-america society of washington.

thursday, 2008 march 13, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
thanks to everyone for joining us at forbidden city! we brought out a host of new tunes, including hina matsuri, tennessee waltz, vacation, mata au hima de, and hiyami kachi bushi. it's always a blast playing at our favorite bar, and we'd like thank the whole forbidden city crew for joining in the fun. best of all, our fearless sanshin-player bill brought out the big fiddle and played bass.

tuesday, 2008 february 19, 9:30pm
aruba
100 park avenue and 40th st
admission: $10 cover
the very first lounge night for happyfunsmile! start with wynn on piano, akiko on vocals, and then invite everyone else to join in the fun! we'll be bringing out all the hidden enka and minyo gems for you at this special midtown japanese bar. enter through the peking hunan park restaurant on 40th st between park and madison, which, by the way, is the infamous chinese restaurant in seinfeld.

wednesday, 2007 december 12, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free as always!
the last happyfunsmile gig of the year! the whole entire gang will be there. that means eleven performers for your listening pleasure: akiko, kaori, brian, rodrigo, ali, bill, glenn, kossan, rob, ryan, and wynn. we'll be pulling out auld lang syne, marking the end of our evening (in japan, it is played at graduation ceremonies and at the end of the business day in department stores) and the end of a very happyfunsmile year! so brush up on your japanese auld lang syne!

saturday, 2007 december 8, 11am
new york anime festival
jacob javits center, 655 W34th street
admission: $30/day, $55/weekend pass
come check out all the anime fun, along with happyfunsmile, unicorn table and voltaire! a big thanks to peter tatara for bringing happyfunsmile to the anime festival! we marched through the exhibition area and then onto the main stage. nothing better than dancing tanko bushi with cosplay people!

saturday, 2007 december 1, 8:15pm
peking hunan park
100 park avenue, entrance on 40th st between park/madison
thanks to riki ito for introducing us to the japanese american lions club. we had a fun performance with the jalc at jerry seinfeld's favorite chinese restaurant! also, we were able to reunite with a former singer, okaru, at the adjacent japanese-owned club aruba.

wednesday, 2007 october 31, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
our favorite holiday is rolling around! come celebrate halloween with happyfunsmile! we'll be wandering around the east village spreading chindon to all the japanese restaurants and bars, ending up at forbidden city with a full performance. get our your costumes and join the fun!

wednesday, 2007 october 3, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
awwyeah....fall is here and happyfunsmile is performing at forbidden city! have you seen kossan, our sanshin-playing zen monk? have you heard rodrigo, our japanese brazilian enka-singing star? have you experienced the duo of rob and ali, on bari and alto saxes? now is the time!

wednesday, 2007 september 12, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
happyfunsmile is back at forbidden city! did you hear our interview with nina thorsen on kqed or wnyc? well, now's the time to come hear us live at our favorite bar. we've got some old-school taisho and showa tunes, two saxophones for your listening pleasure, a platoon of singers, and the rest of the gang!

saturday, 2007 august 11, 2-6pm
soundfest: asian american music festival
columbus park in chinatown, nyc
admission: free
happyfunsmile is proud to be a part of soundfest, an asian american music festival to be held in nyc's chinatown! we'll be sharing the stage with a host of amazing performers including falu, slanty eyed mama, and rudresh mahanthappa. be sure to check this one out, but be forewarned: each group gets a 15-minute slot. we're on at 2:51pm.

sunday, 2007 july 8, 1pm
nybc annual obon festival
bryant park at 42nd street
admission: free
get out your yukata! happyfunsmile will be performing for the annual nybc obon festival in bryant park. expect to hear all our bon-odori tunes and more! everyone remembers tanko bushi, right? if you need a refresher course, come to the bon-odori practice sessions! from nancy okada, chair of the new york buddhist church board of trustees: "Your presentation at the start of the festivities was uplifting and energizing and brought a lot of laughter and smiles. HAPPYFUNSMILE helped to set the "matsuri" feeling for the afternoon. Please extend our warmest "thank you" to your members for a great performance."

wednesday, 2007 june 27, 8:00pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
come join happyfunsmile this wednesday at forbidden city! we've got some brand new tunes for you: anime obon song, groovy r&b, classic enka, and a new arrangement of shimauta for brian! plus a bunch of bon-odori, enka, and okinawan tunes for the amazing akiko and kaori!

sunday, 2007 may 20, 1:30pm
new york buddhist church
331 riverside drive
admission: free
happyfunsmile had a great time at sangha day at the new york buddhist church! in the middle of the set, we had a quick waltz tutorial by the resident ballroom dance master roy kato and a bon-odori lesson with the orange county representative traci yokoyama, leading straight into utsukushiki tennen and ichi tasu ichi ondo! finished up with tanko bushi, a caribbean-style version of shimauta and then, of course, food. we hope you enjoyed the unplugged version of happyfunsmile with ali, bill, and wynn on piano.

wednesday, 2007 may 9, 8:30pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
we hope you enjoyed the new songs (koi no fuga, wasurete, ueomuuite) and instrumental numbers (jumpin' at the woodside aka gene gene the dancing machine, haru ga kita, and emotion aka korean girls karaoke on youtube). special thanks to the cast of tea and peter from the new york anime festival for hanging out! finally, thanks to the amazing cosaru for all the ears!

saturday, 2007 april 28, 3:30-4:15pm
brooklyn botanic garden, sakura matsuri
1000 washington avenue, brooklyn
admission: free with garden admission
happyfunsmile in the cherry esplanade. we'll be blitzing the brooklyn botanic garden with an intense 45-minute set! come join the fun, welcome in the spring, and cross your fingers for those poor cherry blossoms. taiko masala, dancer sachiyo ito, and masayo ishigure will also be performing on saturday. from anita jacobs, director of public programs: "Spectacular performance! I thought happyfunsmile was a perfect fit for the festival. Our audience will have gorgeous memories of the group's high energy antics to last a lifetime!"

thursday, 2007 april 5, 11pm
pianos
158 ludlow at stanton
admission: $8
come check out happyfunsmile on the mainstage of pianos! we'll be featuring our singers brian and rodrigo, along with two very special guests, kiku kimonolisa and saiko mikan from gaijin a go-go! what gaijin songs will we do? what happyfunsmile tunes will they do?

wednesday, 2007 february 28, 8:30pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
yes, we really do love this place! we're back at forbidden city for three sets of revelry. brian, kaori, and rodrigo will be taking the helm, which means some new tunes as well as some happyfunsmile chestnuts. we'll be resting during the month of march, so come get your fda-approved dose of happyfunsmile!

wednesday, 2007 february 7, 8pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
thanks everyone! we pulled out all the stops for the three-set evening, with new tunes like gekitei ondo (masterfully danced by kaori) and shiawase kyouryuu ondo (ala morning musume). stay tuned for news on our next forbidden city gig in march!

wednesday, 2006 november 29, 8pm
forbidden city
212 avenue a, between 13th and 14th
admission: free
this one should be a ton of fun! we'll be playing two full sets at forbidden city with a multitude of singers (brian, rodrigo, akiko, and kaori) and our new bass player ben! lots of music, great food, plus a very special guest, kossan, a singer, sanshin player, and zen monk. our last gig for 2006, so hope to see you there!

tuesday, 2006 october 31, 8pm
the baggot inn
82 west 3rd st, between sullivan and thompson
admission: $5
it's halloween, baby! we're back in the heart of the village for everyone's favorite pagan holiday! it'll be a raucous time with the return of glenn on bass and an evening of okinawan and japanese favorites with akiko, rodrigo, and kaori! stick around for the funky kareem walkes and myxx.

thursday, 2006 october 5, 8:30pm
the baggot inn
82 west 3rd st, between sullivan and thompson
admission: $5
a big night of firsts for us with kaori making her debut, bill switching to the upright bass, and new tunes for brian (aotenjyou, moon represents my heart) and rodrigo (shinobi ai). it was a great evening and lots of fun to be back at the baggot inn! thanks to everyone and special thanks to howard, the most entertaining and methodical sound engineer we've ever met.

thursday, 2006 august 24, 9pm
matsuri restaurant @ the maritime hotel
369 west 16th st between 8th and 9th avenues
we're bringing out the full band for this special celebration at chef tadashi ono's restaurant matsuri. beautiful decor, incredible food, plentiful drinks, and happyfunsmile! this will be the debut performance for akiko, the last gig for glenn before he goes on tour with aida, and the triumphant return of rob on saxophone. come join the fun!

saturday, 2006 july 15, 5-9pm
seabrook obon festival
9 northville road, bridgeton, new jersey
not a happyfunsmile gig, but a solo chindon performance. after fighting traffic for three and a half hours, we finally made it to seabrook, new jersey. the parking lot was completely full and there was quite a crowd hanging out along the perimeter. i played along with seabrook's bon-odori tunes and shared the field with soh daiko, hoh daiko, and nen daiko in a huge "matsuri" performance. it was great to see old friends and meet new ones! special thanks to everyone at the seabrook temple.

sunday, 2006 july 9, 1pm
nybc annual obon festival
bryant park at 42nd street
admission: free
thanks to everyone who joined in the fun at the new york buddhist church obon festival in bryant park! happyfunsmile blitzed through haisai ojisan and utsukushiki tennen, and got the dancing started with kanaiwa matsuri ondo, 1+1 ondo, and tanko bushi. this was miho's last happyfunsmile performance, so it was bittersweet for the rest of us. miho, you're the best!!!

sunday, 2006 may 21, 1:30pm
new york buddhist church
331 riverside drive, between 105 and 106
happyfunsmile performed in the hondo and rocked the new york buddhist church for a special fundraising potluck event. kudos to brian for his ueomuuite crooning and miho for her misora hibari singing. so many people to thank, but special recognition goes to the adult buddhist association, nancy and toyo (head teachers of the ny tachibana school), linda, donna, and kim!

saturday, 2006 may 13, 9pm
galapagos art space
70 north 6th st in williamsburg, brooklyn
directions: http://www.galapagosartspace.com/directions.html
oh man....what a great evening! happyfunsmile shared the stage with the one and only gaijin a go-go at the galapagos art space in williamsburg. japanophilia at its best, baby. and gaijin a go-go wins the prize for most people onstage in white outfits....ju-ichi. special thanks to the nyu crowd, the galapagos staff, and tokyo super fans!

friday, 2006 april 28, 7pm
columbia university, low plaza
broadway and 116th st
admission: free
spring is here and the matsuri (festival) season is on! happyfunsmile performed in the middle of the columbia university plaza at their annual matsuri. it was a great event, complete with food vendors, bon-odori dancing, a sloppy soba-eating contest, and some great sushi-shaped pillows. special thanks to todd and the columbia japan society for organizing everything!

saturday, 2006 april 8, 8pm
westminster choir college
101 walnut lane in princeton, nj
directions: http://www.rider.edu/1330.htm
partying with the academics! happyfunsmile took its first road trip to new jersey and after a few detours, ended up at the music and the asian diaspora conference at westminster choir college. rodrigo thrilled the audience with a spanish version of shimauta and miho rocked with o-matsuri mambo! plus, we got everyone to dance with us during tanko bushi....awesome! kudos to the two opening groups, gamelan dharma swara and sounds of korea.

saturday, 2006 march 25, 3pm
new york buddhist church
331 riverside drive, between 105 and 106
an impromptu performance during the white elephant sale! miho, rodrigo, wynn, bill, and ali blitzed the new york buddhist church with a quick chindonya performance of take ni suzume, o-matsuri mambo, and boukyo jyonkara. as soon as we get portable rigs for glenn and ryan, happyfunsmile will be hitting the streets!

thursday, 2006 march 9, 8pm
the baggot inn
82 west 3rd, between sullivan and thompson
admission: five bucks
thanks to all who came out for a happyfunsmile evening in greenwich village! the weather cooperated this time and it actually felt balmy in the baggot inn. ali sakkal rocked out on the sax and rodrigo morimoto tore it up with his enka crooning! thanks as well to howard, the sound guy, who called us "the band with the most positive name since yes."

thursday, 2005 november 10, approximately 9:15 to 11:15pm
kenka
25 st mark's place between second and third avenues
wow, what an evening! kenka was crazy busy and we hope you enjoyed all the food, beer, and music! this was a happyfunsmile reunion as well with singers michael and chie in the audience. members of soh daiko and the due-lee community center were hanging out and we were thrilled to have kenny endo take a taiko solo. awesome!
online review: "watching happyfunsmile was one of my best japan experiences outside of the country....combined with the cheerful enthusiasm of a kenka crowd, it makes a terrific night out." thanks jetaany!

saturday, 2005 september 24, 9pm
teabag
30 mott street (downstairs)
directions: www.teabagopenmic.com/directions
thanks everyone for your support! we hope you enjoyed the enka (osaka rhapsody) and obon tunes (1+1 ondo and tanko bushi), and we promise to add more to our repertoire. special thanks to our friend john ko for videotaping the show and eric starr for adding that 80s arena rock feel to shimauta!

sunday, 2005 august 28, 12-4pm
matsuri on st mark's place
st mark's between 1st and Avenue A
not a happyfunsmile gig, but a solo chindon performance. street vendors, japanese food, soh daiko, and a roving mikoshi....what an awesome day. i strapped on the chindon and ultra-purple happi, hooked up my ipod shuffle to a portable amplifier, and played along to chindon stuff, happyfunsmile stuff, a little kodo, and even a little gwen stefani. i had a great time with the kids and the seniors, but i particularly enjoyed the look of horror on the faces of the young east village japanese types.

friday, 2005 july 1, 9pm
pete's candy store
709 lorimer street, williamsburg, brooklyn
directions: www.petescandystore.com
online review: "brooklyn got a japanese jolt friday as the positive energy powered happyfunsmile blew up grungy-intimate pete's candy store...summer ain't right without a soundtrack and there it was...goosebumps, people--the good kind." thanks microscopiq!

saturday, 2005 june 25, 8pm
teabag
30 mott street (downstairs)
directions: www.teabagopenmic.com/directions
performing with the incredible singer-songwriter kevin so
online review: "the happiest band on the planet may very well be happyfunsmile...so what if half the band isn't japanese?" thanks radioatreyu! by the way, ryan, glenn, and bill all assured me they were japanese.