Giee
ライブ・カフェ・ギー
Sanko Building, Basement floor 1, Honcho 2-3-9, Kokubunji, Tokyo. (042)326-0770
〒185-0012東京都国分寺市本町2-3-9 三幸ビルB1
Cover charge varies from 500 to 2,800 yen or more. Night live is from around 19:00. Sometime they have daytime lives. The club is closed irregularly, so better check their website beforehand.
Kokubunji Station, Chuo Line, three minutes from the north exit.
Head out the north exit of Kokubunji station. Turn right after the construction, and follow the street filled with restaurants, bars and noodle shops that runs parallel to the train tracks. When you see the end of that street, called “Daigaku Dori” or University street, there is an angled street to the left, a bit before the street runs out. Turn left and Giee is on the right hand side. Look for the cool metal sign.
Giee is a cozy room--literally a room--that happens to showcase great music from across the spectrum of genres every night. The atmosphere is as friendly as a living room, and it’s impossible to keep from chatting with everyone around you. Well-worn seats and a basic drink menu, with food whipped up by the mama-san is all you need to settle in and hear music close and live and intimate.
Band announcements for both Giee and other gigs line the stairway, showing how much musicians love to play there. Weekends, there is usually an afternoon session, and starting times can vary, so check the site before you go. Most shows start at 7:30 but check the schedule carefully to be sure. Giee also hosts jam sessions of blues and jazz and all sorts of music. Giee is a community, in other words, devoted to music and an oasis of in-person musical satisfaction in western Tokyo.
Barbara Hadenfeldt and Alan Gleason