Yuya Uchida (entertainer)
| Yuya Uchida | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Yuya Uchida (内田 雄也) |
| Born |
November 17, 1939 Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan |
| Genres | Rock |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, record producer, actor |
| Instruments | Vocals |
| Years active | 1959–present |
| Associated acts | Flower Travellin' Band/The Flowers |
Yuya Uchida (Japanese: 内田 裕也 Hepburn: Uchida Yūya, born November 17, 1939 in Nishinomiya) is a Japanese singer, record producer, and actor. With a career nearing six decades, he is regarded as a major figure in Japanese popular music.
He has appeared in numerous films, such as Nagisa Ōshima's Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence, and won two best acting awards. He also starred in the American film Black Rain.
Uchida dropped out of high school at age 17 and began his music career in 1957. He became friends with John Lennon after opening for The Beatles on their 1966 tour of Japan.
Shocked after seeing Jimi Hendrix perform in London in 1967, Uchida returned home and wanted to introduce a similar sound to Japan. He formed Yuya Uchida & The Flowers who released the album Challenge! in 1969, which is composed almost entirely of covers of Western psychedelic rock acts. After replacing all but one member and reverting to a producer/manager role himself, the group changed their name to Flower Travellin' Band and released another cover album, 1970's Anywhere, before relocating to Canada. Before the move they recorded an album of original material in just two days;Satori was released in North America in 1971 by GRT Records. The band produced two more albums, Made in Japan (1972) and Make Up (1973), before separating for 34 years.
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