Joe Yamanaka | |
|---|---|
 Yamanaka with Flower Travellin' Band in New York City in 2008. | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Akira Yamanaka |
| Also known as | Joe, Akira Jo (城アキラ) |
| Born | September 2, 1946 Yokohama, Japan |
| Died | August 7, 2011 (aged 64) Yokosuka, Japan |
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| Years active | 1966–2011 |
| Formerly of | |
| Website | www |
Akira Yamanaka (山中 明, Yamanaka Akira, September 2, 1946 – August 7, 2011), better known as Joe Yamanaka (ジョー山中), was a Japanese singer and actor.[1] He is known for both his work with Flower Travellin' Band and as a solo musician; singing at a vocal range of three octaves.[2] As an actor, he appeared in many television shows and movies, such as Blackmail Is My Life (1968), Zatoichi (1989) and Deadly Outlaw: Rekka (2002).[3]
He is also recognized for 20 years of charity and volunteer work with the Japan International Cooperation Agency and flew around the world helping those in poor or war-torn conditions; visiting more than 30 countries including Afghanistan, Myanmar, Bosnia, numerous sovereign states in Africa, China, Ukraine (including Chernobyl), North Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Brazil. While doing aid work in Jamaica, he met local musicians and later became involved in reggae music. His aid work was a personal inspiration to help those who were growing up in similar conditions that he had experienced as a child.
- ^ ジョー山中さん死去 １年半闘病も力尽く. daily.co.jp (in Japanese). Archived from the original on April 2, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2012.
- ^ "フラワー・トラヴェリン・バンド、JL&Cと野音". barks.jp (in Japanese). October 4, 2008. Retrieved March 18, 2016.
- ^ "Joe Yamanaka". Internet Movie Database. Retrieved October 6, 2012.