, formerly Nakano Sun Plaza, was a Japanese concert hall and hotel complex located in

Nakano, Tokyo Nakano (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku) is a Special wards of Tokyo, special ward in the Tokyo, Tokyo Metropolis in Japan. The English translation of its Japanese self-designation is Nakano City (, Latn, ja, Nakano-ku).

. It opened in 1973 and closed in 2023. A 262-meter-tall skyscraper is scheduled to be completed on the site in 2028.

Notable events

Numerous musical events and performances were held in the 2,222 seat concert hall.

Sarah Vaughan Sarah Lois Vaughan (, March 27, 1924 – April 3, 1990) was an American jazz singer and pianist. Nicknamed "Sassy" and "List of nicknames of jazz musicians, The Divine One", she won two Grammy Awards, including the Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

's 1973 album '' Live in Japan'' was recorded at the hall.

Scorpions Scorpions are predatory arachnids of the Order (biology), order Scorpiones. They have eight legs and are easily recognized by a pair of Chela (organ), grasping pincers and a narrow, segmented tail, often carried in a characteristic forward cur ...

recorded their legendary live album, '' Tokyo Tapes'', at this venue on April 24 & 27, 1978.

Kraftwerk Kraftwerk (, ) is a Germany, German Electronic music, electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk was among the first successful a ...

performed two dates here in 1981 on their Computer World tour. After the departure of

Keith Levene Julian Keith Levene (18 July 1957 – 11 November 2022) was an English musician who was a founding member of both the Clash and Public Image Ltd (PiL). While Levene was in PiL, their 1978 debut album '' Public Image: First Issue'' reached No. 2 ...

and

Jah Wobble John Joseph Wardle (born 11 August 1958), known by the stage name Jah Wobble, is an English bass guitarist and singer. He became known to a wider audience as the original bass player in Public Image Ltd (PiL) in the late 1970s and early 1980s; ...

Public Image Ltd Public Image Ltd (abbreviated and stylized as PiL) are an English post-punk band formed by lead vocalist John Lydon (previously, as Johnny Rotten, lead vocalist of the Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene (a founding member of the Clash), bassi ...

consisting of

John Lydon John Joseph Lydon ( ; born 31 January 1956), also known by his former stage name Johnny Rotten, is a British-born singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. He was the lead vocalist of the punk rock band the Sex Pistols, which was ...

Martin Atkins Martin Clive Atkins (born 3 August 1959) is an English drummer, best known for his work in post-punk and industrial groups including Public Image Ltd, Ministry, Nine Inch Nails, Pigface, and Killing Joke. He also works as a consultant, has ...

and session musicians played live at the Sunplaza on the 1 and 2 July 1983. 10 tracks from these live performances were first released on Columbia Records Japan as '' Live in Tokyo''.

Iron Maiden Iron Maiden are an English Heavy metal music, heavy metal band formed in Leyton, East London, in 1975 by bassist and primary songwriter Steve Harris (musician), Steve Harris. Although fluid in the early years of the band, the line-up for most ...

performed here (1981, 1982, 1985, 1996 and 1998). U2 ended their

War Tour The War Tour was a concert tour by the Irish Rock music, rock band U2, which took place in 1982 and 1983 in support of the group's third album ''War (U2 album), War''.Exact delineation of this tour is subject to various interpretations. U2's w ...

on November 30, 1983, at the plaza hall. On May 11, 1986

Sade Sade may refer to: People * Marquis de Sade (1740–1814), French aristocrat, writer, and libertine; namesake of the word ''sadism'' * Sade (singer) (born 1959, Helen Folasade Adu), British Nigerian musician and lead singer of the eponymous band * ...

performed as part of their Promise Tour.

Todd Rundgren Todd Harry Rundgren (born June 22, 1948) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer who has performed a diverse range of styles as a solo artist and as a member of the bands Nazz and Utopia. He is known for his sophistica ...

recorded his live video ''Live in Japan'' at the hall during his ''Nearly Human'' tour in 1990. The Japanese metal band Dead End held their last concert here on January 21, 1990.

Nirvana Nirvana, in the Indian religions (Jainism, Hinduism, Buddhism, and Sikhism), is the concept of an individual's passions being extinguished as the ultimate state of salvation, release, or liberation from suffering ('' duḥkha'') and from the ...

held their final Japanese concert here on February 19, 1992. The concert portions of

Dream Theater Dream Theater is an American progressive metal band formed in 1985 in Boston, Massachusetts. The band comprises John Petrucci (guitar), John Myung (bass), Mike Portnoy (drums), James LaBrie (vocals) and Jordan Rudess (keyboards). Dream Theat ...

's ''Images and Words: Live in Tokyo'' video were filmed at the hall.

DJ Ozma , known professionally as DJ Ozma (stylized DJ OZMA) and legally as , is a Japanese pop singer and musical artist. He is also known as Show Ayanocozey of the rock band Kishidan and Naomi Camelia Yazima of the drag queen pop group Yazima Beaut ...

filmed his 2008 concert "Viva la Scandal Party" at the Nakano Sunplaza stop of the tour. Highlights were released as part of the exclusive box set of his final album, "I ♡ Party People 3".

Closure and Response

Leading up to the building's closure and demolition after 50 years, a series of commemorative concerts celebrating the hall's existence and marking its closure, entitled Sayonara Nakano Sun Plaza Ongakusai and featuring artists such as

Flumpool Flumpool (stylized as flumpool) are a Japanese rock band. The band, originally from Osaka Prefecture, was formed in January 2007. The band's name is a portmanteau of the words ''four'' (from the number of members in the band), ''lump'', and '' ...

, Ziyoou-Vachi,

Reol REOL (stylized as RΞOL) was a Japanese musical unit that consisted of vocalist/lyricist Reol, Vocaloid music arranger GigaP, and movie director/producer Okiku. The members of REOL originally worked as solo artists, but they signed to Toy's Fac ...

and Tatsurou Yamashita, was held between May 1 and July 2 of 2023. Richard Koyama-Daniels, writing for

Tokyo Weekender ''Tokyo Weekender'' is an English-language magazine published in Japan. Founded in 1970 by Corky Alexander and Susan Scully, ''Tokyo Weekender'' was first published bi-monthly. Now ''Tokyo Weekender'' is published monthly and is distributed in e ...

contextualized the loss of a, "much-loved municipal landmark" by labeling the replacing of culturally significant buildings in the city such as the Sunplaza to be, "A Casualty of Capitalism".

References

External links

Tokyo Architecture Info

{{Coord, 35.707522, 139.664684, type:landmark, display=title Music venues in Tokyo Hotels in Tokyo Buildings and structures in Nakano, Tokyo Hotel buildings completed in 1973 Music venues completed in 1973 1973 establishments in Japan