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Story: Nick M.
Photos: Nick M., The NCO Club
With a blend of music, cocktails and a sophisticated atmosphere, authentic jazz bars can be found all over Asia.
The classic jazz bar is all ambience, with velvet curtains, a neon glow and the sweet sounds of trumpet, piano and drums. Emerging in the U.S., jazz bars have made their way all over the globe and Asia is home to many that perfectly capture a nostalgic atmosphere while showcasing the region’s top musicians.
Saxophone (Thailand)
In business for three decades, Saxophone has been ranked by various travel magazines as the best jazz bar in Thailand for years. Saxophone is known among visitors and locals alike as a venue for top musicians as well as for its selection of Thai cuisine and creative cocktails.
The bar is set on two stories and characterized by an East-West fusion décor. Saxophones are hung high on the ceiling as a great visual focus, while. each month the bar hosts exhibitions by independent artists. Revenue from these events are donated to the Sound & Vision Fund, which raises funds for art education for kids.
Apart from jazz performances from top local musicians and bands such as Koh Mr. Saxman, T-Bone and The Emergency, visitors can also relish Thai cuisine such as Tom Yum Goong, lime sautéed grilled pork and steamed shrimps with coconut.
Add: 3/8 Phayathai Road Victory Monument, Bangkok, Thailand
Bar Music (Japan)
Tokyo is one of the busiest urban centers in the world, with locations such as its iconic Shibuya Crossing hosting thousands of pedestrians a minute. However, nearby is another world, a hidden oasis dedicated to jazz and vinyl records on the fifth floor of a run-down old building. Founded in 2010, Bar Music is owned by DJ Tomoaki Nakamura.
Passing through the Dogenzaka neighborhood, with its countless izakaya vendors on the streets, and taking the elevator to the fifth floor of the building, visitors will enter a world that seems to be something out of a a Haruki Murakami novel. Music from vinyl records of the 50s and 60s fills the dimly lit room, while a bartender greets his guests smiling and swinging over the trumpet sounds of Chet Baker.
Bar Music boasts a variety of good cocktails, best of all is its collection of Japanese whisky. Thousands of jazz records and CDs are on sale right here, selected by the owner himself. Visitors can also pick out any vinyl record and enjoy it on their own. Rarely overcrowded with tourists, Bar Music is a great place for lonesome souls searching look for a place to drink and listen to jazz from vinyl records on a chilly winter evening.
Add: 5th Flr., 1-6-7 Dogenzaka, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan
Cool Cats (Singapore)
Singapore is famously the real-life setting of Crazy Rich Asians, the recent Hollywood phenomenon that lampooned the lives of the city-state’s uber-wealthy denizens. The city is also home to some of the classiest jazz bars in Asia; among these, Cool Cats is definitely one of the places to be, reserved for those passionate about this intricated and sophisticated genre.
Cool Cats is spacious and decorated in a 1920s style, calling back to the golden age of jazz in the United States. Every evening, musicians perform classic jazz and blues, recalling the era when Hollywood legends donned their most fabulous outfits and hit the town to drink cocktails and listen to jazz.
Cool Cats features vocalists and musicians from throughout the world. The lighting is dim and steeped in blue, enhanced with cozy yellow candlelight. Visitors who crave a La La Land setting will certainly find some similarities between Cool Cats and the Seb’s of that hit film.
Add: The NCO Club, 32 Beach Road, Singapore .
