Shoji Tabuchi

was a Japanese-American country music fiddler and singer who performed at his theater, the Shoji Tabuchi Theatre, in Branson, Missouri. Nicknamed "The King of Branson", Tabuchi won numerous awards and was inducted into the National Fiddler Hall of Fame in 2020.

Early life Shoji Tabuchi was born on April 16, 1944, in Daishōji, Ishikawa, Japan (now Kaga, Ishikawa, Japan). After the encouragement of his mother, Tabuchi took up the violin at age 7 and studied using the Suzuki method.

Career In the mid-1960s, when Tabuchi was a sophomore in college in Osaka, Japan, he saw a performance by Roy Acuff and became enamored with bluegrass music after hearing Acuff's fiddler Howdy Forrester perform "Listen to the Mockingbird". After meeting Acuff backstage, Tabuchi went on to form a band called the Bluegrass Ramblers, who won a national contest in Japan. In 1967, he eschewed graduating from college in order to emigrate to San Francisco with only his violin and a few hundred dollars.

After living in San Francisco, Kansas City, and Louisiana, Tabuchi moved to Nashville to reconnect with Acuff, who arranged for Tabuchi to perform on Grand Ole Opry, From 1970 to 1975, Tabuchi toured as the opening act for country musician David Houston. Tabuchi would perform with many other country artists, including Tammy Wynette, Mel Tillis, George Jones, Barbara Mandrell, Johnny Cash, Ray Stevens, Dolly Parton pop music and showtunes, While the fire only covered a 10-by-10 foot area, smoke spread throughout the auditorium and into the lobby and there was additional water damage.

Accolades Tabuchi received several accolades throughout his career, including the Japanese Foreign Minister's Award, the Missourian Award, and the Americanism Medal from the Daughters of the American Revolution.

Tabuchi won several Ozark Music Awards, including Entertainer of the Year, and was named their Instrumentalist of the Year four times. He was also the recipient of the Branson Terry Awards Lifetime Achievement and Humanitarian Award. In 2021, the city of Branson declared August 31 to be "Shoji, Dorothy, and Christina Tabuchi Day", in honor of the family's contributions to the city.

The documentary Shoji Tabuchi: An American Dream premiered at Branson IMAX Entertainment Complex's 9th annual Military Film Festival in November 2021.

Personal life Tabuchi became an American citizen in 1998. Lingo helped with numerous production aspects of The Shoji Tabuchi Show, such as choreography, costume design, and the theater's interior design. Tabuchi's stepson, Thomas Jason Lingo-Tabuchi, died at age 19. It was finally viewed on the fourth "Wheel of the Worst" (episode 16) on March 5, 2014, and was voted "Best of the Worst", meaning it was the most entertaining video of the night.

Discography 1973: Japan to Nashville (not on label) 1975: Country Music My Way (ABC/Dot) 1978: Fiddles & Sings (Jin) 1980: Live at the Grapevine Opry (ASR/TM4) 1984: Classy (Shoji Entertainments) 1987: Fiddlin' Around (Shoji Entertainments) 1996: Notes from Shoji (Shoji Entertainments) 2000: Different Moods: Collection One (Shoji Entertainments) 2002: The Shoji Tabuchi Show! Volume IV (Shoji Entertainments) 2007: Music From My Heart (Shoji Entertainments)

Dates unknown In Concert (ASR) Songs for the Lord...And You! (Shoji Entertainments) Live from Branson (Shoji Entertainments) Shoji After Dark (Shoji Entertainments) Rove Retters From Shoji (ASR)