J-Jazz (Japanese Jazz)

Yeah I feel the same way about the ones I picked up. Not offensive just lacking a bit. Get Happy was the best out of the three. Some great percussion and the first song is a groovy soul-jazz song.
 
surrealmadrid75 said:
One of my favourite releases of the year is having a worldwide release on November 15th. Naoito's DotA. Originally released on Japan's Jazzy Sport label, this was imposible to get hold of. Japanese afrobeat

dotA [VINYL]: Amazon.co.uk: Music

Shop dotA [VINYL]. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders.
www.amazon.co.uk

☆.A, by ☆.A/NAOITO
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This is really great. I'm going to need to pick this up for sure. Thanks so much for the recommendation!
 
Selaws said:
As a discussion topic, has anyone had chance to listen to the latest in the BBE J-Jazz Masterclass Series, Miyasaka + 5 – Animals Garden?

It is officially out on the 8th of this month (4 days from now!) but I have started to see instagram posts of people listening to their copies, so maybe they shipped out early.

I listened to the whole album this morning (streaming) and its really enjoyable. The lead is drummer Takashi ‘Bear’ Miyasaka , but I was as impressed, if not more, by Koichi Matsukaze on sax as he has some really powerful solos which he delivers perfectly. On a side note, Matasukaze's album Earth Mother was reissued by BBE last year.

I will certainly pick up Animals Garden on vinyl, its a fair price at £25 for the 2LP set and if the presentation is like the others it will likely be in a nice gatefold with a large liner notes in the spread.
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I have my order placed since August 26th on Amazon.co.uk but haven't even received a shipping notice. It now says that it should arrive on November 14th. I read on IG that BBE store already have the records in their store in London but other retailers will probably have to wait until release date. I might be mistaken but I read somewhere that the records got remastered at 45rpm so the sounding shoul be great :)

Just when I say that, I go to BBE web store and see that the next volume in the J-Jazz Masterclass serie can now be pre-ordered and will be released on February 20th!

Hideto Sasaki, Toshiyuki Sekine Quartet + 1 – Stop Over
BBE Music presents the sixth release in its acclaimed J Jazz Masterclass Series: ‘Stop Over’ by Hideto Sasaki – Toshiyuki Sekine Quartet +1. Released at the height of the electric fusion era, ‘Stop Over’ is an all-acoustic hard bop killer, sounding like the Jazz Messengers on speed. When it was originally issued on the private Smile label in 1976, only 100 copies were pressed, making ‘Stop Over’ one of the most sought after and rare LPs in the J Jazz canon.
Trumpeter Hideto Sasaki tears it up as if he’s Kenny Dorham on a classic late 50s Blue Note session. He also provides the breakneck title track to the album, the one stunning original that sits next to solid covers including Bobby Hutcherson’s modal classic ‘Little B’s Poem’ and Denny Zeitlin’s ‘Carole’s Garden’. Pianist Toshiyuki Sekine is also on top form with his deft touch and fluid keyboard runs, playing Horace Silver to Sasaki’s Dorham. If you dig that late 50s/early 60s breathless hard bop sound, you’ll love this.
Licensed and released with the approval of Toshiyuki Sekine himself, ‘Stop Over’ will be available for download and streaming, as a CD and double vinyl LP, the first vinyl reissue of this amazing album since originally slipping out to family and friends in 1976. With a deluxe packaging and translated sleeve notes, there will also be new notes and an interview with Toshiyuki Sekine.
The BBE J Jazz Masterclass Series is personally curated by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden and is dedicated to presenting the very finest in Japanese modern jazz. The series features rare material presented in the highest quality reproductions of the original releases, fully licensed and authorised.
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EDIT: I am afraid this might be the last record in the Masterclass serie. At least it's the only one that was missing on the few records pictured on the OBI :

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mitchwagz said:
Anyone have opinions about the Audio Lab label? Supposedly they “rivaled” Three Blind Mice in the 70’s in sound quality and shared some of the same artists at times. The label was masterminded by Okihiko Sugano who many claim is the Japanese Rudy Van Gelder. I picked up three releases and they do indeed sound great even if the music isn’t as transcendent as, say, the titles from the TBM box.

The titles I picked up are:
Takeshi Inomata and His Friends- Get Happy
Kazuo Yashiro Trio- I’deal
Eiji Kitamura + Kazuo Yashiro Trio- Right Oh
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Never heard of this label but, thanks to you, I found more music to listen to :)

mitchwagz said:
Good price for the Three Blind Mice 45 RPM box by the way: The Three Blind Mice 45 Box 180g 45rpm 6LP Box Set
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I sent an email to Elusive Disc but haven't received any answer yet. Shipping to France is automatically marked at +$70, can't believe it would be that expensive to ship this quite heavy box to France.
 
I see in the main post two of my favourite releases from the last year when I started exploring J Jazz aren't linked:

Ichiro Fujiya & Takeshi Kurihara - Elephant And A Barbar
Hizuru - Hizuru

(Both are available at HHV including a coloured copy of Hizuru:

)

I found with these two releases in particular they seem to have a distinct sound - more of a fusion as they've used Japanese instruments - and the pieces of music sound beautifully delicate... delicate is not a word I'd normally use to describe most Jazz records and I've found with a lot of the other albums here linked (they are awesome, don't get me wrong), they seem more to be Japanese artists replicating western styles.

I would love to read a book on J-Jazz to familiarize myself with the artists and styles. Embarrassingly I know all these albums by their covers but I can never remember the artist names and always have to look up my collection in discogs when I need to recommend them to someone. :oops:

By the way would Mark de Clive-Lowe's Heritage project and the Ronin Arkestra releases count as J Jazz. They're fantastic!!
 
I shared this a while ago (maybe even on the old forum) but this is the perfect place for it.

A Tsunami Washes Away 10,000 Albums, But The Music Plays On

What I personally found super interesting is the short paragraph at the beginning highlighting how jazz was first introduced to Japan:

'Japanese love jazz. The music came to Japan in the early 1920s by way of Filipino jazz bands who learned it from American GIs during the American occupation of the Philippines in the early 20th century. During the U.S. occupation of Japan after World War II, Japanese jazz flowered.'

My final thesis for my Architectural studies was based around the design of housing within the Philippines and how it was affected over the years due to diaspora (the spread of people from their original homelands). The American occupation of GI's in parts of the country played a big part in their life as a whole, but I never put 2+2 together when it comes to the spread further North, to Japan. Super interesting that they would take jazz across to Japan.
 
Toshiyuki Miyama & The New Herd - Nio & Pigeon available from Gibert Joseph in France at 39,99€. They shipped the record today .Sadly I had The Great Harvest pre-ordered too but they cancelled my order :(

Anyway, it's a "good deal" since you won't have to support customs and handle fees.

www.gibert.com

Nio & Pigeon - Vinyle

Recorded 9 & 16 May 1972. <br/><br/><br/><br/><strong>Tracklist : </strong><br/><br/>A1. Hide And Seek <br/>A2. A Sun Shower Parade <br/>A3. Grief For Enka <br/>A4. Nio And Pigeon <br/>A5. When A Swan Goes To Sleep <br/>B1. Streams Of The
www.gibert.com www.gibert.com
 
uvwxVinyl said:
Have you received this? Any word on the pressing?
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Yes - received this a whlie back. To my ears it sounds fantastic - especially after I gave it a clean. I was initually worried about what the quality would be like but it's great and would reccomend. The colour is nothing much to shout about and would probably prefer black.
 
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