A never-issued live set from Japanese pianist Ryo Fukui – a tremendous player who was part of a special new generation of piano players in the 70s – very warm and fluid, but always with a sense of adventure too – in ways that make music like this very different than American work of the time! All tracks are nice and long, and Fukui begins the set with his classic "Mellow Dream" – spun out in an extended take with superb accompaniment from Satoshi Denpo on bass and Yoshinori Fukui on drums. As with so many of Ryo's recordings, the vibe here is far past a simple standard trio setting – as you'll hear on the group's inventive readings of titles that include "Mr PC", "Speak Low", "Body & Soul", and "Love For Sale". LP, Vinyl record album

A well-titled album from Japanese pianist Ryo Fukui – one that's got a warm sense of flow that takes it well past conventional piano trio work! The group here features Fukui on piano, Satoshi Denpo on bass, and Yoshinori Fukui on drums – all working together beautifully as a unit – with a vibe set fire by Ryo's work on the keys, and a sense of imagination that makes even familiar tunes sound completely fresh. The whole thing's in the best Japanese piano tradition of the 70s – that wonderful new territory explored by key pianists like Fukui – with a sound that's open and free, but never avant either. Titles include "Mellow Dream", "Baron Potato Blues", "Horizon", "What's New", and "My Funny Valentine". LP, Vinyl record album

A lost chapter in the career of Japanese pianist Ryo Fukui – a beautiful solo set recorded quite a few years after his famous early classics – but a set that shows Fukui still every bit as full of imagination as before! There's no bass or drums on the set, but many tunes have Ryo taking off with an inherent sense of rhythm that's really wonderful – lyrical leaps on the keys of the piano that just keep charming us all over again – both on tunes of his own, and favorites by Sonny Clark and Barry Harris! The sound quality is wonderful – and really gets at that subtle attack that Fukui can bring to the piano – on titles that include "Voyage", "Scenery", "Mellow Dream", "Nobody's", "My Conception", and "Nord". LP, Vinyl record album

Lyrical magic from pianist Ryo Fukui – a lost gem from the Japanese scene of the 70s, and a beautifully flowing album throughout! Fukui's got a wide-open touch to the piano that we totally love – and is easily one of the best of his contemporaries on the Japanese trio scene of the time – working in the open-ended mode that was allowed by labels in Tokyo during the 70s, a style that was never too far outside, but which really allowed the pianist to soar with a driving, rhythmic intensity. There's a bit of a modal groove to some of the tracks on the album, but more than that, there's just a beautiful sense of freedom – a love of sound and texture that's never reduced to mere experimentation, and which has Ryo taking full command of the keys to soar to the skies on waves of acoustic soul. The group on the set features Yoshinori Fukui on drums and Satoshi Denpo on bass – and tracks include "I Want To Talk About You", "Scenery", "Autumn Leaves", "Early Summer", and "It Could Happen To You". CD

Lyrical magic from pianist Ryo Fukui – a lost gem from the Japanese scene of the 70s, and a beautifully flowing album throughout! Fukui's got a wide-open touch to the piano that we totally love – and is easily one of the best of his contemporaries on the Japanese trio scene of the time – working in the open-ended mode that was allowed by labels in Tokyo during the 70s, a style that was never too far outside, but which really allowed the pianist to soar with a driving, rhythmic intensity. There's a bit of a modal groove to some of the tracks on the album, but more than that, there's just a beautiful sense of freedom – a love of sound and texture that's never reduced to mere experimentation, and which has Ryo taking full command of the keys to soar to the skies on waves of acoustic soul. The group on the set features Yoshinori Fukui on drums and Satoshi Denpo on bass – and tracks include "I Want To Talk About You", "Scenery", "Autumn Leaves", "Early Summer", and "It Could Happen To You". LP, Vinyl record album

Lyrical magic from pianist Ryo Fukui – a lost gem from the Japanese scene of the 70s, and a beautifully flowing album throughout! Fukui's got a wide-open touch to the piano that we totally love – and is easily one of the best of his contemporaries on the Japanese trio scene of the time – working in the open-ended mode that was allowed by labels in Tokyo during the 70s, a style that was never too far outside, but which really allowed the pianist to soar with a driving, rhythmic intensity. There's a bit of a modal groove to some of the tracks on the album, but more than that, there's just a beautiful sense of freedom – a love of sound and texture that's never reduced to mere experimentation, and which has Ryo taking full command of the keys to soar to the skies on waves of acoustic soul. The group on the set features Yoshinori Fukui on drums and Satoshi Denpo on bass – and tracks include "I Want To Talk About You", "Scenery", "Autumn Leaves", "Early Summer", and "It Could Happen To You". LP, Vinyl record album

Takumi Awaya's pictured on the cover along with his bass – in an image that will give you an idea of the richness of the set, with Awaya's instrument often stepping out as the leading force of the trio – alongside the piano of Takuma Yamamoto and Naoki Takahashi! Yamamoto still gets in plenty of space, but the record, which is a live one, is often a lot more about the interaction between bass and piano instead of just having the piano in the lead – captured with warm tones that really recall some of the more inventive Japanese trio sessions of the 70s. Titles include a great remake of the Ryo Fukui tune "Mellow Dream" – plus "Pretty Woodstock", "Breeze Suite", "I Should Care", and "Too Late Now". CD