Japanese reedman Sadao Watanabe joins this hip trio on alto – with Hank Jones on piano, Ron Carter on bass, and Tony Williams on drums! LP, Vinyl record album

A key fusion set from Sadao Watanabe – a record that has him moving away from some of the bolder tones of the early 70s, into warmly soulful territory that would him him find a much bigger international audience! The album's still got a nice sharp edge, though – as it's recorded in that key Japanese fusion stretch of the late 70s – a time when the overseas scene was digging some of the best elements from American electric jazz, and putting them together with a style that was clean, lean, and still plenty soulful. Watanabe's reeds get some great help here from American players who include Dave Grusin on Fender Rhodes, Lee Ritenour on guitar, Oscar Brashear on trumpet, and Ernie Watts on tenor – and rhythms feature tight drums from Harvey Mason, plus extra percussion from Paulinho Da Costa. Cuts include "Duo-Creatics", "Desert Ride", "Ngoma Party", "Seventh High", "My Country", "Turning Pages Of Wind", and "California Shower". LP, Vinyl record album

Beautiful bossa nova from 60s Japan – groundbreaking work from the young Sadao Watanabe! Like one of his obvious influences, Stan Getz, Watanabe had a great role in bringing the bossa nova out of Brazil – taking a music that had already been introduced to Japan a few years before, and giving it even wider exposure with his wonderfully soulful, jazz-based approach. And although there were earlier Japanese bossa albums, this one stands out as one of the true classics – the Getz/Gilberto set of 60s Japan, although without the vocals of that Verve date. Sadao plays both flute and alto sax, and backing is from a small combo that mixes in Brazilian-styled guitar and percussion next to the bass and drums. Watanabe's reeds have a raspy, off-kilter quality that's almost more human than most Brazilian jazz efforts of the time – and titles include versions of "Song Of The Jet", "Felicidade", "Reza", and "Morning Of The Carnival" – plus some nice originals like "America" and "Cupid's Song". LP, Vinyl record album

A great live set from Sadao Watanabe – one that shows the wealth of influences he'd been drawing on, from post-Coltrane spirituality, to African-oriented rhythms, to a slight bit of funk! The group's great – with Watanabe on flute, alto, and soprano sax, Takehiro Honda on Fender Rhodes and piano, Kazumi Watanabe on guitar, plus added bass, trombone, and percussion – and we especially like Honda's keyboards, which make any session like this an instant treat! The album's got a warm, soulful feeling, but a sharper edge than most of Watanabe's smoother work of the time – and titles include "Hiro", "Maraica", "Wana Tanzania", and "Mathari Terbenam". LP, Vinyl record album

A pivotal record in the career of this brilliant Japanese saxophonist – a set recorded in New York with a trio players from the American scene – done in a style that's even more freewheeling than most of Sadao Watanabe's previous work! Watanabe had always worked with unusual tones and phrasing from the start – but this album has him really stretching out on long long tracks – working on both soprano sax and flute, with Chick Corea on acoustic and electric piano, Miroslav Vitous on bass, and Jack DeJohnette on drums! The title track is an open-ended jam that takes up all of side one – and Watanabe balances things out with a bit of lyricism from time to time, showing him to be as rich in conception as the regular sort of reed players who might have worked with a trio like this. Titles include "Round Trip – Going & Coming", "Sao Paolo", and "Pastoral". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the sharpest altos of the east – heard here in a great early album! Sadao Watanabe sounds wonderful on the set – blowing in a quintet setting, with a groove that's a bit like Lou Donaldson on Blue Note at the same time – slightly modern at moments, but also laidback and soulful on the ballads, and always with a clear, crisp sound on the alto sax. Other players on the date include Akira Nakano on trumpet and Kazuo Yashiro on piano – but Watanabe's firmly in the lead on most numbers, getting plenty of space to carve out the tunes with his sharp-edged, youthful sound. Titles include "Greasy", "M&M", "Amen", "My Elegy", "Del Sasser", and "Romande". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the more obscure albums by this great reedman – recorded live, and with a loose feel that really points towards his changes to come in the 70s! The album's got a lively vibe that's quite a change from some of Watanabe's albums from a few years before – longer tracks, lots of new ideas, and a style that's really stretching out – yet never too far outside too. Sadao plays both alto and soprano sax – and the group features some especially great guitar from Yoshiaki Masuo – a musician who sometimes explodes in these sharp chromes, with a vibe that might have been right at home on a Gary Burton record from the late 60s. The rest of the group features Yoshio Suzuki on both acoustic and electric bass and Fumio Watanabe on drums – and titles include "Granny's Samba", "No More Blues", "This Guy's In Love With You", and "If I Said The Sky Was Fallin". LP, Vinyl record album

A beautiful early album from Sadao Watanabe – a Polydor session recorded before some of his better-known albums for Takt/Columbia, but done with a similar mix of soul jazz and bossa influences! Watanabe's horn has really sharpened up from his already-great earlier sides – and he's working with a sextet that also features trumpet and tenor alongside his own mix of alto sax and flute. The latter instrument is especially nice – used with a great deal of sensitivity at times, especially on some of the original compositions – and the album's a brilliant illustration of the great growth in Watanabe's music during the 60s – proof that the Japanese scene was ready to stretch away from any US or European influences. Titles include the originals "M&M", "Woman Talk", and "Lady Mako" – plus versions of Coltrane's "Naima" and Gary McFarland's "Train Samba" – and a cool modal take on "Chim Chim Cheree". LP, Vinyl record album

A really great meeting of talents – legendary reedman Sadao Watanabe, who'd already done plenty to bring the bossa nova to Japan by the time of this record – and a host of Brazilian musicians who further help him expand his groove! The combo is listed as Sadao's Brazilian 8 – and includes Jose Ferreira Godinho Filho on alto, Carlos Alberto Alcantara on tenor, Waldir De Barrios on trumpet, and Aparecido De Barros on trumpet – a group who are way more than just the added guitar and percussion that American musicians might use on such a set – although there's plenty of that here too! Watanabe's out front on alto and flute and he runs through a groovy set of bossa cuts that includes "Muito A Vontade", "Tristeza", "Barquinho Diferente", "Eu E A Brisa", "Bim Bom", and "E Nada Mais". LP, Vinyl record album

A rare recording from Charlie Mariano's "lost" years in Japan – an under-documented period of his career next to earlier American work and later 70s European fusion! At the time of the set, Charlie was living in Japan with (then) wife pianist Toshiko Akioshi – and opening up tremendously from a musical standpoint – exploring new sounds and new modes of expression that really took him a long way beyond the straighter jazz of his roots. This set has Charlie working with Japanese reedman Sadao Watanabe, in a session that features both players on alto sax, but also using folkloric flutes as well – mixing the crisper sax work with earthier, more organic tones that really make the album sound tremendous! This aspect of the record is featured on 2 long tracks – "God Has Mercy" and "Stone Garden Of Ryoanji" – both of which were written by Mariano, and which have a wonderful "jazz meets world" feel – nicely balanced by the more traditional jazz numbers "I Thought About You" and "Iberian Waltz", the latter of which is still a relatively exploratory Mariano number that runs for over 16 minutes! LP, Vinyl record album

A great little set, and one that features some of the best Japanese jazz acts of the late 60s – the quartet of alto player Sadao Watanabe, the combo of tenorist Akira Miyazawa, the Big 4 group of drummer George Kawaguchi, and the larger Sharps & Flats ensemble of Nobuo Hara! LP, Vinyl record album

Quite possibly the best of the non-Blue Note Blakey sides from the early 60s – and an excellent outing from the sextet version of the Jazz Messengers that included Freddie Hubbard, Curtis Fuller, Wayne Shorter, Cedar Walton, and Reggie Workman! The format here is a big tighter than some of Blakey's quintet sessions – with a bit more focus on the arrangements than before – but a change that's more than welcome to our ears, given the strength of the material and Walton's majestic command of the rhythms! Wellington Blakey joins the group on vocals on the track "Wellington's Blues" – but the best aspect of the album is its long Eastern-tinged jam tracks, very much in the mode of some of Horace Silver's work in a similar vein. Titles include Sadao Watanabe's "Nihon Bash", plus "Kyoto", "The High Priest", and "Never Never Land". LP, Vinyl record album

Sweet electric fusion from Dave Grusin – a set that has the keyboardist working with great help from Japanese saxophone legend Sadao Watanabe – plus help from Don Grusin on keyboards, Tom Browne on trumpet, Dave Valentin on flute, Bobby broom on guitar, and Marcus Miller on bass! LP, Vinyl record album

Amazing, simply amazing – and light years ahead of the staid sounds that Chico Hamilton was cutting in the 50s! Hamilton's one of those players who has an amazing range to his music – almost all of it really incredible, as Chico always shifts things up over time – continually trying new things, and new modes of expression – even though, given his popularity, he could have just kept recording the same things year after year. This album is true testament to that propensity for growth in Hamilton's music – a wonderfully unbridled set that's filled with unusual rhythms, odd instrumentation, and even some of the first touches of psychedelic jazz to appear in the 60s! Players include Sadao Watanabe on alto and flute, Gabor Szabo on guitar, Jimmy Cheatham on trombone, and Willie Bobo and Victor Pantoja on percussion – all working together in a really wonderful range of modes from track to track – always groovy, but also pretty far-reaching and exploratory too! Titles include "El Moors", "Helena", "Strange", "Marcheta", "El Chico", and "Conquistadores". LP, Vinyl record album

One of the grooviest albums of the 60s – a sublime blend of jazz, bossa, and easy – and a set that definitely lives up to its title! The album's probably the most perfect realization of the unique groove that Gary McFarland was going for back in the day – a mix of vibes, whistling, and wordless vocals, supported by some gently funky rhythms that use a fair bit of electric bass to underscore the groove! The lineup here is wonderful – with Bob Brookmeyer on trombone, Gabor Szabo on guitar, Grady Tate on drums, and Sadao Watanabe making a rare 60s US appearance on flute and tenor sax. Gary blends these instrumental elements perfectly for the record – and comes up with a completely unique sound that can only be described as "McFarlandy"! Amazing cuts include "Fried Bananas", "Bloop Bleep", and "Over Easy" – but the whole album's incredible, and other tracks include "The Sting Of The Bee", "Wine & Bread", "Here I Am", "The Hills Of Verdugo", and "The Moment Of Truth". LP, Vinyl record album

A mid 70s live recording by Japanese percussionist Masahiko Togashi – performed with help from a larger group that includes Sadao Watanabe on reeds, Masahiko Satoh on percussion, Shigeo Suzuki on reeds, and extra added percussion. Tracks are long and exploratory – usually beginning with spare percussion, and then slowly adding in additional instrumentation. The "spiritual nature" of the title is apt, as the exploratory style of the tunes is never too avant – simply searching and stretching, in a righteous, almost post-Coltrane way. Titles include "The Beginning", "Moving", "On The Footpath", and "Spiritual Nature". LP, Vinyl record album