A wonderful session from one of our favorite Japanese pianists – and a session that's done with equal parts acoustic piano and Fender Rhodes! Takehiro Honda's getting some great help here from Ron Carter on bass and Tony Williams on drums – gently grooving on most of the album's best numbers, with a vibe that reminds us of some of the best Herbie Hancock Japanese trio sessions from the 70s – recorded with a similarly open, spacious vibe! The Fender Rhodes tracks are great, but the acoustic numbers groove pretty nicely too – and Honda's definitely pulled out some of his most rhythmic modes for this album, really opening up in the company of the American players. Titles include "Wonder", "Longing", "Puddle", "Spirits Flow", and "Calypso Street". LP, Vinyl record album

Straight trio grooving from Takehiro Honda – but pretty darn great work nonetheless! The album's a nice bridge between the harder, more rhythmic pulse of his early soul jazz sessions, and the later, freer sound of his more lyrical trio sides – and the whole album shows Honda opening up with a new sense of freedom, really taking off on the keys of the piano, while still keeping a nicely understated groove going at the bottom. The rest of the trio includes Yoshio Suzuki on bass and Kan Murakami on drums – and titles include "Sunny", "I Love You", "Autumn Leaves", "Willow Weep For Me", and "Here's That Rainy Day". LP, Vinyl record album

Some of the earliest work we've ever seen from Japanese keyboard legend Takehiro Honda – a great batch of trio tracks, recorded with an open spirit and freely soaring vibe! Honda's playing acoustic piano throughout – working in a trio with Yoshio Suzuki and Fumio Watanabe – and his style here is often heavier on the left hand than in later work – clearly influenced by American soul jazz players of the 60s, and carried off with the skill to match! There's some great bluesy undercurrents on the best numbers – but still played with some of the greater freedoms of the Japanese trio style – and titles include "Emergency", "CMT & T", "This Guy's In Love With You", and "Hakai To Jojyo". 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