A wonderful collection of later work from this legendary Japanese pianist – a set that's named after his famous Watarase album from years back, but which includes some unusual live recordings and material that we haven't seen elsewhere! Some of the tracks here really break the standard piano trio format of some of Fumio Itabashi's other albums, but still glow in that boldly spiritual, soulful style he brought to his work from the 70s onwards – and the set features a duet with alto player Kazutoki Umezo, a quintet title with tenorist Tetsuro Kawashima and trumpeter Shinpei Ruike, a live trio track, and the last a never-heard 1981 solo demo performance of the tune! LP, Vinyl record album

A wonderful collection of later work from this legendary Japanese pianist – a set that's named after his famous Watarase album from years back, but which includes some unusual live recordings and material that we haven't seen elsewhere! Some of the tracks here really break the standard piano trio format of some of Fumio Itabashi's other albums, but still glow in that boldly spiritual, soulful style he brought to his work from the 70s onwards – and the set features one track that's a duet with drummer Takeo Moriyama, another that's a duet with alto player Kazutoki Umezo, a quintet title with tenorist Tetsuro Kawashima and trumpeter Shinpei Ruike, two solo tracks, and one trio number that features Fumio on melodica – an instrument we're not sure we've ever heard him perform on before! Most tracks are titled "Watarase", in variations of his famous tune – but the performances are very different, and mostly include live material from the 2010s, plus one more track from 2001, and a never-released demo from 1981 too. CD

A really hard-burning live set, and one that's led by two giants of the Japanese jazz scene – drummer Takeo Moriyama and pianist Fumio Tabashi – both of whom work here with an edge that's maybe even bolder than some of their music from back in the day! Part of the album's boldness comes from the work of Tetsuro Kawashima on tenor and Shinpei Ruike on trumpet – both players we don't know at all, but who can really set a fire with their solos at all the right moments – opening up the extended tracks with a heck of a lot of righteous power. The group also has strong basswork from Shinichi Kato, another younger player – and titles include "Watarase", "Sunrise", "Goodbye", "Alligator Dance", and "Ganbane Tohoku No 2". CD