Albums

Delight - Chikara Tsuzuki BUY | LISTEN

On Delight, Tsuzuki is accompanied by several talented musicians, including Yoshiro Nakamura (guitar), Toru Tsuzuki and Yasuharu Nakanishi (piano & keyboards), Takashi Oka and Toru Kase (bass), Kazunori Sato and Hideki Nakamura (drums). more…

Cinematique is an album which features Doky performing unique versions of classic movie songs and themes. Included on this album is Doky’s excellent renditions of “The Godfather Theme” (by Enrico Morricone), “Goldfinger” (John Barry), “Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence” (Ryuichi Sakamoto), “My Favorite Things” (Rodgers & Hammerstein), “Nothing To Lose” (Henry Mancini), and “One Day I’ll Fly Away” (Joe Sample). more…

Their third album Blue Sky Blue (which was recorded in 2007) contains 13 songs, 12 which were written by the group (by Akiyama, Ichimura and Nishizawa). The 13th song is their unique interpretation of a classical Chopin composition (“Chopin: 24 Preludes No. 7 In A Major”). The album is very consistent throughout, featuring the group’s excellent musicianship on a wide range of compositions, from beautiful ballads to dynamic uptempo numbers. more…

This album is a very appealing, enjoyable collection of jazz/pop renditions of Christmas classic songs and some new, original holiday material. Christmas For Anyone? (which was recorded in 1997) brings together a terrific group of prominent, Japanese and international jazz musicians, to perform the nine Christmas/holiday songs here. more…

Doky released this Listen Up! album in 2000. It’s a fun, funky album, which includes Doky’s unique renditions of Prince’s “1999” (combined with Herbie Hancock’s “Cataloupe Island”), Bonnie Raitt’s “All At Once,” and “Rocks” by Randy Brecker. The album also contains several fine compositions by Doky, including “The Dapper King,” “Rain,” “Asiacanese,” and “Reincarnated.” more…

Their second album I Love You (which was recorded in 2006) is an impressive collection of graceful ballads, soaring uptempo cuts, and appealing midtempo songs. Notably, jaja won the 2006 Best New Artist award for I Love You in the popular music magazine Adlib in Japan. Throughout this excellent album, Yukio Akiyama’s soprano sax skills and his songwriting expertise are on full display. more…

Miyano’s excellent album Crystallized was recorded in 1997. It features 11 instrumental compositions which were written or co-written by Miyano. These songs are elegant, graceful recordings which spotlights Miyano’s outstanding, acoustic guitar performances. In addition, Miyano on this album is accompanied by an array of top jazz musicians. more…

Doky released his Minh album in 1998, following two albums he recorded with the Doky Brothers. He recruited an all-star cast of musicians to join him on this excellent album. Minh features such prestigious musicians as David Sanborn (sax), Michael Brecker (sax), Randy Brecker (trumpet), Mike Stern and David Gilmore (guitars), Lenny White and Paul Peterson (drums), Ricky Peterson and Joey Calderazzo (keyboards). In addition, the album features guest vocal  more…

Their album jaja is an excellent collection of beautiful ballads, exciting uptempo cuts, and appealing midtempo songs. Yukio Akiyama’s soprano sax skills and his songwriting expertise are on full display here. more…

This is a terrific collection of classic songs written by James Taylor, which are performed by an all-star group of top jazz & pop vocalists and musicians. Recorded in 2000 and produced by Tim Weston, this 11-song album provides a balanced mix of exceptional vocal renditions, and outstanding instrumental performances. more…

Matsuoka’s album Emerald was recorded in 1997, and he wrote all nine of the compositions on this album. Matsuoka is accompanied on this album by a stellar group of musicians, including Getao Takahashi (bass), Akira Sotoyama (drums), Rie Akagi (flute), Koichi Suzuki (trumpet), Shigeharu Mukai (trombone), Hidefumi Toki and Tatsuya Sato (sax) and Hitoshi Hamada (vibraphone). more…

Akagi’s album Café Nostalgia is an excellent collection of songs which showcases her outstanding flute playing, and her songwriting ability. Akagi composed four of the eight songs on this album (the title cut “Café Nostalgia,” “No Hay Amor,” “Este La Lluvia,” and “La Poema”). Other noteworthy songs on the album are “La Brisa Del Sur” (by Carlito Infante) and “Armando’s Rumba” (Chick Corea).  more…

His band The Lenny White Project recorded in 1998 this excellent album, Tribute To Earth Wind & Fire; The Love Has Never Gone. This album consists of eight classic Earth Wind & Fire songs, uniquely performed by White and his outstanding jazz ensemble. The all-star group of musicians featured on this album include Ron Carter (bass), Patrice Rushen (piano), Bireli Lagrene (guitar), Wallace Roney (trumpet), Antoine Roney (saxophone) more…

Chan’s album Travelling Under The Light Of The Full Moon (which was recorded in 1997) is a beautiful collection of graceful ballads and appealing midtempo tunes. He uniquely combines classical pop elements with distinctive Asian styles. Chan wrote all 12 songs on this album. If you like Josh Groban’s classical pop style mixed in with Asian music elements, you will enjoy listening to this album. more…

An all-star cast of jazz & pop musicians assembled for this innovative tribute to the songs of Beach Boys legend Brian Wilson. This album, which was originally recorded and released in 1997, is a sparkling collection of 17 songs which brings a fresh jazz perspective to this classic material. Notably, Steve Khan was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Instrumental Arrangement on “Don’t Worry Baby.” more…