"For Japanese people, min'yo is both the closest, and most distant, folk music" explains band-leader Katsumi Tanaka. "We may not feel it in our daily, urban lives, yet the melodies, the style of singing and the rhythm of the taiko drums are engrained in our DNA".

Initially indifferent to min'yo, a tragic event in recent Japanese history set Tanaka on his current path: "Following the Tohoku earthquake of 2011, I reflected on my life, work and identity. A fan of world music, I began searching for Japanese roots music I could identify with. Discovering mid-late 20th century acts like Hibari Misora, Chiemi Eri and the Tokyo Cuban Boys, I was captivated by their eccentric arrangements and how they mixed min'yo with latin and jazz music."

Lead singer Freddie Tsukamoto fell for min'yo after hearing a song from his hometown on a TV competition whilst in a restaurant. It was a revelation – until then he had been an aspiring jazz singer yet was uncomfortable singing in English. The restaurateur told him a min'yo teacher was his neighbour and the two connected. Tanaka and Freddie formed Minyo Crusaders in 2011 in Fussa, a city where the US military Yokota Air Base is located, in western Tokyo.

Recruiting other local musicians versed in afro and latin rhythms, they began hosting jam sessions at the Banana House, a building that was previously part of the military base and that used to house US soldiers. The band started recording their music, and their debut album "Echoes Of Japan" was released in 2017. It received huge acclaim in Japan and abroad, and was also released by British label Mais Um in 2019. Several European tours followed, as well as some US and South America gigs.

In this second opus, the Minyo Crusaders take us on a trip to Japanese folk songs fused with latin rhythms. Their unique arrangements breathe new life to classics like Kiso Bushi, Sado Okesa or Soran Bushi, among many other min'yo songs from all over Japan that were originally performed by Japanese fishermen, coal miners and sumo wrestlers hundreds of years ago. The magical groove created here proves once again that the Minyo Crusaders are one of the most dynamic representatives of the current Japanese world music scene. Yoi Yoi, Enjoy!

TRACK LISTING

1. Hiroshima Kiyari Ondo
2. Nanbu Tawaratsumi Uta
3. Haiya Bushi
4. Sado Okesa
5. Kaigara Bushi
6. Tairyo Utaikomi
7. Kiso Bushi
8. Soran Bushi

At the start of the 60s, a new wave of gospel-influenced jazz started to emerge, with hits such as Art Blakey & The Jazz Messengers' "Moanin'" and Cannonball Adderley's "Work Song" epitomizing this evolution in the genre. The terms "soul jazz" and "funky jazz" were coined as a way to describe this new sound that was making an impact in the US and also on the other sides of the Atlantic and Pacific oceans.

In 1964, Ray Charles made his first visit to Japan. Then, in 1968, Martha & The Vandellas and Stevie Wonder set foot in the country, followed by Sam & Dave in 1969, Ike & Tina Turner in 1970, and B.B. King in 1971. The TV show "Soul Train" also began airing in Japan in the early 1970s. A watershed moment happened in 1973 when Sammy Davis Jr. was cast in a TV commercial for Suntory whisky — and the influence of the US Black entertainment world had really landed, with soul, jazz, and funk artists becoming household names.

Nippon Columbia played a pivotal role during this turning point. The company had contracts with Buddah Records and Blue Thumb Records, releasing notable works by artists such as Gladys Knight & The Pips, Curtis Mayfield, The Crusaders, and The Pointer Sisters. At the same time, the label was also releasing several Japanese soul, jazz, and funk projects under the lead of music director Jiro Inagaki. Inagaki, a saxophonist who began his professional career in the early 1950s, honed his skills at U.S. military camps, where he shared his love of music with the Black servicemen. In the 1960s, he played with drummer Hideo Shiraki's band, which was widely considered to be Japan's representative group of the funky jazz movement. Later, Inagaki went on to pursue more cutting-edge sounds with his Soul Media project, including being a pioneering figure in the "jazz rock" genre. By working closely with Inagaki and his various musical projects, Nippon Columbia really placed the company at the center of an exciting and important period in Japanese music.

In 1965, Nippon Columbia opened a recording studio in Tokyo's Akasaka neighborhood. Akasaka was also home to the first ever discotheque in Japan, the legendary MUGEN, which ran from 1968 to 1987 and where many acts performed, including Con Funk Shun, the Bar-Kays, Ike & Tina Turner, B.B. King, Sam & Dave, Three Degrees, and Edwin Starr, as well as many local Japanese singers and musicians. This melting pot of creativity in the area led to the recording of many singles and albums by Japanese artists that were infused with the sounds of soul and funk. Most of these recordings were not available outside of Japan and remain rare and unknown musical gems. The selection you are holding in your hands is an explosive collection of 10 essential tracks released by the legendary Nippon Columbia label between 1969 and 1977, capturing the raw, unapparelled energy that was flowing through the air of the Akasaka streets at this electrifying time. Enjoy!

TRACK LISTING

1. Mieko Hirota - Soul Lady
2. Shinji Maki & Black Jack - Nabeyoko Soul
3. Tan Tan - Happy Day
4. Kenji Niinuma - Airenki
5. Hatsumi Shibata - Furui Fuku Nanka
6. Strawberry Jam - Arimasen
7. Mieko Hirota - Anata Ga Inakute Mo
8. Akira Yasuda & Beat Folk - Kaeroka Kaeroka (Single Version)
9. Miki Hirayama - Hatachi No Koi
10. Masaaki Sakai - Baby, Yuki Wo Dashite

After many years working as a buyer for several record stores, DJ Chintam opened his own Blow Up shop in 2018 in Tokyo's Shibuya district. A member of the Dayjam Crew and a specialist of soul, funk, rare groove and disco music, Chintam is also an expert of the home-brewed Wamono grooves. He supervised and wrote the legendary Wamono A to Z records guide book together with DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite.

For this brand new chapter in the highly acclaimed Wamono series, our man Chintam goes digging into the vaults of one of the most revered Japanese labels: Trio Records. Established in 1969 by audio manufacturer Trio Electronics, now known as Kenwood, the label - and its subsidiaries such as Showboat and Trash - released high quality music spanning a large variety of genres including rock, jazz, fusion, soundtracks and popular songs, until its end in 1984. Through the eight tracks selected here, Chintam unearths some dope drum breaks, heavy bass lines and funky horns, for an essential selection of jazz funk fusion and rare groove vibes produced on Trio between 1973 and 1981.

Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and boogie music developed throughout the years since the sixties in Japan!

TRACK LISTING

1. Tonpei Hidari - Tonpei No Hey You Blues
2. Chu Kosaka & Ultra - Kimagure Party
3. Kazushi Inamura - Go Yojin
4. Fumio Karashima - American Tango
5. Takao Uematsu - Mysterious Jump
6. Maximum - Ashita Tenki Ni Nare
7. Jun Miyauchi - Heartbreak Highway
8. Hiroshi Murakami & Dancing Sphinx - Baby, It's Trivial

Active as a professional DJ in Japan since the late eighties, DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite is also a renowned remixer, compiler and producer. An avid record collector and an expert of the Wamono style, Yoshizawa published the Wamono A to Z records guide book in 2015 which instantly sold-out. The book unveiled a myriad of beautiful and rare records from a highly prolific, but still then unknown, Japanese groove scene.

After many years working as a record buyer for several stores, DJ Chintam opened his own Blow Up shop in 2018 in Tokyo's Shibuya district. A member of the Dayjam Crew and a specialist of soul, funk, rare groove and disco music, Chintam is also an expert of the home-brewed Wamono grooves. He supervised and wrote the Wamono A to Z records guide book together with Yoshizawa.

In this second volume of the acclaimed Wamono series, Yoshizawa and Chintam dig into some of the best and rarest funky tunes produced in Japan during the seventies. Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and disco music developed throughout the years since the end of the sixties in Japan!

TRACK LISTING

1. Mieko Hirota - Theme Of "Doberman Cop"
2. Hiroshi Sato - Bad Junky Blues
3. Sammy With Jiro Inagaki & Soul Media - The In-And-Outer-Stomp-And-Shouter
4. Fujio Tokita - Watashi No Beatles
5. School Band - I Hope It's Fine
6. Bread & Butter - Devil Woman
7. Hatsumi Shibata - Singer Lady
8. Kan Mikami - Jikokeno No Samba
9. Akira Yasuda & Beat Folk - Yumura No Obaba
1.0 Pinky Chicks - Tosetsu Donpan Bushi

In the mid-seventies, discotheques were booming in Tokyo and all over Japan. When the Fatback Band topped the 1975 US charts with their infectious "Do The Bus Stop" hit, Japanese label Victor put out the following year the first Japan made Disco tune with "Sexy Bus Stop", released under the mysterious name Dr. Dragon & Oriental Express, a pseudonym for successful Japanese pop composer Kyohei Tsutsumi. "Sexy Bus Stop" became an instant hit in the country and, taking this opportunity, various Japanese record companies started releasing Disco music. From 1976 until the early 1980s the music was often recorded by skilled studio musicians, rather than by computer input, providing a really solid sound to the dancefloor. Disco music was also spreading into TV series, commercials and anime. From Godiego's monster hit "The Birth Of The Odyssey - Monkey Magic" to Pink Parachute's obscure (and excellent!) "Disco Great Tokyo" tune, this selection explores some of the finest Disco and Boogie music released on the legendary Nippon Columbia label in the late seventies and early eighties. Are you ready? Put your dance shoes on, and enjoy!

TRACK LISTING

1. Godiego - The Birth Of The Odyssey - Monkey Magic
2. Ikue Sakakibara - This Is Hot
3. Soul Media - I Will Give You Samba
4. Hatsumi Shibata - Purple Shadow
5. Yumi Murata - Krishna
6. Yoshito Machida・Godiego - Ame Wa Knife No Yo Sa
7. Pink Parachute - Disco Great Tokyo
8 Hatsumi Shibata - Hazumi De Daite (A Woman In A Man's World)
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Universounds, HMV Record Shop and 180g team up for an exceptional release: from blazing hard bop to free jazz, to introspective saxophone solos and massive big band sounds, renowned Japanese jazz expert Yusuke Ogawa presents an essential 14 track collection of "WaJazz" music taken from the Nippon Columbia vaults. Featuring Jiro Inagaki, Minoru Muraoka, Hiroshi Suzuki, Hozan Yamamoto, Count Buffalo, Takeshi Inomata, and much more!

"Japanese jazz has been recognized and celebrated by music lovers worldwide for decades. The origins of this trend may be traced back to the rare groove movement that flourished in the 1990s, but its current deep and wide popularity seems to be connected to the fact that Japanese people have been reevaluating their own jazz since the mid-2000s, locally referred to as WaJazz ("Wa" meaning Japan but also theShōwa emperor period, from 1926 to 1989). Since the beginning of the 2000s, there has been a growing trend to move away from the DJ-focused perspective and to appreciate jazz with a deeper understanding. Nowadays, there is more and more interest in the background and roots in which jazz has developed in Japan, with Japanese jazz as a whole now considered as its own distinctive genre.

Of course, even if we speak about "WaJazz" as one genre, there is a truly wide variety of styles within it. However, when Japanese musicians play, there is something uniquely Japanese flowing through that creates a kind of synergy. It may be the melody, the rhythm, or even something deeper, like an inexpressible flicker. I would be happy if some of its charms and secrets emerge from the fourteen tracks included in this collection." (Yusuke Ogawa)

Yusuke Ogawa has been running the Universounds store in Tokyo since 2001, specializing in jazz and second-hand, rare, and collector records. He is also a reissue supervisor, label manager, DJ, and music writer. Known for his vast musical knowledge, eye for detail, and archival skills, Ogawa has worked on more than 250 reissues and compilations – including the highly praised Deep Jazz Reality and Project Re:Vinyl series. He is the co-author of the Wa-Jazz Disc Guide and the Independent Black Jazz of America books.

TRACK LISTING

1. Tadaaki Misago & Tokyo Cuban Boys - Sakura Sakura
2. Minoru Muraoka With New Jazz Players - Muraiki
3. Count Buffalo &The Jazz Rock Band - Mago-Uta
4. Kiyoshi Sugimoto Quartet - D-51
5. Toshiyuki Miyama & The New Herd - Adult's Day
6. Soul Media - Breeze
7. George Otsuka - Sea View
8. Hozan Yamamoto, Masahiko Togashi & Yosuke Yamashita - Breath Prologue
9. Jiro Inagaki & Soul Media - Do It!
10. Hiroshi Suzuki - Romance
11. Masahiko Sato - Tochi Mo Kurumi Mo Fukiotose
12. Masahiko Togashi - Fourth Expression
13. Takeshi Inomata & Sound Ltd. - Mustache (Live)
14. Takeo Moriyama - Watarase

Following the highly acclaimed volumes I and II, dig further into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and disco music developed throughout the years since the end of the sixties in Japan!

Active as a professional DJ in Japan since the late eighties, DJ Yoshizawa Dynamite is also a renowned remixer, compiler and producer. An avid record collector and an expert of the Wamono style, Yoshizawa published the Wamono A to Z records guide book in 2015 which instantly sold-out. The book unveiled a myriad of beautiful and rare records from a highly prolific, but still then unknown, Japanese groove scene.

After many years working as a record buyer for several stores, DJ Chintam opened his own Blow Up shop in 2018 in Tokyo's Shibuya district. A member of the Dayjam Crew and a specialist of soul, funk, rare groove and disco music, Chintam is also an expert of the home-brewed Wamono grooves. He supervised and wrote the Wamono A to Z records guide book together with Yoshizawa.

For this third chapter of the acclaimed Wamono series, Yoshizawa and Chintam unheart some of the best and rarest light mellow funk tunes and disco boogie bangers produced in Japan between 1978 and 1988. Put the needle on the record, turn up the volume and dig right now into the Wamono sound - the cream of the Japanese jazz, funk, soul, rare groove and disco music developed throughout the years since the end of the sixties in Japan!

TRACK LISTING

1. Tetsuo Sakurai - Kimono
2. Jadoes - Friday Night (Extended Dance Mix)
3. Yumi Sato - Ame
4. Kiyohiko Ozaki - Ojosan Ote Yawaraka Ni
5. Hitomi Tohyama - Rainy Driver
6. Sentimental City Romance - Hello Suisei
7. Mizuki Koyama - Kare Niwa Kanawanai
8. Hitomi Tohyama - Sweet Soul Music (Kiss Of Life)