About

- The Analog Vault // Essential Listening –

A remarkable broad-spectrum survey of the Golden Age of Japanese jazz, curated by rare jazz records expert Yusuke Ogawa, from the deep vaults of Nippon Columbia’s masters archive. Japanese Jazz Spectacle - Vol. I is an exceptional compendium that spotlights the varied contours and dimensions of WaJazz (Wa refers to the Shōwa era), running the gamut from free jazz and big band, to fusion and hard bop, through 14 sublime tracks.

Headlined by artists such as Jiro Inagaki, Minoru Muraoka, Count Buffalo, Takeshi Inomata, Hiroshi Suzuki, Soul Media, Hozan Yamamoto, George Otsuka, and many more - this outstanding compilation from Universounds, HMV Record Shop and 180g is perfectly calibrated to unlock a deeper appreciation of the uniquely nuanced traits that define jazz from the Land of the Rising Sun. — The Analog Vault

“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 the Shōwa 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)

↓
Label: 180g, Deep Jazz Reality, HMV Record Shop, Universounds
Series: Wajazz Series
Format: 2 x Vinyl, LP, Compilation, 180g
Released: 2022
Genre: Jazz
Style: Free Jazz, Hard Bop, Jazz-Funk, Jazz-Rock

File under: Japanese Jazz
⦿