Saravah!

Description

Wewantsounds is delighted to announce the reissue of Saravah!, Yukihiro Takahashi’s first solo album. It is one of the most striking Japanese albums of the 70s, released in 1978 at a key moment when, after his stint with Sadistic Mika Band, Takahashi had just joined Yellow Magic Orchestra. A sophisticated mix of disco funk, synthpop, ambient, exotica and bossanova, the album has the classy feel of a late-night ride through 70s Paris and forms the missing link between the late-70s city pop scene and the synthetic YMO era that was about to revolutionize the music scene. During the months leading up to the recording of YMO’s first album, which would revolutionize music, Yukihiro Takahashi entered the studio with his two bandmates, Ryuichi Sakamoto and Haruomi Hosono, to record Saravah! with the cream of the Japanese scene. Takahashi drew his inspiration in France from the work of French artist and producer Pierre Barouh, who had introduced bossanova to France in 1966 with “Samba Saravah” and later launched Saravah Records. Saravah! opens with two French and Italian classics (“Volare” and “C'est Si Bon”) rearranged in exotica mode with subtle touches of synthesizer, while “Saravah!”, a nod to Pierre Barouh, has the feel of a suave bossanova with superb string arrangements by Ryuichi Sakamoto. The album becomes more rhythmic with “La Rosa”, with mid-tempo funk accents highlighted by Takahashi’s beat and supported by Haruomi Hosono’s highly effective bass, Sakamoto’s Hammond organ and Shigeru Suzuki’s fluid guitar. Side one ends with an incredible synth version of the Ellington classic “Mood Indigo”, foreshadowing the coming MIDI revolution before things get funkier on side 2, starting with the superb disco instrumental “Elastic Dummy” by Ryuichi Sakamoto, again with string and brass arrangements complemented by solos from Sakamoto and guitarist Tsunehide Matsuki. The album then moves into the synthetic ambient of “Sunset” before returning to nightclubbing mode with “Back Street Midnight Queen”. Like “Elastic Dummy”, the track is now a cult favorite for city pop DJs. Saravah! ends on a perfect note with the magnificent “Present”, a perfectly crafted pop song that Takahashi wanted to make in a city pop mode, featuring a superb melody and top-quality arrangements. The ideal soundtrack for a morning stroll through the streets of Paris, illustrated by the photos by Masayoshi Sukita featured on the album cover. A sophisticated, fun-filled album, Saravah! offers a unique glimpse of the versatility of the YMO musicians under Yukihiro Takahashi’s leadership at the key moment when the three musicians were about to move toward a synth-dominated sound, a moment superbly captured by Saravah!.