Tokyo Glow

Description

Following the success of the compilation Tokyo Dreaming, the label Wewantsounds offers a new selection of funky gems selected by Japanese DJ Notoya, who dug through the rich catalog of the Nippon Columbia label from the late 70s/early 80s to bring out its quintessence. Nippon Columbia is an institution in Japan and one of the country’s most important labels, having built up an incredible catalog over the decades. The label was particularly creative in the 70s and 80s and was one of the main providers of quality music at a time when Japan was entering one of its greatest economic booms. At the time, record companies had big budgets and could afford to hire the greatest musicians for a record, with lush string and horn sections, the best drummers, keyboard players... The result was a sophisticated sound, very different from that of today’s music. Eager to emulate the fashionable music created in the United States by their American counterparts, Japanese musicians created their own cocktail of funk, boogie and soul, better known as city pop. The Tokyo Glow selection is full of these funky gems with West Coast influences, starting with "Kimugare", a mid-tempo track by Kumi Nakamura, a famous actress who recorded only one album for Columbia in 1980. The playlist continues in this vein with the sunny grooves of Miyuki Maki, Hatsumi Shibata and cult musician Hiroshi Sato. The pace then picks up to become funkier with New Generation Company, Kengo Kurozumi - with his superb boogie, "Juggler" - and one of the queens of the genre, Hitomi 'Penny' Tohyama with "Tuxedo Connection". Tokyo-based DJ Notoya is part of the new generation of Japanese DJs focusing on Japanese music and is an expert when it comes to funk, modern soul and boogie. With Tokyo Glow, he focused more on rarities rather than better-known tracks. Another example that illustrates his point is "I Wander All Alone Part III" by New Generation Company, a group made up of some of the best Japanese studio musicians led by arranger Katz Hoshi and including Hiroyuki Namba (keyboards), Kazuo Shiina (guitar) and Yutaka Uehara (drums), all of whom played with Tatsuro Yamashita among others. In collaboration with Notoya and Nippon Columbia, Wewantsounds is pleased to revisit one of the most creative periods in Japanese music with this groove-filled album.