Masao Nakajima

• DIGIPACK EDITION

BBE Music’s highly acclaimed J Jazz Masterclass Series presents Kemo Sabe, the debut album from pianist Masao Nakajima. Recorded in 1979 on Yupiteru Records, it’s an elusive beast in the field of J Jazz and balances delicate and refined playing with power and vigor.

The Kemo Sabe album features bassist Osamu Kawakami, who has performed and recorded with such J Jazz figureheads as Sadao Watanabe, Isao Suzuki, and Kunihiko Sugano. Sax duty is by Toshiyuki Honda, leader of the popular fusion group Burning Waves. On drums is Donald Bailey, the noted American drummer most known for playing on classic Jimmy Smith Blue Note sessions. Bailey lived and worked in Japan for a number of years from the late 70s and recorded several album dates with local artists such as Keiko Nemoto, Isao Suzuki, and George Kawaguchi.

Recorded at the height of the electric fusion era, Kemo Sabe is an avowedly acoustic album, which may account for the small sales and low profile of the album at the time. The propulsive title track, written by New Zealand jazzman Mike Nock, was gifted to Nakajim-san when they briefly met and was featured on J Jazz: Deep Modern Jazz From Japan vol 3. The reissue’s liner notes feature an exclusive interview with Masao Nakajima himself, discussing his career and background to the album.

The BBE J Jazz Masterclass Series is curated by Tony Higgins and Mike Peden and is dedicated to presenting the very finest in Japanese jazz. The series features rare, long-lost, and unreleased material presented in the highest quality reproductions of the original releases, fully licensed and authorized.

PERSONNEL:

• Osamu Kawakami - (bass)
• Donald Bailey - (drums)
• Toshiyuki Honda - (alto & soprano sax, flute)
• Masao Nakajima - (piano)

Recorded at Teichiku Suginami Studio, 4 April 1979.

TRACKS:

• 01. Kemo-Sabe
• 02. Beloved Diane
• 03. Tell Me A Bedtime Story
• 04. Third Plane
• 05. Moments Notice
• 06. My Love