SADAO WATANABE — Swiss Air: Live at Montreux 1975 (review)

SADAO WATANABE — Swiss Air: Live at Montreux 1975 album cover

Live album · 1975 · Post Bop

4/5 · 2011-04-29
snobb

Sadao Watanabe is one between best known outside of Japan Japanese jazz musicians. In late 60s- early 70s he was on the top of his popularity playing pop-jazz and soft fusion (both genres are far of my interest in music).

Swiss Air , recorded in mid 70s, is his very special album - and I love it! Full-acoustic quartet with excellent pianist Takehiro Honda plays Watanabe's neo-bop originals live at Montreux!You can't believe what a different music it is!

Sadao plays energetic and inventive reeds without being afraid to disappoint his regular soap-jazz fans, pianist Takehiro Honda is a hero of the day - his excellent fast,technical and groovy piano almost steals all the show!

Rhythm section is very competent, and all music has slight African flavor,characteristic for Watanabe's more commercial works of same period. Excellent (if too short)and perfectly recorded live show for dedicated public,it sounds great even on old vinyl (not sure if this album was ever re-released on CD).

On this album Sadao Watanabe shows how enjoyable music he could play when he just is free to play what he likes to play.No final verdict to Watanabe's music could be done without listening to this his perfect album.

more than 2 years ago
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