180g 45rpm Vinyl LP Reissue Mastered for the Format by Bernie Grundman and Pressed at RTI

One of Michael Fremer's 100 Recommended All-Analog LP Reissues Worth Owning!

Pianist Yuko Mabuchi is joined by bassist Del Atkins and drummer Bobby Breton for this audiophile recording of a Jazz Medley, Japanese Medley, "Sona's Song" and Sonny Rollins' "St. Thomas" captured in The Brain and Creativity Institute's Cammilleri Hall on March 31, 2017. Yuko dedicated this release to the 25th Anniversary of the Los Angeles and Orange County Audio Society, the largest association of audiophiles on the planet, and to the 70th Birthday of Robert H. Levi, Yarlung's society's illustrious President and CEO. 

The repertoire includes a Jazz Medley featuring Kern's "All the Things You Are" from the 1939 musical "Very Warm For May" plus Strayhorn's "Take the 'A' Train" heard first in 1941 with Ellington's band on the radio. Finishing this medley is Strayhorn & Ellington's "Satin Doll" which came out in 1953 on Capitol Records. The Japanese Medley features "Hazy Moon" (Oborozuki) written by Teiichi Okano in 1914 followed by "Cherry Blossom" (Sakura) from the 17th Century Edo period, which was originally played on koto to celebrate Hanami, or spring flower viewing during the Tokugawa shogunate. Ending this medley is Hachidai Nakamura's "Look At The Sky" (Ue wo Muite Arukou), nicknamed Sukiyaki in English. Mabuchi wrote "Sona's Song" in honor of a beautiful child who was a family member living in Thailand. Yuko first recorded this melody in 2014 for her album My Life. The Sonny Rollins Quartet first released "St. Thomas" in 1956. Rollins adopted this tune from an 18th Century English ditty called The Lincolnshire Poacher. It resurfaced during the American Civil War as The New York Volunteer, and again in the Australian infantry as a march during WWI.

"Volume Two fulfills the promise and expectations following Volume One," notes Los Angeles and Orange County Audio City Society President Robert H. Levi. "Yuko's solo piano jazz medley may be among the greatest solo piano captures on vinyl, and I have never heard a St. Thomas I like better than this one from Yuko, Del and Bobby. What a fantastic arrangement and set of improvisations. Sonny Rollins must be delighted his legacy is in such good hands. My feet will not stop dancing. Beautiful pressing. Good work."

"If Mabuchi's playing can be described as tasteful, economical, and lyrical, it should also be noted that her rapid single-note runs are impeccably executed," wrote Jeff Wilson of The Absolute Sound. "The performances benefit from an exceptionally realistic recording that stands out for its in-the-room ambience and tonal clarity."

Features:

• 180g 45rpm vinyl LP
• Vinyl mastering by Bernie Grundman
• Pressed at Pallas
• LA & OC Audio Society 25th Anniversary Edition