Hiroshima - Legacy

Styles: Jazz Fusion, Big Band 
Year: 2009
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 67:19
Size: 155,5 MB
Art: Front

(7:11)  1. Winds of Change
(6:21)  2. Turning Point
(4:52)  3. One Wish
(6:33)  4. Dada
(5:35)  5. I've Been Here Before
(6:41)  6. East
(3:59)  7. Roomful of Mirrors
(9:38)  8. Another Place
(5:44)  9. Save Yourself for Me
(6:33) 10. Hawaiian Electric
(4:06) 11. Thousand Cranes

For a band as long-lived as Hiroshima and one that has enjoyed as extensive a recording career the gap in its career is the lack of a proper retrospective of 30 years in the music industry. Legacy represents both a celebration of Hiroshima's first decade and something of a compromise. Over 11 tracks the group revisits some of its best-known recordings, including "One Wish," "Hawaiian Electric" and "Winds of Change," but these are new re-recordings of the songs, not the original studio versions. Legacy isn't designed to be the definitive Hiroshima anthology, but it does represent a sampling of where the band was in the '80s and how it continues to evolve and explore the parameters of its unique blending of East-meets-West musical styles. Hiroshima is not the same band in 2009 as it was in 1979, when it recorded its debut album. The band's personnel have changed, technology has changed and the music has evolved over three decades. Original members saxophonist/multi-instrumentalist Dan Kuramoto, kotoist June Kuramoto and drummer Danny Yamamoto are joined by longtime bassist Dean Cortez, keyboardist Kimo Cornwell, "new guy" Shoji Kameda on his big, booming taiko drum, and other members of the extended Hiroshima family.

Hiroshima maintains its innovative edge by being respectful to the original material, but not so slavishly faithful that it can't push the envelope a bit and stretch its musical muscles. June Kuramoto's koto remains at the core of the band, and the other instrumentalists build around her. "One Wish" was the crossover hit that captured the attention of many listeners to the Hiroshima sound, and still retains a timeless beauty 24 years after its debut. The guitar leads by John "Doc" McCourt on "Dada" and Yvette Nil's vocals on "Dada," along with Yamamoto's pummeling drums, are reminders of where the "rock" in jazz/rock came from.

The lush and gorgeous "Thousand Cranes" is a tribute to Sadako Sasaki, who was two years old when the atomic bomb was dropped on the city of Hiroshima. Sasaki developed leukemia when she turned 11, and in following the advice of a friend that the gods would grant a wish if she folded 1000 paper cranes. Sasaki folded 644 cranes before passing away. Jim Gilstrap and Terry Steele's lead vocals are joined by the entire band's backing harmonies, lifting this ode to peace into the sonic stratosphere. Hiroshima's career arc includes its share of peaks and valleys but it's a varied one, and Legacy makes a good jumping-on point for new fans and an essential addition for completists. The liner notes suggest Legacy is the first installment of a series. In the process of fondly looking back at where they've been, Hiroshima continues to boldly push forward. ~ Jeff Winbush https://www.allaboutjazz.com/legacy-hiroshima-heads-up-international-review-by-jeff-winbush.php
 

Personnel: June Kuramoto: koto, vocals; Dan Kuramoto: flutes, saxes, shakuhachi, synths, flute, vocals; Kimo Cornwell: piano, keyboards, synths; Danny Yamamoto: drums, percussion; Dean Cortez: bass; Shoji Kameda: taiko, percussion; Terry Steele: lead vocal (9), vocals; Yvette Nil: lead vocal (4, 7); Jim Gilstrap: vocals; Richie Gajate Garcia: congas, timbales, percussion; George Del Barrio: string arrangements; Derek Nakamoto: additional string programming

Legacy

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Hiroshima - Little Tokyo

Styles: Jazz Fusion, Big Band
Year: 2007
File: MP3@320K/s
Time: 51:08
Size: 117,8 MB
Art: Front

(5:25)  1. Midnite Sun
(4:59)  2. On The Fence
(4:12)  3. Lanai
(3:37)  4. Red Beans and Rice
(4:32)  5. Sir Charles
(5:41)  6. Hidden Times
(4:25)  7. Shades of Honor
(5:14)  8. Quan Yin
(4:33)  9. Drama
(4:19) 10. Hiro Chill
(4:05) 11. Little Tokyo Underground

Something seems to happen to many bands after they enter 20 to 25 years of making music. They seem to run out of new and interesting things to say and pretty soon all they do is recycle the same scant ideas over and over as they become dim parodies of themselves. You see this happen all the time in rock 'n roll where, too often, making money takes precedence over having anything new and fresh to say. How fortunate it is that Hiroshima doesn't play rock. If anything the band has stayed fresh and innovative by merging jazz, R&B, and world music with an awesome array of Japanese percussion and other native instruments like June Kuramoto's koto. Hiroshima makes some truly diverse and interesting music and Little Tokyo, its fourteenth album, is the second consecutive release without a featured vocalist. The decision to eschew a singer is a smart move by Hiroshima as it puts the music first instead of merely sounding like the back-up band. Dan Kuramoto's mournful tenor sax offsets the booming taiko drums of Shoji Kameda and Kenny Endo, as June Kuramoto's koto solidifies the Far Eastern roots of the group and sets the tone for the rest of the album. Kimo Cornwell's piano and keyboards are standouts, particularly so on "On the Fence," and again as he trades off with keyboardist James Lloyd from Pieces of A Dream as he sits in on the lovely "Lanai."

Just because Hiroshima can play it sophisticated and stylish doesn't mean they can't get down. "Red Beans and Rice," by Cornwell, is an homage by the band to the spirit and culture of New Orleans as it struggles to rise again from the disaster of Hurricane Katrina, showing off some nasty-as-he-wanna-be bass by Dean Cortez. There has been an ongoing love affair between Hiroshima and black American music since the band began in 1979. They don't just want to sit back and close your eyes in blissful contemplation; they want you to get up and dance or at the very least snap your fingers, bob your head and shake your groove thing. "Drama," "Hiro Chill" and "Little Tokyo Underground" are all designed provoke such a reaction. Unlike some bands whose attempts to jam seem contrived and calculated, Hiroshima never lapses into a parody of a dance band. Its foundation is, first and foremost, a jazz band that knows how to groove and when to lay back and soothe. Little Tokyo is ample evidence Hiroshima is still rising and advancing as a musical force to be reckoned with and respected. There's no danger of them joining the country fair circuit of broken-down oldies bands dutifully cranking out tired version of past hits. Dan Kuramoto and the rest of Hiroshima are still challenging themselves, making innovative music and having fun in the process. ~ Jeff Winbush https://www.allaboutjazz.com/little-tokyo-hiroshima-heads-up-international-review-by-jeff-winbush.php
 

Personnel: June Kuramoto: koto; Dan Kuramoto: tenor and soprano saxophone, flute, keyboards, synthesizer, percussion, shakuhachi; Kimo Cornwell: piano, synthesizer, rhodes, clavinet; Danny Yamamoto: drums; Dean Cortez: bass; Shoji Kameda: taiko, percussion, voice; Dean Taba: acoustic bass (1, 6, 8, 10); Kenny Endo: taiko, percussion (1, 6-8, 11); Richie Gajate Garcia: conga, percussion (1, 5, 7, 8); James Lloyd: keyboards, synthesizers (2); Mary Garcia: coquito (5); Leslie Chew: guitars (9).

Little Tokyo

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