Sadao Watanabe - Song Book (2014)

A really beautiful chapter in the career of reedman Sadao Watanabe – a batch of mostly original compositions, as you might guess from the title – and a double-length record that really showed an evolution of his talents! The sound is often highly lyrical – with Watanabe blowing alto, soprano sax, and flute in modes that are clearly informed by his bossa nova recordings of the late 60s, but which also spring forth in even more complicated styles – with echoes of French soundtracks, European jazz, and other sweet styles of the time. The group's a small one – with Yoshiaki Masuo on guitar, Kazuo Yashiro on acoustic piano and Fender Rhodes, Masabumi Kikuchi on piano, Yoshio Suzuki on bass, and Fumio Watanabe on drums.