Nobuo Hara & His Sharps & Flats - Big Band Congress (2013 Japan Edition)

Nobuo Hara convenes the Sharps & Flats ensemble in this excellent set from the end of the 60s -- a magnificent blend of tones and colors from the horns, all wrapped up in Hara's wicked sense of arranging! The group's got a groove that's really unique -- not like American or European big bands of the time, although definitely rooted in that tradition -- with a bold, brash style that's always very thoughtful, and never too full of itself -- but always exploding with this great sense of discovery that really keeps things interesting. New versions of classics are mixed with some key moments from the group's own songbook.