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George Otsuka (or Ohtsuka), who sadly passed away in March 2020, was one of Japan’s most renowned jazz drummers.
‘Sea Breeze’, released in 1971 on the Union label, is his first record in quintet formation and is reissued here on a single LP housed in a gatefold sleeve. And we can say that George Otsuka knew how to surround himself: Shunzo Ohno is on trumpet and Flugelhorn, Takao Uematsu on tenor sax and soprano, Takashi Mizuhashi on bass and Hideo Ichikawa on electric piano. If all the tracks on this album are solid, included the astonishing cover of “Fool on the Hill”, it is especially “Sea Breeze”, the eponymous track opening the album that will make an impression. A super and long jazz-funk track where the five musicians, in perfect osmosis, leave each other enough space to express the full extent of their talent.
Recent copies of the original vinyl, which were only released in Japan have sold for £200-300.
Tracklist
Sea Breeze / Fool on The Hill / Cannibal / Potato Chips / Jumping Cats