MASABUMI KIKUCHI SEXTET WITH SADAO WATANABE QUARTET - COLLABORATION

Masabumi Kikuchi and Sadao Watanabe for Philips Japan from 1970.
Here's another first at Orgy In Rhythm-a contribution from Jazz-neko and it's a killer.The Okinawan jazz devil has dug deep-very,very deep and come up with this fantastic japanese rarity ripped straight from the original master tapes !!!
Two files to grab-here & here .
Now read on to find what he has to say about it.....................

I have been be-deviled by various issues for some time now that precluded my contributions to the jazz blog-o-sphere, but our dear friend, Bacoso, really set a fire under my lazy arse with his recent barrage of Japanese fusion - I hope you all have appreciated it as much as the ol' Okinawan Jazz-Devil. I hope you all will allow me a bit of your time, as I ease back into your lives. . .
Thanks to the influence of my father and mother, I was continually reminded that people are worth far more than just the colour of their skin or the faith by which one measured higher powers; I mean, I still recall people commonly referring to "coloured or negroes", which in turn became "blacks" and now is "African-American". The fact is people are still people. I made the change in my mind that Japan also was still Japan and did not deserve to be "inferior" in my mind because it was simply not fair to a culture.
Whilst growing up with one foot in Japan and another in either the States or Europe, I somehow became biased. Biased against all things jazz when referring to Japan – call it stupidity if you will but I somehow allowed a sense of inferiority to veil my judgment. I have come to realize that it was in part due to the larger-than-life influence of having a relatively successful American swing/bop sax player as a father: I was exposed to the best of the best long before I can remember. Also as I mentioned, throughout the '50s there remained a rather large prejudice against Japan.
Along comes my primate, percussion-loving friend with his J-fusion stream . . .and from the depths of some personal misery, I felt a bolt of pride shoot through me. Yes, we can find many blogs with Japanese prog rock or modern music; however, the manner in which 'Orgy in Rhythm' is raising awareness of current and past trends of Japanese jazz is nothing short of admirable, in my devilish opinion – cheers to Bacoso, my friend!
Today, I will offer you a quite spectacular treat with an extremely rare set by Kikuchi Masabumi and Sadao Watanabe. I saw two weeks ago here in Tokyo that someone had this set on sale for ¥ 1,560,000 (aprox. $13,000)! However, this is not the first time that Bacoso set me a mighty challenge to find one or another Japanese set. To make a long story short – I contacted Kikuchi-san. He warmly responded by telephone and we set a meeting for Tokyo the next time I was to visit from Okinawa. At the meeting, Kikuchi-san, his brother and former band members Suzuki-san and Ikeda-san showed up along with the daughter of Watanabe Sadao. It was really a lovely evening of old-timers catching up, and I was very fortunate to be invited. The following morning before leaving Tokyo, I met Kikuchi-san at his studio where he presented me with a master reel copy of today's offer – so when I say original rip, brother do I mean, o-r-g-i-n-a-l!
Think of '70s jazz fusion. The top of my list would be 'The Circle' (Braxton, Corea, Holland, Altschul) or McLaughlin's work with Miles. Now toss in the genius of Watanabe Sadao's playing in the late-60s or early '70s . Then turn up the heat with some long and hard guitar riffs, bruising percussion and lightning-fast keyboards. This is a recipe for classic Japanese jazz-fusion that I am sure some of you will . . . ~ enjoy!

Masabumi Kikuchi Sextet with Sadao Watanabe Quartet Collaboration Part 1 (1970, Philips/Nippon Phonogram FS-5052) [master reel copy @ 320kbps w/ jacket photos]

Kikuchi Masabumi (eP,harpsicord solo on 'So Por Voci'), Watanabe Sadao (sopranino), Kikuchi Masahiro (eP), Mine Kohsuke (ss), Masuo Yoshiaki (g), Ikeda Yoshio (b, except 'Up Tight'), Suzuki Yoshio (eB,eCel, Murakami Hiroshi, Tsunoda Hiro, Kishida Keiji (d); recorded on 08,13 October & 14 November, 1970 at Nippon Phonogram, Tokyo

Side 1:
01. Illusion (Kikuchi)
02. Thanatos (take 2) (Kikuchi)
Side 2:
03. Uptight (Masuo)
04. So Por Vici (Watanabe)
05. Lunar Eclipse (Kikuchi