Kiyoshi Sugimoto Quartet – Country Dream(1970 JAPAN Avant-garde Jazz, Contemporary Jazz)Full Album

Kiyoshi Sugimoto Quartet biography The Kiyoshi Sugimoto Quartet was a short-lived but historic Japanese jazz group, formed by acclaimed guitarist Kiyoshi Sugimoto to record his iconic debut album, Country Dream (1970).🎸 The Leader: Kiyoshi SugimotoKiyoshi Sugimoto (born February 3, 1942 in Shizuoka, Japan) is considered one of the most important and influential guitarists in the Japanese jazz and jazz-rock scene. He began his professional career in 1960 playing with the famous singer Martha Miyake. In the late 1960s, he gained a great reputation as a first-rate session musician (sideman), collaborating with legends such as Terumasa Hino, Hideo Shiraki, Yuji Ohno and Akira Ishikawa's band Count Buffaloes.💿 The Quartet and "Country Dream"The quartet formed in late 1969, when Sugimoto decided to capture his own vision beyond traditional hard bop. They recorded at Teichiku Kaikan Studios in Tokyo on December 7, 1969, and the album was released on March 1, 1970 by Nippon Columbia. The quartet's lineup included some of the leading names in Japanese jazz: Kiyoshi Sugimoto – Guitar Hiromasa "Colgen" Suzuki – Piano Yoshio Ikeda – Bass Motohiko Hino – Drums 🎶 Musical Style and Legacy Country Dream is a landmark as it combines modal jazz with the early fusion and jazz-rock concerns of the era, rich in simple but profound harmonies. The album's tracks (such as the eponymous "Country Dream", "The Apple" and "D-51") balance between serene, lyrical Japanese landscapes and exciting, explosive guitar passages. After this release, the quartet did not continue as a permanent lineup. Sugimoto carried his sound into larger ensembles, forming the Kiyoshi Sugimoto Quintet for his next album, Babylonia Wind (1972), and later the Sextet, continually evolving his sound towards the funk, fusion and City Pop aesthetics of the late 70s. Today, the quartet's work has acquired cult status worldwide, with frequent vinyl reissues (Project Re:Vinyl) due to the increased interest in the "golden age" of Japanese jazz. Country Dream 00:00 Step Ahead 08:35 The Apple 20:14 Limited Space 27:15 D-51 31:10 Bass – Yoshio Ikeda Drums – Motohiko Hino Guitar – Kiyoshi Sugimoto Piano – Hiromasa Suzuki Recorded at Teichiku Kaikan Studio, Tokyo 7 Dec. 1969. originally released on 1970/3/1.