Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio

Yet another star slice on Japan's genius jazz label Three Blind Mice, who've now reissued it again here, Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio's Midnight Sugar, originally released in 1974, remains a landmark in Japanese jazz. Led by pianist Tsuyoshi Yamamoto - and with Hideto Kanai on bass and Tetsujiro Obara on drums - this stilly nighttime masterpiece is a true bask in a lamplit witching hour, nailed in the simple contrast of skeletal, swirling drum-brush playing and distant pianissimo. With striking renditions of jazz standards, including 'I'm A Fool To Want You' and 'The Nearness Of You,' where Yamamoto's delicate phrasing shines; the record's appeal rests in the trio's evident chemistry and Yamamoto's expressive yet precise touch.