Bobby McFerrin
Don't Worry, Be Happy

Tokyo Dreaming is a superb selection picked from the highly collectible Nippon Columbia label and its Better Days sub-label. Wewantsounds have teamed up with journalist and Japanese music expert Nick Luscombe. The selection mixes electro, synth-pop, funk, and ambient and includes many sought-after rarities and hidden gems which have never been released outside of Japan and the set has been newly remastered by Nippon Columbia. Nippon Columbia, one of Japan's oldest music labels is also one of its most collectible thanks to its sub-label Better Days which, in the late '70s, became a hotbed for Tokyo's new generation of pop artists eager to experiment with ambient, electro, and funk. Armed with a string of new Japanese-made synthesizers and drum machines that would soon take the world by storm, they made cutting-edge music, which has since become highly sought-after by a new generation of Japanese music lovers.Nick Luscombe, who has long been a leading advocate of Japanese music from this era, has handpicked a selection of some of the sharpest music released on these labels at the time. Tokyo Dreaming starts with The End of Asia by Ryuichi Sakamoto from his 1978 ground-breaking debut Thousand Knives Of.... The track became a staple of Sakamoto and Yellow Magic Orchestra's live shows and was even re-recorded by the group for their 1980 album X Multiplies. The track is followed by Mariah's cult Armenian folk flavoured synth pop classic Shinzo No Tobira (1983). Chika Asamoto's Self Control (1988) and Jun Fukamachi's Treasure Hunter (1985) are perfect songs in the synth-pop canon, while Yumi Murata's rendition of Akiko Yano's Watashi No Bus and Hitomi "Penny" Tohyama's Rainy Driver both from 1981, move closer towards the slicker, funkier sound of city pop.Tokyo Dreaming superbly showcases the breadth of '80s Japanese music and the way electro pop was a playing ground for musicians to experiment with many styles, as showcased by Akira Sakata's dub-infused Room from 1980, Kazumi Watanabe's discoid Tokyo Joe (1980) and Juicy Fruits' techno pop song Jenie Gets Angry. The selection flows effortlessly between many shades of synth and ends with two cult classics in the form of Yasuaki Shimizu's Semi Tori No Hi and Shigeo Sekito's ambient-jazz masterpiece The Word II from his highly sought-after album Kareinaru Electone (The Word) Vol.2 (1975). Tokyo Dreaming showcases the groundbreaking sounds of a city turned giant sonic lab which was restlessly inventing the music of the future. Album designed by famed London-based designer Optigram. Also features Yumi Seino, Kyoko Furuya, Kazue Itoh, Haruo Chikada and Vibra-Tones, and Colored Music.

P-Vine Japanese imprint reissue copies of Eric Dunbar's sought-after album 'Freeway' which was originally released on TSG Records in 1976.

Mikio Masuda, who went to the U.S. as an independent member of Terumasa Hino’s group, formed the crossover/fusion group “Mickey’s Mouth” after returning to Japan. This is the band’s first album, featuring mainly original compositions.

Now Again reissue the 1975 and 1980 albums by 'World’s Experience Orchestra' as one specially packaged 2/LP set.The essence of Underground, Spiritual Jazz, figuratively and literally: their first album was recorded in a Boston church’s basement. Both World’s Experience Orchestra albums were committed to vinyl by a visionary, bassist/composer/arranger John Jamyll Jones. He’s a magical type, who communicates with his instrument, his ensembles, and jazz’s ancient lineage in a manner so profound that his late-‘70s album are out of time with jazz’s trajectory, but timeless when presented today.These are holy grail jazz records that are rarely ever seen, let alone available to buy!Don't sleep and miss your opportunity to own this great package.Limited to 1000.

Jazz re:freshed proudly presents the first release by 1000 Kings featuring Karl Rasheed Abel, Kwake Bass and one of the country's leading jazz saxophonists who, for contractual reasons, we can't name, but hey you'll recognise the quality immediately.Berklee-trained bass player Karl has worked with such luminaries as Laura Mvula, Omar, Soweto Kinch and Courtney Pine as well as on his own solo projects. Kwake Bass is regarded as one of the established drummers in London having played with DOOM, Jehst and Kate Tempest. The combined band provide some of the highest quality musicianship coming out of the UK today on this release, Raw Cause.