My first four “Jazz I Love"s – #1, #2, #3, and #4 – were assorted jazz recordings from the past few decades. #5 focused on 1960s jazz, #6 on piano jazz and #7 trombone.

I’ll now share a Japan-focused edition. I’m amazed how many great jazz musicians Japan has. I’m especially impressed how many great female jazz musicians Japan has. I could make a list 100 times longer. Please treat this as a starting point for discovering more amazing performances by these incredible artists.

Japan has a long and distinguished jazz history, with talented and innovative jazz artists, wonderful venues, and engaged, educated audiences.

Japan also has a long history of “jazz kissa”, small cafe/bar venues for listening to jazz that have a definite vibe. (Wikipedia)

James Hussein Catchpole began documenting Tokyo jazz on his Tokyo Jazz Site and “collaborated with photographer Philip Arneill” to build Tokyo Jazz Joints, which documents Tokyo-area “jazz kissa.”

Enjoy!

With thanks to 5010 for their photo on Unsplash