Horace Silver’s ‘The Tokyo Blues’ Joins Blue Note’s Tone Poet Series
The pianist dedicated the 1962 record to ‘all of the Japanese people who were so very kind to us while we were making our concert tour there.’
Horace Silver’s classic The Tokyo Blues is getting released on vinyl as part of Blue Note Records’ Tone Poet series. Released in 1962 it is considered a gem within the pianist’s prolific career.
Silver and his quintet—Blue Mitchell (trumpet), Junior Cook (tenor sax), Gene Taylor (bass), and John Harris Jr (drums)—created these recordings after an inspiring tour of Japan. Per the original back cover, Silver dedicated this album to “all of our many fans in Japan and to all of the Japanese people who were so very kind to us while we were making our concert tour there.” He continued, “While in Japan, I noticed that the Japanese people were very fond of Latin music, which I also am very fond of. In writing some of these compositions I have attempted to combine Japanese feeling in the melodies with Latin feeling in the rhythms.”
The stereo Tone Poet Vinyl Edition was produced by Joe Harley, mastered by Kevin Gray from the original analog master tapes, pressed on 180g vinyl at RTI, and packaged in a deluxe gatefold tip-on jacket.
Silver first became known as a co-founder of The Jazz Messengers alongside Art Blakey. With The Jazz Messengers, Silver became known for defining hard bop, a bebop offshoot that included elements of blues and gospel. Silver formed his own quintet in the late ’50s and they released their first album, Finger Poppin’, in 1959. The quintet released their sixth and final album, Silver’s Serenade, in 1963.
A new iteration of the quintet can be heard on Song For My Father, which captured a bossa nova beat. The title track became a jazz standard. Silver’s next album was Cape Verdean Blues, which featured trumpeter Woody Shaw, trombonist JJ Johnson, Joe Henderson (tenor saxophone), Bob Cranshaw (bass), and Roger Humphries (drums).
