45 minutes of Funky Old Japanese Soundtracks to chill out to

August 9, 2021 11:20 AM

45 minutes of various funky old japanese soundtracks, samples, breaks, and beats.

Best comment:
I work on a seaweed farm halfway between Ireland and Scotland, this is what i listen to on my headphones before heading out to sea for the latest "Weed Heist", then our crew pretend we're smuggling it back to mainland Ireland before swapping the proceeds down the market for some much needed contraband back on the island.

posted by Slinga (13 comments total)

Perfect! Thanks!
posted by dhruva at 12:10 PM on August 9, 2021

That is some serious funky. Awesome & thanks!

My fav comment: Two detectives step out of a 74 Dodge Polaris in a southside alley. They're a salt and pepper team. The black dude is wearing aviators and packing a shoulder rig under his funky plaid blazer. The white guy has sideburns, long hair, and wide flare jeans. They are looking for a man named Theobaldus Jackson, also known as "Statewide". He is on the wanted in connection with ... well you see it yourself now, don't you.
posted by Quasirandom at 12:32 PM on August 9, 2021 [4 favorites]

Yeah, this was a great mix, thanks for sharing!
posted by jeremias at 2:29 PM on August 9, 2021

see also: My Analog Journal

Japanese selections:
City Pop & Jazz
City Pop & Jazz-Funk
City Pop, Soul & Jazz
Funk & Soul
posted by juv3nal at 2:42 PM on August 9, 2021 [11 favorites]

Also not related other than it is world-influenced funk/soul/psychedelia, but El Michels Affair released the great Yeti Season in March which I only discovered existed yesterday.
posted by juv3nal at 2:46 PM on August 9, 2021 [2 favorites]

on a similar tip ...

Sendo Senshi - The Original Score

and the trailer
posted by philip-random at 2:58 PM on August 9, 2021 [3 favorites]

wait where did the suitcase of cocaine come from
posted by Sauce Trough at 5:40 PM on August 9, 2021 [4 favorites]

Holy shit how did I not know about Japanese jazz.... This has to be some of the most amazing piano work I've ever heard: Early Summer by Ryo Fukui
posted by mikeand1 at 6:45 PM on August 9, 2021 [3 favorites]

Be sure to check out the Magical Mystery Tour YouTube playlists of Japanese jazz from the 70s (on Soundcloud and Spotify too). This is really incredible stuff. I've just spent the last several hours having my musical world blown wide open. Did you know the koto could be a jazz instrument? Me neither, but there it is....

Thank you so much for this thread!
posted by mikeand1 at 8:22 PM on August 9, 2021 [1 favorite]

I almost wasn't going to click. The Irish seaweed comment made me curious. This is an awesome find!
posted by freethefeet at 10:07 PM on August 9, 2021

This is great, thanks so much Slinga!
posted by Bella Donna at 8:46 AM on August 10, 2021

Ooh, noticed this today. Good find! I've got a few Japanese tracks in my fusion jazz Spotify list, like from 70s band Casiopea. On first glance it seems like a good era for Japanese music in that and related genres.
posted by Harald74 at 1:29 AM on August 13, 2021

Terminal Passage has some great Japanese albums sprinkled through its collection. Picking a few randomly:

Jiro Inagaki & His Soul Media with Y. Sawada ‎– Dōsōjin (1972)
The Players with Hiromasa Suzuki ‎– Galaxy (1979)
Akira Ishikawa Trio & R&B All Stars ‎– Soul Session Jazz Goes R&B (1969)
Masayoshi Takanaka – All Of Me (1979)
posted by clawsoon at 10:40 PM on August 14, 2021