Vinyl LP, Compact Disc (CD)
King Records has done it all. Founded in 1931 and still kicking, it’s one of Japan’s largest record companies and one of the oldest remaining. In addition to releasing popular Japanese music across several decades—from enka records in the ‘50s, to film soundtracks in the ‘60s, to just about everything else in the following years—it was also the distributor of major labels from the United States.
American jazz had been steadily gaining prominence in Japan since the early 20th century—even surviving a ban on cultural imports during World War II through sheer popularity—and by the late ‘70s had become an unstoppable force. It was the era of funk, and King was uniquely poised to capitalize on an unfilled niche in the market: jazz fusion produced in Japan. Taking full advantage of their access to the best Japanese session players and the relationships they built with U.S. musicians by distributing labels like Blue Note and CTI, they minted a new imprint called Electric Bird—a name referencing their intent to “fly” Japan’s finest in front of an international audience.
Funk Tide: Tokyo Jazz-Funk From Electric Bird 1978–87, assembled by Japanese funk aficionado DJ Notoya, shows a small but diverse sample of the label’s vast output. In those critical years the compilation covers, a narrative emerges of how Japanese fusion borrowed from (and then evolved from) its American counterpart. Mikio Masuda’s “Let’s Get Together” tells a story all on its own; the track was originally recorded for his sophomore album Mickey’s Mouth, then again for 1978’s Moon Stone, but this third take for his Electric Bird debut was something special. Backed by a team of ace U.S. musicians including the prolific drummer Bernard Purdie, Masuda brings the slow and moody jam to life with a propulsive rhythm section. On “Special Delivery,” it’s the inverse. American keyboardist David Matthews (an early arranger for James Brown) is supported by an ensemble of Japanese players. He plays a fast and fluttering composition by the legendary Chikara Ueda, bringing key fusion figures from both nations together. The influence clearly went both ways.
In only eight tracks, Funk Tide paints a broad, but incomplete, picture of the early history of Japanese jazz fusion. Seasoned musicians like Ronnie Foster—who by the time he was brought into the fold at Electric Bird had already played alongside greats like Grant Green, Stevie Wonder, and Roberta Flack—appear alongside inexperienced newcomers like a young Yasuaki Shimizu who had yet to record his masterpieces Utakata No Hibi and Music for Commercials. It’s an impossible task to sum up the bountiful discography of Electric Bird in even double or triple the runtime, but that’s the fun of it. It’s a roadmap to get you started on a catalog big enough to last you a lifetime.
