Three piece acoustic group in laid back kind of style. The most interesting moments are with guests, vocalist Epo, and Okinawan Yasukatsu Oshima.


Price:  £17.99

Tsugaru shamisen, a fast style of lute playing from northen Japan, is going through a renaissance at the moment, mainly due to the excellent Yoshida Brothers. Not surprisingly, there have been a few other young tsugaru shamisen players recorded, most notbaly 16 year old Masahiro Nitta. He won the All-Japan shamisen competition, and is probably better than the Yoshida Brothers, with some fantastic playing and a more diverse range of influences and guests, including from Mongolia. Brilliantly recorded and performed. Recommended.


Price:  £17.99

Latest album and first major release by shamisen kid. Not quite the impact and energy of the first, but still an excellent release, slightly more refined.


Price:  £17.99

Shinichi Kinoshita although still young, is considered the first of the new breed of exciting tsugaru shamisen players. He has played with Takio Ito and many more musicians. Rock in attitude and pose, traditional and brilliant in technique, and still making excellent albums. This is a re-release, no doubt in the wake of the latest tsugaru shamisen boom.


Price:  £17.99

Another recent release by Kinoshita, fast plucking tsugaru shamisen. Wonderful CD, and companion to above album. Includes, shakuhachi (flute) and other instrument concoctions.


Price:  £17.99

Another young tsugaru shamisen player, although not from the tsugaru region. Great technique, some traditional and some more modern interpretations.


Price:  £17.99

The latest from Japan's premier drummers group. This time produced by Mickey Hart. Includes global percussion (Bahia) and guest Indian tabla maestro, Zakir Hussain. Excellent release.


Price:  £17.99

Excellent album by Japanese small flute (shinobue)player. Improvisational pieces, sometimes joined by Keisuke Ohta, the fine violin player with Cicala Mvta and Soul Flower.


Price:  £17.99

Shang Shang Typhoon have been one of Japan's best live bands for several years. This album, recorded in a temple near Tokyo (see photos) draws on material from throughout their career and captures some of the excitement and energy of a SST gig. However, if you are new to the band, probably still better to start off with one of their studio albums.


Price:  £17.99

Ninth studio album by one of Japan's best roots music groups. Their usual mix of predominantly Japanese and Asian with other styles from around the world, on this album perhaps more European than before. The duo female vocals of Emi and Satoko are in fine form, while the instrumentation is bigger than ever. Includes unlikely cover version-Rod Stewart's "Sailing", sung in Japanese and sounding like a Japanese folk song. Their best album for years.


Price:  £17.99

Re-release of a seminal album of Japanese roots music from 1988. The original album was deleted, now thankfully reissued with a different sleeve, a different title , but still sounding as brilliant as ever. One of Japan's most powerful vocalists. Includes one of his best versions of "Soran Bushi" at over 10 minutes long.


Price:  £17.99

Truly remarkable recordings of a lost Japan.Traditional instruments,(koto,shamisen, shakuhachi), Nagauta (songs), and original min'yo (folk songs) from various areas of Japan. An important historical document, but equally an atmospheric CD of largely accesible music.


Price:  £17.99

Umeko Ando is an elder Ainu (native Japanese) women singer. She appeared as a guest on Oki's last album, himself of Ainu descent. This album was produced by and features Oki, with Ando's haunting voice accompanied by Oki's tonkori (a traditional Ainu stringed instrument). An atmospheric album of a tradition that was in danger of dying out that is both accessible and beautiful. Doesn't sound necessarily Japanese, perhaps not surprisingly more central Asian, the roots of the Ainu themselves. Highly recommended.


Price:  £17.99

The Ainu, now living mostly in Hokkaido, the northen island of Japan, are the native Japanese people. Similar to Mongolian traditions, this is a traditional CD of Ainu vocal techniques and music.


Price:  £15.99

Mini album of Osaka chindon group who bizzarly incorporate enka into their chindon music. Chindon, goros drum, sax, percussion, banjo,cornet and accordion mixture.


Price:  £8.99

Dont was one of Japan's most innovative musicians before he died unexpectedly at the age of 37 in January 2000. This live album also features the excellent Amama, a trio of female musicians. Dont plays electric guitar, sanshin and sings in one of the wackiest blends of Okinawan and rock ever made.Not the greatest recording quality, but a great document of a great artist who is sadly missed.


Price:  £17.99

Umi no Sachi is the group that featured Don't, Keni Inoue and Hideo Inoura (of the Sunsetz) and Sachiho of Zelda. They made a fine album on Sony, which has been deleted even after renewed demand following Dont's untimely death. Umi no Sachi went back into the studio and recorded another album, this time without Dont. While excellent, it doesn't have that wacky Indian, Indonesian, Okinawan mix, instead is slightly more reserved and laid back in an Hawaiian and reggae kind of way.


Price:  £17.99

The main man of Yakuza funk beat, the king of kawachi ondo is back with a new album after a lengthy absence. Rapped vocals on the events of the day, sung kawachi ondo style, and recorded live.


Price:  £17.99

One of the most fascinating music scenes in Japan, is the jazz/chidon/brass/world scene, from groups such as Compostella, Cicala Mvta, Strada, Tsurureko Sachu, Odun and others. This double CD is a welcome addition to that catalogue, by two musicians who have featured on recordings by the pre-mentioned artists. Strange but fascinating stuff, from saxophone and clarinet players, doubling up on piano, drums and more, and joined by guitar, bass, metronone, glokenspiel and other instruments. Constantly surprising and compelling.


Price:  £19.99

Moto Ueno plays shamisen and sings and on this unusual album accompanied by jazz musicians playing sax, bass and drums. Ueno is also a member of the excellent Tsurureko Sachu. Absolutely wonderful.


Price:  £17.99

On second album, guitar, violin, piano, mandolin, sax and drums join Moto Ueno's shamisen and voice. More pop, less jazz than first album, wonderful, weird, unique stuff.


Price:  £17.99

Give any recorder to the Kurikorder Quartet, long (tenor) , short (alto) very long(great bass) or very short (soprano) put them together and against the odds they sound great. What every junior school player can only dream of. The musicians are of the highest pedigree, they add the occasional guitar or bouzoki and enjoy a cult following.


Price:  £17.99

Mini CD of excellent brass band, who have collaborated with Soul Flower Union, turn various music styles, some not so obvious, into brass workouts.


Price:  £12.99

Sax player Kazutoki Umezu is one of Japan's most inventive musicians, performing solo, with a wide variety of guests or on albums by Tetsuhiro Daiku, Oki and many others. Klezmer has for a long time been one of his major loves (previously Betsuni nanno Klezmer) and is here joined by violin, accordion, tuba and drums on a kind of chindon/klezmer mix. If you like Cicala Mvta or Strada this should be to your taste.


Price:  £17.99

Excellent four piece unit, featuring electric guitar, alto saxophone, oud and drums,recorded live in Okinawa. Folk/jazz mix.


Price:  £18.99

One of those world new age ethnic albums, featuring sitar, violin, kalimba, dijeridoo, kora, shakuhachi, shamisen and other instruments from around the world. Of it's kind, pretty good, with the Indian flavours strongest.


Price:  £17.99

A kind of world percussion album. All the usual over used used ones (African)some under used ones, (Thai) in a house, techno, tribal crossover album (it says here)


Price:  £17.99

World instrumental ensemble, playing Japanese oodaiko drums, ukulele and more, in slightly uninspiring fashion.


Price:  £17.99

Sizzle Ohtaka recorded her stunning, piercing, voice over the sounds she had recorded in Morocco with musician friends. Cars, voices, birds, chimes and everyday sounds provide the background to these improvisational pieces. An interesting and satisfying listen, Sizzle's vocal the magical centrepiece as ever.


Price:  £17.99

Best of album, selected by Ohtaka of her music used in TV commercials, films and soundtracks, of which there is plenty, as Ohtaka has even been dubbed the 'commercial queen'. In it's own right, a great album by one of Japan's best female singers.


Price:  £17.99