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Kimiko Itoh She's a chanteuse, a cantatrice, a songbird, the lady from the East, a jazz singer of the first order. She's Kimiko Itoh, one of Japan's top singers of American jazz and pop standards. Although acclaimed for her previous albums, Ms. Itoh reaches a new peak on her latest album, Kimiko Itoh with Makoto Ozone at the Montreux Jazz Festival on One Voice/Satellites Records. This live album, recorded at one of the most prestigious annual jazz festivals in the world, spotlights Kimiko in the simplest of settings, a duet performance featuring only her voice and Makoto Ozone's elegant and gracious piano playing. Ozone, a renowned jazz player in his own right with numerous albums out, is the perfect musical companion for Itoh. Their interplay, instinctive support and total rapport is evident in every note. This pristine concert, where nothing is hidden and both musicians contribute equally, allows both to shine at their brightest. "Montreux has so much history," says Kimiko. "So many great albums have been recorded there. Stravinski Auditorium is a very nice place, but it seemed huge for the quiet sound we were making. With just the two of us on-stage, I felt naked. Even though I'm a veteran, I was really nervous at first. Live recording is heavy pressure. I prefer studio recording. But the audience was warm. I remember two people right in front of the stage, a couple that seemed newly-married. They sat close together, hand-in-hand. They gave me great energy with their love.
"Makoto is a great composer, arranger and pianist. He can go anywhere with the music, so I just
follow him. He has a special way of talking with his piano. He has a huge talent for music.
Everytime I perform with him, it makes me very happy. My voice and his piano intertwine. On this album, Kimiko's vocals soar and swing, dip and dance, and even turn the tone to blue. She winds her way through classic pop standards like "On a Clear Day" ("Love and trust yourself, then believe in your future," she says about that track), the bluesy Rodgers and Hart number "My Funny Valentine" ("A song I've loved since I was very young") and Bernstein-Sondheim's "Somewhere" from "West Side Story" ("One of my favorites over the years, ever since I first saw the movie"). In between she tackles "The Island" ("a very sexy, amorous, love song"), Toots Thielemans's "Bluesette" ("a song of encouragement"), "Fly Me to the Moon" ("a fairytale") and the uptempo "Sometimes I'm Happy" ("we played it just to have fun and be cheerful"). "I had recorded 'Follow Me' before, but I tried a new version this time. 'Skylark'is dedicated to one of Japan's greatest singers from the past, Hibari Misora, whose name means Skylark and who was a great influence for me. It is an interesting number because the music was composed by Astor Piazzola, but the lyric was written by an American friend of mine living in Tokyo, Riki Ninomiya, after I told her about Hibari." Prior to this live album, Kimiko first made a splash in the United States with her albums For Lovers Only (1987, Epic/CBS/Sony), Follow Me (1989,Epic/CBS/Sony), The Best of Kimiko (1992,Epic/CBS/Sony), Sophisticated Lady(1995, One Voice/Satellites) and Standards My Way (1997, One Voice/Satellites). She also has other jazz albums, Here I Am and An Evening With Kimiko Itoh, released in Japan, but not yet available here. On these various recordings, she has worked with not only some of Japan's top jazz musicians, but also America's studio jazz royalty -- Michael Brecker, Steve Gadd, Eddie Gomez, Will Lee, Ralph MacDonald, Ronnie Cuber and John Tropea. Born in Shodoshima, Japan, Kimiko always enjoyed music as a child but initially pursued studies and a career in the visual arts. She graduated from the Musashino Fine Art University in Tokyo where she majored in oil painting. Her love for drawing led her to become a film animator, but when that film production company went bankrupt, she went looking for another job. A Hawaiian band she knew suggested she try singing and a new career was born. Soon she was singing traditional Japanese pop music (Enka) and was being scouted by record labels. During the Seventies, she recorded four albums of pop music for Japanese audiences. "One pianist who worked with me said, "Why don't you try jazz? I think you'll love it.’ I started listening with lots of interest to all aspects of jazz -- the harmonies, the chords, the progressions. It seemed very complicated to me at first, but I continued listening and it became clearer little by little. I really came to love it. Jazz always excites me and gives me energy. I went to a jazz school and got a lesson. I studied English pronunciation and jazz vocal techniques. I started singing with jazz groups. I finally recorded my first jazz album, Birdland, in 1983." According to Itoh, "Carmen McCrae was my first idol. I was deeply impressed by her singing." Since then other influences have included Sarah Vaughn, Anita O'day, Nina Simone, Betty Carter, Chet Baker, Ray Charles, Stevie Wonder, Barbra Streisand, Antonio Jobim, Tony Bennett and Nancy Wilson. After performing on the Tokyo jazz club circuit, Kimiko spent most of 1985 in New York appearing in clubs such as The Blue Note and Sutton's in Harlem where she encountered enthusiastic audiences. She then returned to Japan to perform and tour with Terumasa Hino. In 1986, she was awarded the Grand Prix of Japan for Jazz Vocals. In 1988 she appeared at Bottom Line in New York as part of an "East Meets West" cultural exchange program. She was voted the #1 Female Jazz Vocalist in Japan in Swing Journal's Critic's and Reader's Polls for five consecutive years. She has become known as "Japan's First Lady of Jazz." When her Follow Me album was released in the U.S.,it went to #16 on Radio & Records’ Contemporary Jazz chart. At one of her Tokyo concerts in support of her A Natural Woman album in 1990, she was joined on-stage by Nancy Wilson for a spontaneous performance. That led to recording a duet of "Silent Night" with Wilson for the Christmas album A Jazzy Wonderland which also features Grover Washington, Jr. and Harry Connick, Jr. among others. Itoh was the only Japanese artist who appeared on the album. Whether she is winning top Japanese music industry awards or showing up on the Internet in international fans’ "jazz dream bands," Kimiko Itoh impresses everyone who hears her sing. "I couldn't imagine I could go to Montreux and perform, but suddenly I was there. Everything was special. Chick Corea gave me encouragement backstage. The producer celebrated with champagne right after the show. It was an unforgettable experience." # # #
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