We Three Trio - The Gershwin Collection (2006)

The debut album of "We Three Trio", a piano trio unit led by Kuni Mikami, a Japanese pianist who has lived in New York for over 30 years. Kuni Mikami was trained by Barry Harris disciples and Norman Simmons, and was the last pianist of the Lionel Hampton Orchestra for nine years. He became a personal friend and was Lionel's last ally, both professionally and privately. At the same time, he is also enrolled in the Duke Ellington Orchestra led by Paul Ellington, and continues to perform at Tuesday Night Live at the NY Club "Birdland" (2006). In addition, he performed with the Cab Calloway Orchestra, which can be said to be the roots music of the 2005 trend of "jump n jive" music, and the now-defunct Illinois Jacquet big band. He continues to play an active role as a pianist. He often visits Japan with black female vocal guests. His fan base in Japan is also expanding. Akihiko Hasegawa (ds), a drummer who studied under Frank Gant, a bebop drummer who is an ally in NY and has a deep friendship with Kuni, and Takanashi, a talented bassist who prides himself on the Ron Carter style and has a friendship with Ron. This "We Three Trio" with Michio (b) has a "contemporary" taste (according to Kuni), which is different from the "Manhattan-style" jazz trio that Kuni and Mikami have practiced in their live performances. Appearing as a unit that also has the aspect of a piano trio, they challenged George Gershwin, the first and last difficult composer for a pianist. He performed with originality that is as good as the performances of many pianists, and appealed to the many "drawers" that overturned the image of Kuni and Mikami so far. Takanashi's bass is also deep, spinning out the essence of these classics and adding a new flavor. The drumming that expresses Hasegawa's straight personality has also been sublimated into a drumming that understands the expression as a "unit", and in the future, by repeating concerts in Japan, it will become even more attractive. ~ www.hmv.co.jp. [Translated from Japanese] 

What'sNew Records, WNCJ-2160, 2006 

Musicians:
Kuni Mikami - Piano
Michio Takanashi - Bass
Akihiko Hasegawa - Drums 

Tracks:
1. It Ain’t Necessarily So {5:47)
2. Embraceable You {5:32)
3. Somebody Loves Me {6:22)
4. A Sleepless Night {4:34)
5. I Got A Rhythm {4:03)
6. Isn’t It A Pity {7:12)
7. Rhapsody In Blue {5:21)
8. Summer Time {4:00)
9. The Man I Love {7:15) 

All compositions by George Gershwin 

Total Time: 50:06 

Summer Time