Saori Yano - Little Tiny (2007)

Saori started playing alto saxophone in a brass band at the age of nine. She was enthralled by the music and playing of Charlie Parker and got quite obsessed with jazz. At the age of 14, she was captivated by Billie Holiday's autobiography and so started her live activities by negotiating to appear at a jazz club. In September 2003, she made her sensational debut at the age of 16 and as the second Japanese artist to be signed to the prestigious Savoy jazz label. In the spring of 2007, she appeared in a commercial as a new Asian beauty of Kao "Asience". She recorded the original song "I & I" used in the commercial, and with her first best album at the age of 20 won the 22nd Japan Gold Disc Award and Jazz Album of the Year. Overall, she got a lot of attention beyond the boundaries of jazz. From that time on she earnestly worked on "Bebop", the origin of modern jazz, and at the same time performed live not only in Japan but also in New York. By enlarge, she made the world aware of the coming of a new generation of jazz. In this regard, this album is a testament of her talent/s as a bright new emerging star in the jazz world today! 

Savoy Records, COCB-53685, 2007
Recorded 26th & 27th September, 2007 at Clinton Recording Studio, New York 

Musicians:
Saori Yano - Alto Saxophone
Doctor Lonnie Smith - Organ [Hammond] (#1-9)
Yuta Kaneko - Organ [Hammond] (#10)
Peter Bernstein - Guitar (#1-9)
Yoshihiko Hosono - Guitar (#10)
Lewis Nash - Drums (#1-9)
Nobuyuki Komatsu - Drums (#10)
Hibari Misora - Vocals (#10) 

Tracks:
01. My Baby Shot Me Down {Saori Yano} (8:18)
02. Split Kick {Horace Silver} (6:43)
03. Close To You {Burt Bacharach} (7:27)
04. She Rote {Charlie Parker} (5:30)
05. Velvet Easter {Yumi Arai} (6:36)
06. Boplicity {Cleo Henry} (8:35)
07. Pardon Lucy {Saori Yano} (7:46)
08. KC Blues {Charlie Parker} (8:42)
09. Danny Boy {Irish Folk Song} (5:31)
10. Take The "A" Train {Billy Strayhorn} (3:49) * 

Total Time: 69:03

* Special Tribute Track 

Boplicity

Saori Yano - Answer (2012)

Saori Yano has been sending a new breeze to the jazz world since her amazing debut at the age of 16 in September 2003. She has released nine works including the best album so far, and will celebrate the 10th anniversary year from September 2012. The first release of her anniversary year is a fan-voted request album. For 10 years since her debut, she held fan votes on the web and at live venues to maximize her gratitude to the fans who continued to support her, and recorded the album from among them. Select a song. We will deliver all songs with new recordings including songs recorded in the album in the past. Included are the two songs "A Night In Tunisia" and "Whisky, You Like It" that co-starred trumpeter Terumasa Hino. For both songs, which have countless covers and rearrangements, Yano dared to choose a stoic approach without any tricks in the form of Mr. Hino's heart. In her attitude of carefully selecting the sounds she should make and refining her phrasing, she can certainly find one "answer" that she has been searching for 10 years. ~ toppe2.web.fc2.com. [Translated from Japanese] 

Savoy Records, COCB-54001, 2012
Recorded 24th, 25th, 26th July, 2012 

Musicians:
Saori Yano - Alto Saxophone
Terumasa Hino - Trumpet (#7,14)
Toru Nakajima - Piano, Trombone
Ken Kaneko - Bass
Nobuyuki Komatsu - Drums 

Tracks:
01. The Days Of Wine And Roses {Henry Mancini} (3:28)
02. All Of Me {Gerald Marks, Seymour Simons} (2:44)
03. Moon River {Henry Mancini} (3:40)
04. Sand And Skirt {Saori Yano} (4:00)
05. Moody's Mood For Love {James Moody} (3:14)
06. Theme From "Taxi Driver" {Tom Scott} (3:41)
07. A Night In Tunisia {Dizzy Gillespie} (6:37)
08. Sing Sing Sing {Louis Prima} / It Don't Mean A Thing {Duke Ellington} (2:09)
09. Answer {Saori Yano} (5:19)
10. Waltz For Debby {Bill Evans} (3:54)
11. La Vie En Rose {Louis Guglielmi} (3:40)
12. You'd Be So Nice To Come Home To {Cole Porter} (3:19)
13. Left Alone {Mal Waldron} (7:16)
14. Whisky, You Like It {Masamichi Sugi} (4:28) 

Total Time: 57:29

Whisky, You Like It

Saori Yano - Bubble Bubble Bebop (2015)

Alto saxophonist Saori Yano, prior to the release of this album has been active in the Japanese jazz scene for more than ten years. Saori following in the footsteps of Charlie Parker, continues her devotion towards and further exploration and revival of bebop in a modern revision as showcased in her previous album BeBop At The Savoy (2009). Yano's consistent platform of Bebop sets the cornerstone of her broader love of salsa, incorporating other funky rich elements, by surrounding herself with other like-minded and equally passionate musicians. Together they fully reveal the valor to challenge Yano's innate ambition to create exciting modern jazz music, throwing aside the complex academic and somewhat hidden reservations that traditionalists would have conveyed. In the end, we as listeners can benefit and simply rejoice and embrace her confidence portrayed in this well-polished recording work. Saori is joined by other performing musicians which include: Toru Nakajima (piano), Kengo Nakamura (bass), Nobuyuki Kamatsu (drums), Ogimi Gen (percussion); Guests: Tabu Zombie (trumpet) and Motoharu (tenor) from Soil & "Pimp" Sessions. 

Savoy Records, COCB-54166, 2015 

Musicians:
Saori Yano - Alto Saxophone, Vocals (#8)
Toru Nakajima - Piano
Kengo Nakamura - Bass (#1,2,4-9)
Nobuyuki Komatsu - Drums (#1,2,4-9)
Ogimi Gen - Percussion (#4)
Tabu Zombie - Trumpet (#5)
Motoharu - Tenor Saxophone (#5)
Salsa Swingoza (#3) 

Tracks:
1. Blowin' The Blues Away {Horace Silver} (4:53)
2. Bluebird {Charlie Parker} (4:41)
3. Puerto Rico {Eddie Palmieri}/Suna To Skirt {Saori Yano} (8:14)
4. Betty Et Zorg {Gabriel Yared} (6:24)
5. Mercy, Mercy, Mercy {Joe Zawinul} (6:24)
6. Bayou {Jimmy Smith} (3:55)
7. Avalon {Vincent Rose} (6:19)
8. Bye Bye Babylon {Saori Yano} (8:05)
9. Confirmation {Charlie Parker} (5:44) 

Total Time: 54:44