KADOMATSU T's SONGS FROM L.A. - The Ballad Covers Collection (2004)

Requested in "REQUEST & FILL CORNER" section...

Japanese multi-instrumentalist, composer, arranger and orchestrator Toshiki Kadomatsu has been very popular in Asia since the early '80s creating music for other artists and recording his own albums in a Westcoast / AOR / Pop style, with many American musicians as session players.
During the '90s, and due the musical climate in the US, top artists from the genre found refugee in the Japanese market, always eager for delicate sounds and melodies.

Then Kadomatsu had the idea to re-work his most popular Japanese songs to be performed by US musicians, and moved to California to record this "KADOMATSU T's SONGS FROM L.A. - The Ballad Covers Collection" after the other volume including more poppy songs, previously featured here on the blog.
The best L.A. session cats were part of the project, including superb guitarists Jay Graydon & Michael Landau, alongside other monsters like Brett Raymond, Gino Vannelli, Tom Keane, Abraham Laboriel and more.



As on the previous volume the vocalists involved are top notch too: again Joseph Williams (Toto), Chicago's Jason Scheff and the great Tommy Funderburk, but now featuring the likes of Richard Page (Mr. Mister) and talented Brett Raymond doing lead vocals apart of playing keyboards and programming.
All singers did the lyric adaptation to English language and Kadomatsu the arrangements to fit the new versions. As you could imagine, this is a bunch of excellent material spotlessly clean produced and rich in smooth melodies all over.
Delicious CD only released in Japan, now out of print.


01 - Gino Vanelli - Still I'm In Love With You
02 - Michael North - Midnight Girl
03 - Jessica Sheely - You're My Only Shinin' Star
04 - Richard Page - Desire
05 - Lea Herman - August Rain
06 - Jason Scheff - Distance
07 - Henry Kapono - It's Hard to Say Good-Bye
08 - Presley Tucker - Mermaid Princess
09 - Brett Raymond - Let Me Say...
10 - Tommy Funderburk - Ramp In

Jay Graydon: Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Michael Landau: Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Toshi Onikuza: Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Tak Akimoto: Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Grant Geissman, Abraham Laboriel: Acoustic Guitars
John H. Wayne, Jim Stout: Bass
Todd Sorensen: Drums
Gino Vannelli: Piano
Brett Raymond: Keyboards & Programming
Tom Keane: Keyboards
Michael Binikos, Tak Akimoto: Keyboards, Programming
Marco Tessier: Programming
Richard Beaudette: Sax
Larry Lunetta, Andy Suzuki, Alex Ailes: Horns
Jason Scheff, Joseph Williams, Marilyn Martin, Tom Keane, Margaret Linn, Mary Linn, Michael North: Background vocals


KADOMATSU T's SONGS FROM L.A. Ballad Covers Collection
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