February 4, 2021

20,000 vinyl LPs 272: Kitaro ~ Silk Road, Sandra Sakata & Kaisik Wong

  ~     
vinyl LP front cover detail 
photos by Y. Takara & S. Ohtsuka
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®


Masanori Takahashi, better known as Kitaro is a Japanese recording artist, composer, record producer, and arranger noted for his electronic-instrumental music. Although he is often associated with and regarded as one of the most prominent composers of new-age music, I refuse to put him in that category; he is much, much more.    


vinyl LP back cover detail 
photos by Y. Takara & S. Ohtsuka
detail photo of album back cover by Styrous®


This is one of very many vinyl LP albums of mine that belong in my special category, “Just the cover, ma’am” (link below).   
 
I discovered Kitaro in the late seventies when he began his solo career; I remember the first album of his I found was Ten Kai.
   

Kitaro ~ Ten Kai
 vinyl LP front cover
Illustration by Kitaro
photo of album cover by Styrous®


I used the cut Beat from it for the first fashion show I did for Obiko in 1980 (link below), the art to wear boutique owned by Sandra Sakata in San Francisco (links below). The show was a tribute to Art Deco artist, Erté. I used some of the music from Ten Kai for the segment that featured the surreal fantasy designs by Kaisik Wong (link below) with stunning results.              
 
 
 fashion design by Kaisik Wong with Salvador Dalí
 date & photographer unknown 

 
On the 14th of May in 1987 I produced a fashion show at the Marco Polo Showroom, in San Francisco, California, for JEANNE-MARC and Obiko to benefit the Fiberworks Center for the Textile Arts in Berkeley; unfortunately, the Center closed later that year after the fashion show.  
 
On the 7th of May, during the production planning for the fashion show, Kitaro, who was a friend of Sandra's, came to the Obiko showroom. I knew he was goinig to be there, so, of course, couldn’t help but bring one of his albums for him to autograph . . .       


vinyl LP front cover
photos by Y. Takara & S. Ohtsuka
photo of album cover by Styrous®


. . . which he graciously did!       


vinyl LP front cover with autograph detail 
detail photo of album cover by Styrous®  
 
Kitaro was Sandra's favorite composer to use for her fashion shows and I utilized his work in every one I could. The last show I produced for her and Obiko was on September 4, 1997. She died two weeks later on September 21, 1997. There is not a day that goes by that I don't think of her.       

    
vinyl LP back cover
photos by Y. Takara & S. Ohtsuka
photo of album cover by Styrous®
 
         

vinyl LP back cover detail 
detail photo of album back cover by Styrous®




vinyl LP back cover detail 
detail photo of album back cover by Styrous®


vinyl LP back cover detail 
detail photo of album back cover by Styrous®



vinyl LP label, side 1
photo of label by Styrous®
   
Tracklist:

Side 1:

A1 - Silk Road (Shichu No Michi) - 4:10
A2 - Bell Tower (Shoro) - 2:27
A3 - Heavenly Father (Tenchi Sohzo Shin) - 6:27
A4 - The Great River (Harukanaru Taiga) - 4:38
A5 - The Great Wall Of China (Chohjo) - 4:43
A6 - Flying Celestial Nymphs (Hiten)

Side 2:

B1 - Silk Road Fantasy (Silk Road Genso) - 4:35
B2 - Shimmering Light (Hikari To Kage) - 3:14
B3 - Westbound (Nishi Ni Mukkatte) - 3:04
B4 - Time - (Toki No Nagare) - 3:29
B5 - Bodhisattva (Bosatsu) - 1:59
B6 - Everlasting Road (Towa No Michi) - 5:50

Side 3: 

C1 - Peace (Shizukesa No Nakade) - 3:45
C2 - Takla Makan Desert (Takuramakan Sabaku) - 3:22
C3 - Eternal Spring (Inochi No Izumi) - 5:17
C4 - Silver Moon (Karakhoto No Genso) - 5:10
C5 - Magical Sand Dance (Shimpi Naru Suna No Mai) - 6:03

Side 4:

D1 - Year 40080 (40080 Nen) - 4:38
D2 - Time Travel (Jikukan) - 2:38
D3 - Reincarnation (Saisei) - 4:15
D4 - Dawning (Yoake) - 3:15
D5 - Tienshan (Tenzan) - 4:35

Companies, etc.

    Copyright © – Canyon Records, Inc.
    Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Kuckuck Schallplatten
    Phonographic Copyright ℗ – E.R.P. Musikverlag
    Pressed By – Teldec-Press GmbH – 76.28 823
    Recorded At – Kamakura Studio
    Recorded At – Miasa Studios
    Mixed At – Kamakura Studio –
    Mixed At – Hitokuchizaka Studio
    Mixed At – Sound Design Studio, Tokyo

Credits:

    Composed By, Arranged By – Kitaro
    Design – Hermann Wernhard, T. Shibayama*
    Engineer – Kitaro
    Engineer [Assistant] – A. Kaji*, S. Taya
    Executive-Producer – Kimio Ariumi
    Mixed By – Kitaro, Masayoshi Ohkawa*
    Photography By – S. Ohtsuka*, Y. Takara
    Producer – Takayo Nanri
    Producer [Associate] – Moko Nanri
    Programmed By [Synthesizers] – Kitaro
    Synthesizer [Korg, Roland, Yamaha, Moog, Prophet], Acoustic Guitar, Drums, Percussion, Quena, Bells [Chanting], Mellotron, Santoor – Kitaro

Notes:

This version has label matrix numbers starting with "76.28 823".
Silk Road has label matrix starting with "66.28 066".

The second disc has a printed inner sleeve.

Soundtrack for the NHK TV series about the Silk Road.
A 2 LP compilation of Silk Road & Silk Road II.
No duration written for A6 on label.

No apparent etchings on Side D runout.
 
Barcode and Other Identifiers

    Other (Cat # disc 1): 051
    Other (Cat # disc 2): 052
    Label Code: LC 2099
    Rights Society: GEMA
    Matrix / Runout (Label side A): 76.28 823-01-1
    Matrix / Runout (Label side B): 76.28 823-01-2
    Matrix / Runout (Label side C): 76.28 823-02-1
    Matrix / Runout (Label side D): 76.28 823-02-2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side A): S-II 66.28 066-01-1/2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side B): WL II 66.28 066-01-2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side C): ˩٨ II 66.28 066-02-1/2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side D, stamped): 66.28 066-02-2/2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, stamped): 66.28 066-01-1/2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side A, etched): S-II
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, stamped): 66.28 066-01-2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side B, etched): WL II
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side C, stamped): 66.28 066-02-1/2
    Matrix / Runout (Runout side C, etched): ˩٨ II
 
Kitaro – Silk Road
Label: Kuckuck – 051/052
Format: 2 x Vinyl, LP, Compilation
Country: Germany
Released: 1981
Genre: Electronic, Folk, World, & Country, Stage & Screen
Style: Ambient, New Age, Soundtrack
    
 

         
Viewfinder links:        
          
“Just the cover, ma’am”                       
Salvador Dalí       
Erté              
Kitaro        
Obiko         
Kaisik Wong        
        
Net link:        
        
        
YouTube link:        
        
Beat (Obiko fashion show)       
         
        
        
         
        
 お誕生日おめでとう、喜多郎  
        
        
         
        
        
        
Styrous® ~ Thursday, February 4, 2021       
       









No comments:

Post a Comment

PLEASE NOTE: comments are moderated BEFORE they are posted so DO NOT appear immediately.

Thank you.