Tsuyoshi Yamamoto - A Shade of Blue (Immersive Edition)

    Audio: Listen to this article.

It should come as no surprise to members of the Audiophile Style community that I’m a big fan of Japanese jazz, the Three Blind Mice record label, and especially pianist Tsuyoshi Yamamoto. Some friends have suggested I have a problem and need help for my obsession with this fantastic music. I accept that it’s a problem, a great problem, and the only help I need is obtaining more of the hard to find releases.

Classic albums such as Midnight Sugar, Misty, and Girl Talk from Yamamoto’s Trio in addition to the albums on which he appears, such as Moon Ray by the Yoshio Otomo Quartet, are all legendary for musicianship, musicality, and impeccable recording quality. Over the years I’ve eagerly purchased albums such as Misty for Direct Cutting by the Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio, expecting superior sonics from the nature of the direct recording. I’ve always been disappointed by albums like this, because those from the 1970s are so ingrained in my memory and the quality is demonstrably hard to beat.

Several weeks ago I received a text from Audiophile Style writer and jazz aficionado @JoeWhip, notifying me of a new Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio release, named A Shade of Blue, on the Evosound record label. My interest was piqued. I clicked the link he sent, and saw the following.

“A Shade Of Blue was created as an immersive (3D audio) work. To capture this, we used eight microphones for the piano, three for the bass, twelve for the drums, and 16 for the whole tones.

The stereo and 5.1 channel products were mixed to incorporate the experience of the immersive recordings as much as possible so that when you listen to the album, it feels as realistic as possible - as if the Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio were performing right in front of you.

If you enjoy this immersive experience, try out the 3D audio on the Blu-ray, and turn your living room into a concert hall.

The album is available on 180-gram double vinyl LP, SACD - Hybrid Multi-Channel and MQA-CD on the 27th October 2023, and later in the year on MQA-CD + Blu-ray (Dolby Atmos + Stereo) and on an impeccably shot 4K Ultra HD Blu-ray (Dolby Atmos / Auro /Stereo). “

My one word response to Joe was, “NICE!!!!” My favorite pianist, playing some of my favorite music, and recorded as an immersive album, what could possibly be better? I’d have to wait to find out if this album would match my lofty expectations, as the we were still weeks away from its December 8, 2023 release date, and the immersive version on Blu-ray was scheduled for a 2024 release.  As Eddie Vedder says in the Pearl Jam song Corduroy, “The waiting drove me mad.”

After looking up information about the new album, my impatience got the best of me. I contacted Evosound and asked if there was any way I could get access to the Dolby Atmos immersive version before 2024. As most readers likely guessed, that version is now sitting on my computer, playing through the Dolby Atmos Renderer to my 7.1.4 twelve channel Wilson Audio system. I admit, I have the best “job” in the world.

Let’s get down to brass tacks right away, then I’ll detail who, what, and why. The Dolby Atmos immersive version of the Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio’s A Shade of Blue, is easily my favorite album by the trio. Period. Despite the 1970s versions on the Three Blind Mice label being the originals and the versions that I’ve played countless times, the immersive versions of tracks such as Midnight Sugar, Misty, Girl Talk, and Last Tango in Paris, are so good that I can’t see myself reaching for the originals ever again. I know this because I’ve done A/B comparisons for the last two days, and can’t believe what I’m hearing. The immersive version of the new album is that good.

This album features Tsuyoshi Yamamoto on piano, Hiroshi Kagawa on bass, and Toshio Osumi on drums. Engineer Hideo Irimajiri captured this trio playing live at Tokyo’s Gotanda Cultural Center Music Hall. Listening to the entire album start to finish multiple times, it’s hard to believe the combined age of this trio is 215 years. On the other hand, these guys are so good that perhaps a couple hundred years of combined experience is needed to reach this level.

Everything about the immersive version of this album is impeccable. From the placement of the musicians on the soundstage to the tone of the instruments to the immersive mix that places the listener inside Gotanda Cultural Center Music Hall. The album will likely be my first choice to play when people visit my listening room and want to hear what immersive audio is all about.

On Midnight Sugar, and all the tracks for that matter, Yamamoto is on the left side of the soundstage, Hiroshi Kagawa and his bass are in the middle, and Toshio Osumi and his drums are on the right side of the soundstage. Immediately from the opening second of the song, Kagawa’s bass in the middle sounds so realistic it’s crazy. While much of his bass emanates from the center channel, the entirety of his bass sound is filled out by the left, right, and top left and top right loudspeakers. I’m not talking about just a little bass in those channels, there’s quite a bit to be heard and it’s what one would expect to hear in those positions. The best way I can describe it is the sound of his bass in the center channel is the nucleus of a cell, while the rest of the bass sound is a loosely define cell membrane that envelops the front of the soundstage, getting more diffuse as it moves further from the nucleus. It’s like real life!

On the track Misty, I absolutely love Tsuyoshi Yamamoto’s piano playing and the sound captured by Hideo Irimajiri. Listening to this, I feel like Yamamoto is playing in the front left corner of my listening room. The sound emanates from that position to the rest of the room. Similar to Kagawa’s bass on Midnight Sugar, the sound of the piano travels up and out from the corner of my room. It’s most concentrated in the front left, side left, center, and top front left speakers. Like a loosely defined cloud of smoke, most concentrated at its source, while disappearing and changing shape as it moves further away.

The sound of Yamamoto’s piano on this track is lush, precise, and ethereal.  The tone captured by the 16 additional tone microphones is absolutely superb. It goes well beyond anything I’ve heard on any of the Three Blind Mice releases. As good as those releases are, and as much respect as I have for those who created them, I must give Hideo Irimajiri a tip of the cap for surpassing everything that has come before him, with this recording and mix.

Finally, I must mention Toshio Osumi’s drums on the track Last Tango in Paris. The performance, recording, and immersive mix are legendary. Osumi plays his kit on the front right side of the soundstage, Irimajiri of course captured and mixed the sound perfectly to flow from the front right corner horizontally and vertically toward the rest of one’s listening room.

The track starts slow with beautiful playing of relaxing music. The listener is still nicely placed inside the Gotanda Cultural Center Music Hall. Toshio Osumi keeps the beat, sounding like he’s been here before and this is just his understated support of Yamamoto’s pianistic brilliance. Around four minutes into the track the pace picks up, until BAM! Osumi takes over at 5:23 into the track. This drum solo is my new favorite, of all time, for three reasons. First, the music is great. This isn’t some esoteric piece that only a drummer will understand and appreciate. It’s great music. Second, Osumi works his kit like a magician who has performed this trick a million times. One can feel the effort and heart he puts into the performance, but his talent just shines through and enables him to do it with ease. I’d have never known he’s nearly 80 years old if I didn’t look it up, out of curiosity.

The third reason this is my new favorite drum solo is the recording and mix are absolutely superb. Every time I listen to this track, I am reminded of Grammy winning engineer Bill Schnee’s live to two-track recordings on Bravura Records. Most people never got to hear them, but the drum sound Bill was able to capture, was like nothing I’d previously heard. Now, I believe Hideo Irimajiri has captured and immersively mixed a drum performance every bit the equal to the Schnee / Bravura tracks. Because Schnee’s mix is stereo and Irimajiri’s is immersive, I hate to compare them and pick a winner. They are just different.

Listening to Osumi’s performance on Last Tango in Paris the decibel meter in my Apple Watch Ultra hit 95 dB. There is plenty of low level resolution on this recording, but it’s so good that turning the volume up enough to hit one in the chest with the kick drum is something that every music loving audiophile must experience. The sound of live music is always special, but there’s nothing like the feel of it. This performance can get us close.

Wrap Up

The Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio’s new album A Shade of Blue, recorded and mixed for immersive audio by Hideo Irimajiri, is easily my favorite piece of music from 2023, and is a “must hear” for anyone with an immersive audio system. Engineer Hideo Irimajiri hit the nail on the head, capturing everything with stunning detail, and mixing this album perfectly between a conservative, ambiance only in the immersive channels, mix and crazy everything everywhere at all times mix.

I expected to be let down by this album. New versions of favorite tracks that have been ingrained in my memory for years, are always a tough sell. Plus, I’d just been let down by the Steven Wilson mix of Van Morrison’s Mooondance, so my hopes were high but expectations low. Wilson pulled Moondance apart beyond all cohesion and recognition, and turned it into something that likely pleases many people, but is not in my wheelhouse. I respect the artistic choices made, but it isn’t for me.

When I played A Shade of Blue, I knew it immediately. This is an instant classic because the music is great, the musicianship is impeccable, and the immersive recording and mix are second to none. A big top of the cap to everyone involved.

Artist: Tsuyoshi Yamamoto Trio

Album: A Shade of Blue

Release Reviewd: Dolby Atmos (now available as an MKV download!)

Others Available: Tidal, Apple Music, LP, SACD (multichannel), Blu-ray (immersive) (coming in 2024)