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Ryuichi Sakamoto – Thousand Knives
Ryuichi Sakamoto
Thousand Knives
Style: Electronic
Label: Better Days
Catalog Number: YX-7586-ND
Released: 1978
The debut solo album by Ryuichi Sakamoto, Thousand Knives was released just shortly after the composer earned his M.A. in music from Tokyo University and before he formed Yellow Magic Orchestra with Haruomi Hosono and Yukihiro Takahashi. The album foreshadows the eastern new-wave synth-pop sound of YMO while also presenting Sakamoto’s unique compositional style and sharing some similarities with the Kankyo-Ongaku “environmental music” movement. A2 “Island Of Woods” is a relaxing electronic ambient track featuring field recordings of birds and flowing water. B2 “Plastic Bamboo” is the most dance floor friendly with its distinctive melody, thick, syrupy synthesizers and groove electronic beat. The album is also significant because live performances of “Thousand Knives” contain one of the earliest uses of the Roland TR-808 drum machine. R.I.P. Ryuichi <3
Recommended – Full Listen
Tags: Ambient / Essential Listening / Modern Classical / Synthesizer
Tracklist:
A1 Thousand Knives
A2 Island Of Woods
A3 Grasshoppers
B1 Das Neue Japanische Elektronische Volkslied
B2 Plastic Bamboo
B3 The End Of Asia
Credits:
Castanets – Tatsuro Yamashita (tracks: B1)
Composed By – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Computer [Operation] – Hideki Matsutake
Coordinator [Fashion] – Yukihiro Takahashi
Cover – Sign (6)
Drum [Syn-Drum Solo] – Motoya Hamaguchi (tracks: A1), Pecker (tracks: B2)
Finger Cymbals – Harry Hosono* (tracks: A1)
Guitar [Alembic] – Kazumi Watanabe (tracks: A1), Kazumi Watanabe (tracks: B3)
Liner Notes – Harry Hosono*, Hikaru Hayashi, Ryuichi Sakamoto
Management – A. Ikuta*
Marimba – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Orchestrated By – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Performer – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Photography By [Cover] – Makoto Iida
Piano [Acoustic] – Ryuichi Sakamoto (tracks: A3), Yuji Takahashi (tracks: A3)
Producer – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Programmed By – Hideki Matsutake
Recording Supervisor [Management] – Akira Ikuta*
Rhythm Guitar – Kazumi Watanabe (tracks: B3)
Synthesizer – Ryuichi Sakamoto
Whistle [Brazillian Bird] – Motoya Hamaguchi (tracks: A2)
