The Ventures Play Yuming (2013)

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ventures Play Yuming was released on a CD by Universal Music in Japan in 2013.

 

There are 13 tracks on this album, and the total running time is about 50 minutes.

 

The CD comes with a booklet with information about the tracks. 

 

Unfortunately, almost everything is written in Japanese, even the titles of the 13 tracks, because the album is produced for the Japanese market, so it will not be helpful to most customers outside Japan.

 

The last page is in English, though, and here we have the line-up of the band when the album was recorded:

 

** Rhythm guitar – Don Wilson (1933-2022)

** Lead guitar – Gerry McGee (1937-2019)

** Drums and percussion – Leon Taylor (born 1955)

** Bass and lead guitar – Bob Spalding (born 1947)

 

The album was record at Roshambo Studio Californa and engineered by Craig Nepp.

 

The text also mentions Ian Spalding, son of Bob Spalding:

 

“A special thanks goes to Ian Robert Spalding for his arrangements, orchestration, keyboards, and guitar work on this album.”

 

For more information about the members of the band, I refer to Dan Halterman’s biography: 

Walk, Don’t Run: The Story of the Ventures 

(First edition 2008)

(Second edition 2009)

 

Yumi Matsutoya (born 1954), often referred to by her nickname Yuming, is an influential Japanese singer, composer and pianist.

 

She is an important figure in Japanese popular music, and her long recording career has been commercially successful with more than 42 million records sold.

 

With this album, where all tracks are written by Yuming, the Ventures pay tribute to a famous colleague in the music business.

 

Here are the titles (with some words in Japanese and some in English):

 

# 1: Rouge no Dengon – Message in Rouge

# 2: Ju ni Gatsu no Ame – Rain in December

 

# 3: Yasashisa nu Tsutsumare tanara – Surrounded by Kindness

# 4: Ano hi ni Kaeritai – Want to go back to those days

 

# 5: Toki wo Kakeru Shoujo – Girl Going through Time

# 6: Manatsu no Yoru no Yume – Dreams in Mid-Summer

 

# 7: Sunny Day Holiday

# 8: Kanashimi no route 16 – Sorrow Route 16

 

# 9: Yu-yon-ban me wo Tsuki – 14^th Moon

# 10: Destiny

 

# 11: Velvet Easter

# 12: Sotsugyo Shashin - Yearbook

 

# 13: Haru Yo Koi – Spring Will Come

 

Track # 13 “Haru Yo Koi” is from Yuming’s album Dancing Sun released in 1994. The Ventures recorded this song in 1995. It was included on their album Pops a la Carte which was released in 2005. When it was recorded, the line-up of the band was slightly different:

 

Gerry McGee and Don Wilson played with Bog Bogle on bass and Mel Taylor on the drums.

 

Mel Taylor died in 1996; he was replaced by his son Leon Taylor.

 

Bob Bogle died in 2009; he was replaced by Bob Spalding who had, in fact, been filling in from time to time for several years.

 

The other twelve tracks are new recordings for this album, which have not been released by the Ventures before.

 

Some tracks are slow and rather soft: tracks # 4, 7, 10, 12 and 13. Others are faster and have a harder beat: tracks # 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8 and 9.

 

One track does not fit this pattern: track # 11 “Velvet Easter” has some slow elements as well as some fast elements, and therefore it belongs in both categories.

 

The combination of slow and fast songs makes a good variation.

 

The Ventures can play – and have played – many types of music. In the US and in Europe they are probably best known as a band that plays rock-and-roll.

 

The Ventures were inducted into the Rock-and-Roll Hall of Fame in 2008. But this album with music by Yuming is not rock-and-roll.

 

The Ventures have a second home in Japan, and on this album, they show their oriental side.

 

Over the years, the band has released several albums recorded especially for the Japanese market. 

 

It began with Pops in Japan (1967) and Pops in Japan No. 2 (1968). Other albums followed, for instance Chameleon from 1980.

 

The Ventures have released two albums where they play the music of Southern all Stars as well as an album where they play the music of Kayama Yuzo:

 

** Pops in Japan & Pops in Japan No. 2 (1999)

** The Ventures Plays Southern All Stars (2001)

** The Ventures Play Southern All Stars (2009)

** The Ventures Play Kayama Yuzo (2009)

 

I like this album, in particular tracks # 6 and 9, which have a very powerful beat. Track # 3 is a happy song that rolls on and on, while track # 13 is a soft and harmonious tune. Whether slow or fast, happy or sad, the quality of the music is always high. I am not surprised: the members of this band are very professional.

 

If you like instrumental music with an oriental sound, I think you will enjoy this album where the music is composed by Yuming and played by the Ventures.

 

PS. In 2013 the Ventures released two new albums. In addition to the album under review here they also released an album on the Japanese label Pony Canyon: 

 

The Ventures Then, Now & Forever

 

*****