This album’s songs follow roads in between but always lead home to its expansive, human, and recognizable vision.

Shanachie SHA CD 5503

Steps On The Globe – Keiko Matsui (piano, melodeon); Alex Al (bass); Gregg Bissonette (drums); Tony Pulizzi (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes, keys); Wayne Bergeron (trumpet); Nick Lane (trombone); Brandon Fields (saxophone).

The Choice – Mike Stern (Lead guitar); Keiko Matsui (piano); Alex Al (bass). Gregg Bissonette (drums); Tony Pulizzi (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes, Keys). Prairie Morning – Keiko Matsui (piano); Alex Al (bass); Gregg Bissonette (drums); Tony Pulizzi (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes); Euphoria strings.

Neo – Randy Brecker (Flugelhorn); Keiko Matsui (piano); Alex Al (bass, Gregg Bissonette (drums); Tony Pulizzi (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes Love And Nothing Less – Lalah Hathaway (vocals); Grégoire Maret (harmonica); Keiko Matsui (piano); Jimmy Johnson (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); Michael Thompson (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes); JP Mourao (acoustic guitar). Luminescence – Kirk Whalum (tenor sax); Keiko Matsui (piano); Alex Al (bass); Gregg Bissonette (drums); Tony Pulizzi (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes, Hammond B3); Wayne Bergeron (trumpet); Nick Lane (trombone); Brandon Fields (saxophone). Rosso Cantabile – Keiko Matsui (piano, Melodion); Rico Belled (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); JP Mourao (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Euphoria strings.

Legend Of Yaguarón – Keiko Matsui (piano, Rhodes); Brandon Fields (Flute); Rico Belled (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); JP Maurao (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion). Mossy Mountain – Keiko Matsui (piano); Jimmy Johnson (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); JP Mourao (acoustic guitar (solo)); Michael Thompson (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Euphoria strings.

Blue Water – Keiko Matsui (piano); Jimmy Johnson (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); Randy Waldman (marimba); Michael Thompson (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes); Keiko Matsui & Bud Harner (vocals). Euphoria – Joel Ross (vibraphone); Keiko Matsui (piano); Jimmy Johnson (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); Michael Thompson (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Ron Pedley (Rhodes); John Beasley (synthesizer); Euphoria strings.

New Passage – Keiko Matsui (piano); Rico Belled (bass); Jimmy Branly (drums); JP Mourao (guitar); Luis Conte (percussion); Euphoria strings.

Keiko Matsui’s music sits at a specific junction of jazz, classical, new age, and world music. As a result, any of her songs can emphasize any of those aspects to give her songs a different sound and flavor while keeping them entirely hers.

The joyous music on Euphoria sounds new and at the same time completely recognizable. The songs on this album are a rare combination of exotic, eclectic, and at the same time always instantly accessible.

With Matsui’s mellifluous piano in the lead, all members of her band are equal participants in the album to polish its shine.

Steps on the Globe starts with a funky groove and leads into a melody that is pure Keiko Matsui. It sounds as if she’s sending an invitation to her listeners to join her on a global adventure.

Her piano builds on the memory and carries the listener away. The horns on the song sound exuberant. This song is also a fitting introduction to the album as each song seems to take the listener to a different part of the globe in an organic way.

The songs are not affectations of different culture’s music. They borrow rhythm, instrumentation, or melody and organically incorporate it into this new music’s flow.

The Choice offers a slower tempo and features a very welcoming melody paired with funk elements. Alex Al’s bass jumps and sings.

Michael Stern’s guitar puts the point in the song but never strays from its insistent melody as it builds until the song takes off and Matsui’s piano and Stern’s guitar fly together.

Prairie Morning is soft and graceful like seeing the wind on the prairie through a morning window. With the support of her band, Matsui’s piano does the seeing and traveling for the listener.

On Neo, Randy Brecker’s soft trumpet moves against the bass and keyboard’s rhythmic figure. The rhythmic refrain of the song repeats until the song takes off. Randy Brecker’s trumpet lilts over the entire band.

The whole band seems to pause for dreamy piano fills before the song continues behind the trumpet leading its gentle rhythmic charge. Matsui’s piano makes a surprise playful appearance toward the end and moves the song to its finish.

Love and Nothing Else steps into R&B with Lalah Hathaways’ lovely, smooth, and soaring voice unified with Matsui’s music. Matsui says, “The moment the first melody came to me, I

immediately could hear Lalah singing and before I even made contact with her, I had written the complete verse melody while imagining her voice.”

In Luminescence, the piano on this song bubbles along like the title, in its joyous and bright melody.

Kirk Whalum’s saxophone and horns drive the song along as Matsui’s piano sails above the music, moving between a smooth jazz flow and a funk emphasis on Alex Al’s bass. This happy song has so many of the aspects of Matsui’s music looking in at themselves.

Euphoria starts with a classic Mitsui piano melody given extra depth by strings and guitar.

The strings arch and dramatically build, only to dive into singing vibraphone and guitar solos, their musical notes and timbres shifting and rolling into and out of each other in a joyous parade. Her piano acts as an anchor and navigator through this lifting and searching composition.

New Passage summarizes the album and once again sounds old and new at once. Rolling chords dance into arpeggios and melodic runs, yearning and happy for what’s next while at rest in the knowledge that the music goes on.

Euphoria is world music jazz in that it belongs to the world, comes from the world, and is full of lively, delicate, and delightful surprises as its songs turn in unexpected ways. Euphoria is at once earthy, and airy.

Its songs follow roads in between but always lead home to its expansive, human, and recognizable vision. This is Keiko Matsui’s 30th album and it more than builds on her previous works and illustrates that there is always new music to be made if we keep our ears and eyes open.

Reviewed by Ben Miller