Sadao Watanabe (musician)
Sadao Watanabe (渡辺 貞夫 Watanabe Sadao) (born February 1, 1933) is a Japanese musician who plays the alto saxophone, sopranino saxophone and flute. He is known for his bossa nova recordings, although his work encompasses a large range of styles with collaborations from musicians all over the world.[1] He has had 13 albums reach the top 50 billboard charts and 2 within the top 10.[2] He has also had numerous albums reach number one on the jazz charts.[3] Among his more prestigious awards are the Order of the Rising Sun, the imperial medal of honour for his contribution to the arts, numerous cultural awards from around the world, the Fumio Nanri award and his cities first honour award.
Born in Utsunomiya, Japan, Sadao first began learning music at the age of 18 and started performing professionally in 1953. By 1958 he had established himself as a world-class saxophonist having performed with leading musicians and quartets.[3][4] In 1962 he left Japan to study at Berklee College of Music in Boston. In 1995 the college awarded him an honorary doctorate degree for his contributions to music.[5] In addition to his musical career, Watanabe has also published six photography books in Japan.[6]
He is also a citizen of Los Angeles, California, United States.
Discography
As leader
| Year | Album Title | Label (Catalog) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1961 | Sadao Watanabe | ||
| 1965 | Sadao Watanabe Plays | ||
| 1966 | Goin' Home Modern Jazz Album | ||
| 1966 | Takt Jazz Jazz & Bossa Nova | ||
| 1967 | Sadao Watanabe & Charlie Mariano: Iberian Waltz | Denon | with Charlie Mariano |
| 1967 | Nabesada & Charlie | ||
| 1967 | Bossa Beat Collection | ||
| 1967 | Jazz Samba | ||
| 1967 | My Romance | ||
| 1967 | Bossa Nova '67 | ||
| 1967 | Bossa Nova Concert | ||
| 1967 | Music Break | ||
| 1967 | Encore!! Jazz & Bossa / Sadao Meets Sharps & Flats | ||
| 1968 | We Got A New Bag / Sadao and Charlie Again | ||
| 1968 | Sadao Meets Brazilian Friends / Sadao & Brazilian8 | ||
| 1968 | Sadao Plays Beatles and Bacharach | ||
| 1969 | Swing Journal Jazz Workshop | ||
| 1969 | Pastoral | Sony | |
| 1969 | Song Book | ||
| 1969 | Sadao Watanabe Live At The Junk | Sony | |
| 1969 | Dedicated to Charlie Parker | with Terumasa Hino, Masanaga Harada, Fumio Watanabe, Kazuo Yashiro | |
| 1970 | Sadao Watanabe At Montreux Jazz Festival | Sony | |
| 1970 | Round Trip | Sony | with Jack DeJohnette, Miroslav Vitouš, Chick Corea |
| 1970 | Collaboration Quartet with Masabumi Kikuchi Sextet | ||
| 1971 | Paysages | Sony | |
| 1972 | Sadao Watanabe | Sony | |
| 1973 | Open Road | Sony | |
| 1973 | Kenya Ya Africa Meets Inter-African Theatre Group | Sony | |
| 1974 | Mbali Africa Live | Sony | |
| 1974 | Sadao Watanabe At “Pit Inn” | Sony | |
| 1975 | Swiss Air | Sony | |
| 1975 | Pamoja | ||
| 1976 | I'm Old Fashioned | East Wind | with The Great Jazz Trio: Hank Jones, Ron Carter, Tony Williams |
| 1976 | Sadao Watanabe Recital | ||
| 1977 | My Dear Life | ||
| 1977 | Bird Of Paradise | ||
| 1977 | Autumn Blow | featuring Lee Ritenour & His Gentle Thoughts | |
| 1987 | Birds of Passage | Elektra | with Ron Carter, George Duke, Hank Jones, Hubert Laws, Kazumi Watanabe, Tony Williams, Jimmy Haslip, Alex Acuña, Diana Acuna |
| 1978 | California Shower | ||
| 1979 | Morning Island | Flying Disk (VIJ-6018) | with Michael Brecker |
| 1980 | How's Everything | ||
| 1981 | Orange Express | with Dave Grusin, George Benson, Bobby Broom, Marcus Miller, Buddy Williams | |
| 1983 | Fill Up The Night | with Ralph MacDonald, Richard Tee, Marcus Miller, Steve Gadd, Eric Gale, Paul Griffin, Jorge Dalto, Grady Tate | |
| 1983 | Carnival | with Ron Carter, Hank Jones, Tony Williams | |
| 1984 | Rendezvous | ||
| 1985 | Maisha | ||
| 1985 | Parker’s Mood | with Seigen Ono, James Williams, Jeff Tain Watts, Charnett Moffett | |
| 1985 | Tokyo Dating | ||
| 1986 | Good Time For Love | ||
| 1988 | Elis | ||
| 1988 | Made In Coracao Toquinho | ||
| 1989 | Front Seat | ||
| 1991 | Sweet Deal | ||
| 1992 | A Night With Strings | ||
| 1993 | Earth Step | ||
| 1994 | In Tempo | ||
| 1993 | A Night With Strings Vol. 2 | ||
| 1994 | A Night With Strings Vol. 3 / Sadao Plays Parker | ||
| 1997 | Go Straight Ahead ’n Make a Left | with Bernard Wright, Charley Drayton, Mike Flythe | |
| 1997 | Kuroi Hitomi Song Book | ||
| 1998 | Viajando | ||
| 1999 | Remembrance | Verve | with Robin Eubanks, Billy Drummond, Jim Anderson, Cyrus Chestnut, Romero Lubambo, Christian McBride, Nicholas Payton |
| 2000 | Sadao 2000 | ||
| 2000 | Minha Saudade | ||
| 2001 | My Dear Life: 50th Anniversary Collection | ||
| 2003 | Wheel Of Life | ||
| 2005 | Sketches Of Nature | ||
| 2005 | One For You | ||
| 2005 | Broadcast Tracks '69-'72 | ||
| 2005 | Sadao & Charlie Again | ||
| 2007 | Basie's At Night | ||
| 2009 | Into Tomorrow |
As sideman
| Year | Album Artist | Album Title | Label (Catalog) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1965 | Chico Hamilton | El Chico | Impulse | |
| 1965 | Gary McFarland | The In Sound | Verve |
References
- ↑ "Music & Nightlife". Timeout.com.hk. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
- ↑ "Artist Search for "sadao watanabe"". AllMusic. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
- 1 2 "Cityline". Venue.cityline.com. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
- ↑ "Sadao Watanabe". Blue Note Jazz Festival. 2014-06-25. Retrieved 2016-08-18.
- ↑ "About Berklee | Berklee College of Music". Berklee.edu. Retrieved 2013-03-17.
- ↑ Sadao Watanabe web site: biography (Japanese), with photos
External links
- Official website
- Discography
- Fansite: Sadao Watanabe, une légende vivante
- Sadao Watanabe discography at MusicBrainz
- Sadao Watanabe discography at Discogs
- Sadao Watanabe - last.fm
- Sadao Watanabe at MTV
- Sadao Watanabe page on ITunes(us)