2. I should care (9:10) - A fresh arrangement of the timeless Cahn-Stordahl-Weston standard. This tune sits right in the pocket and swings from start to finish.
3. Bandai Bashi (10:12) - This tune takes its name from a bridge in Niigata city, a place that holds special memories for me.
4. Joe’s tune (5:59) - There are so many Joes in the jazz world. Henderson, Pass, Lovano, Zawinul, Yamada… the list goes on, But this composition is dedicated to my boisterous three year-old boy, little Joe Cosgrove.
5. Orudam (6:00) - Taking its cue from such jazz tunes as “Airegin” and “Ecaroh” in which the title is written back to front, “Orudam” is inspired by the Maduro lounge, one of my regular performance spots in the heart of Tokyo.
6. The night we called it a day (6:31) - This rarely played gem by Matt Dennis was introduced to me by jazz aficionado Masahiko Tagiri, and it is arranged here for the trio as a jazz waltz.
7. Simple Pleasures (8:58) - I wrote this tune back in 2010, right after a period when I had been composing a lot of harmonically and rhythmically complex music. Here the trio goes “back to basics” and rediscovers the joy of swinging jazz music.
8. Foibles (3:53) - The great Thelonious Monk was the inspiration for this trio offering, featuring the inimitable drums and cymbals of Andrew Dickeson.
9. Mini strut (1:26) - The horns join us again for the last tune of the session, a funky postlude dedicated to my quintessentially British (and entirely unreliable!) vintage Mini Cooper. The band is grooving, and Yoshiro Okazaki blows out the last notes of the record in style.
Special thanks to my family and friends for their continued support and encouragement; to Ryuichi and Andrew for “always smiling” and bringing joy to the music; to Yoshiro and Masanori for swinging hard and interpreting my tunes and arrangements so beautifully; to the students and staff at Joshibi University for their constant inspiration; and to Eiji and Bob for working their magic in the studio and adding an extra dimension to the music.
Simon Cosgrove piano
Yoshiro Okazaki trumpet
Masanori Okazaki tenor sax
Ryuichi Yamamura bass
Andrew Dickeson drums
