Here is a quote of SIMON'S thoughts behind creating this compilation below:

"In 2000 I went to Tokyo for the first time, and immediately injured my knee. I hobbled around the city on crutches immersing myself in the amazing range of jazz, funk and soul. It wasn't just the hidden, special 2nd hand vinyl stores that blew me away - even Tower Records had the largest jazz collection I'd ever seen; with racks and racks of Japan-only CD releases of USA albums that could only be found on expensive, scratchy vinyl in their home country. I'd finally found somewhere that had a large population of people who loved the same music as I do, and even today, my DJ partner and some of my closest music buddies at home are Japanese.

However, at the time I knew nothing of Japanese jazz - it's only in the decade since then that my blog brothers have introduced me to Japanese music of the 1970s, music that soaked up electric Miles and electric Herbie in the jazz diaspora, and that even today continues to develop its idiosyncratic permutations through people like DJ Mitsu, Gagle, Sleep Walker and others. There's far too much beautiful music to fit onto one compilation, so expect more."