A local favorite brewery had two taprooms: the one near us and the other one that also sold vinyl. The latter recently closed for good and upon arriving at the "local" local a few weeks ago, I was pleasantly surprised to see the record collection had migrated to the taproom still in operation. The selection is selective and the prices range from decent to no thank you. But amongst at least a dozen other artists I had never heard of, an album cover featuring a Japanese man with a trombone pressed against his lips drew my attention. Thus was my introduction to Hiroshi Suzuki.

Today:

The artist: Hiroshi Suzuki

Weapon of choice: Trombone
Recorded: October 8–10, 1975
Released: February 26, 1976
Album: Cat

Little seems to be known about Suzuki, other than he was born in Yokohama, Japan in 1933, moved to Las Vegas in 1971 to play with Buddy Rich, recorded Cat while visiting his homeland in 1975, and died back in Sin City in 2020. While he put out at least a few other records before relocating to the USA, Cat appears to be his last release. Information is pretty much non-existent for what transpired between 1976 and his death nearly three years ago, but a minor renaissance came about when Cat was rereleased in 2015, becoming something of a hot commodity and collectors item for the jazz community. After one listen, it's no wonder why.

Revolutionary by no means, the laid-back grooves make Cat easy to dig into. And while labeled "fusion," it is far more accessible than the album likely to be featured here two weeks from now that will fall under the same subgenre. "Kuro to Shiro" and "Walk Tall," both featuring some banging upright bass, serve as standouts among the five excellent tracks. The record smoothly floats along as Suzuki's backing band deftly complements his trombone to create a calm, engrossing listen. His career may be shrouded in mystery, but at least this Cat is out of the bag.