Vinyl Vault: John Neptune, "Bamboo"

The Vinyl Vault will feature an album by John Neptune and the Arakawa Band entitled "Bamboo.” The album was released in 1981 on the Inner City Records label. The album’s name comes from the instruments played by Neptune, mostly flutes fashioned from bamboo.

On the album, Neptune plays the shakuhachi, a traditional bamboo flute that is typically 21½ inches long and blown on the end, rather than in the side like a traditional Western flute. The shakuhachi is a traditional Japanese flute that dates back to the 16^th century. Neptune also employs several other flutes, both shorter and longer. The Japanese biwa lute also makes an appearance on the album.

On “Bamboo,” Neptune is backed by the Arakawa Band led by Tatsuhiko Arakawa. It was a Japanese fusion band that released three albums in the early 1980s.

Check out the “Bamboo” this Tuesday night, January 27, at 8:30 p.m. with host Geoff Anderson on the Vinyl Vault on KUVO JAZZ.