ALL IS VANITY

An AOR artist's party sound, brought to life in an L.A. studio by Larry Carlton, Buzz Feiten, Michael Landau, Joe Sample, Rick Marotta, Kirk Whalum and others. Returning to himself, Kadomatsu searched for the image of the singer-songwriter he wanted to be. The AOR outlook here is not merely stylish: tracks 1, 3, 6 and 9 are filled with accomplished hybrid pop, where Steely Dan, samba, acid jazz, Afrobeat and bossa nova echo through Kadomatsu's own sensibility. The celebrated ballad DISTANCE is magnificent, while sessions with Takao Kisugi and musicians such as Tsugutoshi Goto, Nobu Saito and others produce songs blessed with an effortless urban tone and spiritual effect. This is a fuller, more nourishing reprise of the flavor heard on the previous album's cover of MORE DESIRE.

The heavy summer song 2 and the single Kono Eki Kara are symbolic of the record. The tension is unmistakable, but one can only yield before the overwhelming quality of the sound. The next album would bring a three-year hiatus. After enjoying the basics of Kadomatsu style once more, this sound had already evolved beyond early AOR, black music or dance music into totalized pop music.