Bob James: The Japanese Bonus Tracks

In addition to being a renowned keyboard player, arranger, producer and bandleader, Bob James is an especially astute and savvy business man.

Early on, he acquired the worldwide rights to his four solo albums on CTI Records and, later, his own Columbia-distributed albums on his Tappan Zee label. Years later, he would also pioneer the rights of recording artists whose music is sampled by other artists.

James’s ownership of his CTI and Tappan Zee albums has allowed him to reissue many of those records in America during his tenure with Warner Bros. (1986-2002). Some have also appeared courtesy of James’s relationship with Koch (2006-08) and, most recently, evosound (which has recently reissued James’s 1986 collaboration with David Sanborn, Double Vision, originally on Warner Bros.).

But James has also reissued these albums, waxed between 1974 and 1984, in Japan as well. In Japan, they appear as Tappan Zee discs, distributed in the nineties by VideoArts Music and in several series between 2001 and 2015 by Victor.

These exceptionally handsome packages are far more attractive than their American equivalents. Each is issued in a high-gloss gatefold card-stock sleeve that reproduce the look and feel of the original LPs – although the CD size makes the text positively unreadable (the 1983 BJ album The Genie is the only non-gatefold disc that was issued during this period).

And each contains an “easter egg” of sorts: a bonus track that was either previously unissued or released apart from the original album it appears on. Not one of these bonus tracks has ever appeared on the American equivalents of these Bob James reissues. Like the 1984 album The Swan, these are Bob James’s gifts to his ardent and adoring Japanese fans.

The songs are real curios, though. Most of them are really top-shelf Bob James, more like delicious leftovers from a gourmet meal than scraps thrown together to round out a dish. It’s unlikely that the bonus tracks are direct outtakes from the albums they appear on and it’s not entirely clear where some of the titles even came from.

But all are well worth hearing and, here, I’ll share as many of them as I can find.

“Solace” (Bob James [sic]) on One (1974): While this song is credited to Bob James (on acoustic piano here), it is actually a well-known Scott Joplin composition, famed at the time for its appearance on the soundtrack to the film The Entertainer (1973). That makes it very likely that the ragtime-era “Solace” is, indeed, a legitimate One bonus track.

James arranges the song in a New Orleans style that would become familiar to many in his cover of Paul Simon’s “Take Me to the Mardi Gras” the following year. Steve Gadd is likely on drums, and the muffled way he’s recorded here suggests Rudy Van Gelder’s sound mix for CTI at the time.

“Here Let My Life” (Bob James [sic]) on Two (1975): Again, “Here Let My Life” is credited to Bob James, but it is actually a piece composed by the 17th-century Baroque composer Henry Purcell (c. 1659-1695). BJ has played Purcell elsewhere, including “Music for a While” on the the 1974 CTI Paul Desmond album Skylark and “One Loving Night” on his own album Heads (1977).

The brief, strikingly unjazzy “Here Let My Life” features BJ on the Fender Rhodes without any rhythm, horns or string sections. The soloists sound to, these ears, like Art Farmer on flugelhorn – what he himself called the “flumpet” – Hubert Laws on flute and Eric Gale on guitar. If it is Farmer playing here, then this would be an outtake from the 1977 BJ4 album.

(In the above recording, click to track no. 6 at 11:57 to hear “Look Look.”)

“Look Look” (Bob James) on Three (1976): For an outtake, this one is remarkably well developed, with brief, though subtle, string and horn charts adorning the piece. If it was a leftover from this particular album – I only doubt it for the clarity of the piano in the mix (RVG’s pianos were more muffled-sounding at the time) – it’s hard to see why it was left off.

The brooding “Look Look” would have likely received a stronger title if released (how about “Out of the Fog”?), otherwise this is a particularly strong recording. James offers a terrific solo as does Eric Gale, who follows. Grover Washington, Jr. probably handles the melody on soprano sax, but oddly takes no solo…suggesting it might not be him after all.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Spring Has Come” (Bob James) on BJ4 (1977): For those that relish BJ’s always wonderful work on Fender Rhodes, “Spring Has Come” is a real joy. This small-group outing features James’s Rhodes backed only by acoustic guitar, bass, drums and percussion.

The acoustic guitar reminds this listener of BJ’s work with Richie Resnicoff on One (1974), which suggests Gary King, Idris Muhammad and Ralph MacDonald are the other players. The mix certainly indicates Rudy Van Gelder recorded “Spring Has Come.”

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Foot Fetish” (Bob James) on Heads (1977): This two-part invention is another feature for BJ’s work on Fender Rhodes. Eric Gale is almost certainly on rhythm guitar while Gary King is likely on bass. The familiar-sounding funk break in here probably indicates that Idris Muhammad is on board here, too.

There are strings added on the chorus and the solo, suggesting that the oddly-titled “Foot Fetish” was close to being included on some album at some point. But the song could have been recorded at any time between 1974 and 1979. And the strange title might explain the equally curious cover of Foxie (1983) as well.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“With the One You Love” (Bob James) on Touchdown (1978): Similar in many respects to “Feel Like Making Love,” this one seems to call out for lyrics and a vocalist. It seems specifically designed to garner radio airplay, which makes it a surprise that it was never released. But the similarity to the Eugene McDaniels song is so stark that they likely gave up trying to do anything with it. Still, this is a very pretty performance.

By this point in Tappan Zee’s history, though, there was a subtle, if half-hearted, effort to get a hit record for the label. Coincidentally, though, that happened on this very record; not with a pop song but an instrumental: “Angela,” the lovely theme to the hit TV series “Taxi” (1978-83).

It was enough to sustain BJ’s relationship with Columbia, but not enough to make the Tappan Zee label a viable entity for much longer.

But it’s also not clear that “With the One You Love” is from the Touchdown sessions. It could very well have been recorded several years earlier, when BJ did his own cover of “Feel Like Making Love.” I think that it’s pretty much the same group accompanying BJ here as on his cover of the McDaniels song.

And it’s worth remembering that James and his compatriots there – including guitarist Richie Resnicoff – were also present on Roberta Flack’s hit recording of the same song.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Summer, Fall, Winter, Spring” (Bob James) on Lucky Seven (1979): Although this round of seasons sounds very much in the groove of late seventies BJ, the melody has a sixties TV theme quality to it, as though it was an audition for a film or TV show. It is, on the other hand, a fully fleshed out theme, even if it gets a bit too repetitive for its own good.

Bob James leads and solos on Fender Rhodes with arrangements for strings and a horn section. It’s easy to figure players like Eric Gale, Gary King and maybe Andy Newmark are on board here, with the Brecker brothers and Mike Lawrence in the horn section. Hubert Laws is also a possibility here, too.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Jazz Jam” (Bob James) on One on One (1979): More of a “funk respite” than a “jazz jam,” this ever-so brief bit of collective improv is very likely an outtake from One on One – and one that doesn’t sound at all like the rest of One on One.

I wish they had done something more with this. But this was clearly just a little bit of fun in between the more serious ballad-oriented songs from the original album.

Bob James and Earl Klugh are positively funky here, with the former on acoustic piano and the latter on guitar. Gary King on bass and Harvey Mason on drums are likely responsible for laying down the whip-tight groove.

Since this really isn’t a song, per se, it’s no great mystery why this title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Sparkling New York” (Bob James) on H (1980): “Sparkling New York” was recorded in January 1980 – likely around the time H (the eighth letter in the alphabet) was being recorded – and first released on the Japanese-only LP compilation Mr. New York (1980). Other tracks on the album include “We’re All Alone” and “Night Crawler” from Heads, “Angela” and “Touchdown” from Touchdown, and “Rush Hour” and “Big Stone City” from Lucky Seven.

Recorded especially for the Japanese market, “Sparkling New York” was even issued as a Japan-only single in 1980. Musicians here include Marvin Stamm (flugelhorn), George Marge (flute), Bob James (keyboards, synthesizer, clavinet, arranger), Steve Khan (guitar), Gary King (bass), Buddy Williams (drums), Leonard Gibbs (percussion), and Patti Austin and Frank Floyd (vocals). 

Although this title was never given an American release, it is still surprising that “Sparkling New York” is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

(In the above recording, click to 29:38 for the piano solo intro or to 32:25 for “Women of Ireland.”)

“Women of Ireland” (Sean O Riada) on All Around the Town (1981): Bob James first recorded “Women of Ireland” – originally featured on the soundtrack to the 1975 Stanley Kubrick film Barry Lyndon – on his 1976 album Three. The song was still a part of his repertoire when this live version was recorded in late 1979.

All Around the Town followed James and company to several venues in New York City during one week in December 1979: two shows a night at The Bottom Line on the18th and 19th, Town Hall on the 21st and two shows at Carnegie Hall on the 22nd.

The original double-disc set included only eight performances from the five shows. But according to Mark Cathcart’s comprehensive 2023 post Follow Bob James All Around the Town, James’s Tappan Zee label recorded four hours worth of the Bottom Line shows, about an hour and a half at Town Hall and three hours of the two shows at Carnegie Hall.

“Women of Ireland” comes from the second set at Carnegie Hall and features Bob James (keyboards, arranger and conductor) with Tom Browne, Mike Lawrence and Ron Tooley (trumpet), Jim Pugh and Dave Taylor (trombone), Tom Scott and Mark Colby (sax), George Marge (woodwinds), Earl Klugh (guitar), Hiram Bullock (electric guitar), Gary King (bass), Idris Muhammad (drums) and Jimmy Maelen (percussion).

“Body and Soul” (Bob James [sic]) on Sign of the Times (1981): Sign of the Times was the first album Bob James recorded at Columbia after the collapse of his Tappan Zee label the year before. (It is also the first of BJ’s studio albums that breaks with the numbering theme.) The album still retained the Tappan Zee logo, but James was charged with waxing more commercial fare that could crossover – and, frankly, sell better.

He brought in Quincy Jones’s close collaborator Rod Temperton (“Boogie Nights,” “Always and Forever,” “Rock With You,” “Give Me The Night” and “Stomp”) with an attempt to find more crossover fare (more vocals, less horns). The record has its moments (“Unicorn,” especially, “Hypnotique” and “Love Power”), but it is hardly the resounding success of any of Temperton’s other chart-toppers – which would later include Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.”

The disc’s Japanese bonus track is “Body and Soul,” obviously not a BJ original, but rather the 1930 tune written by Johnny Green. The song is, of course, a jazz standard, first covered by Louis Armstrong and, later, a hit for Paul Whiteman. And while it has been covered by just about every jazz instrumentalist in history, Coleman Hawkins’s 1939 recording is probably the best known. Frank Sinatra and Billie Holliday have left their mark on the song as well.

This is one of the few electric versions of the song I remember hearing, with BJ on Fender Rhodes, Eric Gale on guitar and Gary King likely on bass. The drummer is anyone’s guess: Buddy Williams? Rick Marotta? Peter Erskine?

There is a slight hint of reggae to this version, which was probably brought in by the guitarist. Unless this was the musicians pushing back on their corporate overlords, it’s difficult to imagine what this truly wonderful near-funk version of an old jazz standard was meant to accomplish.

Little wonder “Body and Soul” never wound up on an official release. But it suggests an interesting direction jazz never took in the early eighties.

“Theme From Star Trek” (Gerald Fried [sic]) on Hands Down (1982): This is the only track from this list that had been previously available in the U.S. Released on a 45-only release (backed with “I Want to Thank You [Very Much]” from Touchdown) around the same time as One on One in the Fall of 1979, “Main Theme from Star Trek – The Motion Picture” deserved to be a hit.

The BJ single even had a picture sleeve that made it look like the record was an official soundtrack release, using the film’s actual logo and, of course, an image of the the Starship Enterprise. (Tappan Zee’s parent company, Columbia, released the official Star Trek soundtrack at the time.)

Powered by Gary King’s energetic bass, this “Star Trek” gets a catchy disco beat and swaths of strings and horns. Hiram Bullock offers a Bullock-ish burst of electricity and BJ nicely rounds out the piece on Fender Rhodes.

Given that these were disco’s waning days, it’s no wonder this strong Jerry Goldsmith theme (incorrectly credited on my copy of Hands Down to Gerald Fried, writer of the “Star Trek” TV theme) never caught on. But it’s a great piece and well worth a listen or two, and one that will especially appeal to fans of BJ’s Lucky Seven, released earlier in the year.

“Let Me Show You” (Bob James) on The Genie: Themes and Variations from the T.V. Series “Taxi” (1983): A small-group feature that focuses on Bob James’s Fender Rhodes and Eric Gale’s guitar. Gary King is likely on bass. Like too much of The Genie, it’s pleasant enough but, ultimately, not all that interesting.

What’s most remarkable, though, about this nearly eight-minute piece is the space afforded to Gale. It’s also a lovely tribute to the incredible affinity the guitarist had with Bob James over many years and many recordings.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Tell Me Tell Me” (Bob James) on Foxie (1983): This autumnal waltz has all the makings of a theme for a downbeat movie. Bob James is on acoustic piano, minimally accompanied by a vibraphone, bass (and, briefly, arco bass) and drums. It’s a nice, moody performance that feels more like the Modern Jazz Quartet than, well, Bob James.

Since the pianist has only infrequently recorded with vibes – players such as David Friedman on One and The Genie, and Mike Mainieri on Heads stand out – “Tell Me Tell Me” makes for a refreshing listen. But the song unaccountably fades out during a somewhat meandering solo, almost as though the credits were done rolling and it was time to get on with the picture.

This title is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“San Antonio” (Bob James) on The Swan (1984). This album was another gift from Bob James to his devout and devoted Japanese fans. First issued in Japan in 1984, Bob James presents six compositions featuring his usual sidemen, including Hugh McCracken and Steve Khan (guitar), Marcus Miller, Ron Carter and Will Lee (bass), Peter Erskine and Yogi Horton (drums) and Leonard “Doc” Gibbs and Sammy Figueroa (percussion).

The disc would not appear in the United States until 1995 (via Warner Bros.) and again in 2007 (via Koch). The disc was also issued in the UK in 1997 (via Essential). The bonus track, “San Antonio,” appeared on the Japanese releases of The Swan issued on CD in 2002 and 2015 (both via Victor). “San Antonio” is not listed among Bob James’s published work.

“Synco Sonata” (Bob James) on 12 (1984): Making jazz out of the classics brought Bob James success at CTI in the early seventies. The keyboardist and composer revisited this sort of thing on “Ludwig,” from his 1983 album Foxie (it’s a fair bet to say that “Synco Sonata” was recorded at about the same time).

I’m not sure whether this is based on a classical sonata or whether it’s a Bob James original. But the keyboardist makes it his own. Indeed, he could very well be playing all of the instruments heard here. This pleasing performance would have made a nice addition to the original programs of either Foxie or 12 – and it certainly would have beefed up the Japanese-only The Swan.

While this listener catches echoes of the 1981 Daryl Hall and John Oates hit “I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do)” here, “Syncho Sonata” is also not listed among Bob James’s published work.