PRE-ORDER: Ryuichi Sakamoto: 1996 [CD]

Thirty years ago, internationally beloved composer and pianist Ryuichi Sakamoto arranged some of his best known music, including his award-winning film scores, for piano trio on the career snapshot recording he titled simply 1996. New York's Bang On A Can All-Stars pay tribute to Sakamoto's landmark album with a track-by-track hybrid chamber-rock version, arranged by All-Stars clarinetist Ken Thomson, that captures the moving, meditative spirit of the originals while delivering a boisterous urban whimsy to classics like "Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence". As a bonus, the album also includes an all-new arrangement of "Thousand Knives" the title track from Sakamoto's 1978 solo debut.