Somewhere between 1967 and 1968, at the very nerve of the psychedelic era, Japanese singer and composer Harumi recorded in New York an album that today sounds like a lost manifesto of cosmopolitan psychedelic pop.
Harumi is a rare example of delicate, almost fragile psychedelia - where Eastern melodic sensibility meets soft American folk-rock and the studio imagination of the late 1960s.
Recorded with New York musicians, the album moves between dream-pop long before the term existed, baroque pop orchestration and introspective psychedelia. There is no loud expression here - only transparent arrangements, bilingual lyrics (English / Japanese), gentle vocal delivery and a strong sense of inner journey.
The album was produced by Tom Wilson - the producer behind recordings by Bob Dylan, Simon & Garfunkel, The Velvet Underground and The Mothers of Invention. This immediately places Harumi at the heart of the 1967 New York scene - at a time when psychedelia was still exploration rather than formula.
Over the decades the record gained cult status among collectors and researchers of obscure psych and acid folk. Original copies are highly sought after, and the name Harumi has come to represent one of the most elusive chapters of the late 1960s underground.
Very little is known about the musician himself. He signed simply as Harumi, recorded this album and seemingly disappeared. There are fragments of information about his later life, yet he never attempted to build a public narrative around this work. The album was left to exist on its own.
And perhaps that is part of its power.
We are drawn to mysteries and sometimes what remains unexplained is exactly what keeps us returning.
Harumi remains such a mystery: a record one can live with for years, always discovering new shades, subtle images and shifting moods.
Mastering for this edition was handled by Jessica Thompson, a Grammy-nominated mastering engineer known for her refined and dynamic approach to archival material. Her work brings a new level of clarity, depth and balance to the album. The sound is fuller, warmer and more dimensional than even the original pressing, while remaining faithful to the spirit of the 1968 recording. Previous digital reissues often suffered from flat transfers and compromised dynamics; this edition restores the air, detail and presence the music truly deserves.
