You want the theme from 2001? You got it. Goofy, yes, but distinctly Tomita, as are the seven other tracks on Kosmos. His treatment of Williams' work, awash in buzzing, swooning syncopation, channels the spirit of R2D2 via a melody that sounds like it's being played on a kazoo. Speaking of which, Tomita's version of John Williams' Star Wars theme on here is a true keeper, not to mention an excellent example of his innate ability to transform someone else's work into something completely different while still maintaining the integrity and feeling of the original. If memory serves, a certain sci-fi film was recently released, and the public had cosmic travels on the brain.

But Tomita has never shied from commercial work, scoring many a Japanese television show ( Zatoichi, anyone?) and even working (like Carlos) with Disney at one point. And admittedly, Kosmos is one of his more commercial-minded albums. Tomita is a supremely trippy, space-obsessed dude, responsible for some of the finest oscillator modulation this side of Wendy Carlos or Morton Subotnick. But that other part happened, too (at the 1984 Ars Electronica Festival in Linz - a performance documented on the live album Mind of the Universe). Oh no wait, he was re-arranging the works of Mussorgsky, Stravinsky, and Debussy for electronic interpretation on 1975's Firebird. Your thoughts would be greatly appreciated indeed.Last time we checked in on analog synth god Isao Tomita, he was floating over the heads of 80,000 people, suspended in a glass pyramid as he live-mixed keyboard tracks at an Austrian music festival. There are some quite obvious imperfections in the transfer (drop outs, tape hiss etc) but is such a revelation to behold compared to the 8 track 1991 RCA VICTOR USA pressing. This version is exactly as the vinyl I owned in that it had 6 tracks versus the other 8 track version. The Japanese pressing is one of those silver/grey discs which actually looks like those old WG versions. The somewhat strange BMG CD version, pressed in the USA which has 8 tracks was all I could find and after years of hunting I finally found a Japanese pressing which has the 6 tracks I was familiar with. The opening track had been edited down in length and the whole album felt awkward and unlike the original LP with two extra tracks planted into the middle of the track listing.

I was disappointed with the first version of this on CD.a 1991 RCA/BMG pressing made in the USA. This record takes a special and honourable place in my collection. I thank God (and my Mother) for the enlightenment. Reluctantly and finally I gave in and made the purchase. My Mother figured it to be the greatest albums she'd heard in years and wanted me to buy it instead of KISS LOVE GUN. When we went into the record store (THE RECORD INN, Palmerston North, New Zealand) they were playing ISAO TOMITA's 1978 album called KOSMOS. Some angel gave me a record store voucher for my birthday and I had one thing on my mind.BUY ANOTHER KISS ALBUM.PREFERABLY LOVE GUN from 1977!! My Mother had already decided KISS to be far too wild and the last thing I would be allowed was yet another KISS record.

My story starts in 1980 when I was eleven years of age. One of my favourite ISAO TOMITA albums comes from 1978 and is called KOSMOS.

Isao tomita kosmos