1974 Dedication－Herbie34Hancock

It was recorded in Japan in 1974 while Hancock was touring and first released on the Japanese CBS Sony label in September 21, 1974. Hancock performs "Maiden Voyage" and "Dolphin Dance" acoustically, while "Nobu" and "Cantaloupe Island" were performed on electric keyboards. It has never been released on CD outside Japan,

The track "Nobu" is regarded by many (including Kirk Degiorgio of As One) as the first ever techno track, due to its other-worldly repetitive electronic groove.

Kirk DeGiorgio of As One claims that "Nobu" is the first ever techno track, and despite the song's lack of repetitive beats the argument makes sense in a way; the alien-sounding, icey synth washes and sequenced pulse of this piece definitely makes it sound amazingly ahead of its time.

http://www.discogs.com/Herbie-Hancock-Dedication/release/116965

"Maiden Voyage" - 7:44

Covers[edit]

American rock band Toto covered the piece on their 2002 Through the Looking Glass album
American jam band Phish has been known to cover the piece in their live shows, and a recording of it appears on their live album, Colorado '88
Robert Glasper performed a cover of Maiden Voyage interspersed into the Radiohead song "Everything In It's Right Place" on the album, In My Element.

"Dolphin Dance" - 11:18
"Nobu" - 7:39 dedicated to a close Buddhist friend, Nobu Urushiyama * is underpinned by a loop reminiscent of "Rain Dance"
"Cantaloupe Island" - 13:57 電子音效 is superimposed over the bass line of an ARP Odyssey synthesier 很安靜狠"丟丟丟"

"Nobu," a one-man show recorded in real time with the sample-and-hold feature of an ARP 2600 synthesizer providing a rhythm section for Hancock's electric keyboards, followed by "Cantaloupe Island" with a pre-recorded synth bassline. Side 2 is a fascinating look-back at the charms and stringent limitations of mid-'70s analog keyboards, as well as a challenge to Hancock's on-the-wing inventiveness -- and despite some inevitable stiffness in the rhythm, he comes through with some colorful work. This would be the first of several Japan-only Hancock albums from the '70s, an indication that Japanese jazz fans were (and perhaps still are) far more open-minded and free-spending than their American counterparts.

http://www.allmusic.com/album/dedication-mw0000031686

Notes

Recorded July 29, 1974 at Koseinenkin Hall, Tokyo, Japan.

Special thanks to Bill Allen (Herbie Hancock's manager) & Kambara music office.

The first pressing of the album comes with a poster. The poster shows a photograph of Herbie Hancock at the concert, as taken by Shigeo Anzai

Credits

Composed By – Herbie Hancock
Design [Album] – Shuichi Yoshida, Teruhisa Tajima
Directed By [Production Director] – K'Ichi Nakamura*
Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes], Synthesizer [Arp Pro Soloist, Arp Odyssey, Arp 3604, Arp 2600, Arp Pe-iv String Ensemble] – Herbie Hancock (tracks: B1, B2)
Engineer – Tomoo Suzuki
Photography By – Shigeo Anzai
Piano – Herbie Hancock (tracks: A1, A2)
Producer – David Rubinson
http://www.discogs.com/Herbie-Hancock-Dedication/release/1649657