The Rainbow Goblins 2LP

Masayoshi Takanaka turned his ninth record, The Rainbow Goblins, into a full concept album based on the Italian picture book of the same name by Ul de Rico, an odd swing for a fusion guitarist to take. He folds in prog-rock influences from King Crimson and Pink Floyd alongside his usual funk and fusion, and it paid off: No. 3 on Japan's Oricon chart and a planning award at the Japan Record Awards. Decades later, "You Can Never Come to This Place" turned up on the soundtrack to 2025's The Smashing Machine.