" data-original-title="" title="">Ronny Johansson has the stage to himself on Japanese Blue, an album whose name and spirit epitomize a country in which Johansson has spent many pleasurable moments.

Aside from pointing out the obvious —that Johansson's harmonic figures are engaging and his technique flawless —a number of salient qualities should be noted at the outset. First, the album has been wonderfully recorded, mixed and mastered by Lars Nilsson; every nuance (and there are plenty) is meticulously safeguarded and given a gem-like radiance. Second, Johansson's mastery is such that the presence of a rhythm section soon becomes irrelevant. Third, Johansson is an admirable songwriter and arranger as well, having composed more than half the album's dozen songs (if one includes the closing reprise of "Japanese Blue"). The others, all tastefully chosen and performed, are Rodgers and Hart's venerable "Have You Met Miss Jones,"