Sapphire (Keiko Matsui album)

Sapphire
Studio album by Keiko Matsui
Released	1995
Genre	Jazz, smooth jazz, new age
Label	White Cat
Producer	Kazu Matsui
Keiko Matsui chronology
Doll (1994) Sapphire (1995) Dream Walk (1996)

Sapphire is the seventh studio album of jazz keyboardist Keiko Matsui, released in 1995 on White Cat Records. ^[1] This album peaked at No. 9 on the US Billboard Top Contemporary Jazz Albums chart. ^[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]

AllMusic gave the album a 4/5-star rating. ^[3]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Safari"	Keiko Matsui	4:32
2.	"Bouncing Bougainvillea"	Keiko Matsui	4:20
3.	"Sonora"	Keiko Matsui	5:41
4.	"Don't Turn on the Light" (featuring Valerie Carter)	Jeff Day/Keiko Matsui	5:11
5.	"Mission"	Keiko Matsui	4:30
6.	"Garden"	Keiko Matsui	4:19
7.	"Tears from the Sun" (featuring Karla Bonoff)	Jeff Day/Keiko Matsui	4:16
8.	"Spanish Galleon"	Keiko Matsui	5:00
9.	"Dragon Wings"	Keiko Matsui	4:51
10.	"Sapphire"	Keiko Matsui	4:51

Personnel

• Abraham Laboriel, Sr. - Bass Samples, Sampling
• Akira Jimbo - Drum Programming
• Derek Nakamoto - Arranger, Bass, Drum Programming, Engineer, Keyboards, Rhythm Loops, Sequencing, Synthesizer
• Joel Stoner - Engineer, Mixing
• John Patitucci - Bass Samples, Sampling
• Karla Bonoff - Vocals
• Kazu Matsui - Producer, Shakuhachi
• Keiko Matsui - Arranger, Keyboards, Piano
• Lenny Castro - Percussion
• Marco Dydo - Percussion Programming
• Marcus Miller - Bass Samples, Sampling
• Michael Fisher - Percussion
• Paul Taylor - Sax (Soprano)
• Rob Mullins - Arranger, Drum Programming, Engineer, Programming, Synthesizer
• Steve Hall - Mastering
• Valerie Carter - Vocals

References

1. Keiko Matsui - Sapphire (album). White Cat Records. 1995.
2. "Top Contemporary Jazz Albums" (PDF). Billboard. October 7, 1995. p. 65. Retrieved August 31, 2025– via worldradiohistory.com.
3. "Keiko Matsui - Sapphire". AllMusic . Retrieved August 31, 2025.