Ongaku Cafe (80s, 90s): B’z – B’z The Best XXV 1988-1998 (Rel. June 2013)

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Disc: 1
1. だからその手を離して
2. 君の中で踊りたい
3. ＬＡＤＹ－ＧＯ－ＲＯＵＮＤ
4. ＢＥ　ＴＨＥＲＥ
5. 太陽のＫｏｍａｃｈｉ　Ａｎｇｅｌ
6. Ｅａｓｙ　Ｃｏｍｅ，　Ｅａｓｙ　Ｇｏ！
7. 愛しい人よＧｏｏｄ　Ｎｉｇｈｔ．．．
8. ＬＡＤＹ　ＮＡＶＩＧＡＴＩＯＮ
9. ＡＬＯＮＥ
10. ＢＬＯＷＩＮ’
11. ＺＥＲＯ
12. 愛のままにわがままに　僕は君だけを傷つけない
13. 裸足の女神
14. Ｄｏｎ’ｔ　Ｌｅａｖｅ　Ｍｅ

Disc: 2
1. ＭＯＴＥＬ
2. ねがい
3. ｌｏｖｅ　ｍｅ，　Ｉ　ｌｏｖｅ　ｙｏｕ
4. ＬＯＶＥ　ＰＨＡＮＴＯＭ
5. ミエナイチカラ　～ＩＮＶＩＳＩＢＬＥ　ＯＮＥ～
6. ＭＯＶＥ
7. Ｒｅａｌ　Ｔｈｉｎｇ　Ｓｈａｋｅｓ
8. ＦＩＲＥＢＡＬＬ
9. Ｃａｌｌｉｎｇ
10. Ｌｉａｒ！　Ｌｉａｒ！
11. さまよえる蒼い弾丸
12. ＨＯＭＥ
13. ＨＥＡＴ
14. 核心

DVD:
1. だからその手を離して　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
2. 君の中で踊りたい　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
3. ＬＡＤＹ－ＧＯ－ＲＯＵＮＤ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
4. ＢＥ　ＴＨＥＲＥ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
5. 太陽のＫｏｍａｃｈｉ　Ａｎｇｅｌ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
6. Ｅａｓｙ　Ｃｏｍｅ，　Ｅａｓｙ　Ｇｏ！　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
7. 愛しい人よＧｏｏｄ　Ｎｉｇｈｔ．．．　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
8. ＬＡＤＹ　ＮＡＶＩＧＡＴＩＯＮ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
9. ＡＬＯＮＥ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
10. ＢＬＯＷＩＮ’　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
11. ＺＥＲＯ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
12. 愛のままにわがままに　僕は君だけを傷つけない　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
13. 裸足の女神　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
14. Ｄｏｎ’ｔ　Ｌｅａｖｅ　Ｍｅ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
15. ＭＯＴＥＬ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
16. ねがい　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
17. ｌｏｖｅ　ｍｅ，　Ｉ　ｌｏｖｅ　ｙｏｕ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
18. ＬＯＶＥ　ＰＨＡＮＴＯＭ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
19. ミエナイチカラ　～ＩＮＶＩＳＩＢＬＥ　ＯＮＥ～　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
20. ＭＯＶＥ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
21. Ｒｅａｌ　Ｔｈｉｎｇ　Ｓｈａｋｅｓ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
22. ＦＩＲＥＢＡＬＬ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
23. Ｃａｌｌｉｎｇ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
24. Ｌｉａｒ！　Ｌｉａｒ！　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
25. さまよえる蒼い弾丸　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
26. ＨＯＭＥ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）
27. ＨＥＡＴ　（ＭＵＳＩＣ　ＶＩＤＥＯ）

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B’z is one of Japan’s most successful rock duo’s in Japan which consists of guitarist, composer and producer Matsumoto “Tak” Takahiro and vocalist and lyricist Inaba Koshi.

Since their debut back in 1988, the band shows no signs of wavering, having sold over 100 million albums and singles worldwide, has had over 40 consecutive #1 singles, two dozen #1 albums and three #1 EP’s.

In fact, the band has been recognized for their accomplishments that in 2007, they were the first music act in Asia to have their handprints and signatures on Hollywood’s RockWalk and in 2008, were awarded a Guinness World Record for “Best selling album act in Japan”.

Back on June 2013, to celebrate the 25th anniversary of B’z debut, two single collections were released titled “B’z The Best XXV 1988-1998” and “B’z The Best XXV 1999-2012”.

The release marks the band’s 7th and 8th B’z best music release since their 20th anniversary release back in 2008 with the release of their “B’z The Best “ULTRA Pleasure” and “B’z The Best “ULTRA Treasure”.

But what makes this release different is that the 25th anniversary are more single collections.

I am reviewing “B’z The Best XXV 1988-1998” which includes all 26 A-side single tracks from their first single “Dakara Sono Te wo Hanashite” from Sept. 1988 to their 25th single “Home” (released back on July 8, 1998). (NOTE: Their 19th single was a double A track “Mienaichikara – INVISIBLE ONE-” and “MOVE”)

While there were best albums released in the past by B’z, this is the first time for many of the early singles to be included due to rights issues.  The three singles are owned by Ariola Japan (formerly BMG Fun House) but this time permission was granted to include the singles in the collection (and is featured on the lyrics as “Licensed by Ariola Japan Inc.”).

The album will also include two new songs “HEAT” which was a self-cover provided to singer Kim Hyun-Joong of the South Korean boy band SS501 (Kim’s version of “HEAT” was released in July 2012 and debuted at #1 on the Oricon Charts).

The other new song is “Kakushin” which was a song written for the 2013 Japanese TV drama series “Kumo no Kaidan”.

While many of the songs were featured on previous best albums, “B’z The Best XXV 1988-1998” is perfect for those who want to get into B’z but wants to listen to all their singles in consecutive order, from their earliest tracks to home.

For me, I felt ’90s B’z music is what I tend to be nostalgic for, as I started listening to B’z with their 12th single “Ai no Mama ni Wagamama ni, Boku wa Kimi dake wo Kizutsukenai”, which happens to be the band’s best selling single which has sold over two million copies.

In fact, the single would usher the domination of Being artists on the Oricon Charts which included B’z, TUBE, ZARD, T-BOLAN, WANDS, Oguiro Maki, DEEN, BAAD, REV, ZYYG, FIELD OF VIEW and more.

So, for longtime Japanese rock listeners who grew up during this decade, the Being years (Note: Being, Inc. is a music production company with over 60 affiliated record labels including GIZA studio, VERMILLION RECORDS and more) were no doubt a special time in Japanese music.

But I found myself gravitating more to the rock tracks of B’z versus those that incorporated pop with the use of synth.  For example, “BLOWIN'” which was the band’s 10th track, which sold well. So, for me, “Ai no Mama ni Wagamama ni, Boku wa Kimi dake wo Kizutsukenai” was where I really started to follow B’z music.

And when the group released their 14th single, the rock ballad, “Don’t Leave Me”, it was a song that captivated me, considering that 1994 was considered their “Dark Age” as the band was focusing on live performances and taking a break as things went quiet for the band for a short while.  In fact, the band wouldn’t release anything for nine months until they released their 15th single “MOTEL”.

According to Matsumoto, he didn’t feel like making any songs after the March 1994 release of their seventh album “The 7th Blues”.  In fact, with their seventh album, it was when Matsumoto wanted to go with more of a rock sound which shows in their single tracks.

But this new sound no doubt attracted listeners with awesome tracks such as their 16th single “Negai” (the first single released with their private label, VERMILLION RECORDS), and a month later, the band released their 17th single “Love Me, I Love You”, a wonderful track, yet their shortest.

Their 18th single is probably what garnered the most attention, “LOVE PHANTOM” which was used as the theme song for the Japanese TV broadcast version of “The X-Files”.  The song also featured BB Queens Utoku Keiko.

And from here on in, the music really went through a rock-fused energy that was exciting with “Mienaichikara – INVISIBLE ONE-“, “MOVE”, “Real Thing Shakes” and “FIREBALL”.

With the release of their 22nd single “CALLING” which was used for the TV Asahi drama “Gurasu no Kamen” (Glass Mask), I just thought of how wonderful the arrangement of this song how it transitions from rock to slow ballad and back to rock. It’s an amazing song which was written by Matsumoto for a friend’s wedding.

The band would continue on with more successful rock tracks “Liar! Liar!”, “Samayoeru Aoi Dangan” and “HOME” to complete the 26 singles then the two new songs as I previously mentioned.

But one of the best selling points is the fact that it comes with a third disc (for the first limited edition release) which features all 27 music videos (or live performances from one of their concerts if there were no music video created) for each of the songs on DVD.

Included is a slipcase box to house the three discs and a booklet with lyrics, but also an image of each of the singles, which was very cool.

Overall, of all the numerous best album releases from B’z, their 25th anniversary double album “THE BEST XXV” releases are the best albums for fans to purchase by far!

“B’z – B’z The Best XXV 1988-1998” is highly recommended!

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