Magic | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 18, 2009 | |||
Recorded | 2008–2009 | |||
Genre | ||||
Length | 45:42 | |||
Label | Vermillion Records | |||
Producer | Tak Matsumoto | |||
B'z chronology | ||||
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Singles from Magic | ||||
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Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
Allmusic | [1] |
Magic is the seventeenth studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released on November 18, 2009. A limited edition was released featuring a bonus DVD with the video "Magical Backstage Tour 2009" (videos of recording sessions, live footage of their performance at Summer Sonic 09 and more). [2]
It was preceded by two singles: "Ichibu to Zenbu/Dive" and "My Lonely Town." "Ichibu to Zenbu" was used as the Fuji Television drama Buzzer Beat's theme song, and "Dive" was used as a CM song for the Suzuki Swift advertising campaign. [3] The album track "Pray" served as the theme to the Japanese film Tajomaru, which was released to Japanese theaters in September 2009. [4] On the release date of the album, it was reported that another album track, "Long Time No See," would serve as the theme to Salaryman Kintaro 2, which is set to begin airing in January 2010 on TV Asahi. [5]
Magic debuted at No. 1 on the Japanese Oricon weekly album charts with its initial week sales of around 341,000 copies. The album became their 24th number-one album on Oricon charts. [6] The album is also certified Double Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipment of 500,000 copies. [7]
Following their year-long tour in support of their twentieth anniversary in 2008, [8] B'z went on break before returning to the studio. After vacationing in Hawaii, the duo reunited and began work on the album. [9] A color advertisement was printed to announce the album, which was included in the morning editions of Yomiuri, Asahi, Chunichi, Shizuoka, and Hokkaido newspapers, on September 28, 2009. Aside from announcing the album, information regarding the 2010 tour and the release date of the then-upcoming single, "My Lonely Town," were detailed. [10]
The DVD included in the special limited edition contains the documentary "Magical Backstage Tour 2009" that follows the band as they record in the United States and Japan. Live recordings of the Showcase concert events from July through August 2009 are also included, as well as their performance at the Japanese music festival Summer Sonic. [10]
On September 30, 2009, B'z appeared on Japanese radio station bayfm in order to celebrate the station's twentieth anniversary. The show was referred to as a "B'z Special" that served as an introspective and a platform for which to preview the new album. Several songs from Magic were broadcast for the first time with comments interspersed by the band. [11] On November 2, the show was made available via a portal on the bayfm website, and it was later reported that over 10,000 listeners had heard the recorded broadcast within the first day of it being online. [12]
The opening track, labeled "Introduction," was a guitar instrumental requested by Inaba once the rest of the album had been completed. This track was designed to merge into the opening of the second track, "Dive," which had previously been on the album's first single. The slow tempo opening of the single version was removed to provide a more seamless crossover from the end of the introduction track. [13] The album contains two power ballads, one of which is the previously heard "Pray" along with "Tiny Drops," which was debuted on the bayfm radio show. The double A-side single of "Ichibu to Zenbu/Dive" and that of "My Lonely Town" are also included in the album, and upon their releases, became the band's record 42nd and 43rd consecutive #1 singles on Oricon charts. [14] Additionally, the final track of the album, "Freedom Train," was actually the first to be recorded.
All lyrics written by Koshi Inaba, all music composed by Tak Matsumoto alongside arrangement by Koshi Inaba, Tak Matsumoto, and Hideyuki Terachi. [15]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Introduction" | 0:37 |
2. | "Dive" | 2:59 |
3. | "Time Flies" | 3:21 |
4. | "My Lonely Town" | 3:37 |
5. | "Long Time No See" | 3:11 |
6. | "Ichibu to Zenbu" (イチブトゼンブPart and All) | 4:11 |
7. | "Pray" | 4:45 |
8. | "Magic" | 4:07 |
9. | "Mayday!" | 4:03 |
10. | "Tiny Drops" | 4:05 |
11. | "Dare ni mo Ienē" (だれにも言えねぇCan't Tell No One) | 3:22 |
12. | "Yume no Naka de Aimashō" (夢の中で逢いましょうSee You in My Dreams) | 3:17 |
13. | "Freedom Train" | 4:07 |
Chart (2009) | Peak position |
---|---|
Oricon Daily Album Chart [16] | 1 |
Oricon Weekly Album Chart [6] | 1 |
Oricon Monthly Album Chart | 1 |
Oricon Yearly Album Chart | 13 |
Billboard Japan Top Albums [17] | 1 |
Year | Single | Chart | |
---|---|---|---|
Oricon Singles Chart | |||
2009 | "Ichibu to Zenbu/Dive" | 1 | |
"My Lonely Town" | 1 |
"Ichibu to Zenbu/Dive" is a Double A-Side single, but Japan Hot 100 includes only "Ichibu to Zenbu".
Year | Single | Chart | |
---|---|---|---|
Billboard Japan Hot 100 | |||
2009 | "Ichibu to Zenbu" | 1 | |
"My Lonely Town" | 1 |
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
Japan (RIAJ) [18] | 2× Platinum | 500,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. |
B'z is a Japanese rock duo consisting of guitarist, composer and producer Takahiro "Tak" Matsumoto and vocalist and lyricist Koshi Inaba, known for their energetic hard rock tracks and pop rock ballads. B'z is one of the best-selling music artists in the world and the best-selling in their native Japan by certifications, having released 49 consecutive No. 1 singles, 25 No. 1 albums, and 3 No. 1 EPs on the Oricon music charts, and have sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
Koshi Inaba is a Japanese singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He is best known as the vocalist and lyricist of the rock duo B'z, the best-selling music act in their native Japan. He also has a successful solo career, with six studio albums and five singles topping the Japanese music charts. Inaba collaborated with Slash on the latter's 2009 single "Sahara", and with Stevie Salas on the albums Chubby Groove (2017) and Maximum Huavo (2020).
Off The Lock is the second studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released on May 21, 1989. It was the second album they released for BMG Victor's Air Records imprint.
Break Through is the third studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. The album debuted at number 3 on the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart, being their last studio album not to reach number 1. It sold 41,700 copies in its first week and sold a total of 724,640 copies during its chart run. It was eventually certified Million by the RIAJ in January 1994.
Bad Communication is the first mini-album by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released in 1989. The album was the first hit album for the band, debuting at number 15. The album also includes the band's first two English versions of previous songs—in this case, "Out of the Rain" and "Dakara Sono Te Wo Hanashite", both from their debut album—dubbed "Off the Lock Style". It peaked at number 12 on the Oricon weekly albums chart in 1991, and by 1993, was certified million by the RIAJ. It was eventually certified 3x platinum, selling over 1,200,000 copies. The song was used in a commercial for Fujitsu's FM Towns computers.
Wicked Beat is the second mini-album by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released on June 21, 1990. It consists of extended, English versions of previous hits. The album sold 1,111,230 copies in total, eventually being certified Triple Platinum by the RIAJ. It debuted at No. 3 on the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart, being their last album of original material to not debut at No. 1.
Japanese rock duo B'z has released 22 studio albums, 12 compilation albums, nine extended plays (EP), 62 singles, and 20 live albums. With more than 86 million sales in Japan, the duo is the best-selling artist in Japan and with 100 million sales one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
"Real Thing Shakes" is the twentieth single by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released on May 15, 1996. The song is one of the band's many number-one singles on the Oricon chart. This is the first B'z single that was not produced by guitarist Tak Matsumoto since "Taiyō no Komachi Angel", instead opting for British producer Andy Johns. It sold over 1,140,000 copies according to Oricon, making it their thirteenth consecutive million-seller single. The band would hold the record for most consecutive million-seller singles for seventeen years until AKB48 broke it in 2013 with their single "Heart Electric". It was used as the theme song for the drama Oretachi ni Ki o Tsukero.. It was also the band's first English single.
"Kon'ya Tsuki no Mieru Oka ni" is the twenty-seventh single by B'z, released on February 9, 2000. This song is one of B'z many number-one singles in Oricon chart, and sold over a millions copies, with 1,129,000 copies sold. It was used as the main theme for the TV drama Beautiful Life.
"Ichibu to Zenbu/Dive" is the forty-sixth single by B'z, released on August 5, 2009, as a double A-side. This is one of the many number-one singles by B'z at Oricon Singles Chart. It was a long hit, staying in the top 5 and the top 10 for 8 consecutives weeks. It also reached number one on the Billboard Japan Hot 100 and the Top Singles Sales chart. On December 10, 2009, it was announced that the single won the "Hot 100 of the Year" award at the Billboard Japan Music Awards.
"My Lonely Town" is the forty-seventh single by B'z, released on October 14, 2009. The single features an original song and a ballad version of the previous single as b-sides. In addition, the single was also released in a limited edition, coming with a DVD with the music video.
B'z Live-Gym 2010 "Ain't No Magic" at Tokyo Dome is the twentieth live DVD by the Japanese rock duo B'z, released on 28 July 2010. The video sold more than 127,000 copies, peaking at #25 at Oricon.
C'mon is the eighteenth studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on July 27, 2011.
B'z The Best XXV 1999–2012 is a compilation album by Japanese hard rock duo B'z. It was released on June 12, 2013, simultaneously with B'z The Best XXV 1988–1998, and it is part of their 25th anniversary celebration. It reached #2 at Oricon charts, while B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998 itself reached the top, the same happening at the Billboard Japan Top Albums.
Epic Day is the nineteenth studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on March 4, 2015, more than 3.5 years after their previous studio effort, C'mon, their longest gap between studio albums. It came after a hiatus in which the members released solo projects, including vocalist/lyricist Koshi Inaba's Singing Bird and guitarist/composer Tak Matsumoto's New Horizon.
Dinosaur is the twentieth studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on 29 November 2017. It came after a hiatus in which the members released solo projects, including vocalist/lyricist Koshi Inaba's collaborative album with Stevie Salas, Chubby Groove, and guitarist/composer Tak Matsumoto's solo effort enigma and collaborative studio album with Daniel Ho Electric Island, Acoustic Sea.
The Hit Parade is a covers album by Tak Matsumoto in conjunction with several guest artists. It was released on 26 November 2003 through Vermillion Records.
New Love is the twenty-first studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on May 29, 2019, about a year and a half after their previous album Dinosaur. It is the first B'z album to not have an accompanying single, though music videos were produced for "Tsuwamono, Hashiru", "Wolf", and "Majestic".
Friends III is the sixth mini-album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on December 8, 2021. It's a concept album and is a sequel to their previous mini-album, Friends II, released in 1996.
Highway X is the twenty-second studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on August 10, 2022, and was their first album released after the COVID-19 pandemic started.