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 50 consecutive No. 1 singles, 27 No. 1 albums, and 4 No. 1 EPs on the Oricon music charts, and have sold more than 100 million records worldwide.
Takahiro Matsumoto is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer. He is best known as the guitarist and main composer of the rock duo B'z, the best-selling music act in their native Japan by certifications. He also has a successful solo career where, in addition to winning several Japan Gold Disc Awards, he won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album for Take Your Pick (2010), which he made in collaboration with Larry Carlton. Matsumoto is only the fifth guitarist in the world to have his own Gibson signature model guitar.
Eric Lee Martin is an American rock singer who was active throughout the 1980s, 1990s, and 2000s, both as solo artist and as a member of various bands. He rose to prominence as the frontman for the hard rock band Mr. Big, which scored a big hit in the early 1990s with "To Be with You", a song that Martin wrote during his teen years.
Jack Martin Blades is an American rock musician. He has worked in the bands Rubicon, Night Ranger, and Damn Yankees. He has also recorded with Tommy Shaw under the name Shaw Blades and has done work alongside the Tak Matsumoto Group. Blades' most recent efforts include a second solo album and three albums with Revolution Saints, which he was a member of until 2022.
B'z is the debut studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on September 21, 1988, and reached #47 on the Japanese charts. The album sold 3,790 copies in its first week and eventually sold 338,360 in total.
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.
"Itoshiki Tomo e" is the second single of Morning Musume's tenth anniversary team Morning Musume Tanjō 10nen Kinentai. It was released on August 8, 2007, while the Single V DVD was released on August 22.
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.
"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.
Chris Frazier is an American drummer. He is known in the professional ranks since he started recording and touring with guitarist Steve Vai from 1985 through 2001. Frazier was the touring drummer with classic rock singer Eddie Money from 2003 through 2006, when he was approached to become the drummer of veteran rock band Whitesnake.
TMG I is the first studio album by Japanese-based supergroup Tak Matsumoto Group, released on June 23, 2004. Eric Martin and Jack Blades, of Mr. Big and Night Ranger fame respectively, wrote all of the lyrics, while Tak Matsumoto, the founder of the band and of B’z fame, was responsible for all of the music. The album topped the Oricon Albums Chart, selling over 90,000 copies, while the single "Oh Japan ~Our Time Is Now~" reached number 3 on the Oricon Singles Chart with 98,346 copies and was the 95th best-selling single of the year.
Take Your Pick is an album by guitarists Larry Carlton and Tak Matsumoto that was released by Vermillion on June 2, 2010, in Japan, and later on 335 Records in the US and on Forward in Taiwan. The album debuted at number 2 on the Japanese Oricon weekly album charts. The album won an award for Best Pop Instrumental Album at the 53rd Grammy Awards. It also won the "Jazz Album of the Year" award at 25th Japan Gold Disc Awards.
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.
enigma is the eleventh solo studio album by Japanese guitarist Tak Matsumoto, of B'z. It is mostly an instrumental album and it was released by Being Inc. on April 27, 2016, in Japan. The album debuted at #4 on the Oricon weekly album chart and at #18 on the Billboard Japan album chart.
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".
"Oh Japan (Our Time Is Now)" (stylized as "Oh Japan ~Our Time Is Now~") is the only single by Japan-based supergroup Tak Matsumoto Group, released on March 31, 2004. It was used as the theme song for TV Asahi Network Sports 2004.
Takashi Masuzaki, is a Japanese guitarist, composer and arranger under Being Inc. agency and member of the fusion band DIMENSION. He is a former member of the pop group B.B.Queens and Bluew.
The Hit Parade II is a covers album by Tak Matsumoto in conjunction with several guest artists. It was released on August 28, 2024, through Vermillion Records, more than 20 years after The Hit Parade.
