| The Hit Parade | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Studio album by | |
| Released | November 26, 2003 |
| Genre | |
| Length | 67:02 |
| Label | Vermillion Records |
| Producer | Tak Matsumoto |
| Singles from The Hit Parade | |
| |
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.
The album features cover songs, which were popular during the 1970s and 1980s in the Japan music scene from artists such as Momoe Yamaguchi, Candies, Akina Nakamori or Tatsuro Yamashita.
The album has been performed by young artists from Giza Studio such as Mai Kuraki or Rina Aiuchi, and veterans artist from the 1990s such as Keiko Utoku or Koshi Inaba. Originally 20 songs were recorded, however 17 were included. The recording started in 2002 and ended in 2003. [1]
The album jacket cover visually resembles the album The London Howlin' Wolf Sessions by Howlin' Wolf.
After a fraud scandal with Azumi Uehara is 2003, the album went out of print. However, on 31 December 2018, the album was re-printed and included a limited Kansai version of Koshi Inaba's Minano no Yoko, Yokohama, Yokosuka. [2]
In May 2024, a continuation of the album The Hit Parade II has been announced and scheduled to release in summer 2024. [3]
The first promotional cover single was Ihoujin, originally performed by Saki Kubota and covered by Zard . The single was released on 27 August 2003. The B-side song includes cover of Ame no Machi wo, originally performed by Arai Yumi and covered by Akiko Matsuda from Ramjet Pulley. [4] In the media, cover version of Ihoujin was broadcast as an insert theme song for Fuji TV television drama Anata no Soba ni Dare ka Iru. The single debuted at number three on the Oricon Weekly Single Charts and charted for sixteen weeks. The single has sold over 155,263 copies. The single was announced in 2003 as the 58th biggest selling single of the year.
The second promotional cover single was Imitation Gold, originally performed by Momoe Yamaguchi and covered by Mai Kuraki . The single was released on 8 October 2003. The B-side song includes cover of Watashi wa Kaze, originally performed by Carmen Maki & Oz and covered by Yuri Nakamura from Garnet Crow. The length of B-side song is over seven minutes, which makes the longest track from cover album. The single debuted at number one on the Oricon Weekly Single Charts. The single has sold over 75,000 copies.
The album debuted at number two on the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart and sold 225,125 copies in its first week.
The album was announced in 2004 as the 27th biggest selling album of the year. The album sold more than 450,000 copies. [5]
The album has been rewarded with The Best Pop-Rock album of year by Japan Gold Disc Award in 2004. [6]
| No. | Title | Original performer | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Katte ni Shiyagage (勝手にしやがれ)" (by Koshi Inaba) | Kenji Sawada | 3:23 |
| 2. | "Ihoujin (異邦人)" (by Zard) | Saki Kubota | 3:28 |
| 3. | "Namida no Taiyou (涙の太陽)" (by Rina Aiuchi) | Emy Jackson | 2:37 |
| 4. | "Sono Ki ni Sasenaide (その気にさせないで)" (by Aiko Kitahara, Ai Takaoka and Yuuka Saegusa) | Candies | 3:07 |
| 5. | "Imitation Gold (イミテイション・ゴールド)" (by Mai Kuraki) | Momoe Yamaguchi | 3:45 |
| 6. | "Minato no Yoko, Yokohama, Yokosuka (港のヨーコ･ヨコハマ･ヨコスカ)" (by Tak Matsumoto) | Down Town Boogie Woogie Band | 4:34 |
| 7. | "Ame no Machi wo (雨の街を)" (by Akiko Matsuda (Ramjet Pulley)) | Yumi Arai | 4:58 |
| 8. | "Paper Doll" (by Fayray) | Tatsuro Yamashita | 3:49 |
| 9. | "Ichigo Hakushou wo Mou Ichido (『いちご白書』をもう一度)" (by Akane Sugazaki) | Ban Ban | 4:31 |
| 10. | "Foggy Night" (by Yumi Shizukusa) | Amii Ozaki | 4:05 |
| 11. | "Shōjo A (少女A)" (by Azumi Uehara) | Akina Nakamori | 3:30 |
| 12. | "Byun Byun (ビュン・ビュン)" (by Daria Kawashima) | Gedou | 2:12 |
| 13. | "Purple Town by (Shiori Takei)" (パープルタウン 〜You Oughta Know By Now〜) | Junko Yagami | 3:57 |
| 14. | "Toki ni Ai wa (時に愛は)" (by Keiko Utoku) | Off Course | 5:24 |
| 15. | "SPINNING TOE-HOLD" (instrumental) | Creation | 2:46 |
| 16. | "Hitori: I stand alone (一人)" (by Jeffrey Qwest) | Takayuki Inoue | 3:42 |
| 17. | "Watashi wa Kaze (私は風)" (by Yuri Nakamura (Garnet Crow)) | Carmen Maki & Oz | 7:15 |
Credits adapted from the album booklet. [7]
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.
Mai Kuraki is a Japanese pop and R&B singer, songwriter and record producer. After releasing her US debut single "Baby I Like" in 1999, Kuraki signed with Giza Studio and released her Japanese debut single "Love, Day After Tomorrow" in 1999. In 2000, she released her debut album, Delicious Way, which debuted at number-one and sold over 2.2 million copies in its first week. The album has spawned four top-three singles, "Love, Day After Tomorrow", "Stay by My Side", "Secret of My Heart", and "Never Gonna Give You Up". Eventually, the album sold over 3.5 million copies nationwide and became the best-selling album in Japan in 2000, and has been the ninth best-selling album in Japan of all-time.
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.
Zard were a Japanese pop rock group, originally with five members, with lead vocalist Izumi Sakai as its only constant member. Izumi Sakai was also the band's core member. Zard's work was sold under the record label B-Gram Records, Inc. Their most popular and successful songs are "Makenaide" (1993) (負けないで), "Yureru Omoi" (1993) (揺れる想い), and "My Friend" (1996). As of 2023, Zard has sold over 38 million records, making them one of the best-selling music artists in Japan.
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 five 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).
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.
"Liar! Liar!" is the twenty-third single by B'z, released on October 8, 1997. This song is one of B'z many number-one singles in Oricon chart, selling 794,000 copies during its chartrun.
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".
Future Kiss is the ninth studio album by Japanese singer and songwriter Mai Kuraki. It was released on 17 November 2010, by Northern Music. The album was originally scheduled to be released on 20 October 2010; however, it was pushed back to 17 November 2010.
C'mon is the eighteenth studio album by the Japanese rock duo B'z. It was released on July 27, 2011.
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.
Smile is the eleventh studio album by Japanese singer and songwriter Mai Kuraki. The album was released on February 15, 2017, by Northern Music. It is the follow-up to her 2014 compilation album, Mai Kuraki Best 151A: Love & Hope. The album was released on three editions: standard edition, fan club edition, and limited edition, which is accompanied with a bonus disc. Smile
Shizuka Kudo 20th Anniversary the Best is the eleventh compilation album by Japanese singer Shizuka Kudo. It was released in celebration of Kudo's 20th anniversary since her solo debut on August 29, 2007, through Pony Canyon. The compilation includes a selection of Kudo's singles released up until "Amayo no Tsuki ni". The limited edition comes with a DVD featuring the music videos for "Lotus ", "Kokoro no Chikara", "Clāvis (Kagi)" and "Amayo no Tsuki ni", as well as a digest of Kudo's live performances. Shizuka Kudo 20th Anniversary the Best was the first of three releases to celebrate Kudo's 20th, it was followed by the video album box set Shizuka Kudo The Live DVD Complete Box in September 2007, and the B-side compilation, "20th Anniversary B-side collection" in 2008.
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.
Variation (Hensoukyoku) (Japanese: バリエーション〈変奏曲〉, Hepburn: Bariēshon (hensōkyoku)) is the second studio album by Japanese entertainer Akina Nakamori. It was released on October 27, 1982, by Warner Pioneer under the Reprise Records label. The album includes the controversial hit single "Shōjo A". It became Nakamori's first number-one album on the Oricon Weekly Albums Chart and her best-selling album.
"Shōjo A" is the second single by Japanese entertainer Akina Nakamori. Written by Masao Urino and Hiroaki Serizawa, the single was released on July 28, 1982 by Warner Pioneer through the Reprise label. It was also the first single from her second studio album Variation (Hensoukyoku).
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.
The Hit Parade II is an upcoming covers album by Tak Matsumoto in conjunction with several guest artists inside and outside of recording label. It is scheduled to release on 28 August 2003 through Vermillion Records, more than 20 years after the previous same titled cover album The Hit Parade.
