Today, we have a very, very special video to offer, one that has never been subtitled in English before and may well never have been if not for this release. This video is from the 20th anniversary concert held on September 21st, 2008, exactly twenty years to the day that B'z debuted on the music scene. This is the full retrospective segment of the show in which Tak and Koshi candidly explore the band's beginnings and perform a number of special songs while reminiscing about the past. This is not to be missed!

Expect another video next week, at around 6:00 PM EST!

[The full 24-minute subtitled video can be found below]

While this may the vibe of a best-of compilation, all of the tracks on the album have been remixed and remastered. In addition, Grammy Award winner Paul Brown has been involved as producer, engineer, and mixer on a couple of tracks such as Tak's new song "Live Life". Tak's old friend Larry Carlton also makes an appearance on the track "SUKIYAKI" where the two play a cover together.

The album comes in two flavors: a CD-only edition and a limited CD+DVD version. The CD version will set you back 3,059 Yen while the CD+DVD version will cost you 3,780 Yen.

Pre-order:

CDJapan: [Regular Version] [CD+DVD Version]
Amazon(JP): [Regular Version] [CD+DVD Version]
HMV: [Regular Version] [CD+DVD Version]

See the track listing as well as the CD+DVD version content after the break.

Track listing(undefined order):

• Live Life (New Track)
• SUKIYAKI featuring LARRY CARLTON (New Track -- Cover)
• The Moment (Original Title: ONE FOR THE ROAD - from the single 「THE CHANGING」)
• THE WINGS (Collected on a CD for the first time)
• MY FAVORITE THINGS (from the album 「Theater of Strings」)
• Koi-Uta (from the album 「Hana」)
• #1090 sen mu ichiya (from the album 「Hana」)
• hana (from the album 「Hana」)
• BLUE (from the album 「House of Strings」)
• Romeo & Juliet (from the album 「Hana」)
• TRINITY (from the album 「DRAGON FROM THE WEST」)
• sasanqua~fuyu no hi (from the mini-album 「FRIENDS II」 by B'z)
• 99 (from the album 「WANNA GO HOME」)

Music Videos:

1.  「THE CHANGING」
2. 「SACRED FIELD」 (DRAGON FROM THE WEST - 2002)
3. 「Koi-Uta」 (Hana - 2002)
4. 「OH JAPAN ~OUR TIME IS NOW~」 (Single - 2004)
5. 「Itsuka no Merry Christmas」 (House Of Strings - 2004)

Live Performances:

1. 「Strings of My Soul」 (B'z LIVE-GYM '93 "RUN")
2. 「Romeo & Juliet」 (B'z LIVE-GYM '97 "FIREBALL")

Special Collaboration with the Tokyo Metropolitan Orchestra:

1. 「SACRED FIELD」~「RED SUN」~「GO FURTHER」
2. 「BLUE」
3. 「Koi-Uta」
4. 「#1090」
5. 「Hana」
6. 「Strings of My Soul」

It's been since Weekly #6 since we revisited MONSTER'S GARAGE, so let's see how things are going there now, shall we? This week, we have three especially hype performances in the opener of "ALL-OUT ATTACK", followed by the choreographed "MVP", and culminating in an epic performance of the standout B'z single "SPLASH!".

Expect another video next week, at around 6:00 PM EST!

[Notes on the songs included in this B'z Weekly release as well as the video itself can be found below]

SONG NOTES

ALL-OUT ATTACK / MVP / SPLASH! (2006) — All songs this week are from the era of the band's 2006 album, "MONSTER". "ALL-OUT ATTACK" was used not just as the opener to this concert but was also the opener to the aforementioned album. "MVP" was the B-side to the single for "SPLASH!", which was released in four different editions: a normal CD version and three separate CD+DVD releases. Each of the DVDs contained a different performance from the previous year's LIVE-GYM titled "CIRCLE OF ROCK" (which has never been released in full). The three performances included on the separate DVDs were ones of "Ai no Bakudan", "Fever", and "Pulse".

An English version of "SPLASH!" was premiered during the 2011 North American tour B'z LIVE-GYM 2011 -long time no see- but has not yet been released officially as of this writing. The song was, however, also performed during B'z LIVE-GYM 2011 -C'mon-, which is scheduled for release on DVD & Blu-ray with the performance included on May 30th, 2012.

At first, we weren't sure if we'd be able to get this release out in time today, but here it is: a "SURVIVE" special! All of the songs performed for today are from the band's 1997 album "SURVIVE" and it's all hard rock. If you've been waiting for a hard rock week, this is it! We have some especially hype videos planned for the upcoming weeks, so keep up!

Expect another video next week, at around 6:00 PM EST!

[Notes on the songs included in this B'z Weekly release as well as the video itself can be found below]

SONG NOTES

FIREBALL / DEEP KISS / Dattara Agechaeyo [だったらあげちゃえよ, Then, Why Not Just Give It Away?] (1997) — The three songs this week are from the 1997 B'z album "SURVIVE". The album, much like the songs here, featured a high concentration of hard rock songs and contained a number of songs that have gone on to become popular in the B'z discography, including "Swimmer yo!!" and "Happiness", which were both voted onto the 20th anniversary fan-selected compilation B'z The Best "ULTRA Treasure" in 2008. Fellow album song "Naite Naite Nakiyandara" would go on to be included on "The Ballads ~Love & B'z~" four years after its original release in 2002. The two classic B'z singles "Liar! Liar!" and "Calling" were also first collected in album form on "SURVIVE".

May 1st's morning papers are reporting a very interesting bit of news: K-Pop singer Kim Hyun-joong is going to collaborate with B'z on his new single "HEAT". Said single is going to be released on July 4th, 2012. Kim Hyun-joong became known as leader of the Korean boyband SS501 and has started a career as a solo artist last year, releasing his debut solo mini album Break Down on June 8, 2011.

As for the song itself, Tak provided the guitar work for the piece and Koshi provided the lyrics for the song. The two can even be heard on the track itself: Tak is supporting on guitar and Koshi is doing the vocals for the chorus!

This news has angered a considerable amount of Japanese B'z fans as they are disappointed by the band. If B'z was collaborate with another band, it should be a high profile one. B'z has played with Aerosmith, Linkin Park and Steve Vai in the past. Now a K-Pop singer? We'll see what else this year has in store for us!

Stay tuned!

UPDATE 5/1:
Apparently I have made a huge mistake here. I didn't think there would be a Kim Hyun-joong and a Kim Hyung Jun in the same boyband. And that there would be a difference. haha I apologize for the confusion this has caused.

This week we're covering even more classic territory with a subtitling of three songs from B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure'93 "JAP THE RIPPER", of which footage was utilized for the VHS and DVD release known as LIVE RIPPER on home video. Not only do we have a special performance of "GIMME YOUR LOVE" here, we also have the last tour for which "Kairaku no Heya" was performed and the only time it was included on a live B'z video release. The song hasn't been played live in the nearly twenty years since, so enjoy! Oh, and we also have "BLOWIN'", which you may have heard of...

Expect another video next week, at around 6:00 PM EST!

[Notes on the songs included in this B'z Weekly release as well as the video itself can be found below]

SONG NOTES

GIMME YOUR LOVE (1990) — This song, originally released under the full title of "GIMME YOUR LOVE -Fukutsu no LOVE DRIVER-" [-不屈のLOVE DRIVER-, Persistent LOVE DRIVER] has been a popular B'z song and a recurring one in various setlists over the years since its release on the band's 1990 album, "RISKY". While the original version was only released on that album, a live version--and the only live track B'z has ever released on a physical album or single in history--titled "Gimme your love (Live at Tokyo Dome)" was released as the B-side to Calling in 1997.

"Kairaku no Heya" (1991) [『快楽の部屋』, "Pleasure Room"] — "Kairaku no Heya" was released as an album track on the 1991 breakout B'z album "IN THE LIFE". This performance of the song included in this video is not just the only one released for home audiences, it also marks time in which it was included in a tour setlist--the song has not been performed live in the nearly twenty years since.

BLOWIN' (1992) — "BLOWIN'" was released in 1992 as a non-album single and became the highest-selling B'z single at the time. Ultimately, it would go on to sales of nearly 2 million copies and would become the second highest-selling single the band has released. Not only has the single itself gone on to become quite popular, but its B-side, "TIME", became a classic as well. "BLOWIN'" was voted as the second most requested song to be included on the band's first best-of collection, B'z The Best "Treasure", while "TIME" came in just behind it in fifth place. For B'z The Best "ULTRA Treasure", "TIME" placed ahead at the ninth position while "BLOWIN' finished in eleventh. The original version of the song was collected only on "Treasure", but on "ULTRA Treasure", a 2008 re-recording titled "BLOWIN' -ULTRA Treasure Style-" was used to open the collection.

Today, we have a very special release to offer, and that is the finale to one of the absolute most pivotal B'z concerts in history: B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure'95 "BUZZ!!". When it was released on home video as "BUZZ!!" The Movie, it became a runaway success and became so synonymous with B'z LIVE-GYMs that a number of the performances featured in it were recreated almost verbatim for the band's 15th anniversary concert. The two songs we are featuring today are those that close out the concert, along with a special gem at the end that can only be heard in this home video release and nowhere else. In addition, this marks the only occasion that a performance of "ALONE" is on video, and that's likely because it would be hard to top. You get to see Koshi on piano here, so don't miss it!

Expect another video next week, at around 6:00 PM EST!

[Notes on the songs included in this B'z Weekly release as well as the video itself can be found below]

SONG NOTES

ALONE (1991) — As a single to the breakout B'z album "IN THE LIFE", "ALONE" has been heard by virtually all B'z fans, and likely many times over. It was the band's second ever ballad single and went on to become one of the band's million-selling releases. It has been included on three best-of collections (B'z The Best "Pleasure", The Ballads ~Love & B'z~, and B'z The Best "ULTRA Pleasure"). It bears noting that the album version found on "IN THE LIFE" (and also later included on The Ballads ~Love & B'z~) includes the English portion of the song sung a capella to open the track.

Hadashi no Megami (1993) [裸足の女神, Barefoot Goddess] — Easily amongst the most beloved B'z songs in history, "Hadashi no Megami" was released as a non-album single in 1993 and became the fifth highest selling single of the entire year, with nearly 800,000 copies sold in its very first week on release. The song is most frequently heard during the band's Pleasure LIVE-GYM concerts, where it can basically always be expected to make an appearance.

Kienai Niji -English Version- (1995) [消えない虹, Everlasting Rainbow] — The ending music played for the end of the concert is an English rendition of Kienai Niji from the band's 1995 album, LOOSE. This version of the song was never released in an official capacity and can only be heard here.

The ticket sale dates and prices for all venues have been announced, along with direct links to access them for when the time comes! Click on the venue of your interest to see further information!

* Means the price listed is the total price for the ticket for venues in which tickets are sold with a built-in fee.

B'z has been hard at work, trying to support the efforts to rebuild destroyed homes and provide supplies by donating 50 million yen in March 2011. Furthermore, during their tour in support of their latest album C'mon, fans in attendance were able to buy so-called "charity merchandise items" where 100% of the proceedings would go to charity. The band has announced on April 9, 2012 that they raised about 64,301,000 Yen which will be donated to Save the Children JAPAN as well as ChildFund JAPAN.

The band has also collaborated with Linkin Park on their Music for Relief project and decided to do a charity concert together in LA. Together, they were able to raise $357,000 for the people in Japan.

Check out the video after the break. Mike also explains how he got to know B'z.

This hasn't been posted on B'z Official Website yet, so this news is currently exclusive to B'z Party members. Good thing that I recently became one. B'z tour in support of their album C'mon entitled B'z LIVE-GYM 2011 -C'mon- will be released on DVD and Blu-ray on May 30th. Both editions will be priced at 6,300 Yen and will feature no additional content such as backstage footage. Runtime is approx. 150 minutes.

You can find the set list of the concert after the break.

Set List

1. Sayonara Kizu Darake no Hibi yo
2. Samayoeru Aoi Dangan
3. Don’t Wanna Lie
4. Pilgrim
5. BE THERE
6. Homebound
7. Boss
8. Meimei
9. DAREKA
10. Splash (English Version)
11. Brotherhood
12. BLOWIN’
13. Ichibu to Zenbu
14. Hadashi no Megami
15. Liar! Liar!
16. ZERO
17. DIVE
18. The Meister
19. C’mon
20. Itsuka no Merry Christmas
21. ultra soul
22. Calling