Kobukuro
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Kobukuro |
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Kobukuro (コブクロ) is a Japanese band, which formed in 1998 and made its major label debut in 2001. The name is a portmanteau of the two family names, Kentarō Kobuchi and Shunsuke Kuroda.[1]
Members
- Kentarō Kobuchi (小渕健太郎, Kobuchi Kentarō, b. March 13, 1977); guitar, vocals, various other instruments)
- Shunsuke Kuroda (黒田俊介, Kuroda Shunsuke, b. March 18, 1977); main vocals)
The band's visual appearance is unusual; only two people, and Kuroda stands over 193 cm (6'4") tall.
History
In May 1998, Kobuchi and Kuroda met each other in Sakai near Osaka. Kobuchi was a salesman who held street concerts every Saturday for relaxation and Kuroda was a physical education teacher and a street musician. In September the same year, Kobuchi offered Kuroda a song and seeing that Kuroda was not a skilled guitar player, Kobuchi became the guitar player of the group. Thus, Kobukuro was formed.
Kobukuro received moderately successful ratings for their first three indie albums—Saturday 8:PM (July 1999), ANSWER (December 2000) and Root of My Mind (March 2001). Kobukuro signed with Warner Music Japan in 2001, and made their debut with the hit single, "Yell" which reached number 4 on the Oricon Charts.
Kobukuro released the studio album Nameless World on December 21, 2005. Nameless World became their first number-one album on the Oricon weekly charts. On September 27, 2006, they released their greatest hits album All Singles Best, which topped the Oricon weekly charts for four consecutive weeks.
On March 21, 2007, Kobukuro released the single "Tsubomi." When the song "Tsubomi" was released, Marty Friedman pointed out that the song's arrangement was too simple and did away with the influence of the music of the Western culture.[2] The song "Tsubomi" became their first number-one single on the Oricon weekly charts. "Tsubomi" won the coveted "Grand Prix" awards in December 2007 at the 49th Japan Record Awards. The song was included in their 2007 studio album 5296, which also topped the Oricon weekly charts.
On their 2009 album Calling, Kobuchi wrote "Sayonara Hero" as a memorial song for Kiyoshiro Imawano, who had died earlier that year. On March 3, 2010, they released their cover version of "Layla" (used in a Pepsi Nex commercial they starred in) as a digital single of iTunes Store without the release of the CD single.[3]
When the Oricon weekly charts dated May 17, 2010 was released, the sales of All Singles Best passed 3,000,000 copies on the Oricon charts, becoming the first album to do so in 7 years 10 months since the 2002 achievement of Southern All Stars' Umi no Yeah!!, released on June 25, 1998.[4]
Discography
Singles
 | This section needs to be updated. (April 2011) |
| Original Japanese Title | Romanized Name | Translation of Title | Release Date | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yell ~エール~ / Bell | - | Yell / Bell | 22 March 2001 | 245,390 |
| 轍 | Wadachi | Rut | 20 June 2001 | 53,430 |
| You / Miss You | - | - | 21 November 2001 | 22,360 |
| 風 | Kaze | Wind | 14 February 2002 | 120,000 |
| 願いの詩 / 太陽 | Negai no Uta / Taiyō | Song of Wish / The Sun | 10 July 2002 | 37,620 |
| 雪の降らない街 | Yuki no Furanai Machi | The Town Without Snow | 13 November 2002 | 27,988 |
| 宝島 | Takarajima | Treasure Island | 9 April 2003 | 24,482 |
| Blue Blue | - | - | 27 August 2003 | 16,134 |
| Door | - | - | 12 May 2004 | 20,083 |
| 永遠にともに / Million Films / ここから | Towa ni Tomo ni / Million Films / Koko kara | Forever with You / Million Films / From Here | 14 October 2004 | 146,265 |
| ここにしか咲かない花 | Koko ni Shika Sakanai Hana | A flower that only blooms here | 11 May 2005 | 407,200 |
| 桜 | Sakura | Cherry Blossoms | 2 November 2005 | 434,389 |
| 君という名の翼 | Kimi to Iu Na no Tsubasa | Wings That Are Named You | 26 July 2006 | 106,957 |
| 蕾 | Tsubomi | Flower Bud | 21 March 2007 | 506,093 |
| 蒼く 優しく | Aoku Yasashiku | Bluer, Gentler | 7 November 2007 | 213,961 |
| 時の足音 | Toki no Ashioto | Footsteps of Time | 29 October 2008 | 255,485 |
| 虹 | Niji | Rainbow | 15 April 2009 | 102,577 |
| Stay | - | - | 15 July 2009 | 86,290 |
| 流星 | Ryūsei | Meteor | 17 November 2010 | 113,503 |
| Blue Bird | - | - | 16 February 2011 | 78,224 |
| あの太陽が、この世界を照らし続けるように。 | Ano Taiyō ga, Kono Sekai o Terashi Tuzukeru Yōni. | I Wish That Sun Continued Lighting up This World | 27 April 2011 | 48,093 |
Albums
| Released | Title | Peak | Sales |
|---|---|---|---|
| July 21, 1999 | Saturday 8PM | #294 | - |
| March 4, 2000 | Root of My Mind | #197 | - |
| December 19, 2000 | Answer | - | - |
| August 29, 2001 | Roadmade | #6 | 105,000 |
| August 28, 2002 | Grapefruits | #4 | 100,000 |
| November 6, 2003 | Straight | #10 | 46,000 |
| November 3, 2004 | Music Man Ship | #3 | 250,000 |
| December 21, 2005 | Nameless World | #1 | 868,237 |
| September 27, 2006 | All Singles Best | #1 | 3,016,199 |
| December 19, 2007 | 5296 | #1 | 1,428,072 |
| August 5, 2009 | Calling | #1 | 476,517 |
| August 25, 2010 | All Covers Best | #1 | 386,706 |
References
- ^ Template:Ja icon "Oricon Japan". Retrieved 2010-03-19.
- ^ Template:Ja icon "言われてみれば……コブクロとゆずみたいなデュオがアメリカにいない理由は？". Nikkei Business Publications. 2007-04-16. Retrieved 2010-03-23.
- ^ Template:Ja icon "コブクロ「Layla」、iTunesでウイークリー1位を爆走中". Barks.jp. 2010-03-10. Retrieved 2010-03-22.
{{cite web}}: Unknown parameter|trans_title=ignored (|trans-title=suggested) (help) - ^ Template:Ja icon "コブクロベスト盤が300万枚突破、サザン『海のYeah!!』以来7年10ヶ月ぶり～ボーカルグループ史上初～". Oricon. 2010-05-15. Retrieved 2010-05-15.