LADY-GO-ROUND

LADY-GO-ROUND
Single by B'z
from the album BREAK THROUGH
Released	February 21, 1990
Promotions	#2 (News Station)
Length	9:19
Label	BMG Victor
Producer	Masao Nakajima
B'z singles chronology

LADY-GO-ROUND is the third single by B'z, released on February 21, 1990. This would be the first B'z single to garner enough sales support to be ranked on the Weekly Oricon Singles chart. The release was made simultaneously with the band's likewise third studio album BREAK THROUGH, which contained both the A-side and B-side. The album fared well on the charts, debuting at the third spot in its first week and selling over 40,000 copies in its debut. This would be the last time that B'z released a single and album simultaneously as well. While the single would not be a blockbuster sales success, it remains important in the B'z discography for other reasons. It was first here that Tak Matsumoto added arrangement duties to his responsibilities, joining friend and colleague Masao Akashi to round out the sound.

The title song is amongst the least collected of the B'z singles due to a publishing rights issue with the band's former label. The band's first three singles, first three albums, and first mini album are still under the publishing reign of BMG Japan. After B'z had parted ways with the company, BMG released an unsanctioned compilation album collecting the aforementioned early works as Flash Back -B'z Early Special Titles-, which was not supported, endorsed, or acknowledged by B'z in any way. One year later, B'z released their own best-of compilations for their tenth anniversary: B'z The Best "Pleasure" and B'z The Best "Treasure". The two albums would go on to become two of the highest-selling albums in the history of Japanese music. Finally, in 2013, all three of the original singles were released as the opening tracks on B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998, making their debut appearances on an official B'z compilation.

"LADY-GO-ROUND" has been performed during only two proper tours: B'z LIVE-GYM "BREAK THROUGH" during which it saw the stage during every date, and eighteen years later for B'z LIVE-GYM 2008 "ACTION" where it was performed as part of a little less than half of the tour. It bears noting that a television performance was sampled during the retrospective section of B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2008 -GLORY DAYS- and later seen on its home video. The B-side was played only during the aforementioned studio album's titular tour and has not been performed in the years since. In 2017, a full performance of the song was finally announced for release as part of the premium collection B'z COMPLETE SINGLE BOX that included the first full performance from the aforementioned tour.

Because the band were still in something of a nascent phase, the single's music video—as with the ones that preceded it—featured the band members dressed in clothes they had purchased themselves. This video, like the song itself, would be released on home video for the first time in limited edition packages of B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998 with all of the other videos released by the band to that point. "LADY-GO-ROUND" would become the second B'z song performed on television by B'z during two broadcasts of Hit Studio Night and JUST POP UP and was supported by

Upon release, "LADY-GO-ROUND" debuted at number 39 on the Weekly Oricon Singles charts, becoming the band's first single to properly make the charts. The follow-up, "BE THERE", would rocket all the way to number three at release, and the fifth single, "Taiyou no Komachi Angel", would be that to begin their record-setting streak of number one singles.

Track listing

All music and guitar by Tak Matsumoto. All lyrics and lead vocals by Koshi Inaba.

LADY-GO-ROUND
File:s03 01.ogg Another of the early B'z songs that heavily relied on synth as a primary instrument, "LADY-GO-ROUND" is a curiosity for long-time fans but relatively undiscovered by those with a casual familiarity in the band's work. This is primarily due to it being included only on BREAK THROUGH prior to the 2013 release of B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998 and the former album coming prior to them reaching prominence in the music scene. The title is an overt reference to a merry-go-round attraction, dedicated to those whose prospective love interests come and go from their lives at regular intervals. Nonetheless, the song has been noted for incorporating lyrics from Hyakunin, a classic work of Japanese poetry. An English version would be released on WICKED BEAT later the same year.
Love & Chain
File:s03 02.ogg Despite a pop-apparent exterior, the lyrics to "Love & Chain" are introspective and specifically quite adult. Interestingly, an interlude featuring Koshi speaking can be heard in the background of the song that highlights the meaning of the title. While the song still employed synths as with the corresponding title song, it can also be submitted as early evidence of Tak's guitar work beginning to take center stage. At various points, his electric guitar work outshines the dance-centric beats and, especially with concern to the guitar solo featured in the outro, becomes the true focus. Although the song has only been performed during the BREAK THROUGH album tour on which it was collected, an English version would surface on MARS the following year.

Reversion history

Main article: B'z Reversioned Songs

Original Song	Reversion History
LADY-GO-ROUND SINGLE & ALBUM SONG (1989)	ENGLISH: Lady-Go-Round "W-40" Style (1990) One of the band's earliest English songs, found only on 1990 mini album WICKED BEAT.
Love & Chain B-SIDE & ALBUM SONG (1990)	ENGLISH: Love & Chain ~Godzilla Style~ (1991) One of the band's earliest English songs, found only on 1991 mini album MARS.