Negai
| Negai | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by B'z | ||||
| from the album LOOSE | ||||
| Released | May 31, 1995 | |||
| Promotions | #1 (J-ROCK ARTIST COUNT DOWN 50 Ending) | |||
| Length | 7:37 | |||
| Label | BMG Rooms | |||
| Producer | Tak Matsumoto | |||
| B'z singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Negai (ねがい, Wish) is the sixteenth single by B'z, released on May 31, 1995. The song has remained popular throughout the band's history, primarily due to its dynamic live performances. For the first fan-selected compilation album B'z The Best "Treasure", "Negai" ranked in at third place and is one of very few songs to switch to its sister album B'z The Best "ULTRA Pleasure" in 2008 with one further appearance coming as part of B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998 in 2013.
It was here that Koshi became involved with arrangement for the first time officially, as B+U+M was dissolved and Tak and Koshi became the forerunners of all the band's activities. This would signify other grand changes for the band as well, as they also used this release to launch their own private record label known as "Vermillion Records", a subsidiary of Being GIZA. Under the new agreement, B'z were now responsible for all of their own decisions and would retain master recording and publishing rights for all of their work.
For the recording of the title song, Tak said they went back to "our earliest concept of creating music, by considering it from the fans' point of view." Indeed, the song has all the hallmarks of a fan-favorite, starting with loud singalong choruses and ending with a breakdown in live renditions that lets the audience take the lead. In an uncommon move, Tak used a Fender Stratocaster for recording and has used it for corresponding live performances as well. The live version performed during B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure'95 "BUZZ!!" has since informed all future arrangements for the song's many stage appearances. This would further lead to a revision of the song that extended the outro and gave it more of a LIVE-GYM feel that has thus far only been included on LOOSE. With over 180 performances since its release, it has been featured in numerous tours and on their corresponding home videos.
The majority of the music video was filmed at Fountain Square in the Yokohama Business Park, which has since become a common site for television dramas and films. Koshi stands within the fountain as he performs the song, but Tak was filmed elsewhere as he was suffering from a cold at the time. The song was performed in its single form for Music Station and in its revised album state on different occasions. Throughout 1995, the single version was used as the ending theme to J-ROCK ARTIST COUNT DOWN 50.
The single debuted to over 700,000 copies sold in its first week, netting it the top spot on the Weekly Oricon Singles chart where it would remain for two weeks consecutively. It would be ranked the top seller of June 1995, tenth for July, and 13th for all of 1995 with sixteen total weeks on the charts. Its total sales reached over 1.5 million, making it one of many B'z singles to be certified Million by the Recording Industry Association of Japan.
Track listing
All music and guitar by Tak Matsumoto. All lyrics and lead vocals by Koshi Inaba.
- Negai — Wish, ねがい
- File:s16 01.ogg One of the band's most heralded live gems, "Negai" is a song whose live appearances has long overshadowed its original studio release. This was solidified with the release of "Negai ("BUZZ!!" STYLE)" on studio album LOOSE that incorporated the live arrangement premiered during B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure'95 "BUZZ!!". The outro during live incarnations allows for the crowd to take over the final coda and is a perpetual staple of virtually all of the song's live appearances. The song is one of the band's first to be made with Koshi actively and officially taking part in the arrangement process, and is one of the songs that solidified the band's transition to hard rock.
- YOU & I
- File:s16 02.ogg As one of the band's most popular B-sides, "YOU & I" has withstood the test of time even without a substantial LIVE-GYM presence. Its first live performance did not come until six years after its release, when it was performed on every date of B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2000 "juice". In a 2014 poll whose results were published in Be With! Vol. 104, "YOU & I" ranked in at 2nd place in songs fanclub members wanted to hear live for the 2015 LIVE-GYM. Their calls were answered when, for the tour's dome showings, it was included in the premiere post-welcoming slot in the setlist. This would also lead to its first home video inclusion. Prior to this, the song received its first and only inclusion on an album when a slight remix was found on B'z The "Mixture" in 2000.
Reversion history
| Original Song | Reversion History |
|---|---|
| Negai SINGLE & ALBUM SONG* (1995)
|
RE-RECORDING: Negai ("BUZZ!!" STYLE) (1995) |
Live appearances
Live Performances
- Negai [195 SHOWS]
B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure'95 "BUZZ!!" [12/12 SHOWS]- B'z LIVE-GYM '96 "Spirit LOOSE" SHOWCASE [1/1 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM '96 "Spirit LOOSE" [44/44 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM '98 "SURVIVE" [49/49 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM '99 "Brotherhood" -Extra- [2/24 SHOWS]
- B'z SHOWCASE 2005 "Abashiri Extra Edition" [1/1 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM 2005 "CIRCLE OF ROCK" [41/41 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2008 -GLORY DAYS- [6/6 SHOWS]
- Pepsi NEX presents B'z PREMIUM LIVE [2/2 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM 2012 -Into Free- [11/11 SHOWS]
- AEROSONIC [1/1 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2013 -ENDLESS SUMMER- [11/30 SHOWS]
- B'z SHOWCASE 2015 -Shinagawa Uchouten NIGHT- [1/1 SHOWS]
- TV Asahi Dream Festival 2015 [1/1 SHOWS]
- B'z SHOWCASE 2018 -The Wall Of Rock- [1/1 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2018 -HINOTORI- [11/23 SHOWS]
- YOU & I [35 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM Pleasure 2000 "juice" [21/21 SHOWS]
- B'z LIVE-GYM 2015 -EPIC NIGHT- [13/40 SHOWS]
- B'z SHOWCASE 2020 -5 ERAS 8820- [1/5 SHOWS]
Home Videos
Sales data
| No. | Cover | Single | Physical Copies Sold | Chart Positions | Certification | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIRST WEEK | LIFETIME | WEEK | MONTH | YEAR | ||||
| 16 | 
|
Negai |
701,870+ |
1,499,000+ |
1 |
1 |
13 |
Million |
Personnel
B'z
- Tak Matsumoto: Guitar, Music Composition, Arrangement
- Koshi Inaba: Vocals, Lyric Composition, Arrangement
Support Members
- Hideo Yamaki: Drums
- Koji "Kitaroh" Nakamura: Bass
- Akira Onozuka: Piano, Synthesizer
- Kazuki Katsuta: Sax
- Shiro Sasaki: Trumpet
- Fussy Kobayashi: Trumpet
- Hideaki Nakaji: Trombone
- Yuichi Ikusawa: Chorus (Track 1)
- Sayumi Chiba: Chorus (Track 1)
- HIIRO Strings: Strings (Track 2)
- Daisuke Ikeda: Manipulator (Track 2)