B'z The Best "Pleasure"
| B'z The Best "Pleasure" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Compilation album by B'z | ||||
| Released | May 5, 1998 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock | |||
| Length | 1:03:26 | |||
| Label | Rooms Records | |||
| Producer | Tak Matsumoto | |||
| B'z chronology | ||||
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B'z The Best "Pleasure" is the first compilation album by B'z, released on May 5, 1998. It would be the first official album of the sort to be released by the band, pooling together twelve number one hits amongst its fourteen tracks—all of which were released between 1990 and 1998. As is the case with all of the band's compilation works, each song included has been digitally remastered prior to being added to the track listing. After moving nearly three million physical units in its first week on sale, B'z The Best "Pleasure" would set numerous records and has remained the second best-selling music release in the history of Japanese music for two decades. A sequel album, B'z The Best "Treasure", would see release in the fall during the week of their tenth anniversary on the music scene and featured tracks individually selected by fans.
While this would be the first B'z best of album, an unofficial compilation entitled Flash Back -B'z Early Special Titles- was published by their former record label a year earlier to capitalize on their popularity and was carried out explicitly without the band's permission. The unofficial album has never entered the B'z catalogue and gathers tracks from their self-titled debut album, their second album OFF THE LOCK, third album BREAK THROUGH, and first mini album BAD COMMUNICATION. As a result of the master recordings remaining under the previous label's control, tracks from the aforementioned releases were ineligible for inclusion here.
As of now, the contents of the album has seen it be supplanted in the B'z catalogue by numerous subsequent compilations, including B'z The Best "ULTRA Pleasure" in 2008 and B'z The Best XXV 1988-1998 in 2013. Only one track, the English version of 1989 mini album title song "BAD COMMUNICATION" found here as "Bad Communication E.Style" remains uncollected on subsequent compilation works.
Upon release, B'z The Best "Pleasure" proved a landmark moment in the history of Japanese music. Not only was it the top selling album of the week of its release in which it moved 2,709,530 copies, the compilation would also be the top selling for the month of May as well. At the time, B'z The Best "Pleasure" quickly became the highest-selling musical release in Japanese history after garnering 5,136,000 in total sales. This would garner it a 5x Million certification from the Recording Industry Association of Japan. It remains the second highest-selling of all time, following only pop artist Hikaru Utada's First Love released in the spring of 1999.
Track listing
All music and guitar by Tak Matsumoto. All lyrics and lead vocals by Koshi Inaba.
★ First time collected in a compilation in original form
※ Alternative version from source song
Sales data
| No. | Cover | Compilation | Physical Copies Sold | Chart Positions | Certification | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FIRST WEEK | LIFETIME | WEEK | MONTH | YEAR | ||||
| 1 | 
|
B'z The Best "Pleasure" |
2,709,530+ |
5,135,922+ |
1 |
1 |
1 |
5x Million |