SHOW-YA is a female hard rock/heavy metal band that briefly enjoyed big popularity in Japan, and made a valiant attempt at making it worldwide. Formed in 1984, the group’s very first gig was in at Dingwall’s in London. The group consisted of vocalist Keiko Terada, guitarist Miki Igarashi, keyboardist Miki Nakamura, bassist Satomi Senba and drummer Miki Tsunoda. Seemingly from the start, the group targeted the international market, early on playing in the USSR and Mexico, and later making a sustained attack on the U.S.. The band made their debut album Masquerade Show in 1985 for Toshiba-EMI. It was helped considerably by the fact their debut single “Suteki Ni Dancing” was used in a Coca-Cola commercial. Much of the focus was on the band’s sexy singer Keiko Terada, whose trademark was the fake rose tattoo she wore above her right breast. She adopted the rose mark after being deeply impressed by Bette Midler’s performance in the film The Rose, in which Midler played a Janis Joplin-like character. The tattoo was in fact the focus of the cover of their 1988 live album Turn Over. Having amassed enough hits to release a “best of” in 1988, they increasingly went after the international market.
In 1989 they recorded Outer Limits in LA with Beau Hill (Ratt, Winger, Warrant, Europe) serving as executive producer. The album included three songs sung in English, a first for the group. The following year SHOW-YA released the album in the States, and did a heavy promotional campaign in support. This was during the LA hair metal boom, and the band was frequently compared to then popular Vixen, and Lita Ford. In January 1990 SHOW-YA played to an industry heavy audience at the Palace in Hollywood, but the reaction they received was in general lukewarm. While the members were all technically very strong, they never managed to connect strongly with the US audience. The usual explanation was that their lyrics were weak, and the English singing not strong enough. The group’s management later flew writers over to Japan to witness their performance at Budokan, but the band were not able to really handle interviews in English, and junket did not really enhance their image in the States. Beyond language problems, while the band was rooted in album-oriented rock style metal, with a prominent keyboard sound and Japanese sensibilities, the music often sounded overtly pop, and thus they were not completely embraced by American metal fans, who generally favored a heavier sound. Despite their hard work and hefty financial support from their management company, the band never really took off in the States, and being away from Japan so much started leading to an erosion of their Japanese fan base. After releasing the Hard Way, touring, and then releasing the 1991 live album Hard Way Tour, Terada left the group and attempted a solo career. In 1995 the band tried to make a comeback with a new singer who spoke English more proficiently, but by then their fan base had evaporated. They tried again in 1998 with a six song EP, and then packed it in for good. In 2002, SHOW-YA’s Golden Best was released. In the US it was claimed that they had sold over 2 million units.
Current members:
* Keiko Terada - Vocals
* Miki "sun-go" Igarashi - Guitar
* Miki Nakamura - Keyboard
* Satomi Senba - Bass
* Miki "mittan" Tsunoda - Drums
Discography
Albums
* Masquerade Show (1985)
* Queendom (1986)
* Ways (1986)
* Trade Last (1987)
* Immigration (1987)
* Turn Over (Live) (1988)
* Glamour (1988)
* White (Best of/Compilation) (1988)
* Outerlimits (1989)
* Hard Way (1990)
* Hard Way Tour 1991 (1991)
* SHOW-YA Greatest 1985-1990 (Best of/Compilation)(1991)
* Touch the Sun (1995)
* SHOW-YA Twin Best (Best of/Compilation) (1996)
* SHOW-YA Golden Best (Best of/Compilation) (2002)
* SHOW-YA 20th Anniversary The Best (Bestof/Compilation) (2005)
Video releases
* Date Line (1987)
* Rollin World (1989)
* 1990 Budokan - Reach for the World (1990)
* Distance On Their Way (1991)
* Hard Way Tour 1991 (1991)
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