was a popular Japan

Japan

Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...

ese punk rock

Punk rock

Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...

 band that performed from the mid-1980s to the early-1990s. In 2003, they were ranked by HMV Japan as number 19 on their list of 100 most important Japanese pop acts. They have been compared to such bands as the Sex Pistols

Sex Pistols

The Sex Pistols were an English punk rock band that formed in London in 1975. They were responsible for initiating the punk movement in the United Kingdom and inspiring many later punk and alternative rock musicians...

, The Clash

The Clash

The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...

 and the Ramones

Ramones

The Ramones were an American rock band that formed in the New York City neighborhood of Forest Hills, Queens, in 1974. They are often cited as the first punk rock group...

.

Career

Its members were Hiroto Kōmoto

Hiroto Komoto

is a Japanese rock singer who has fronted bands such as The Blue Hearts, The High-Lows and The Cro-Magnons. The official kanji for his name are 甲本 浩人, but katakana is used when writing his name in official publications.-Personal History:...

 (vocalist), Masatoshi Mashima

Masatoshi Mashima

is a guitarist who has performed with Japanese rock bands such as The Blue Hearts, The High-Lows and The Cro-Magnons. He was born in Hino and raised in Kodaira in Tokyo, Japan.His nickname while playing was "Marcy."-Solo albums:...

 (guitarist), Junnosuke Kawaguchi

Junnosuke Kawaguchi

is a Japanese bassist who played for bands such as The Blue Hearts. He is now a music producer in Tokyo. He was born Hiroyuki Kawaguchi in the Setagaya ward of Tokyo.-Personal History:...

 (bassist) and Tetsuya Kajiwara

Tetsuya Kajiwara (drummer)

is a drummer who has performed with Japanese bands, including The Blue Hearts and The 3Peace.-Personal History:Kajiwara was born in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan, and graduated from Oita Uenogaoka High School in Oita, Oita Prefecture. He then moved to Tokyo's Suginami ward to study at...

 (drummer). Mikio Shirai

Mikio Shirai

is a Japanese keyboardist who was born in Tokyo's Minato ward.-Personal History:In the late 1980s and early '90s, he worked as a support member for The Blue Hearts and played the keyboard for them on their tours...

 was not an official member of the band, but often toured with them as their keyboardist. Formed in 1985, the group made its major debut in May 1987, and released its first album, the self-titled The Blue Hearts

The Blue Hearts (album)

is the self-produced and self-titled first album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. They had put together albums as an independent band, but this was their first official release. It has a different track listing from their self-titled EP, which was released in the U.S...

, and followed that up with seven more albums. Though they started on an independent label, each album sold more copies than the previous one, with their last recording selling in the millions.

In addition to having popular albums, they also had many popular singles. The two most well-known are "Train-Train

Train-Train

was the fifth professional single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. They had released one single as an independent group, making this the sixth single overall.The single was released at the same time as the album Train-Train...

" and "Linda Linda

Linda Linda

was a single by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts that was first released on May 1, 1987. Lyrics and music were written by Hiroto Kōmoto, the band's lead vocalist, and was arranged by The Blue Hearts. Both tracks are 6m57s in length and reached #38 on the Oricon charts during its release...

", which can be found on many karaoke

Karaoke

is a form of interactive entertainment or video game in which amateur singers sing along with recorded music using a microphone and public address system. The music is typically a well-known pop song minus the lead vocal. Lyrics are usually displayed on a video screen, along with a moving symbol,...

 machines. A cover version

Cover version

In popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...

 of "Linda Linda" was used in the 2004 dramas Socrates in Love

Socrates in Love

Socrates in Love, also known as is a Japanese novel written by Kyoichi Katayama. It was published by Shogakukan in April 2001. The novel and the manga adaptation are published in the United States by VIZ Media under the title Socrates in Love...

 and Gachi Baka, as well as the 2005 film Linda Linda Linda

Linda Linda Linda

is a 2005 Japanese film. Its name comes from Japanese punk band The Blue Hearts' hit song "Linda Linda". The film was directed by Nobuhiro Yamashita and stars Aki Maeda, Yu Kashii, and Shiori Sekine as the band members, and Bae Doona as a South Korean foreign exchange student...

, the plot of which centers on a high school girls' band practicing The Blue Hearts' songs for the finale concert of their school's culture festival. The song also appears in the 2005 Nintendo DS

Nintendo DS

The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...

 video game Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan

Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan

, sometimes referred to as simply Ouendan, is a rhythm video game developed by iNiS and published by Nintendo for the Nintendo DS handheld game console in 2005, for release only in Japan...

,. Other songs, including "Train-Train", "Owaranai Uta" and "Hito ni Yasashiku", have been featured in the Konami

Konami

is a Japanese leading developer and publisher of numerous popular and strong-selling toys, trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, slot machines, arcade cabinets and video games...

 arcade games Drummania

DrumMania

is a music video game series produced by Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc., where colored notes travel down the screen which correspond with color coded parts of an electronic drum set...

 and Guitar Freaks.

They were seen as controversial in Japan, where antics such as using the taboo

Taboo

A taboo is a strong social prohibition relating to any area of human activity or social custom that is sacred and or forbidden based on moral judgment, religious beliefs and or scientific consensus. Breaking the taboo is usually considered objectionable or abhorrent by society...

 Japanese word for crazy, and spitting on television cameras got them banned from TV for a year.

Post-breakup

After The Blue Hearts broke up in 1995, Kōmoto and Mashima joined together with three new band members to form a new group, The High-Lows

The High-Lows

were a popular Japanese punk rock band that was formed in 1995. The band stopped all activities in November 2005 and broke up.-Members:* Hiroto Kōmoto – vocals* Masatoshi Mashima –guitar* Sakito Shirabe – bass* Kenji Ōshima – drums* Mikio Shirai – keyboards...

. The new band's lyrics were less likely to be social commentaries, as they tended to be on the surreal side. In addition to retaining the hard core fans of The Blue Hearts, The High-Lows were also able to attract new fans and lasted another ten years. After The High-Lows broke up in 2005, Kōmoto and Mashima again formed a new band in 2006, this time calling themselves The Cro-Magnons

The Cro-Magnons

is a Japanese rock band founded in July 2006 by Hiroto Kōmoto and Masatoshi Mashima , previously of The Blue Hearts and The High-Lows, with Masaru Kobayashi and Katsuji Kirita .- History :...

.

After the breakup of The Blue Hearts, both Kōmoto and Mashima chose not to sing any of the bands songs, with few exceptions. Kōmoto has sung "Boku no Migite" while performing live concerts with other artists and Mashima has performed "Aozora

Aozora (song)

was the eighth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The song was recut from the group's third album Train-Train. This song was written in opposition to the continuing apartheid of the time. Mashima said that the actual reading for the tile is Aoi Sora...

" at some concerts, too.

Singles

• "1985" (It was a free flexi-disc given at a live on December 24, 1985; it was not actually released as a single.)
• "Hito ni Yasashiku
  Hito ni Yasashiku
  was the first single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It was first released on an independent label on February 25, 1987, before the band signed with a record company. Lyrics and music were written by Hiroto Kōmoto, the band's lead vocalist, and was arranged by The Blue Hearts. The track is...
  
  " (February 25, 1987)
• "Linda Linda
  Linda Linda
  was a single by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts that was first released on May 1, 1987. Lyrics and music were written by Hiroto Kōmoto, the band's lead vocalist, and was arranged by The Blue Hearts. Both tracks are 6m57s in length and reached #38 on the Oricon charts during its release...
  
  " (May 1, 1987)
• "Kiss Shite Hoshii
  Kiss Shite Hoshii
  was the third single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It was released on November 21, 1987, the same time that the band's second album, Young and Pretty, was released. Lyrics and music were written by Hiroto Kōmoto, the band's lead vocalist, and was arranged by The Blue Hearts...
  
  " (November 21, 1987)
• "Blue Hearts Theme
  Blue Hearts Theme
  was the fourth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. Though it was released after their major debut, it was written before they signed with a major label. It was released as a "double A-side" track on July 1, 1988, with "Chernobyl" , a controversial single that was included with the release...
  
  " (July 1, 1988)
• "Chernobyl
  Blue Hearts Theme
  was the fourth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. Though it was released after their major debut, it was written before they signed with a major label. It was released as a "double A-side" track on July 1, 1988, with "Chernobyl" , a controversial single that was included with the release...
  
  " (July 1, 1988)
• "Train-Train
  Train-Train
  was the fifth professional single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. They had released one single as an independent group, making this the sixth single overall.The single was released at the same time as the album Train-Train...
  
  " (November 23, 1988)
• "Love Letter
  Love Letter (The Blue Hearts song)
  was the sixth professional single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. They had released one single as an independent group, making this the seventh single overall. The song was recut off of the group's third album Train-Train....
  
  " (February 21, 1989)
• "Aozora
  Aozora (song)
  was the eighth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The song was recut from the group's third album Train-Train. This song was written in opposition to the continuing apartheid of the time. Mashima said that the actual reading for the tile is Aoi Sora...
  
  " (June 21, 1989)
• "Jōnetsu no Bara
  Jonetsu no Bara
  was the ninth single by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts. It reached #1 on the Oricon charts during the first week of August 1990. The song was also ranked #7 on Oricon's rankings for all of 1990...
  
  " (July 25, 1990)
• "Kubitsuri-dai Kara
  Kubitsuri-dai Kara
  was the tenth single by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts and reached #13 on the Oricon charts in 1991.-Details:"Kubitsuri-dai Kara" was released as part of The Blue Hearts' fourth album, Bust Waste Hip, which had been released during the previous year on September 10, 1990, though the...
  
  " (April 10, 1991)
• "Ano Ko ni Touch
  Ano Ko ni Touch
  was the eleventh single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts and reached #24 on the Oricon charts in 1991.-Details:"Ano Ko ni Touch" was released as part of The Blue Hearts' fifth album, High Kicks, which was released shortly after the single on December 21...
  
  " (November 28, 1991)
• "Too Much Pain
  Too Much Pain
  was the twelfth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts and reached #29 on the Oricon charts in 1992.-Details:Too Much Pain was released as part of The Blue Hearts' fifth album, High Kicks, which had been released on December 21, 1991, but the song itself was from the band's amateur days many...
  
  " (March 10, 1992)
• "Yume
  Yume (The Blue Hearts song)
  was the thirteenth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts and reached #14 on the Oricon charts in 1992. When it was rereleased on February 6, 2002, it again placed on the Oricon charts, peaking at #11.-Details:...
  
  " (October 25, 1992)
• "Tabibito
  Tabibito
  was the fourteenth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts and reached #50 on the Oricon charts in 1992. It was part of the band's sixth album, Stick Out.-Details:...
  
  " (February 25, 1993)
• "1000 no Violin
  1000 no Violin
  is a song by The Blue Hearts, released as the band's fifteenth single. It reached #47 on the Oricon charts in 1993. It was part of the band's sixth album, Stick Out. The music and lyrics were written by Masatoshi Mashima.-Details:...
  
  " (May 25, 1993)
• "Party
  Party (The Blue Hearts song)
  was the sixteenth single by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts and reached #80 on the Oricon charts in 1993. It was part of the band's seventh album, Dug Out, and was the worst selling single that was released by a major label for the band...
  
  " (August 25, 1993)
• "Yūgure
  Yugure
  is a Japanese word meaning "twilight." It could be referring to:*The Japanese destroyer Yugure, a World War II-era ship*Yūgure, a song by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts...
  
  " (October 25, 1993)

Studio albums

• The Blue Hearts
  The Blue Hearts (album)
  is the self-produced and self-titled first album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. They had put together albums as an independent band, but this was their first official release. It has a different track listing from their self-titled EP, which was released in the U.S...
  
   (May 21, 1987)
• Young and Pretty
  Young and Pretty
  is the second album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It is also the band's only studio album with a cover actually showing members of the band.-Album history:...
  
   (November 21, 1987)
• Train-Train
  Train-Train (album)
  is the third album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts.-Track listing:#"Train-Train" #"Merry Go Round" #"Denkō Sekka" #"Missile" #"Boku no Migite"...
  
   (November 23, 1988)
• Bust Waste Hip
  Bust Waste Hip
  was the fourth album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The album was a big success and was the first album by the band to reach #1 on the Oricon charts....
  
   (September 10, 1990)
• High Kicks
  High Kicks
  was the fifth studio album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It was the first album by the band to reach #1 on the Oricon charts.-Tracks:#"Minagoroshi no Melody" #"Monkey"...
  
   (December 21, 1991)
• Stick Out
  Stick Out
  was the sixth studio album released by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts. It was also the second consecutive album by the band to reach #1 on the Oricon charts.-Tracks:#"Sutegoma" #"Yume" #"Tabibito"...
  
   (February 10, 1993)
• Dug Out
  Dug Out
  was the seventh studio album released by the Japanese rock band The Blue Hearts and the eighth album released overall.-Tracks:#"Tegami" #"Midori no Happa" #"Torch Song"...
  
   (July 10, 1993)
• Pan
  Pan (album)
  was the eighth and final studio album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It was the only album not to have any songs that were released as singles.-Track listing:#"Drummers' Session" #"Houston Blues"...
  
   (July 10, 1995)

Compilation albums

• Blast Off!
  Blast Off!
  Blast Off! was the second American release by the Japanese punk rock band The Blue Hearts. It was released in 1991 and only in America...
  
   (August 6, 1991, US
  United States
  The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
  
   only)
• Meet the Blue Hearts
  Meet the Blue Hearts
  Meet the Blue Hearts was the first compilation album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It includes many of their hits from their time with the Meldac Records label and live records from their tour of America.-Disc 1:...
  
   (January 1, 1995)
• East West Side Story
  East West Side Story
  East West Side Story was the second compilation album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It includes many of their hits from their time with the East West Japan label...
  
   (September 25, 1995)
• Super Best
  Super Best (album)
  Super Best was the compilation album by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. This retrospective is composed of their early efforts released by Meldac Records between 1987 and 1989...
  
   (October 16, 1995)
• The Blue Hearts Box
  The Blue Hearts Box
  The Blue Hearts Box was a box set of three early albums released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts in 1999. It contains the three Blue Hearts' albums that were released by Meldac Records: The Blue Hearts, Young and Pretty and Train-Train...
  
   (January 1, 1999)
• Singles 1990-1993
  Singles 1990-1993
  Singles 1990-1993 is the most recent compilation album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It is a two disc set that contains many of the singles and their B-side tracks that were released between 1990 and 1993...
  
   (November 25, 1999)
• All Time Singles ~Super Premium Best~ (February 24, 2010)

Live albums

• Live All Sold Out
  Live All Sold Out
  Live All Sold Out was the first live album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It contains 20 of their hits and was released by their label, East West Japan.-Track listing:#"Hito ni Yasashiku"...
  
   (July 1, 1996, various locations)
• Yaon Live on '94 6.18/19
  Yaon Live on '94 6.18/19
  Yaon Live on '94 6.18/19 was the second live album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. It contains 17 of their hits and was released by their label, East West Japan.-Track listing:#"Sutegoma" #"Yume"...
  
   (November 25, 1997, Hibiya Yagai Ongakudō)

Videos

• The Blue Hearts (March 21, 1987) VHS
• The Blue Hearts Live! ~1987.7.4 Hibiya Yagai Ongakudō~ (September 1, 1987) VHS
• Tour '88 Pretty Pineapple Special
  Tour '88 Pretty Pineapple Special
  Tour '88 Pretty Pineapple Special was a video album produced by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts as a documentary of their first concert at Nippon Budokan just two months after their major debut...
  
   (June 21, 1988) VHS
• Blue Hearts no Video - Video Clip 1987-1989  (ブルーハーツのビデオ) (January 1, 1990) VHS
• Meet the Blue Hearts U.S.A. Tour 1990
  Meet the Blue Hearts (video)
  Meet the Blue Hearts~U.S.A. Tour 1990 was a video album produced by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts as a documentary of their tour of America in 1991. The tour shares a name with the band's first compilation album, Meet the Blue Hearts, but there is no other relation between the two.-Songs:The...
  
   (1990) VHS
• High Kick Tour Video Pamphlet (1991) VHS
• Zen-Nippon East Waste Tour '91
  Zen-Nippon East Waste Tour '91
  was a video album produced by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts in concurrence with their tour promoting their most recent album Bust Waste Hip. All of the songs were recorded live during their tour on June 12 or 13 1991, at NHK Hall.-Chapter Listing:#Opening...
  
   (全日本EAST WASTE TOUR '91) (September 10, 1991) VHS/DVD
• Endless Dreams ~The Blue Hearts Meet the Mutoid~ (July 10, 1993) VHS
• Blue Hearts no Video 2 - Video Clip 1990-1993 (ブルーハーツのビデオ2) (November 10, 1993) VHS/DVD
• The Blue Hearts no Dekoboko Chindōchū
  The Blue Hearts no Dekoboko Chindochu
  was a compilation video album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The video was a documentary to the band's final tour of Japan in 1994 and includes recordings from 15 of the 30 venues.-Chapter listing:# Opening# "Tegami"# "Party"# "Midori no Happa"...
  
   (ザ・ブルーハーツの凸凹珍道中) (July 10, 1995) VHS/DVD
• Blue Hearts ga Kikoenai - History of the Blue Hearts
  Blue Hearts ga Kikoenai
  was a compilation video album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The video served to record the history of the band, from its formation in 1985 to its breakup in 1995.The video itself does not play any of the band's songs in its entirety...
  
   (ブルーハーツが聴こえない History of the Blue Hearts) (February 7, 1996) VHS/DVD
• Blue Hearts no Video + Maboroshi no Video Fukkokuban
  Blue Hearts no Video + Maboroshi no Video Fukkokuban
  was a compilation video album released by the Japanese band The Blue Hearts. The DVD features the original recordings of the band's first two non-live videos, The Blue Hearts and Blue Hearts no Video - Video Clip 1987-1989...
  
   (ブルーハーツのビデオ＋幻のビデオ復刻版) (May 26, 2004) DVD
• The Blue Hearts Live! (May 26, 2004) DVD (Incl. "The Blue Hearts Live!" + "Tour '88 Pretty Pineapple Special")

Others

• Just a Beat Show
  Just a Beat Show
  is an omnibus album of a live show in Shibuya's Yaneura on March 3, 1986, in Japan. It was released in May of the same year. The performers were Lä-Ppisch, The London Times, The Blue Hearts and The Jumps.-Background:...
  
   (omnibus album with other groups, May 1986)
• The Blue Hearts King of Mix (remix album by various groups, May 25, 1994)
• The Blue Hearts Tribute (tribute album, April 25, 2002)
• The Blue Hearts 2002 Tribute (tribute album, August 28, 2002)
• The Blue Hearts Super Tribute (tribute album, April 2, 2003)
• The Blue Hearts Tribute 2005 Edition (tribute album, July 20, 2005)
• The Blue Hearts "25th Anniversary" Tribute (tribute album, February 24, 2010)