Anyone who has heard a B'z song will instantly take note of the complex and expertly crafted melodies. Sometimes, they're driven by piano. Sometimes, by brass outfits or synthesizers. But, most importantly, and most often, they're driven by guitar. As the composer for all B'z songs, the duo's guitarist Tak Matsumoto has been heralded for his adept approach the world round.
LES PAUL SIGNATURE GUITARS
CANARY YELLOW / YELLOW LES PAUL SIGNATURES
In 1999, with 60,000,000 albums already sold (they recently passed 90,000,000 in December 2008), and after breaking record after record the year before with the releases of two greatest hits compilations, Tak was bestowed an honor that only the most elite receive... He was offered a signature model Les Paul from Gibson, the world's leading guitar manufacturer. The Les Paul design itself is, of course, nearly synonymous with the very idea of what a guitar is all about.
Gibson CEO Henry Juszkiewicz said of the induction, "He’s a loyal Gibson player, a major influence on young guitarists and a superstar. We couldn’t be more proud to work with Tak to produce a Signature Les Paul."
And so, they did. Tak was only the sixth guitarist in history to receive a signature Les Paul, and he collaborated with the Gibson factory in Tennessee all the way from Tokyo on the specifications.
The sales for Tak's signature Les Paul went through the roof even before it was released, with pre-orders pushing it well into the next year's production cycle. Even today, the original Canary Yellow model is popular with new and experienced guitarists alike.
The release of Tak's first signature Les Paul took Japan's leading rock icon to an entire new level of fame, as he had now received an honor that no other Asian musician had received.
TAK BURST LES PAUL SIGNATURE
In 2001, due to the absurd volume of sales that had been generated from the first model, Tak was once again approached by Gibson for another signature guitar.
The Tak Burst was released in Japan in 2001, and was once again back-ordered due to the demand. The guitar featured a "TAK Burst" finish, which was modeled on the classic Cherry Sunburst finish sported by many of the classic Les Paul's.
DOUBLE CUTAWAY SIGNATURE GUITARS
For his next collaboration with Gibson USA, Tak selected the old Double Cutaway design and formed it to his specifications.
To date, there have been a Flame Top edition, a Brown Burst edition, a Vintage White edition, an Antique Ebony edition, and...
A Tak Burst-esque version.
And finally, just last fall, the Ebony, Goldtop (Aged) and Goldtop (Gloss) Tak Matsumoto signature guitars went on sale. All three of which can be seen below.
Now, I know what you're thinking. "Those are amazing!" Yeah. They are. And for that $5,000+ price tag, they better be!
Tak routinely cycles through his signature models during live performances, so keep an eye out for all of the different models the next time you see him in action. Also, it should be noted that Tak now officially has more signature model guitars than any other artist in Gibson history.
As an aside, you can read an article I wrote for my friend's B'z blog back in December regarding Tak introducing the new Gibson robot guitar "Dark Fire" to Japan. That can be found
here.
Oh, and while I'm plugging things-I've-written-about-B'z, you can read my (rather elongated) review of their latest studio album,
ACTION, from 2007
here or
here.
(It's actually really, really strange for me to read it now--it's some sort of reverse deja-vu... However that works.
And yes, I'm aware I'm a B'z faNguRL)
Next time, I'll go over one of the landmark moments in B'z history: the induction to the Hollywood RockWalk of Fame, as well as their collaboration with renowned American guitarist Steve Vai, and maybe a rundown of some of their many Oricon sales records. I know I said I'd do the latter with this post, but I was more in the mood to do this, so there you go.
