Dreams Come True Biography
The foremost Japanese pop group, Dreams Come True looks to be one of the few genuinely Asian acts possible of widespread popularity in the Western world, and the trio make no mistake that that is one of their aspirations. Vocalist Miwas Yoshida, influenced by Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan while growing up in Hokkaido, was singing backup vocals with a Tokyo group when she met bass player and producer Masato Nakamura. The group came together in early 1988 with the addition of Yoshida's longtime friend Takahiro Nishikawa on keyboards, and after more than a year of rehearsals and recording, Dreams Come True released their self-titled debut album. It sold over one million copies in Japan, and its follow-up Love Goes On (released eight months later) more than doubled the sales of the debut. Each of the subsequent half-dozen albums, from 1990's Wonder 3 through 1997's Sing or Die sold at least two million copies, and fifth album The Swinging Star (1992) became the best-selling album in Japanese history, at over four million copies and counting.
Dreams Come True decreased their workload over 1992-93. Nakamura remained busy, though; he composed the music for several video games, including Sonic the Hedgehog, and released a solo album, Hikari Original Album Tracks. Dreams Come True came back with a yen for connecting with Western audiences: the trio collaborated with Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire) on the single "Wherever You Are," and recorded a song for the soundtrack of the animated film The Swan Princess. Miwa's 1995 solo album Beauty and Harmony featured such American musicians as Jai Winding, Michael Brecker, David T. Walker and Ralph MacDonald. A special contract with Virgin Records to set up a sub-label (Virgin/DCT) for increased Western distribution introduced Dreams Come True's ninth proper album, 1997's Sing or Die. Despite doing well in Asia as expected, the trio failed to move Western audiences as hoped. ~ John Bush, All Music Guide
Popular Biographies:
No trigger Biography: Hailing from central Massachusetts (read: not from Boston), the melodic hardcore unit No Trigger had become a five-piece by the time they self-released their first demo, the EP The World Is Not a...
Luciano pavarotti Biography: Arguably no other opera singer in music history achieved the same level of international celebrity as tenor Luciano Pavarotti; his voice -- robust, resonant, and immediately recognizable -- launched...
Sway and king tech Biography: The hosts of the nationally syndicated radio program Wake Up Show, the Bay Area-based duo of Sway and King Tech also enjoyed rap careers of their own; as Flynamic Force, they released...
Dj hell Biography: DJ Hell (or simply Hell) has balanced Detroit minimalism and Chicago acid-house as well as more spacious German trance and hardcore. Beginning his mixing career while still a teenager, Hell moved...
Swans Biography: Crawling out of the same noisy, arty New York underground that sired Sonic Youth and Lydia Lunch, Swans created a dark, abrasive, murky, slowed-down noise rock that served as a starting point for...
Godgory Biography: Swedish death metal outfit Godgory was formed by vocalist Matte Andersson and drummer Erik Andersson (no relation) in 1992 as that rarest of animals, a death metal cover band. After honing their...
Orphaned land Biography: Probably one of the world's most unique and trailblazing heavy metal bands, Israel's Orphaned Land borrow heavily from Middle Eastern music styles to spice up their otherwise extreme metal sound....
Decoder Biography: Like their more common alias Technical Itch, the work of Darren Beale and Mark Caro as Decoder skirts the leading edge of progressive drum'n'bass, incorporating the moodier elements of jump-up and...