, also known by the abbreviations and SAS, are a Japanese rock band formed in Shibuya in 1975. Lead vocalist and guitarist Keisuke Kuwata, keyboardist and vocalist Yuko Hara, bassist Kazuyuki Sekiguchi, drummer and percussionist have been together since 1977. The guitarist was a member from 1977 to 2001. The band has occasionally gone on hiatus while its members work on other projects.

After signing with Victor Entertainment, the band released their top-ten charting debut single, "Katte ni Sindbad", in 1978. Southern went on to become one of the best-selling music groups in Japan, with more than 48.8 million albums and singles sold. They have had over 40 top ten singles and 19 number one albums on the Oricon music charts. Their 1998 compilation album Umi no Yeah!! is one of the best-selling albums in Japan and the best-selling double album in Japanese history. Southern All Stars are regarded as one of Japan's greatest musical acts and have been called its "national band".

History

1970s: Early years

thumb|upright|[[Keisuke Kuwata is the frontman, principal songwriter and leader of Southern All Stars.]]

In 1974, a prototype of Southern All Stars, composed of Aoyama Gakuin University students who belonged to the popular music club "Better Days", was formed by Keisuke Kuwata. In their early days, the band changed its name frequently, such as and . While working on the poster, Miyaji listened to Neil Young's album After the Gold Rush on repeat, before taking a break to bathe, where he listened to Nippon Broadcasting System and heard Fania All-Stars mentioned. This cover version by Charles became 1989's best-selling single performed by a Western artist.

Two months after Southern released their debut single, their first album, ', was released. The band was not able to devote ample time to recording and songwriting for ', their second album. 10 Numbers Carat featured their breakthrough ballad "Itoshi no Ellie", which was released only eight months after their debut album. Kuwata's angry look on the album cover mirrored his exhaustion. Hence, the leader of the band was not satisfied with the quality of the album, and later called it "trash". The song held the No. 1 position on the Oricon Singles Chart for five weeks, and sold more than 2.9 million units. It is the third best-selling single in Japan of the last 40 years. On New Year's Eve 2000, "Tsunami" won the 42nd Japan Record Awards. After the enormous success of the single, the band became more conservative and now release fewer singles, although all of them have become hits.

After a concert tour in 2000, Takashi Omori announced a stop in work and left the band in August 2001. Omori and his wife were well-known as pious and influential adherents of the Soka Gakkai religion. This caused various rumors in the press about problems between himself and other members and many fans. By the early 2000s, each member had actively pursued solo projects. Particularly, Kuwata produced three million-selling records and one album around 2001 and 2002.

Southern All Stars released the double-album ' in October 2005. It debuted at No. 1 and has sold over a million units to date. In 2008, the band began a hiatus.

Musical style

Music journalist Tomoyuki Mori and critic Nobuaki Onuki both described Southern All Stars' music as taking aspects from diverse genres, such as rock, blues, Latin, folk and reggae, and successfully adapting them to their own unique style. HMV Japan wrote that the band has been able to lead the Japanese music industry for decades because they repeatedly take fresh approaches that evolve with the times.

Dr. Patrick Patterson of Honolulu Community College notes that principal songwriter Kuwata uses Japanese vocabulary in unique ways in his lyrics, which requires even native speakers to listen closely to fully understand, and will also intentionally mispronounce words to make them sound like English or French. Discussing their song "Omoisugoshi mo Koi no Uchi", music critic Suzie Suzuki wrote that Kuwata sings "a bizarre jumble of Japanese and English, spoken rapidly with a rolling tongue, incorporating vowels beyond the standard 'a, i, u, e, o', and emphasizing the hard consonant sounds of the 'ka' and 'ta' columns." Suzuki described this as evolving the vocal styles of artists like Eiichi Ohtaki and Eikichi Yazawa. Onuki opined that Kuwata's way of placing importance on the way words sound instead of their meaning succeeded domestically because the Japanese people had already acquired a taste for foreign music sung in languages they do not understand. a national treasure, and the "spiritual holyland" for the Japanese people. HMV Japan ranked them No. 1 on their 2003 list of the "Top 100 Japanese Musical Acts". In 2019, Nikkei Entertainment! magazine ranked Southern All Stars second in the music category of their annual "Talent Power Rankings". Southern Beach in Kuwata's hometown of Chigasaki was named after Southern All Stars in 1999. Chigasaki officials have credited Southern All Stars for boosting the city's profile. In 2013, Kenzo Tanaka, President of the Chigasaki Chamber of Commerce and Industry, stated, "Through numerous hit songs, such as 'Chako no Kaigan Monogatari', they have incorporated the name of Chigasaki in their lyrics, thereby contributing to the local economy." In October 2014, the East Japan Railway Company began using Southern's song "Kibō no Wadachi" as a departure melody at Chigasaki Station. Specifically, the song's intro is used on platform 5 and its chorus on platform 6.

Southern All Stars are also one of the best-selling music groups in Japan, selling more than 48.8 million albums and singles by 2015. Their 1998 compilation album Umi no Yeah!! has sold more than 4.8 million copies, making it one of the best-selling albums of all time in Japan and the best-selling double album in Japanese history. They have had over 40 top ten singles and 19 number one albums on Japan's Oricon music charts. In July 2005, they became the only artist to ever have 44 songs chart in the top 100 on the Oricon Singles Chart simultaneously. In 2025, Southern became only the fifth act in history, and the only group, to have had a number one album on the Oricon Albums Chart in five separate decades.

|SAS Lifetime Achievement Award Japan

|

|-

| rowspan="2" |2019

|Japan Gold Disc Award

|Album of the Year

|Umi no Oh, Yeah!!

|-

|Space Shower Music Awards

|Best Respect Artist

|

|}

See also

  • List of best-selling music artists in Japan

References

  • Profile on Nippop