are a Japanese all-female heavy metal band formed in 1981. The group disbanded in 1998, but reformed with the original line-up in 2005 for the 20th anniversary of their first release. Their music is deeply rooted in classic rock and they have covered songs by bands and artists such as

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

The Doors The Doors were an American Rock music, rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1965, with vocalist Jim Morrison, keyboardist Ray Manzarek, guitarist Robby Krieger, and drummer John Densmore. They were among the most controversial and influential ro ...

the Yardbirds The Yardbirds are an English rock band, formed in London in 1963. The band's core lineup featured vocalist and harmonica player Keith Relf, drummer Jim McCarty, rhythm guitarist and later bassist Chris Dreja and bassist/producer Paul Samwell ...

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are cite ...

Deep Purple Deep Purple are an English rock band formed in London in 1968. They are considered to be among the pioneers of heavy metal and modern hard rock music, but their musical style has changed over the course of its existence. Originally formed as ...

, and

AC/DC AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and heavy metal, but the band calls it s ...

in their albums and live shows. Their music evolved from the pop rock genre of their first offerings to the heavy metal genre of their most successful albums, ''

Outerlimits ''Outerlimits'' is the seventh album of the Japanese female hard rock group Show-Ya. The album was released on 6 September 1989, in Japan. The album was mixed at the famous Cherokee Studios in California and was arranged by Masanori Sasaji and ...

'' (1989) and ''

Hard Way ''Hard Way'' is the eighth album of the Japanese hard rock band Show-Ya. The album was recorded in Los Angeles, USA and produced by Beau Hill and by Kip Winger's brother Paul. It was released on 24 October 1990 and reached position No. 4 in Ja ...

'' (1990). Show-Ya annually organizes and produces the all-female rock festival Naon no Yaon, which they founded in 1987.

History

Show-Ya was formed in 1981 by

Keiko Terada is a Japanese rock singer. She was co-founder and lead singer of the successful Japanese female hard rock and heavy metal band Show-Ya from 1982 to 1991, before going solo. On her solo albums she expanded from hard rock and heavy metal to blue ...

and Miki Nakamura, who had been playing together for a year in order to enter the East West Grand Prix musical contest organized and sponsored by

Yamaha Yamaha may refer to: * Yamaha Corporation, a Japanese company with a wide range of products and services, established in 1887. The company is the largest shareholder of Yamaha Motor Company (below). ** Yamaha Music Foundation, an organization esta ...

. Because they were unable to win previous contests they had entered, they decided to change their name. Wanting to captivate the audience as they believed their strength was in their live performances, "we decided to create a live show for you! So we named it SHOW YOU=SHOW YA!" The new band won the contest for best female group, which resulted in a record contract with

Toshiba EMI , formerly , was one of Japan's leading music companies. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of British music company EMI Group Ltd. on June 30, 2007, after Toshiba sold off its previous 45% stake. Its CEO and president was Kazuhiko Koike. When ...

. In 1983, Miki Igarashi replaced the original guitarist Mitsuko Numata and the line-up was completed by drummer Miki Tsunoda and bassist Satomi Senba. Nakamura, Igarashi and Tsunoda adopted the stage names of “Captain”, “Sun-Go” and “Mittan” to avoid confusion with the first name Miki, which they have in common. During this period, they wrote material for their debut studio album ''

Masquerade Show ''Masquerade Show'' is the debut album of the Japanese rock group Show-Ya. The album was released on 6 September 1985 in Japan. Its release was preceded by the pop single "Suteki ni Dancing" (trans. Dancing Is Great), used for an advertising camp ...

'', which was recorded in Japan and mixed at

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...

in London. The album was promoted by

The Coca-Cola Company The Coca-Cola Company is an American multinational beverage corporation founded in 1892, best known as the producer of Coca-Cola. The Coca-Cola Company also manufactures, sells, and markets other non-alcoholic beverage concentrates and syrups, ...

, which used their debut single "Suteki Ni Dancing (Coke Is It)" for a TV and radio commercial campaign. While in London, the band had the opportunity to play in front of a audience at

Dingwalls Dingwalls was a live music and comedy venue adjacent to Camden Lock, Camden, London, England. The building itself is one of many industrial Victorian buildings that were put to new use in the 20th century. The original owner of the building, ...

and at the legendary rock club

The Marquee The Marquee Club was a music venue first located at 165 Oxford Street in London, when it opened in 1958 with a range of jazz and skiffle acts. Its most famous period was from 1964 to 1988 at 90 Wardour Street in Soho, and it finally closed whe ...

. After the successful release of their debut studio album, the band returned to Abbey Road Studios to mix their second album '' Queendom'' the following year. The interest of the Japanese press and the ever-increasing presence of the band on TV shows led soon to a more professional and organized approach to the music business. With their fourth studio album ''

Trade Last ''Trade Last'' is the fourth album of the Japanese rock group Show-Ya. The album was released on 4 February 1987 in Japan. All the lyrics were written by Yasushi Akimoto and half of the music by Kyōhei Tsutsumi. The musical arrangements were do ...

'', they ceded musical direction to expert

Yasushi Akimoto is a Japanese record producer, lyricist, and television writer, best known for creating and producing some of Japan's top idol groups, Onyanko Club and the AKB48 franchise. Total sales of the singles he has written exceed 100 million copies, ma ...

, famous for being the man behind the success of the Japanese idol all-female band

Onyanko Club was a large all-girl Japanese pop idol group in the 1980s. Some members of the group participated in spin-off groups, such as Nyangilas, Ushiroyubi Sasaregumi and Ushirogami Hikaretai. Many of the latter two groups' songs were used as theme ...

. The Japanese idol phenomenon affected the band only marginally, but Akimoto's management gave them the chance to play in front of larger audiences in their “Date Line” national tour. Their performance at

Nakano Sun Plaza , formerly Nakano Sun Plaza, is a hotel in Nakano, Tokyo. The hotel includes a concert hall, the Nakano Sunplaza Hall (formerly Nakano Sun Plaza Hall). Built in 1973,

in Tokyo was recorded for their first VHS. In 1987, the band was approached by producer

Andy Johns Jeremy Andrew "Andy" Johns (20 May 1950 – 7 April 2013) was a British sound engineer and record producer who worked on several well-known rock albums, including the Rolling Stones' ''Exile on Main St.'' (1972), Television's ''Marquee Moon'' (19 ...

, who had worked with artists such as

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

and

Van Halen Van Halen ( ) was an American rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. Credited with "restoring hard rock to the forefront of the music scene", Van Halen was known for its energetic live shows and for the virtuosity of its lead guit ...

. He was responsible for the mixing of the albums ''

Immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, an ...

'' and '' Glamour'' in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, largest city in the U.S. state, state of California and the List of United States cities by population, sec ...

. The explosion of the

glam metal Glam metal (also known as hair metal or pop metal) is a subgenre of heavy metal that features pop-influenced hooks and guitar riffs, upbeat rock anthems, and slow power ballads. It borrows heavily from the fashion and image of 1970s glam ro ...

phenomenon in California influenced both the style and the sound of the band's following albums. Songs taken from the “Immigration Tour” and the “Tour of the Immigrant” were recorded for the band's first live album, ''

Turn Over ''Turn Over'' is the first live album of the Japanese rock music, rock group Show-Ya. It is a collection of live songs recorded during concerts from the "Date Line Tour" and "Immigration Tour" in 1987, and from the "Tour of the Immigrant" in 198 ...

''. In September 1987, Show-Ya organized, produced and presented the first Naon no Yaon rock festival, featuring strictly Japanese female musicians and all-female bands. The festival has been held regularly until 1999 and then again in 2008, 2009, 2013 and 2014 with Show-Ya's production. On 27 April 1988, Show-Ya performed their first live show on American soil, at the Roxy Theatre in West Hollywood. The name of Show-Ya was soon associated by the specialized press with other great female acts of the time, such as

Vixen Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

and

Lita Ford Lita Rossana Ford (born 19 September 1958) is an English-born American guitarist, vocalist, and songwriter. She was the lead guitarist for the all-female rock band the Runaways in the late 1970s, before embarking on a successful glam metal solo ...

. In 1989 they recorded ''

'', which reached position No.3 in the Japanese chart becoming the band's best selling album, selling over 200,000 copies in the first two months and eventually going double Platinum with sales exceeding 600,000 copies today. The hit single "Genkai Lovers" was used for a Shell campaign and became their best known song. Their live shows went sold out in large theatres all over Japan, filling up even the prestigious

Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. While its primary purpose is to host martial arts con ...

in Tokyo. An international tour touched cities like London, Moscow, Los Angeles and Mexico City. At the beginning of 1990, the band's eighth studio album ''

'' was produced and recorded in Los Angeles by

Beau Hill Beau Hill is an American record producer who is best known for his work with Alice Cooper, Kix, Winger, Streets, Warrant, Fiona, Europe, and Ratt. He also played instruments and sang backing vocals for some of the artists that he produced, a ...

(

Alice Cooper Alice Cooper (born Vincent Damon Furnier, February 4, 1948) is an American rock singer whose career spans over five decades. With a raspy voice and a stage show that features numerous props and stage illusions, including pyrotechnics, guillot ...

, Winger, Europe,

Ratt Ratt is an American glam metal band formed in San Diego, California, in the 1970s, that had significant commercial success in the 1980s, with their albums having been certified as gold, platinum, and multi-platinum by the RIAA. The group is bes ...

). The band was featured on the cover of the

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the Un ...

in 1990, where they were considered the female version of popular Japanese metal bands

Vow Wow Bow Wow are a Japanese rock band formed in 1975. Originally consisting of guitarist and vocalists Kyoji Yamamoto and Mitsuhiro Saito, bassist Kenji Sano and drummer Toshihiro Niimi, they were one of the first Japanese metal bands. After rele ...

and

Loudness In acoustics, loudness is the subjective perception of sound pressure. More formally, it is defined as, "That attribute of auditory sensation in terms of which sounds can be ordered on a scale extending from quiet to loud". The relation of phys ...

. They had reached the peak of their popularity in their home country but, despite many promotional attempts by their label and management, the band failed to achieve a significant commercial success in the USA. In February 1991, lead singer

left the group, considering the musical direction the band was taking too mainstream orientated. Wishing to explore new and more varied musical influences, she started a solo career. After many auditions, the band recruited Japanese-American singer

Steffanie Borges Steffanie Reiko Borges (born 30 August 1961), known under her stage name Steffanie (Japanese: ステファニー) is a Japanese-American singer, songwriter and musician. Biography She was born on 30 August 1961 and is the daughter of Hawaiian j ...

. She sings and speaks in fluent English and the band hoped that this could help their attempt to break in the US market. In June of the same year, the North Korean government invited the band to perform at the Art Theatre in

Pyongyang Pyongyang (, , ) is the capital and largest city of North Korea, where it is known as the "Capital of the Revolution". Pyongyang is located on the Taedong River about upstream from its mouth on the Yellow Sea. According to the 2008 populati ...

and the historic two-day concerts were heavily covered by the Japanese media. On 4 January 1992, the band performed theme music at the wrestling event Super Warriors in Tokyo Dome, for a match between

Sting Sting may refer to: * Stinger or sting, a structure of an animal to inject venom, or the injury produced by a stinger * Irritating hairs or prickles of a stinging plant, or the plant itself Fictional characters and entities * Sting (Middle-ear ...

and

The Great Muta is a Japanese professional wrestler and professional wrestling executive currently signed to Pro Wrestling Noah (Noah), where he is a former GHC Heavyweight Champion. He is best known for his work as in World Championship Wrestling (WCW) and ...

and

The Steiner Brothers The Steiner Brothers are an American professional wrestling tag team consisting of brothers Robert "Rick Steiner" Rechsteiner and Scott "Scott Steiner" Rechsteiner. The brothers wrestled as amateurs at the University of Michigan. The team mad ...

. After years of hard work and financial support, at the end of 1992, Master Works Co. solved its management contract with Show-Ya, preferring to continue managing only Keiko Terada. At the same time, the band lost their long engagement with EMI Japan, just after the release of their first single with Steffanie Borges, "Flame of the Angels". The band spent some time in Los Angeles, recording and playing shows constantly, and in 1995 they released their only album with Borges, ''Touch the Sun'' on the Creedence label. At the end of the tour in 1996, Borges left and was replaced by singer Yoshino. Show-Ya released the EP '' This My Way'' in 1998 and, by the end of the year, the band officially disbanded. Each member parted and went their separated ways, pursuing individual careers and playing with various artists. Igarashi was reunited briefly with Terada in the All Japan's Women Pro Band, which included also members of Princess Princess. The band officially reunited in 2005, with Keiko Terada back as the lead vocalist, in time for their 20th Anniversary shows at

NHK Hall The NHK Hall is a concert hall located at the NHK Broadcasting Center, the main headquarters of Japan's public broadcaster NHK. The hall is the main venue for the NHK Symphony Orchestra, but it has also played host to other events, such as the ...

in Tokyo. The shows were recorded and released on DVD. For the event, EMI Japan reprinted all the band's back catalogue in remastered CD editions and released an extensive compilation with a few remixed tracks. The band continues to perform live and released another DVD in 2007. They are also featured on the Naon no Yaon rock festival DVDs from 2008 and 2009. They released their tenth studio album, called '' Genuine Diamond'', in March 2012.

Members

– lead vocals, tambourine (1981–1991, 2005–present) * Miki "Sun-go" Igarashi – guitar, backing vocals (1984–1998, 2005–present) * Miki "Captain" Nakamura – keyboards, backing vocals (1981–1998, 2005–present) * Satomi Senba – bass, backing vocals (1982–1998, 2005–present) * Miki "Mittan" Tsunoda – drums, backing vocals (1982–1998, 2005–present)

Former members

* Mitsuko Numata – guitar (1981-1984) *

– vocals (1991–1996) * Yoshino – vocals (1996–1998)

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

'' (1985) * '' Queendom'' (1986) * '' Ways'' (1986) * ''

'' (1987) * ''

'' (1987) * '' Glamour'' (1988) * ''

'' (1989) * ''

'' (1990) * ''Touch the Sun'' (1995) * '' Genuine Diamond'' (2012) * ''

Progress Progress is the movement towards a refined, improved, or otherwise desired state. In the context of progressivism, it refers to the proposition that advancements in technology, science, and social organization have resulted, and by extension w ...

'' (2015) * ''Aurora'' (2017) * ''Showdown'' (2021)

EPs

* ''L.A. Live'' (1989) * '' This My Way'' (1998)

Cover albums

* ''Glamorous Show'' (2014) * ''Glamorous Show II'' (2015)

Live albums

* ''

'' (1988) * '' Hard Way Tour 1991'' (1991)

Soundtracks

*''Burai Prototype'' (1989)

Compilation albums

* ''New Best Now'' (1987) * ''New Best Now 70'' (1988) * ''

White White is the lightest color and is achromatic (having no hue). It is the color of objects such as snow, chalk, and milk, and is the opposite of black. White objects fully reflect and scatter all the visible wavelengths of light. White on ...

'' (1988) * '' Show-Ya Greatest 1985–1990'' (1991) * '' Complete Best: Back Fire'' (1992) * '' Show-Ya Twin Best'' (1996) * '' Show-Ya Golden Best'' (2002) * '' Show-Ya 20th Anniversary The Best'' (2005)

Singles

*"Suteki ni Dancing (Coke Is It)" / "Au Revoir (Last Scene)" (1985/08/31) *"Shidokenaku Emotion" / "You Can Dance" (1986/02/01) *"One Way Heart" / "Love Sick" (1986/08/22) *"Sono Ato de Koroshitai" / "Yoru ga Kuru Made Nemuretai" (1987/01/22) *"Mizu no Naka no Toubousha" / "Fermata" (1987/05/25) *: Theme for the

TV Asahi JOEX-DTV (channel 5), branded as (also known as EX and and stylized as TV asahi), is a television station that is owned and operated by the subsidiary of certified broadcasting holding company , itself controlled by The Asahi Shimbun Compan ...

series ''Metropolis 25'' *"Kodoku no Meiro (Labyrinth)" / "Uso da to Itte yo, Moon Light" (1987/10/26) *"Aisazu ni Irarenai - Still Be Hangin' On" / "Get Down" (1988/06/25) *: Also available with the English version of "Still Be Hangin' On" as B-side *"3 Dome no Christmas" / "Go" (1988) *"Genkai Lovers" / "What Do You Say?" (1989/02/01) *: Used for a

Shell Shell may refer to: Architecture and design * Shell (structure), a thin structure ** Concrete shell, a thin shell of concrete, usually with no interior columns or exterior buttresses ** Thin-shell structure Science Biology * Seashell, a hard o ...

commercial *"Watashi wa Arashi" / "Ai no Frustration" (1989/06/07) *"Sakebi" / "Ubaitore" (1990/03/07) *"Gambling" / "Naze" (1990/09/05) *"Flame of the Angels" / "Don't Say Goodbye" (1992/01/29) *"V.S. Myself" (2013/07/24)

Others

*" Tribute to Seikima-II -Akuma to no Keiyakusho-" covering the song "Rouningyou no Yakata"(2010/09/15)

Videography

* ''Date Line'' (1987) * ''Rollin World'' (1989) * ''1990 Budokan - Reach for the World'' (1990) * ''Distance on Their Way'' (1991) * ''Hard Way Tour 1991'' (1991) * ''20th Anniversary Live'' (2005) * ''Show-Ya Live 2006'' (2007) * ''Hardest Rock'' (2013)

References

External links

Official website
{{Authority control Japanese heavy metal musical groups Japanese hard rock musical groups Japanese glam metal musical groups All-female bands Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups disestablished in 1998 Musical groups reestablished in 2005 Musical quintets Musical groups from Tokyo 1981 establishments in Japan