A Ballads
Encyclopedia
A Ballads is a ballad
compilation album by Ayumi Hamasaki
released on March 12, 2003. The initial pressings of the album had four different covers. As of 2007, A Ballads surpassed the million mark with 1,041,000 copies sold.
, but was not included on the album. As a promotion for both albums, the purchasers of the initial pressings of Rainbow were given a password to a website, where they could download part of instrumental version of the song, and submit their own lyrics. Over 100,000 people accessed the website. The tracklistings of initial pressings of the album Rainbow had track 00 that said "Rainbow", but the song was not included on the album, and was scheduled to be released as a single after participation ended.
Both "Appears" and "M" were dramatically remixed by HAL to fit in with the ballad image of the album.
"You", "A Song for ××" were rearranged and resung for this album and added rock and acoustic feel to the songs. These songs display the change in Hamasaki's voice since her debut.
"To Be" and "Seasons" were only minimally changed for the album with heavier percussions.
"Who..." (Across the Universe) was resung for the album and as suggested by Hamasaki herself, it was made to have a 'warmer' feel than the original track.
The final track, "Sotsugyou shashin" was originally by Yumi Matsutoya
, and it was the first cover that Ayumi Hamasaki did on an album.
The numbers in A Song for ××'s title is the date in which it was recorded (YYMMDD)
Ballad
A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
compilation album by Ayumi Hamasaki
Ayumi Hamasaki
is a Japanese singer-songwriter, record producer, model, lyricist, and actress. Also called "Ayu" by her fans, Hamasaki has been dubbed the "Empress of Pop" because of her popularity and widespread influence in Japan and throughout Asia. Born and raised in Fukuoka, she moved to Tokyo at fourteen to...
released on March 12, 2003. The initial pressings of the album had four different covers. As of 2007, A Ballads surpassed the million mark with 1,041,000 copies sold.
Songs
"Rainbow" is the title track to her previous album RainbowRainbow (Ayumi Hamasaki album)
Upon its release, the album received mixed reviews. Adam Greenberg of Allmusic stated, "[Rainbow] came after a string of high-charting albums, itself not reaching the same heights thanks to some interesting but uneven experimentation with her sound"...
, but was not included on the album. As a promotion for both albums, the purchasers of the initial pressings of Rainbow were given a password to a website, where they could download part of instrumental version of the song, and submit their own lyrics. Over 100,000 people accessed the website. The tracklistings of initial pressings of the album Rainbow had track 00 that said "Rainbow", but the song was not included on the album, and was scheduled to be released as a single after participation ended.
Both "Appears" and "M" were dramatically remixed by HAL to fit in with the ballad image of the album.
"You", "A Song for ××" were rearranged and resung for this album and added rock and acoustic feel to the songs. These songs display the change in Hamasaki's voice since her debut.
"To Be" and "Seasons" were only minimally changed for the album with heavier percussions.
"Who..." (Across the Universe) was resung for the album and as suggested by Hamasaki herself, it was made to have a 'warmer' feel than the original track.
The final track, "Sotsugyou shashin" was originally by Yumi Matsutoya
Yumi Matsutoya
', nicknamed , is an influential Japanese singer, composer, lyricist and pianist. She is renowned for her idiosyncratic voice, and live performances, and is an important figure in Japanese popular music....
, and it was the first cover that Ayumi Hamasaki did on an album.
The numbers in A Song for ××'s title is the date in which it was recorded (YYMMDD)
Track listing
All lyrics written by Ayumi Hamasaki except track 14 (written by Yumi Arai).Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Catalogue Number |
|---|---|---|---|
| Japan | CD
|
AVCD-17278 | |
| Taiwan | |||
| Hong Kong | |||
| China | 2003
|
CD
|
AVTCD-95676C
|
| Cassette | |||
|
|
CD |
Charts
Oricon Sales Chart (Japan)| Release | Chart | Peak position | First Week Sales | Sales total | Chart run |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 12 March 2003 | Oricon Daily Albums Chart | 1 | |||
| Oricon Weekly Albums Chart | 1 | 561,127 | 1,040,998 | 39 | |
| Oricon Yearly Albums Chart | 8 |
- Total Sales: 1,041,000 (Japan)