is the ninth single by hide

Hide (musician)

, better known by his stage name hide , was a popular Japanese musician. He was primarily known for his work as lead guitarist of the heavy metal band X Japan from 1987 to 1997...

, the second to bear the hide with Spread Beaver name, released on May 13, 1998, eleven days after Hideto "hide" Matsumoto

Hide (musician)

, better known by his stage name hide , was a popular Japanese musician. He was primarily known for his work as lead guitarist of the heavy metal band X Japan from 1987 to 1997...

's death. The single debuted at number 1 on the Japanese Oricon

Oricon

, established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc...

 weekly charts with sales over 513,000 copies in the initial week of the release. By the end of the year it sold 1,033,770 copies, becoming the 11th best-selling single of the year and was certified Million by the Recording Industry Association of Japan

Recording Industry Association of Japan

The Recording Industry Association of Japan is an industry trade group composed of Japanese corporations involved the music industry...

.

This single is arguably his most well-known, because of the time of its release, the distinctive sound and since its title comes from a nickname

Nickname

A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....

 given to him by fellow X Japan

X Japan

is a Japanese heavy metal band founded in 1982 by Yoshiki and Toshi. Originally named X , the group achieved their breakthrough success in 1989 with the release of their second album Blue Blood...

 member Yoshiki Hayashi.

On November 22, 2006, the single was re-released. On December 8, 2010, it was re-released again as part of the third releases in "The Devolution Project", which was a release of hide's original eleven singles on picture disc vinyl.

The song was covered by Siam Shade

Siam Shade

Siam Shade was a five-piece Japanese rock band, which broke onto the visual kei scene alongside a multitude of other artists in the early 1990s. They enjoyed a decade of relative popularity before disbanding in early 2002. On November 18, 2007, they reunited for a concert in honor of their...

 and Cornelius

Cornelius (musician)

Cornelius is a Japanese recording artist and producer.-Career:Oyamada's first claim to fame was as a member of the pop duo Flipper's Guitar, one of the key groups of the Tokyo Shibuya-kei scene...

 on the 1999 hide tribute album, Tribute Spirits

Tribute Spirits

Tribute Spirits is a hide tribute album released on May 1, 1999. It collects cover versions by various artists, among them most members of hide's former band X Japan....

. Nu metal

Nu metal

Nu metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It is a fusion genre which combines elements of heavy metal with other genres, including grunge and hip hop...

 band Rize

Rize (band)

RIZE was Formed in 1997, debuting in 2000. Current members are: Jesse/V&G, Kenken/V&B,& N.K/Dr.RIZE music style is a mix of alternative rock, hard rock, punk rock and even some reggae flavor, cultivated & created via their real international music DNA....

 covered this song and released it as their single, "Pink Spider"

Alterna (Rize album)

Alterna is the fifth studio album by Japanese rock band Rize.-Track listing:All tracks by Rize# "" – 3:24# "American Hero" – 2:47# "" – 2:35# "" – 4:31 # "" – 3:04# "Feeling" – 3:20# ""# "28" – 2:54# "124℃" – 2:31- Personnel :...

, in 2006. Rize performed their cover live at the "hide memorial summit" on May 3, 2008, the following day X Japan covered it live with Sugizo

Sugizo

, born , is a Japanese musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. Referred to by his stage name Sugizo, he is best known as lead guitarist of the rock band Luna Sea, who were popular in the 1990s. He started his solo career in 1997 and has since collaborated with many artists...

 and Shinya

Shinya Yamada

, referred to as simply , is a Japanese musician. He is best known as drummer of the rock band Luna Sea.- History :Before joining Luna Sea in 1989, high school friends Shinya and Sugizo were in the band Pinoccio....

. It was also covered by heidi.

Heidi.

Heidi. is a Japanese visual kei rock band formed in February 2006.- History :Heidi.'s first one-man show, titled "「Birth・Day」", was on June 3, 2006. Their first single, "Yuuyake to Kodomo/Maria", was also sold at that show...

 on the compilation Crush! -90's V-Rock Best Hit Cover Songs-. The album was released on January 26, 2011 and features current visual kei

Visual Kei

is a movement among Japanese musicians, that is characterized by the use of make-up, elaborate hair styles and flamboyant costumes, often, but not always, coupled with androgynous aesthetics. Some sources state that visual kei refers to a music genre, or to a sub-genre of Japanese rock, with its...

bands covering songs from bands that were important to the '90s visual kei movement.

Track listing