is a Japanese rock band from Osaka. The band name Ulfuls is derived from a misreading of the word "soulful," found on the cover of one of the band members' favorite records. They were signed by Toshiba-EMI in 1992, but after 15 years they transferred to Warner Music Group.
History Having debuted in 1992 with the single, "Yabure Kabure," they initially had very limited success. However, by 1996, the group experienced huge superstar fame, fueled by the singles "Guts Da Ze!!," and "Boogie Woogie '96". Their lead singer is Tortoise Matsumoto. The other members are Ulful Keisuke on guitar, John B. Chopper on bass and Sankon Jr. on drums. In 1996 they wrote the song "Sky" for the film Gamera 2: Attack of Legion. In 1999 John B. Chopper left the group, which nevertheless continued on as a three-member group. However, in 2002 Chopper returned to the group again, making it a four-member group once more. The band's song "Ryoho for you" (両方 For You) was chosen as the official theme song for the 2007 Summer Koshien baseball tournament. Their song "Baka Survivor" was used as the 2nd opening theme for the anime Bobobo-bo Bo-bobo (ボボボーボ・ボーボボ).
After being active for 21 years, Ulfuls announced they would stop touring following their "Yassa!" (ヤッサ！) outdoor concert event, held in Osaka on August 29 and 30, 2009. Although, in early 2014, the group announced that they were ending its hiatus, and released its 32nd single, "Doudemo yo Sugi" (どうでもよすぎ), in February 2014. The single was their first release in several years. Ulfuls went on to release its twelfth studio album, "One Mind", that May, to impressive sales. After the release of their 13th album, "Born To Be Wai Wai," the band released their 14th, "人生 (Life)" to commemorate their 25th anniversary.
On 19 February 2018, it was announced on their official website that Ulful Keisuke would be taking a break from the band to work on his solo career. It was also mentioned that Ulfuls would continue to produce music as a three-man band.
Members : Lead vocals; real name (1988-present) : Guitar; real name (1988-2018) : Bass; real name (1988-1999, 2002-present) : Drums; real name (1988-present)
Discography
Singles TitleRelease date Peak chart position Oricon (subscription only) Desperate (やぶれかぶれ) May 13, 1992 —MacaMaca BUNBUN (マカマカBUNBUN) May 19, 1993 —Wonderful World (世の中ワンダフル) October 27, 1993 —King of Debt (借金大王) August 31, 1994 —Suttobasu (すっとばす) November 16, 1994 — Go With All Your Might! (トコトンで行こう!) March 15, 1995 — Osaka Strut Part II (大阪ストラット・パートII) May 21, 1995 — SUN SUN SUN'95 July 19, 1995 96 Guts Daze(ガッツだぜ) December 6, 1995 6Banzai ~I'm Glad I Like You~ (バンザイ 〜好きでよかった〜) February 7, 1996 13 Boogie Woogie '96 (ブギウギ'96) July 3, 1996 2 Sky (そら) July 3, 1996 9 Komason No. 1 (コマソンNo.1) December 11, 1996 5 That's Right! (それが答えだ!) February 26, 1997 15 Cutie (かわいいひと) October 8, 1997 5Are You Happy? (しあわせですか) December 10, 1997 18Leave It To Me (まかせなさい) May 13, 1998 20Let's Play (あそぼう) October 28, 1998 21Young Soul Dynamite (ヤング ソウル ダイナマイト) October 14, 1999 29Dream (夢) November 26, 1999 60There's Always Tomorrow (明日があるさ) February 16, 2001 4Naniwa Genome ~Ulfuls Mega Mix Medley~ (ナニワゲノム 〜ウルフルズ・メガミックス・メドレー〜) April 28, 2001 41Daredevil ~Get Hot~/Incident! (がむしゃら 〜熱くなれ〜/事件だッ!) October 17, 2001 15If You Laugh (笑えれば) February 20, 2002 10Eenen (ええねん) November 11, 2003 20Idiot Survivor (バカサバイバー) November 3, 2004 13Go Crazy/It's OK (暴れだす/大丈夫) January 13, 2005 10Samurai Soul (サムライソウル) January 2, 2006 18Passion A Go-Go (情熱 A GO-GO) April 18, 2007 22Both For You/Come Cry (両方 For You/泣けてくる) July 25, 2007 15For Sure (たしかなこと) October 31, 2007 28 "—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that region.
Special release singles Release dateTitleRankingFeb 25, 2014Anyway, It Doesn't Matter (どうでもよすぎ) -
Albums Release dateTitlePeak position1stJune 17, 1992 (Out of Print)December 14, 1994(Re-release)January 25, 2012(Re-release)爆発オンパレード(Bakuhatsu on Parade)742ndAugust 31, 1994すっとばす(Suttobasu)613rdJanuary 24, 1996バンザイ(Banzai)14thMarch 26, 1997Let's Go55thJune 17, 1998サンキュー・フォー・ザ・ミュージック(Thank You for the Music)46thDecember 8, 1999トロフィー(Trophy)127thMarch 27, 2002ウルフルズ(Ulfuls)188thDecember 10, 2003ええねん(Eenen)149thFebruary 23, 20059610thMarch 8, 2006YOU1211thDecember 12, 2007KEEP ON, MOVE ON912thMay 21, 2014ONE MIND813thSeptember 9, 2015ボンツビワイワイ(Born to be Wai Wai)914thMay 24, 2017人生(Life)1215thJune 26, 2019ウ!!!(U!!!)1616thNovember 9, 2022楽しいお仕事愛好会(Fun Work Club)20
Virtual albums iTunes Originals - Ulfuls (Japanese exclusive)
VHS/DVD Ulful V (Ulfuls DVD) Ulful V Jū Live In Japan Ai Yue Ni Aa, Au Yue Ni Bakuhatsu!! Ulfuls Ga Yatte Kureru Yassa! Yassa! Yassa! Ashita Ga Aru Sa "Kaze Fukeba Shoshikantetsu" (DVD Single) Ulfuls Ga Yatte Kureru Yassa! Yassa! Yassassa! Tsū Tsū Ura Ura Eenen Osakan Graffiti Ulfuls at Budōkan
References
External links ulfuls - Warner Music Japan ULFULS.COM - ulfuls official website TAISUKE HOME PAGE - Ulfuls's Taisuke's official website