Black Biscuits -- STAMINA

Saw the NHK educational variety program "Tameshite Gatten" tonight and the theme was on how to increase one's stamina as one ages. Of course, for all those veteran Japan hands, the word "stamina" has become part and parcel of the Japanese language, especially during the daunting summers when the energy levels can drop into nothingness. Often enough, the word is used when it's put next to ryori or "cuisine". The telly was always talking about the dishes to provide those calories for that boost in stamina such as unaju (eel on rice) or some form of ramen...dishes that I would be more than happy to nosh on even if my stamina was perfectly fine.

Also, the theme of tonight's "Gatten" automatically had me remembering the debut single of that gimmicky unit from the 90s, Black Biscuits, composed of Taiwanese tarento/actress Vivian Hsu and comedians Kiyotaka Nanbara（南原清隆）and Hiroyuki Amano（天野ひろゆき）. It was released in December 1997 and had a funky enough beat, but to be honest, I much preferred their follow-up "Timing". Still, the song written by Hiromi Mori（森浩美）and composed by Kenji Hayashida（林田健司）did very well by hitting No. 2 on Oricon and selling over a million copies. And it still makes for a nostalgic memory of watching Japanese variety television almost 20 years ago.

Of course, I was in my early years of life in the Tokyo area at the time, and one night I was out with a few friends for dinner in the Hibiya area. One of them was a fellow who was born with a silver spoon in his mouth and seemed to know a number of the beautiful people in Japan. During dinner, he got a call on his cellphone from one of his buddies who was actually learning how to drive a car. In mid-conversation, he nonchalantly muttered to us that it was none other than Vivian Hsu. Ah...so close to celebrity.

My stamina food:
spicy ramen & karaage don
Also, my fast track to cholesterol overload!

Black Biscuits/Keizo Nakanishi -- Timing

I just remember this video (unfortunately the official music video has been taken down) going on heavy rotation on the music shows such as "CDTV" in the late 90s. Black Biscuits was the so-called archenemy to that other trio Pocket Biscuits. As was the case with the latter unit, Black Biscuits was formed in that Friday night comedy-variety show starring comedic duo Ucchan-Nanchan（ウッチャン・ナンチャン）. With Pocket Biscuits on the road to success with their first two singles, "Rapturous Blue" and "Yellow Yellow Happy", the powers-that-be must have thought it was time for another rival (after Chiaki and the gang had defeated McKee) to push the band. So, the Black Biscuits were formed with Taiwanese singer/actress/model Vivian Hsu, Kiyotaka "Nanami"Nanbara（南原清隆） of Ucchan-Nanchan and Hiroyuki "Amajan" Amano（天野ひろゆき）of Kyaiiin, the latter two being partners of the guys who were now in Pocket Biscuits.

The trio supposedly made their first appearance on the program in early January 1997, but their first single, "Stamina" didn't come until near the end of the year. The debut did very well, selling over a million copies but then came their 2nd single, "Timing", in April 1998 which brought even more success. Composed by 90s funkster Keizo Nakanishi（中西圭三） and Takao Konishi（小西貴雄）, and written by Hiromi Mori（森浩美）with help from the Black Biscuits, "Timing"had a fun strut in it, and everyone in the group added something vocally. Plus, there was the karaoke-friendly choreography which probably had a lot of beer and lemon-highballs spilling onto the carpet in the boxes and bars. And the video was even shot in Manhattan; I think even jaded New Yorkers were probably trying to figure out what these weirdly-dressed Asians were all about.

"Timing" also appeared on Black Biscuits' first and only album, "Life", released in May 1999 which got as far as No. 6 on the album charts and was the 71st-ranked disc of the year. As for the single, it sold around 150 million copies, but didn't hit the top spot, instead settling for No. 2. It was the 4th-most successful song of 1998.

Nakanishi himself couldn't resist covering "Timing" since it was so catchy. His cover has even more of a disco beat to it, and can be found in his album, "Songs", released in November 1998.

Black Biscuits -- Timing