Yu Imai Popular Books
Yu Imai Biography & Facts
The Sadistic Mika Band (Japanese: サディスティック・ミカ・バンド) was a Japanese rock band formed in November 1971 by husband and wife duo Kazuhiko Katō and Mika Katō. In a time when it was still rare for women to sing in rock bands in Japan, the fact that the Katōs were a married couple was even more unusual. This, combined with their glam rock-influenced fashion, has been cited as groundbreaking for defying gender norms in the country. After releasing three studio albums and becoming the first Japanese rock band to tour the United Kingdom, the Sadistic Mika Band disbanded in November 1975 when the Katōs divorced. In 2003, HMV Japan ranked the band at No. 94 on their list of the "Top 100 Japanese Pops Artists". In September 2007, Rolling Stone Japan rated their 1974 album Kurofune at No. 9 on its list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time". History After taking guitar lessons from Kazuhiko Katō, Mika Fukui of the folk duo Mika & Tonko starting dating The Folk Crusaders member. The two musicians married in Vancouver, Canada in July 1970. As Katō was already famous, the couple attracted much media attention, including an interview by the newly launched An An magazine. Impressed by the United Kingdom's burgeoning glam rock scene led by T. Rex and David Bowie, Katō set about forming a new group in his native Japan to emulate the style. Formed in November 1971, the Sadistic Mika Band initially consisted of Katō on guitar and vocals, Mika on vocals, and drummer Hiro Tsunoda. Their name is a parody of John Lennon and Yoko Ono's Plastic Ono Band, with "sadistic" reportedly inspired by Mika's sadistic way of using knives in the kitchen. The group released the single "Cycling Boogie" on June 21, 1972. It was released on Doughnut Records, Japan's first private label that was founded by Katō and distributed by Toshiba EMI. Tsunoda subsequently left the band in September, replaced by Yukihiro Takahashi, with lead guitarist Masayoshi Takanaka and bassist Ray Ohara also joining the group. This lineup completed the band's self-titled debut album, which was released on May 5, 1973. Harvest Records released it in the United Kingdom. Katō passed the album to Malcolm McLaren who at the time had a shop with Vivienne Westwood, and McLaren passed it on to Bryan Ferry. Members of the Sadistic Mika Band also contributed to Shigeru Izumiya's 1973 album Hikari to Kage. The band's second album Kurofune was recorded in England and released on November 5, 1974. Chris Thomas requested to produce the Sadistic Mika Band after hearing their first album. He also introduced Mika to Badfinger while he produced their LP Wish You Were Here. Her vocals can be heard on the track "Know One Knows" (translating Pete Ham's lyrics to Japanese). Keyboardist Yu Imai, who had previously worked as a support musician on the band's first album, was promoted to a full member. Kurofune sold poorly but is now considered a landmark in Japanese rock. In September 2007, Rolling Stone Japan rated it at No. 9 on its list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time". In a retrospective review for OK Music, Naoto Kawasaki wrote that the Sadistic Mika Band were one of few Japanese rock groups at the time that could compete in the global market, and that the album was greatly influential on younger bands. Kawasaki noted that Mika's "eccentric" and "bad" singing drew criticism, but praised Kazuhiko's foresight in anticipating this trend, given how the style later gained prevalence in the 1980s with acts such as Debbie Harry and Strawberry Switchblade. Ohara left the Sadistic Mika Band, and was replaced by support member Tsugutoshi Gotō. They played what turned out to be their last concert in Japan on September 21, 1975, at Kyoritsu Kodo. Throughout October 1975, the band played live in the United Kingdom supporting Roxy Music on the European leg of their Siren Tour, including a show at Wembley Arena. It was the first ever UK tour by a Japanese rock band. They were well received by the local music press, including Melody Maker and New Musical Express, and performed on British TV in between concerts. During performances of "Time to Noodle" and "Suki Suki Suki" on the Old Grey Whistle Test on October 7, 1975, a stagehand arranged for the name of the programme (usually shown hung from the back wall) to be spelt as The Old Gley Whistle Test as a nod to the Japanese pronunciation of the English letters L and R. The band also made an appearance on BBC TV's Pebble Mill at One and were interviewed by Jan Leeming. Photographs from this appearance were later published in the book S/M/B/2 (2006, Shinko Music) by Masayoshi Sukita, who was a close friend of the band. However, offstage, the relationship between Kazuhiko and Mika was irreparable as Mika had been having an affair with their record producer Chris Thomas since around June 1974. Despite a triumphant homecoming concert planned by Toshiba EMI and the upcoming release of their third studio album, plans were scrapped when Mika refused to return to Japan with the rest of the band. The Thomas-produced Hot! Menu was released on November 5, 1975. The album was featured on BBC Radio 3's Sounds Interesting. However, the Sadistic Mika Band disbanded that same month, when Kazuhiko and Mika divorced. Recordings from the Roxy Music tour were released in July 1976 as the Live in London album. Takahashi, Takanaka, Imai, and Gotō continued to play together for several years under the name The Sadistics. They released two studio albums and two live albums before the band eventually petered out by 1979 as the members became busy with their solo careers and other projects. All members continued to work with Katō on his solo albums in the 1970s and 1980s. Post-disbandment Kazuhiko Katō became a radio show presenter and a television personality in Japan. He had a successful solo career after the Sadistic Mika Band broke up; pursuing a ska direction before acquiring interest in European experimental music. Most of his solo work employed the talents of the other former Sadistic Mika Band members and other notable guest artists such as Ryuichi Sakamoto, Haruomi Hosono and Akiko Yano. He released two acoustic albums with Kōnosuke Sakazaki of The Alfee under the name Kazukoh in 2007 (Golden Hits) and 2009 (Happy End), and formed a new band called Vitamin-Q in 2008. They released one album featuring singer Anza. Drummer Yukihiro Takahashi went on to become part of the synthpop trio Yellow Magic Orchestra. In the early 2000s, he formed the duo Sketch Show with Haruomi Hosono. In 2014, Takahashi formed the supergroup Metafive. He also acted in a number of films and TV shows, usually in comedic roles. Ray Ohara was a regular member of Takahashi's band in the 1980s and 1990s. In 2019, Ohara, Shigeru Suzuki and Tatsuo Hayashi reunited their high school band Skye. Mika married the band's producer Chris Thomas and moved to the UK. She appears on "Nice Age" from Yellow Magic Orchestra's 1980 album X.... Discover the Yu Imai popular books. Find the top 100 most popular Yu Imai books.
Best Seller Yu Imai Books of 2024
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Assisting the Bosshole
Kristin MacQueenNo hot water? Check Missed the train? Check Broke my heel? Check Dropped my coffee? Check My first day of my new job can’t possibly go worse, right? Wrong. When I meet Parker Scott...
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How to Choose a Guy in 10 Days
Lila MonroeThe only thing more hilarious than the movies is… real life?! Fall in love with the sizzling grumpysunshine romantic comedy perfect for fans of Sophie Kinsella and Ali Hazlewood! ...
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Becoming Lady Dalton
Carrie LomaxA dance of desire and deceit... In the glittering world of London's ton, Mrs. Viola Cartwright revels in her newfound freedom as a lady of leisureuntil a series of jewel theft...
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Escape, A New Life
David J AntocciTo save herself, she had to lose everything. Trapped in a tropical paradise with no memory of how she got there, Abby is thrust into a fight for her life. Hunted by a madman, and c...
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The Next Girl
Carla KovachIF YOU ONLY READ ONE BOOK THIS YEAR, MAKE IT THE NEXT GIRL... You thought he’d come to save you. You were wrong. ‘ Absolutely the best thriller I’ve read this year! ’ Goodreads Rev...
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Always Yours
Claire RayeSome things are just meant to be... Ellen Somerville and Will McIntyre met by accident and under unusual circumstances. Getting sprayed by a skunk in a parking lot wouldn’t normall...
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The Three Little Pigs
Mark LeskyClassic fairy tales, legends and folk stories in short version without violence retold with lovely illustrations in simple language. Perfect for reading aloud to small chi...
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Dark Psychology and Manipulation
Margaret MorrisonTHE MENTAL MANIPULATOR WILL NO LONGER KEEP SECRETS FROM YOU! Are you fed up with the wool being pulled over your eyes?Are you prepared to stand up to those who believe they can man...
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The Scarlet Letter
Nathaniel HawthorneAn Apple Books Classic edition. Hester Prynne lives in infamy. After committing adultery and bearing a child with a man whose name she refuses to divulge, the heroine of Nathaniel ...
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A Green Kind of Witch
Sierra CrossCinderella crossed with Mean Girls.   That's what Hazel's daily existence feels like. Born to a family of elegant yet shallow Beige Witches, seventeen y...
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You Are Kind
Michael GordonA little kindness goes a long way. How can you help encourage your kids to be kind from a young age? Teach kindness to preschoolers Acts of kindness can be fun, easy, and make a ...
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Noxious
Lexy TimmsStop setting yourself on fire to keep someone else warm. Brady and Levi have been together since high school, since before he became famous and started thinking only about himself....
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The Count of Monte Cristo
Alexandre DumasAn Apple Books Classic edition. Alexandre Dumas’ classic paints a portrait of Edmond Dantès, a dark and calculating man who is willing to wait years to exact his perfect plan for r...
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Christmas in Sweetbriar Cove
Melody GraceCelebrate the holidays in Sweetbriar Cove with this festive romance collection, containing two sizzling smalltown holiday stories perfect for fans of Tessa Bailey, Sophie Kinsella...
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Whiskey Girl
Melissa BelleThey'll do anything for each other…except commit. Logan Wild isn’t just the hottest broncriding cowboy in Texas. He’s also my best friendwith benefits. And that’s all we’ll ev...
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Little Women
Louisa May AlcottAn Apple Books Classic edition. Meet the Marches! Louisa May Alcott’s classic introduces us to four unforgettable sisters: beautiful Meg, tomboyish Jo, delicate Beth, and Amy, the ...
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All Fired Up
Kathryn ShayCaptain Jarek Zenko, a war veteran and firefighter, meets Lacey Roth at a bar one night. They don’t share their real identities, even when they retreat to a hotel. When they meet t...
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Think and Grow Rich
Greg Habstritt & Napoleon HillThink and Grow Rich is one of the most popular success book of alltime, having sold more than 60 million copies since it was first published more than 70...
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A Christmas Carol
Charles DickensAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s Christmas Eve in Victorian England. While some families don’t know where their next meal will come from, Ebenezer Scrooge sits in his large hom...
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My Paper Heart
Magan VernonOne piece of paper can change everything After my parents received the letter I failed out of college, they didn't ask questions. They just sent me to work for my great aunt i...
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His Own Heaven
Jennie KewWinner of the 2021 Passionate Plume Award for BDSM Romance Finalist in the 2021 Stiletto Contest for Contemporary Romance He taught her to trust, she taught him to love. Lucy Bar...
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Alpha
Sybil BartelBillionaire. Mercenary. Navy SEAL. The Teams trained me to be a killer. War taught me to be ruthless. Then an illfated mission proved I was human. Combat wounded, cut loose by the ...
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Tempting the King
Jessa YorkAn escaped Mafia Queen, hiding from her past. A Mafia King who wants to claim her… Giselle They think I'm lostbut I know better. I can never be found. The path I've creat...
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Dracula
Bram StokerAn Apple Books Classic edition. Few characters have seized readers’ imaginations quite like Count Dracula of Transylvania, the hero of Bram Stoker’s classic. The 1897 novel put vam...
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Law of Attraction
Jordan HollisHow to Finally Overcome the Hurdles of Manifesting Proven, effective and enjoyable ways to help you manifest faster… Right now, think of something that makes you successful. If you...
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The Cupcake Cottage
Jean OramNHL player Maverick Blades could fall in love with anyone... But he had to fall for a woman who falls under the Bro Code as untouchablehis best friend’s beautiful ex, DaisyMae Ray....
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Saltwater Cove
Amelia AddlerSecond chances...and the secrets that sabotage them. At 48 years old, Margie Clifton never expected to be starting her life all over again. But when her brother gifts her a propert...
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School of Potential
W.J. MayUSA Today Bestselling author, W.J. May brings you a continuation of the international bestselling series, The Chronicles of Kerrigan! Come back and enjoy the famous characters, or ...
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Nothing to Hide
Scarlett FinnPrize of a lifetime: travel the world with a celebrity billionaire. Come to LA with us, Roxie… It will be so much fun! We have tickets for a latenight talk show! What could possibl...
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Finding Cinderella
Colleen Hoover#1 New York Times bestselling author of It Starts with Us and It Ends With Us writes a free novella about the search for happily ever after. A chance encounter in the dark leads ei...
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Peace on Earth
Maia RossCrime never takes a holiday. Why should Irma? Irma Abercrombie is an energetic retiree with a shadowy past, a mean right hook, and a profound love of Christmas. Surrounded by seaso...
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The Target
Lexy TimmsWhen you seek revenge be sure to dig two graves… Revenge was the only thing I had going for me. It kept me awake at night and drove me into desperate situations in dive bars across...
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Teach Me
Cassandra DeanFrom awardwinning author Cassandra Dean comes a tale where lessons of pleasure between a curious, sunshine widow and a dissolute, grumpy earl leads to passion and allconsuming love...
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Masters of Restraint
Ines JohnsonMy new boss is good at giving orders. But his latest demand is NSFW. Especially when his two business partners want in on our deal. My new boss My boss’s boss Their investor &#...
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Salvation
Meghan O'FlynnIf you like mouthy detectives, serial killers, and suspenseful mysteries that don't quit, this chilling and actionpacked hardboiled detective series has you covered! Try this ...
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Pride and Prejudice
Jane AustenAn Apple Books Classic edition. Jane Austen’s beloved classic opens with this witty and very memorable line: “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possessio...
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The Art of War
Sun TzuAn Apple Books Classic edition. It’s believed that Sun Tzu wrote this Chinese military primer during the 5th century BChundreds of years before the Bible. The book’s 13 chapters ex...
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Hot Off the Press
Lexy Timms"This is what really happened… reported by a free press, for a free people…" Wes Shaw leads a secret double life. As the secret owner of a billion dollar newspap...
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Good Guy
Kate MeaderHe's a Special Forces veteran making his pro hockey debut. She's a dogged sports reporter determined to get a scoop. She's also his best friend's widow . . . Fa...
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Caught Up with the Captain
Kait NolanCan a retired naval commander and the love he left behind overcome a 34yearold secret to find their way to a second chance? Captain Mitchell Greyson is a man who believes in duty. ...
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Silenced Girls
Roger Stelljes“ Wow wow wow!  Grips you in a choke hold and  does not let go … Oozes suspense and  bonechilling twists and turns .  Astonishing … One of those...
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Silver Santa
Lacey SilksTrapped together on Christmas, their unintended onenight stand becomes a lifechanging encounter amidst the snow. Laura Young's professional role as a security guard at the Sil...
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Never Enough
Lexy TimmsBe good enough never is... Anthony Accardi is a man on a mission: make his father's watch company a success while bringing in millions of dollars. To do that, he needs an assi...
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The Honeymoon Homicide
J. R. Mathis & Susan MathisEnjoy this SmallTown Murder Mystery Featuring A Unique Sleuthing Couple I'm Father Tom Greer, a Catholic Priest in a smalltown parish who never expected this . . . When I came...
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The Wonderful Wizard of Oz
L. Frank BaumAn Apple Books Classic edition. You’ve seen the iconic 1939 movie, but do you know about the talking field mice, the Winkies, and the Witch of the North that appear in the original...
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Just Me
Lexy TimmsWe all need somewhere where we feel safe… After leaving her abusive husband, Katherine Marshall is out on her own for the first time. She's hopped from city to city to avoid t...
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Bewitching a Highlander
Roma CordonDefying all for the love of a bewitching lass. Breena MacRae, a healer from Skye with a touch of witchery in her blood, embarks on a dangerous search for her missing father. She ar...
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Coffee Girl
Sophie SinclairMackenzie "Kiki" Forbes finds herself in a pickle. Either become her snarky sister's nanny, or move halfway across the country to work as assistanttothestylist of a ...
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Awaken Me
Jenna JacobHe was more than a ghost haunting my dreams…he was real. By day, I’m Julianna Garrett …a prim, proper accountant. By night, I’m tormented by dreams of an alpha, ambereyed Adonis wh...
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A Bookshop to Die For
M.P. BlackDitching her fiancé at the altar, Alice Hartford bolts to her childhood hometown to reconnect with the last, happy remnant of her past: her mom's old bookstore. But the bookst...