Just Ballade

Just Ballade (stylized as JUST BALLADE) is the ninth studio album by Japanese singer Misia. It was released on December 16, 2009 by Ariola Japan, marking Misia's first album release under the label.[1] The album yielded seven singles, "Yes Forever" and "Yakusoku no Tsubasa", released in 2008, the digital exclusive "Sukoshi Zutsu Taisetsu ni", the double A-side single "Ginga" / "Itsumademo", "Aitakute Ima", and lastly "Hoshi no Yō ni...", released on the same day as the album. Just Ballade was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan.[2]

Just Ballade
Studio album by Misia
Released	December 16, 2009 (2009-12-16)
Genre	R&B pop soul
Length	1:01:55
Label	Ariola Japan
Producer	Misia Hiroto Tanigawa (exec.)
Misia chronology
The Best DJ Remixes (2008) Just Ballade (2009) Soul Quest (2011)
Singles from Just Ballade
"Yes Forever" Released: April 30, 2008 "Yakusoku no Tsubasa" Released: May 28, 2008 "Sukoshi Zutsu Taisetsu ni" Released: February 4, 2009 "Ginga" Released: June 10, 2009 "Itsumademo" Released: June 10, 2009 "Aitakute Ima" Released: November 18, 2009 "Hoshi no Yō ni..." Released: December 16, 2009

Background and release

Fresh off The Tour of Misia Discotheque Asia, where the musical emphasis was on lively, uptempo dance music, Misia wanted a change of pace with the next album. She was inspired by the positive feedback she received from concert audiences in relation to the ballad section of her Discotheque Asia setlist, and set out to make an album that could recreate the same "well-filled quiet" that garnered such a favorable reception.[3] As the title of the album suggests, Just Ballade consists predominantly of ballads, however not all tracks on the record are slow-tempo songs. In an interview with Excite, Misia explained the varied tempo and sound of the album by stating that, while people might have a general preconception of what a ballad will sound like, it's not as clear cut. She remarks that, to her, what makes a song a ballad isn't the piano or the orchestra, but whether the song can move her to tears.[4]

Just Ballade is Misia's first studio album in close two years, since Eighth World.[5] It was issued in Blu-spec CD format and released in three different versions, a standard CD-only edition, and two limited editions. Limited edition "A" comes packaged in a CD sleeve with a different cover art and includes a DVD featuring six music videos, while limited edition "B" is packaged in a pop-up case, also with an alternate cover art, housed in a clear sleeve and comes with a 28-page color booklet.[6]

In addition to the singles,[7] several album tracks were also used in promotional campaigns leading up to their release. "Chiheisen no Mukōgawa e" served as ending theme to the TX news program World Business Satellite,[8] "Boku no Kimochi" as ending theme to the AX variety show Himitsu no Kenmin Show,[9] and "Work It Out" as ending theme to the AX news program Jōhō Live Miyaneya.[9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[10]

CDJournal critics remarked that the listener should not take the title of the album too literally, as the album includes many styles of ballads.[11] They noted that the sound on the record is "perfected to the last detail".[11] Misia was praised for her powerful vocal performance, with critics describing it as "transportive".[11] Adam Greenberg of AllMusic, pronounced Misia's voice to be the "star of the show", but also noted that she can sometimes go overboard and overpower the sensibility of the ballad.[10] Writing for Bounce, Aokinoko described Just Ballade as a "love song collection" basking in the "essence of many different styles."[12] Aokinoko praised the record as "stimulating", singled out "Aitakute Ima", "Ginga" and "Call Me Love Me" as the standout tracks, and called it the "perfect lovers' soundtrack".[1]

Commercial performance

Just Ballade entered the daily Oricon Albums Chart at number 3, selling 18,000 copies on its first day. [13] It slid to number 4 the following day, where it stayed for the rest of the week. The album debuted at number 4 on the weekly Oricon Albums Chart, selling 57,000 copies.[14] It also debuted at number 4 on the Billboard Japan Top Albums Sales chart.[15] The album fell to number 8 on its second week on the Oricon chart, logging sales of 33,000 copies.[16] Just Ballade charted for twenty-one non-consecutive weeks on the Oricon Albums Chart, selling a reported total of 143,000 copies during its run.[17]

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Arranger(s)	Length
1.	"Sukoshi Zutsu Taisetsu ni"	Misia Sinkiroh	Tohru Shigemi	5:08
2.	"Aitakute Ima"	Misia Jun Sasaki	Sasaki	5:58
3.	"Work It Out"	Misia Hinata JP	JP	2:48
4.	"Chiheisen no Mukōgawa e" (地平線の向こう側へ, "Beyond the Horizon")	Misia Sinkiroh	Sinkiroh	4:53
5.	"Call Me Love Me"	Misia Sinkiroh	Gomi	4:08
6.	"So Beautiful"	Misia Toshiaki Matsumoto	Shigemi	4:58
7.	"Kuchibiru to Kuchibiru" (唇と唇, "Lip on Lip")	Hinata Sinkiroh	Shigemi	4:53
8.	"Baobab no Ki no Shita de" (バオバヴの木の下で, Baobavu no Ki no Shita de, "Under the Baobab Tree")	Misia	Shigemi	3:36
9.	"Yakusoku no Tsubasa"	Misia Sasaki	Sasaki	5:19
10.	"Boku no Kimochi" (僕のきもち, "How I Feel")	Misia Hinata Sinkiroh	Gomi	4:16
11.	"Yes Forever" (Piano Version)	Misia Sinkiroh	Shigemi	4:55
12.	"Hoshi no Yō ni..."	Misia Sinkiroh	Shigemi	4:58
13.	"Ginga"	Misia Shusui Fredrik Hult Carl Utbult Tebey	Utbult Hult	4:36
14.	"Itsumademo"	Misia Sinkiroh	Sinkiroh	1:29
Total length:				1:01:55

Limited edition "A" DVD

No.	Title	Director(s)	Length
1.	"Baobab no Ki no Shita de" (Music Clip)	Mitsuo Shindō
2.	"Hoshi no Yō ni..." (Music Clip)	Ukon Kamimura
3.	"Aitakute Ima" (Music Clip)	Noriyuki Tanaka
4.	"Ginga" (Music Clip)	Kamimura
5.	"Yes Forever" (Music Clip)	Kamimura
6.	"Yakusoku no Tsubasa" (Music Clip)	Tomoo Noda

Credits and personnel

Personnel[18]

Lead vocals, production – Misia Backing vocals – Misia, Bennie Diggs, George Hodnett, JP, Fonzi Thornton, Vaneese Thomas, Crystal McGee, Marcia Sapp Salter Songwriting – Misia, Sinkiroh, Jun Sasaki, Hinata, JP, Toshiaki Matsumoto, Shusui, Carl Utbult, Fredrik Hult, Tebey Backing vocal arrangement – JP, Sinkiroh, Jun Sasaki, Misia, Gomi, Bennie Diggs Arrangement – Tohru Shigemi, Jun Sasaki, JP, Sinkiroh, Gomi, Carl Utbult, Fredrik Hult Orchestral arrangement – Gen Ittetsu, Dan Miyakawa Strings arrangement – Tohru Shigemi, Gen Ittetsu Piano – Tohru Shigemi Guitar – Hirokazu Ogura, Robin Macatangay, Masato Ishinari, Kazumi Watanabe, Fredrik Hult, Shuhei Yamaguchi Sitar – Masato Ishinari Bass – Takeshi Taneda, Richie Goods Acoustic bass – Richie Goods Acoustic guitar – Shuhei Yamaguchi Electric guitar – Takashi Yamaguchi Electric keyboard – Gomi, Henry Hey, Tohru Shigemi, Carl Utbult Keyboard programming – Carl Utbult Drums – Robert Di Pietro, Harvey Mason Drum programming – Gomi

Percussion – Samuel Torres Kalimba – Hiromi Kondo Djembe – Masaya Oonishi Strings – Gen Ittetsu Strings, Crusher Kimura Strings Cello – Masami Horisawa Harp – Tomoyuki Asakawa English horn – Hiroshi Shibayama French horn – Hiroyuki Minami, Hiroyuki Nakajima, Otohiko Fujita, Yasushi Katsumata, Kenshow Hagiwara Flugelhorn – Tony Kadleck Flute – Hideyo Takakuwa, Tasuo Yamamoto Fagotto – Toshiki Takei Harmonica – Russell Graham All other instruments – Jun Sasaki, Sinkiroh, Tohru Shigemi, Masayuki Kumahara, Gomi Engineering – Yoshikazu Nakabayashi, Dave Darlington, Ken Nishi, Masahiro Kawaguchi, Sui, Masashi Hashimoto, Akira Kusayanagi, Sebastien Plassais, Andrew Hey Mixing – Yoshikazu Nakabayashi, Dave Darlington, Masashi Hashimoto, Shojiro Watanabe, Masashi Matsubayashi, David Thoener Mastering – Herb Powers Jr.

Charts

Daily and weekly charts Chart (2009) Peak position Japan Daily Albums (Oricon)[13] 3 Japan Weekly Albums (Oricon)[14] 4 Japan Weekly Albums (SoundScan) (CD/DVD)[19] 8 Japan Weekly Albums (SoundScan) (CD)[19] 16 Japan Top Albums Sales (Billboard)[15] 4 Taiwan Weekly J-pop Albums (Five Music)[20] 2 Taiwan Weekly J-pop Albums (G-Music)[21] 5 Taiwan Weekly International Albums (G-Music)[22] 8

Monthly and year-end charts Chart (2009–10) Peak position Japan Monthly Albums (Oricon)[17] 8 Japan Yearly Albums (Oricon)[23] 58 Japan Top Albums Sales Year End (Billboard)[24] 47 Japan Yearly Albums (Mora)[25] 32

Certification and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[2]	Gold	143,000[17]
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label	Ref.
Japan	December 16, 2009	Blu-spec CD/DVD CD digital download	Ariola Japan	[26][27][28][29]
South Korea	December 18, 2009	CD	Sony Music Korea	[30]
Taiwan		CD/DVD	Sony Music Taiwan	[31]
Hong Kong	December 29, 2009		Sony Music Hong Kong	[32]
Various	July 15, 2016	Digital download	Ariola Japan	[33]

References

1. "MISIA、極上のバラード・アルバム『JUST BALLADE』とニュー・シングル"星のように…"を12月に同時リリース!　オーケストラを迎えてのアリーナ公演も開催決定". Tower Records. September 28, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
2. ゴールドディスク認定 [Gold Disc Certifications] (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. December 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2018. Select 2009年12月 on the drop-down menu
3. "インタビュー『MISIA』エキサイトミュージック（音楽）(2/2)". Excite. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
4. "インタビュー『MISIA』エキサイトミュージック（音楽）(1/2)". Excite. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
5. "MISIAがバラードたっぷりのニュー・アルバム『Just Ballade』をリリース". Bounce. July 27, 2009. Archived from the original on October 4, 2009. Retrieved November 23, 2009.
6. "MISIAが約２年ぶりとなる待望の９ｔｈオリジナル・アルバム『JUST BALLADE』をリリース！". Music Lounge. December 14, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
7. "MISIA、世界の子供の命を語るトークセッション". Barks. December 17, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
8. "MISIA、2年振りのフルアルバム！". HMV Group. September 30, 2009. Retrieved November 23, 2009.
9. "MISIA、9週連続着うた配信で最新アルバムの世界観をチラリ". Natalie. October 16, 2009. Retrieved November 23, 2009.
10. Greenberg, Adam. "Just Ballade - Misia". AllMusic. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
11. "MISIA / JUST BALLADE". CDJournal. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
12. "MISIA/JUST BALLADE＜通常盤＞". Tower Records. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
13. "安室奈美恵、初動40万枚も狙える快調スタート!". Oricon. December 17, 2009. Archived from the original on May 26, 2010. Retrieved February 6, 2009.
14. "オリコン アルバム 2009.12.28". Retrieved March 11, 2018.
15. "Billboard Japan Top Albums Sales". Billboard. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
16. "オリコン アルバム 2010.1.4". Retrieved March 11, 2018.
17. "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Taiju']. Oricon. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
18. Just Ballade (Booklet). Misia. Chiyoda, Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan: Ariola Japan. 2009. 4988017674932.CS1 maint: others (link)
19. "週刊 CDソフト TOP20". Nielsen SoundScan. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
20. "Five Music-5大唱片 - 第52 週 統計時間：2009/12/18 - 2009/12/24". Five Music. Retrieved February 6, 2010.
21. "G-Music 風雲榜 (東洋榜)". G-Music. Retrieved February 6, 2010. On the drop down Select 第51週
22. "G-Music 風雲榜 (外語榜)". G-Music. Retrieved February 6, 2010. On the drop down Select 第51週
23. "オリコン アルバム 2010年TOP100". Retrieved March 11, 2018.
24. "Billboard Japan Top Albums Sales Year End". Billboard. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
25. "2010年 年間トップ100 ダウンロード・ランキング". Mora. Archived from the original on December 21, 2010. Retrieved March 12, 2018.
26. "JUST BALLADE(通常盤)･MISIA". Sony Music Entertainment. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
27. "JUST BALLADE(Blu-spec CD)【初回生産限定盤A】･MISIA". Sony Music Entertainment. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
28. "JUST BALLADE【初回生産限定盤B】･MISIA". Sony Music Entertainment. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
29. "MISIA「JUST BALLADE」をApple Musicで". JP: iTunes Store. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
30. "YESASIA: Misia - Just Ballade (Korea Version) CD". YesAsia. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
31. "星空情歌 - 台灣索尼音樂娛樂股份有限公司". Sony Music Taiwan. Retrieved March 11, 2018.
32. "JUST BALLADE (CD+DVD)". Sony Music Hong Kong. Retrieved February 7, 2010.
33. "米希亞在 Apple Music 上的《星空情歌》專輯". HK: iTunes Store. Retrieved March 11, 2018.

External links

• Just Ballade Special Site