Motoharu Sano  | |||||
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| Also known as | Lion, Moto, Tōryō (棟梁) | ||||
| Born | March 13, 1956 Taitō, Tokyo, Japan  | ||||
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| Years active | 1980–present | ||||
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| Website | http://www.moto.co.jp | ||||
| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 佐野 元春 | ||||
| Hiragana | さの もとはる | ||||
| Katakana | サノ モトハル | ||||
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Motoharu Sano (佐野 元春, born March 13, 1956, in Taitō, Tokyo), is a Japanese singer-songwriter and musician. A graduate of Rikkyo University, Sano is a frontman with a history of performing in several bands which feature music both in Japanese and occasionally, English, playing songs that often have a rock and roll sound to them. In 2007, Rolling Stone Japan ranked his album Someday number 11 on a list of the greatest Japanese rock albums of all time.[1]
Additionally, he has spent a year in New York City, even doing a radio show there.
Sano took part in a special two-day concert commemorating Takashi Matsumoto's 45th anniversary as a lyricist held at the Tokyo International Forum on August 21–22, 2015.[2] He performed lead vocals on "Haikara Hakuchi" with the surviving members of Happy End, Matsumoto, Haruomi Hosono and Shigeru Suzuki, in place of the deceased Eiichi Ohtaki.[3]
Discography
Albums
- Back to the Street (1980)
 - HeartBeat (1981)
 - Someday (1982)
 - No Damage (1983)
 - Visitors (1984)
 - Cafe Bohemia (1986)
 - Heartland (1988)
 - NapoleonFish Day (1989)
 - Time Out! (1990)
 - Slow Songs (1991)
 - Sweet16 (1992)
 - No Damage2 (1992)
 - The Circle (1993)
 - The Golden Ring (1994)
 - Fruits (1996)
 - The Barn (1997)
 - Stones and Eggs (1999)
 - The 20th Anniversary Edition (2000)
 - Club Mix Collection (2000)
 - Grass (2000)
 - Spoken Words Collected Poems 1985–2000 (2000)
 - In Motion 2001 (2002)
 - Someday Collector's Edition (2002)
 - The Legend Early Days of Motoharu Sano (2003)
 - Visitors 20th Anniversary Edition (2004)
 - In Motion 2003 (2004)
 - The Sun (2004)
- The Sun Studio Edition (2005)
 - The Sun Live at NHK Hall (2005)
 
 - The Singles (2006)
 - The Essential Cafe Bohemia (2006)
 - Coyote (2007)
 - Beatitude (2007)
 - NapoleonFish Day Special Edition (2008)
 - Very Best of Motoharu Sano (2010)
 - SideWalk Talk (2011)
 - Zooey (2013)
 - Tokyo Chic (2014)
 - Visitors Deluxe Edition (2014)
 - Blood Moon (2015)
 - Maniju (2017)
 
References
- ↑ "Finally! "The 100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time" Listed". Exclaim!. November 1, 2007. Archived from the original on December 31, 2012. Retrieved January 2, 2020.
 - ↑ 作詞家・松本隆45周年記念2days公演決定 元はっぴいえんど3人ら豪華歌手集結. Oricon (in Japanese). May 1, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
 - ↑ 松本隆、45周年公演で細野晴臣&鈴木茂に感謝「素晴らしいメンバー」. Oricon (in Japanese). August 2, 2015. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
 
External links
- Official website (in Japanese)
 - Official myspace page (in Japanese)