Bow Wow (band)
| Company type | Band |
|---|---|
| Industry | Music |
| Founded | 1975 |
| Founder | Kyoji Yamamoto, Mitsuhiro Saito, Kenji Sano, Toshihiro Niimi |
| Headquarters | Japan |
| Products | Studio albums, live albums, singles |
Bow Wow is a Japanese rock ensemble established in 1975, originally composed of guitarists and vocalists Kyoji Yamamoto and Mitsuhiro Saito, bassist Kenji Sano, and drummer Toshihiro Niimi. Recognized as pioneers among Japanese metal groups, they produced nine studio albums before Saito exited in 1983. Transitioning toward a more commercial sound, the band welcomed lead singer Genki Hitomi and keyboardist Rei Atsumi, adopting the new name Vow Wow in 1984. After issuing three studio records, they moved their base to England in 1986. In 1987, Sano departed and was succeeded by original Whitesnake bassist Neil Murray. Following two albums with Murray, who later joined Black Sabbath, American session bassist Mark Gould performed on Vow Wow's final album prior to their split in 1990.
Yamamoto revived Bow Wow in 1995 with fresh members; by 1998, original members Saito and Niimi had rejoined, forming a trio. Niimi left the group in 2015, and since then the band has operated under the name Bow Wow G2, emphasizing the two guitarists as the core members.
According to Tomoaki Hokari of OK Music, Bow Wow was among the earliest Japanese bands capable of rivaling Western hard rock acts. Domestically, their highest-selling album is V, which reached number 12 on the Oricon chart. Internationally, Helter Skelter attained number 75 on the UK Albums Chart.
1975–1984: Bow Wow
The formation of Bow Wow occurred in 1975 under the guidance of record producer Yoshimi Ueno, who intended to create a band with an idol image akin to The Monkees or Bay City Rollers. Vocalist/guitarist Mitsuhiro Saito and drummer Toshihiro Niimi were recruited from Do T. Doll, while vocalist/guitarist Kyoji Yamamoto and bassist Kenji Sano, both discovered at Yamaha Music School, completed the lineup. Although initially envisioned as an idol group, with 19-year-old guitar prodigy Yamamoto taking lead vocals in English, the band shifted direction toward genuine hard rock. Niimi remarked that without Yamamoto’s influence, they would not have become a hard rock outfit.
Soon after signing with Victor Entertainment, Bow Wow invested in a truck that also served as a stage platform, enhancing their media presence. Their debut self-titled album was released in 1976. At first primarily identifying as a guitarist, Yamamoto was encouraged to sing in English during recording sessions. In 1977, they supported Aerosmith and Kiss during their Japanese tours and released two additional albums: Signal Fire and Charge.
Later critics and fans considered some subsequent albums inconsistent and lacking in production quality. Yamamoto referred to the period from 1978 to 1980—which included the albums Guarantee, Glorious Road, and Telephone—as the band's "pop era." Saito took lead vocals on the first two records while Yamamoto returned for Telephone, blending pop elements with rock influences. The band switched to Sounds Marketing System for Telephone and collaborated with producer Touru Yazawa.
In 1981, Bow Wow reverted to hard rock with the release of Hard Dog. After signing with VAP in 1982, they put out Asian Volcano and Warning from Stardust, performing at notable events like the Montreux Jazz Festival and Reading Festival. Their UK tour alongside Hanoi Rocks took place in 1983, culminating with their final concert at Nakano Sun Plaza on November 21—the same day Saito left to join ARB.
1984–1990: Vow Wow
At the beginning of 1984, the trio of original members expanded their lineup by adding vocalist Genki Hitomi and keyboardist Rei Atsumi. This change steered their style towards a more mainstream sound, leading to a rebranding as Vow Wow. Their first album under this name, Beat of Metal Motion, was released in 1984. The following year, they signed with Toshiba EMI and produced their second album, Cyclone. In 1986, the band moved their base to England. After issuing their third album, III, bassist Kenji Sano returned to Japan in 1987 and subsequently left the music industry. Efforts to find a Japanese replacement proved unsuccessful until Neil Murray, formerly of Whitesnake, joined them following a jam session. Although Murray never officially became a permanent member, he contributed to their fourth album V (1987), which was recorded in Ibiza with producer Kit Woolven and co-producer John Wetton, who penned the lyrics for the successful single "Don't Leave Me Now." Additionally, the group created jingles for Tommy Vance’s British radio show, the Friday Rock Show.
After releasing their fifth album Vibe in 1988, highlighted by the hard rock track "Rock Me Now," Vow Wow embarked on a tour across Japan. Despite their commercial achievements, Hitomi preferred to remain in Japan to focus on family life. Their last studio album, Helter Skelter (1989), produced by Tony Taverner, was largely a reissue of Vibe. Meanwhile, Atsumi joined RC Succession for touring purposes, and Murray departed to become part of Black Sabbath, influenced by drummer Cozy Powell.
Producers Nick Griffiths and Bob Ezrin extended an invitation to Vow Wow for another recording session, prompting the band to regroup in Los Angeles with American session bassist Mark Gould for their sixth and final album, Mountain Top (1990). The group dissolved shortly after their concert at the Nippon Budokan on 28 May 1990. Yamamoto cited frustration over failing to secure an American record contract and the declining popularity of hard rock as key factors behind the band's breakup. Following this, Hitomi transitioned into teaching English; Yamamoto established the power trio Wild Flag in 1991; Niimi went on to form Lance of Thrill and The Slut Banks alongside other prominent musicians.
1995–present: Bow Wow revival and Vow Wow reunion concerts
In May 1995, Yamamoto revived Bow Wow with Wild Flag colleagues Shotaro and Eiji Mitsuzono handling bass and drums respectively, while adding vocalist Tetsuya Horie and guitarist Hiroshi Yaegashi. They released the EP Bow Wow #0 followed by the album Bow Wow #1. In 1996, Eiji was replaced by Niimi. Subsequently, they issued Bow Wow #2 Led by the Sun before entering a brief hiatus in 1997. The following year saw original member Saito rejoin Yamamoto and Niimi as a trio, releasing the album Back. The band maintained an annual release schedule with albums including Ancient Dreams (1999), Beyond (2000), Another Place (2001), and What's Going On? (2002). In August 2003, they appeared at South Korea’s O.K.! Crazy!! World Rock Festival. Their most recent studio work, Era, came out in 2005.
Vocalist Genki Hitomi and keyboardist Rei Atsumi reunited with Yamamoto and Niimi for Vow Wow reunion performances in December 2009 and again for two sold-out shows in December 2010. Bow Wow released the single "King or Queen" in 2014. Niimi exited the band in 2015; since then, Bow Wow has performed intermittently as Bow Wow G2, with guitarists Yamamoto and Saito as official members. Bow Wow G2 commemorated the band's 40th anniversary with a concert in August 2016 that was later made available on home video. After a three-year break following their 2018 show, this duo celebrated their 45th anniversary on 26 September 2021 at Ebisu Garden Hall by replicating the setlist from their 1978 live album Super Live.
On June 1, 2023, Yamamoto announced that Niimi had passed away from cancer on May 27. Niimi had been diagnosed with stage IV metastatic cancer and was hospitalized on May 6; he died at age 66.
Yamamoto, Hitomi, and Atsumi are set to reunite as Vow Wow for two concerts at Club Citta on June 29-30, 2024. These shows will honor the 40th anniversary of their debut album as well as commemorate Niimi’s memory. During the second night of performances, Hitomi revealed his return to professional music; Yamamoto expressed interest in holding annual Vow Wow reunion events. Bow Wow performed at Sweden’s Time to Rock Festival on July 7, 2024. Additionally, Vow Wow is scheduled for two reunion concerts at Tokyo Dome City Hall on January 8-9, 2025.
Legacy
Bow Wow stood out as pioneers in the realm of Japanese metal, proving that local artists could compete on par with Western hard rock performers. In 2007, Daisuke Kawasaki from Rolling Stone Japan placed their album Warning from Stardust at number 23 in his list of the "100 Greatest Japanese Rock Albums of All Time." The instrumental piece "Signal Fire" was recognized by Young Guitar Magazine in 2019 as the 28th greatest guitar instrumental. Metallica's Lars Ulrich has expressed admiration for Bow Wow, having performed covers of their songs before Metallica's own debut. Guitarist Hide from X Japan held Yamamoto and Saito in high regard, even emulating Saito’s style with a Mockingbird-style guitar. Additionally, Daita, guitarist for Siam Shade, has acknowledged Yamamoto as a significant influence. Rhythm & Drums Magazine highlighted Niimi’s contributions to drumming techniques, notably his innovative use of rubber mats beneath drum kits. Kouichi of Laputa also paid tribute by covering Bow Wow’s songs during his high school years.
Current members
- – lead vocals (1975–1983, 1998–present), guitar (1975–1983, 1995–1997, 1998–present)
- – guitar, backing and lead vocals (1975–1983, 1998–present)
- – bass (support member, 2016–present)
- – drums (support member, 2016–present)
Former members
- Kenji Sano – bass, backing and occasional lead vocals (1975–1983)
- Tetsuya Horie – lead vocals (1995–1997)
- Hiroshi Yaegashi – guitar, backing vocals (1995–1997)
- Shotaro Mitsuzono – bass, backing vocals (1995–1997)
- Eiji Mitsuzono – drums (1995–1996)
- Toshihiro Niimi – drums (1975–1983, 1996–1997, 1998–2015; deceased 2023)
- Daisuke Kitsuwa – bass (support member, 1998–2015)
Final line-up
- Genki Hitomi – lead vocals (1984–1990, 2009, 2010, 2024, 2025)
- Kyoji Yamamoto – guitar, backing vocals (1984–1990, 2009, 2010, 2024, 2025)
- Rei Atsumi – keyboards, synthesizers, keytar, piano, backing vocals (1984–1990, 2009, 2010, 2024, 2025)
- Toshimi Nagai – bass (support member, 2024, 2025)
- Atsuo Okamoto – drums (support member, 2024, 2025)
Former members
- Kenji Sano – bass, backing vocals (1984–1987)
- Neil Murray – bass, backing vocals (1987–1990)
- Mark Gould – bass, backing vocals (1990)
- Toshihiro Niimi – drums (1984–1990, 2009, 2010; deceased 2023)
Timeline
<timeline> ImageSize = width:900 height:auto barincrement:18 PlotArea = left:110 bottom:90 top:10 right:10 Alignbars = justify DateFormat = dd/mm/yyyy Period = from:01/01/1975 till:01/01/2020 TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy Legend = orientation:vertical position:bottom columns:4 ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:4 start:1975 ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:1 start:1975
Colors =
id:band value:yellow legend:Band id:vocals value:red legend:Vocals id:bvocals value:pink legend:Backing_vocals id:guitar value:green legend:Guitars id:key value:purple legend:Keyboards id:bass value:blue legend:Bass id:drums value:orange legend:Drums id:lines value:black legend:Studio_album id:bars value:gray(0.95)
BackgroundColors = bars:bars
LineData =
at:20/12/1976 color:black layer:back at:25/07/1977 color:black layer:back at:01/12/1977 color:black layer:back at:20/12/1978 color:black layer:back at:25/02/1980 color:black layer:back at:21/09/1980 color:black layer:back at:21/04/1981 color:black layer:back at:21/04/1982 color:black layer:back at:21/09/1982 color:black layer:back
at:21/09/1984 color:black layer:back at:20/07/1985 color:black layer:back at:22/01/1986 color:black layer:back at:02/09/1987 color:black layer:back at:06/11/1988 color:black layer:back at:25/04/1990 color:black layer:back
at:21/10/1995 color:black layer:back at:21/07/1996 color:black layer:back at:25/05/1998 color:black layer:back at:18/07/1999 color:black layer:back at:20/12/2000 color:black layer:back at:07/07/2001 color:black layer:back at:15/02/2002 color:black layer:back at:11/11/2005 color:black layer:back
BarData =
bar:BW text:"Bow Wow" bar:VW text:"Vow Wow" bar:Yamamoto text:"Kyoji Yamamoto" bar:Hitomi text:"Genki Hitomi" bar:Horie text:"Tetsuya Horie" bar:Saito text:"Mitsuhiro Saito" bar:Yegashi text:"Hiroshi Yaegashi" bar:Atsumi text:"Rei Atsumi" bar:Sano text:"Kenji Sano" bar:Murray text:"Neil Murray" bar:Gould text:"Mark Gould" bar:Shotaro text:"Shotaro Mitsuzono" bar:NiiMi text:"Toshihiro Niimi" bar:Eiji text:"Eiji Mitsuzono"
PlotData =
width:11 textcolor:black align:left anchor:from shift:(10,-4) bar:Bw from:start till:end-01-01-1984 color:band bar:vW from:end-01-01-1984 till:end color:band bar:Yamamoto from:start till:end color:guitar bar:Yamamoto from:start till:end color:bvocals width=3 bar:Yamamoto from:start till:end color:vocals bar:Saito from:start till:end color:guitar bar:Saito from:start till:end color:vocals width=3 bar:Sano from:start till-mid-1987 color:bass bar:Sano from:start till-mid-1987 color:bvocals width=3 bar:Murray from-mid-1987 till-start-1990 color:bass bar:Murray from-mid-1987 till-start-1990 color:bvocals width=3 bar:Gould from-start-1990 till-end-1990 color:bass bar:Gould from-start-1990 till-end-1990 color:bvocals width=3 bar:Horie from-mid-1995 till-start-1997 color:vocals bar:Yegashi from-mid-1995 till-start-1997 color:guitar bar:Yegashi from-mid-1995 till-start-1997 color:bvocals width=3 bar:Eiji from-mid-1995 till-start-1996 color=drums bar:Eiji from-mid-1995 till-start-1996 color=bvocals width=3 bar:NiiMi from:start till-end color=drums bar:Atsumi from:start till-end color=key bar:Atsumi from:start till-end color=bvocals width=3
</timeline>
Albums
| Year | Title | Category |
|---|---|---|
| 1976 | Bow Wow | Studio |
| 1977 | Signal Fire | |
| Charge | ||
| 1978 | Super Live | Live |
| Guarantee | Studio | |
| 1980 | Glorious Road | |
| Telephone | ||
| Template:Nihongo4 (soundtrack for TV show X-Bomber) | Soundtrack | |
| 1981 | Hard Dog | Studio |
| 1982 | Asian Volcano | |
| Warning from Stardust | ||
| 1983 | Holy Expedition | Live |
| 1995 | Bow Wow #0 | EP |
| Bow Wow #1 | Studio | |
| 1996 | Bow Wow #2 Led by the Sun | |
| 1998 | Still on Fire | EP |
| Back | Studio | |
| 1999 | Ancient Dreams | Studio |
| Live Explosion 1999 | Live | |
| 2000 | Beyond | Studio |
| 2001 | Another Place | |
| 2002 | What's Going On? | |
| "Super Live 2004" | "Live" | |
| "Era" | "Studio" |
Singles
- "Volume On" (1976)
- "Still" (1977)
- "Sabishii Yuugi" (1978)
- "Hoshii no wa Omae Dake" (1979)
- "Wasurekaketeta Love Song" (1980)
- "Rainy Train" (1980)
- "Keep on Rockin'" (1980)
- "Soldier in the Space" (1980)
- "Gonna be Alright" (1981)
- "Take Me Away" (1982)
- "Forever" (1983)
- "You're Mine" (1983)
- "One Last Time" (2002)
- "King or Queen" (2014)
Compilations
- The Bow Wow (1979)
- Locus 1976-1983 (1986)
- The Bow Wow II Decennium (2008)
- XXXV (2011)
Videos
- The Live Empire (2003)
- Live Explosion 1999 (2003)
- 2003.3.22 Live (2003)
- Rock to the Future 2002 Bow Wow vs XYZ→A (2003)
- Super Live 2004 (2005)
- Super Live 2005 (2006)
- Super Live 2006 (2007)
- Super Live 2007 (2008)
- Super Live 2009 (2010)
- Super Live 2011 (2012)
- Bow Wow G2 Live in Tokyo (2017)
Albums
rowspan="3"|1986 rowspan="2"|1987| Year | Title | Japan Chart Position | UK Chart Position | Category | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1984 | "Beat of Metal Motion" | "Studio" | |||
| 1985 | "Cyclone" | "300" (reissued 2006) | "Studio" | ||
| "III" | "275" (reissued 2006) | "Studio" | |||
| "Live" | "Live" | ||||
| "Hard Rock Night/Vow Wow Live" | "Live" | ||||
| "V" | "Studio" | ||||
| "Revive" | "Remix EP" | ||||
| "1988" | "Vibe" ("Helter Skelter" in UK) | "19" | "75" | "Studio" | |
| "1990" | "Mountain Top" | "16" | "Studio" | ||
| "2019" | "Majestic Live 1989" | "171" | "Live" | ||
| "2020" | "Live At Reading Festival 1987" | "252" | "Live" |
Singles
rowspan="3"|1988 rowspan="2"|1989| Year | Title | Japan Chart Position | UK Chart Position | Album Association |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| "1984" | "Beat of Metal Motion" | 'Beat of Metal Motion' | ||
| "1985" | "U.S.A." | 'Cyclone' | ||
| "1987" | "Don't Leave Me Now" | '83' | 'V' | |
| "Cry No More" | ||||
| "Don't Tell Me Lies" | ||||
| "Rock Me Now" | 'Vibe' / 'Helter Skelter' | |||
| "Helter Skelter" | ||||
| "I Feel the Power" | ||||
| "1990" | "Tell Me" | '23' | 'Mountain Top' |
Compilations
| Year | Title | JP |
|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Shock Waves | |
| 1988 | Vow Wow | |
| 1990 | Legacy | 60 |
| 1992 | Best Now | |
| 1996 | Twin Best | |
| 2006 | Super Best: Rock Me Forever | 286 |
| 2007 | The Vox (8CD+DVD Box Set) |
Videos
All VHS editions were re-released on DVD as of June 14, 2006.
| Year | Title | JP |
|---|---|---|
| 1985 | Visions | 116 |
| 1986 | Live | 75 |
| 1989 | Live in the U.K. | 80 |
| 1990 | "Japan Live 1990 at Budokan" | 88 |
| 2017 | "ヴァウの総て-All About Vow 第一幕～渡英前" | |
| 2021 | "アックスの奇蹟 -Veritas! One-night Wonder" |