Best Fiction

For the list of books recommended by the American Library Association, see Best Fiction for Young Adults.
Best Fiction
Standard edition and digital cover
Greatest hits album by
Namie Amuro
ReleasedJuly 30, 2008
Recorded2002–2008
Genre
LabelAvex Trax
Producer
Namie Amuro chronology
Play
(2007) 		Best Fiction
(2008) 		Past<Future
(2009)
Singles from Best Fiction
  1. "60s 70s 80s"
    Released: March 12, 2008

Best Fiction is the third greatest hits album by Japanese recording artist Namie Amuro, released on July 30, 2008, through Avex Trax. The release follows her two previous greatest hits albums, 181920 (1998) and Love Enhanced Single Collection (2002). It contains fifteen of her singles recorded throughout the 2000s, and is bookended by two new tracks: "Do Me More" and "Sexy Girl". A triple A-side single, 60s 70s 80s, was released four months prior to the compilation.

Best Fiction was commended by contemporary critics who noted the progression of Amuro's image from earlier years, while some were critical towards some songs for their lack of power. The album debuted at number one on a Japanese Oricon Albums Chart, her eighth number one on that chart and lasted six weeks at the top. Best Fiction was certified million by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of one million units, her first million certification since 181920. To promote Best Fiction, Amuro went on her Namie Amuro Best Fiction tour 2008–2009 concert tour in October 2008.

Background and development

In 2007, Amuro saw a career revitalization with the release of her eighth studio album, Play, which contained several multi-platinum singles and became her first chart topper in seven years. Her loss in popularity in the early 2000s was attributed by some to media attention regarding her personal life, and by others, the rise of new artists like Hikaru Utada and Ayumi Hamasaki.[1][2]

Best Fiction follows Amuro's artistic trajectory from pop music to contemporary R&B, which was spurred by the dissolution of her partnership with producer Tetsuya Komuro in 2002. In gaining creative control of her career, Amuro began working with a variety of collaborators, including producers Dallas Austin, Michico, T.Kura, and Nao'ymt; the latter three receive the most credits on the album.

In early 2008, Amuro confirmed that she would release a new single for a new greatest hits album. Amuro released the extended play 60s 70s 80s (March 2008) which contained the tracks "New Look", "Rock Steady", and "What a Feeling". She revealed that all her future singles would be promoted through her endorsement deals, with the first single being promoted through hair company Vidal Sassoon.[3] Amuro revealed that two new songs would be featured on the album, these being "Sexy Girl" and "Do Me More". "Sexy Girl" was the theme song for NHK drama Otome no Punch that aired on June 19, and the other called "Do Me More" was the campaign song for Vidal Sassoon.[4][5][6]

Best Fiction is Amuro's third greatest hits album, featuring all her tracks from "Wishing on the Same Star" (2002) up until 60s 70s 80s.[7] The album was released in two formats; a stand-alone CD that features a close up of Amuro's face, and a CD and DVD package that has Amuro leaning on top of a car hood. The album artworks were revealed on Oricons blog website, both heavily airbrushed.[7][8] The title of the compilation was revealed on the website for NHK series "Otome no Punch" on its FAQ.[9] Amuro commented that the image was chosen because it reflected the album's title.[10]

Singles

60s 70s 80s was served as the first single and was formatted as an extended play. The EP contained three songs: "New Look", "Rock Steady", and "What a Feeling". The single debuted at the number-two position on the oricon weekly charts with over 114,000 copies sold.[11] In the second week the single gained the number-one spot for that week, making it her first number-one single after 9 years and 3 months since "I Have Never Seen".[12] According to Oricon, "60s 70s 80s" sold nearly 300,000 copies.[13] 60s 70s 80s was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of 250,000 units, her highest selling EP and her highest selling single since her single "Something 'bout the Kiss" (1999).[14][15]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[16]

Best Fiction received favorable reviews from music critics. Adam Greenberg from Allmusic selected the album as one of Amuro's best works alongside her studio albums Play (2007) and Break the Rules (2002).[17] Reviewing the album, he stated "Rather than taking on the basic manufactured pop sound common to the J-pop world, Amuro spends more of her energy in a dance format, using pounding beats and sexualized lyrics to create a different sound from the light and innocent pop saturating the market, acting as something of a Japanese Madonna in a sense. With Best Fiction, her third greatest-hits compilation, her output from 2002 to 2008 is covered in full detail." He commented that, while "There's some standard fare along the way as well -- items that are sure to hit the charts but leave less lasting impressions", he concluded "There's a lot of range covered here, and all of it performed quite well. Not bad stamina for a onetime idol singer."[16]

Best Fiction won the award for "the best album of the year" at the 50th Japan Record Awards.[18]

Commercial performance

Best Fiction sold 681,000 copies in its first week and debuted at the summit on the Oricon Albums Chart.[19] Within its third week, Best Fiction outsold a million copies, and Amuro became the only artist to record a million-selling album in each of their teens, 20s and 30s.[20][21] The record was later extended to her 40s with the release of her third greatest hits album, Finally, in 2017.[22] Best Fiction eventually spent six consecutive weeks at the number-one position, becoming the first album to do so in more than 14 years since the Dreams Come True's 1993 album Magic.[23]

The album tripled the sales of her last release, Play, and became the second best-selling album of 2008.[24][25] In addition, it became the second best selling album in digital format by a Japanese artist on the iTunes Japan year-end chart.[26] Best Fiction is ranked as her sixth highest-selling album on the Oricon, based on cumulative physical sales, spending a total of 94 weeks on the chart and recording 1,590,000 total copies.[27][28]

Promotion

NHK invited her perform at the 59th NHK Kōhaku Uta Gassen, but Amuro declined.[29] On October 25, 2008, Amuro also started a tour called Namie Amuro Best Fiction tour 2008–2009 at the Makuhari Messe.[30][31] The tour broke attendance records for Japanese solo female artists, playing to 500,000 fans across Japan, China and Taiwan.[32][33] In an appearance with Sweet magazine, Amuro confirmed the home video release of the tour would instead be of her overseas concerts at the Taipei Arena in Taiwan in June. Her management site formally announced on July 21 the release of "Namie Amuro Best Fiction Tour 2008-2009" on DVD and Blu-ray on September 9, 2009.[34]

Track listing

CD

# Title Songwriters Time
1. "Do Me More" Nao'ymt 5:16
2. "Wishing on the Same Star" Diane Warren, kenko-p 4:55
3. "Shine More" Paul Taylor, Scott Nickoley, Sandra Pires, H.U.B 3:38
4. "Put 'Em Up" Dallas Austin, Jasper Cameron, Michico 4:04
5. "So Crazy" Full Force, Jennifer "JJ" Johnson, Michico, Tiger 4:33
6. "Alarm" Jusme, Monk 4:10
7. "All for You" Natsumi Watanabe, Ryoki Matsumoto 5:58
8. "Girl Talk" T.Kura, Michico 4:22
9. "Want Me, Want Me" Michico, Sugi-V 3:11
10. "White Light" Nao'ymt 5:17
11. "Can't Sleep, Can't Eat, I'm Sick" T.Kura, Michico 3:48
12. "Baby Don't Cry" Nao'ymt 5:20
13. "Funky Town" T.Kura, Michico, L.L. Brothers 3:49
14. "New Look" Michico, T.Kura, Brian Holland, Eddie Holland 3:58
15. "Rock Steady" Michico, Muro, Aretha Franklin 3:29
16. "What a Feeling" Michico, Shinichi Osawa, Keith Forsey, Irene Cara, Giorgio Moroder 3:48
17. "Sexy Girl" Ryosuke Imai, Usk Trak 4:39

DVD: Music Videos

# Title Director Time
1. "Do Me More" Yusuke Tanaka
2. "Wishing on the Same Star" Masashi Muto
3. "Shine More" Ugichin
4. "Put 'Em Up" Ugichin
5. "So Crazy" Masashi Muto
6. "Alarm" Ugichin
7. "All for You" Masashi Muto
8. "Girl Talk" Ugichin
9. "Want Me, Want Me" Masashi Muto
10. "White Light" Masashi Muto
11. "Can't Sleep, Can't Eat, I'm Sick" Masashi Muto
12. "Baby Don't Cry" Masashi Muto
13. "Funk Town" Hidekazu Sato
14. "New Look" Yuichi Kodama
15. "Rock Steady" Yusuke Tanaka
16. "What a Feeling" Hidekazu Sato
17. "Sexy Girl" Kensuke Kawamura[35]

Credits

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Japan (RIAJ)[37] Million 1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. ^ Lewis, Leo (2005). "Comeback queen of J pop". The Times. ISSN 0140-0460. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  2. ^ Brasor, Philip (August 4, 2002). "Can you celebrate? Not yet, Amuro- chan". The Japan Times Online. ISSN 0447-5763. Retrieved December 23, 2017.
  3. ^ 安室奈美恵、夢のコラボで新曲初披露 (in Japanese). oricon. January 18, 2010. Retrieved October 30, 2010.
  4. ^ "Namie Amuro releases new masterpiece collection". natalie. May 27, 2008. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved October 30, 2008.
  5. ^ "安室奈美恵:BEST ALBUM発売決定!!".
  6. ^ "Namie Amuro Official Site" (in Japanese). Archived from the original on February 1, 2008.
  7. ^ a b Best Fiction (Album liner notes). Namie Amuro. July 30, 2008.{cite AV media notes}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. ^ Best Fiction (Album and DVD). Namie Amuro. July 30, 2008.{cite AV media notes}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. ^ "Maiden of punch" (in Japanese). NHK. Archived from the original on August 31, 2008.
  10. ^ 次の安室ちゃんは作り物？“フィクション”なアルバムジャケット (in Japanese). Barks. Retrieved July 1, 2008.
  11. ^ "Oricon Weekly Single Charts for the fourth week of March 2008" (in Japanese). oricon. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
  12. ^ 安室９年３カ月ぶりにオリコン１位獲得 (in Japanese). Sports Daily Online. March 25, 2008. Archived from the original on April 9, 2008. Retrieved August 7, 2008.
  13. ^ "2008 Yearly Singles Rankings" (in Japanese). Oricon. December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 11, 2008.
  14. ^ "GOLD ALBUM 他認定作品 1999年9月度" [Gold Albums, and other certified works. September 1999 Edition] (PDF). The Record (Bulletin) (in Japanese). Chūō, Tokyo: Recording Industry Association of Japan. 480: 8. November 10, 1999. Archived from the original (PDF) on January 18, 2014. Retrieved January 18, 2014.
  15. ^ ゴールド等認定作品一覧 2008年3月 [Works Receiving Certifications List (Gold, etc) (March 2008)] (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. April 10, 2008. Retrieved December 31, 2013.
  16. ^ a b "Namie Amuro – Best Fiction". Allmusic. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
  17. ^ "Namie Amuro – Biography, Awards, Credits, Songs, Reviews". Allmusic. Retrieved July 2, 2015.
  18. ^ 安室奈美恵がレコ大最優秀アルバム賞 (in Japanese). Sports Hochi. December 1, 2008. Archived from the original on December 4, 2008. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  19. ^ 安室ベスト盤が今年最高の初動売上68.1万枚でアルバム通算7作目の首位 (in Japanese). oricon. August 5, 2008. Retrieved December 4, 2008.
  20. ^ 安室、史上初３年代ミリオンアルバム達成！ (in Japanese). sanspo. August 19, 2008. Archived from the original on August 22, 2008. Retrieved August 19, 2008.
  21. ^ 安室しか出来ない！史上初３年代ミリオン！ (in Japanese). Sports Hochi. August 19, 2008. Archived from the original on August 21, 2008. Retrieved August 19, 2008.
  22. ^ "安室"４世代ミリオン"の金字塔 新アルバム注文１００万枚、新曲で小室と再タッグ" (in Japanese). Yahoo! Music Japan. November 8, 2017. Retrieved November 8, 2017.
  23. ^ 安室奈美恵の勢い衰えず！ドリカム以来14年8か月ぶりの6週連続首位 (in Japanese). oricon. September 9, 2008. Retrieved September 9, 2008.
  24. ^ "Special article: Oricon ranking of the year 2007" (in Japanese). Oricon. December 18, 2007. Archived from the original on January 24, 2008. Retrieved May 8, 2009.
  25. ^ a b "2008 Yearly Album Rankings" (in Japanese). Oricon. December 11, 2008. Retrieved December 11, 2008.
  26. ^ "2008年、「iTunes Store」で最もダウンロードされた楽曲が発表" (in Japanese). Barks. December 3, 2008. Retrieved December 3, 2008.
  27. ^ 安室奈美恵のアルバム売上TOP20作品 [Namie Amuro's Top 20 Album Sales]. Oricon News (in Japanese). Retrieved January 4, 2024.
  28. ^ "オリコンランキング情報サービス「you大樹」" [Oricon Ranking Information Service 'You Big Tree']. Oricon (in Japanese). Retrieved May 21, 2014.
  29. ^ ドリカム辞退...フラれたＮＨＫ (in Japanese). Daily Sports. November 26, 2008. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved December 15, 2008.
  30. ^ 安室奈美恵:ファンクラブ先行受付ご案内の発送に関して (in Japanese). Vision Factory. August 19, 2008. Retrieved October 28, 2008.
  31. ^ 安室奈美恵、またもや新記録を達成 (in Japanese). livedoor. August 5, 2008. Retrieved October 28, 2008.
  32. ^ 安室奈美恵 中国・上海で２万人ライブ開催 (in Japanese). Sports Nippon. March 23, 2009. Archived from the original on March 25, 2009. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  33. ^ "安室奈美恵、50万人動員ライヴのDVDスペシャルサイトを開設" (in Japanese). Barks. August 31, 2009. Retrieved September 16, 2009.
  34. ^ "Best Fiction Tour DVD & Blu-ray Announcement".
  35. ^ "Spaceshower TV".
  36. ^ "Best Fiction 安室奈美恵" (in Japanese). Oricon. July 30, 2008. Retrieved December 11, 2023.
  37. ^ "Japanese album certifications – Namie Amuro – Best Fiction" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
Preceded by
Ketsunopolis 4
(Ketsumeishi)
 Japan Record Award for the Best Album
2008 		Succeeded by