The band name, SOOO BAAD REVUE, was coined by a Black dancer—the wife of our member, Kyoichi Kita, whom he had brought back from America. It’s not just a standard English phrase. It means it’s So Bad! Which translates to, undoubtedly and supremely, So Good! It means it's incredibly cool. I had once read a book on Black culture about the "Soul Dialectic"—a culture where a "bad" word is used to express the ultimate "good." This concept resonated perfectly with the unique word culture of Osaka. And through her idea, it sparked into life as our band name. The baddest and the coolest. That is exactly what "SOUL" is.

 

My musical journey began at the age of 9. Amidst my personal musical history that had been flowing since I was 15, even before the formation of SOOO BAAD REVUE, this song—always played as the opening track at our live shows—stands as my own "public soul declaration."

The moment the groove, born from pounding on a motel desk, clashed with guitarist June Yamagishi’s wah pedal—sounding just like a subway whistle leaving the station—the SOUL SUBWAY started rolling, carrying brothers and sisters across all boundaries of race and nationality. A Happy People All Together ♫ Now, 50 years later, I want you to experience that exact same fever that sold out its entire first pressing on the very day of its debut.