25 Facts About Tak Matsumoto

Takahiro Matsumoto is a Japanese musician, songwriter and record producer.

Tak Matsumoto is best known as the guitarist and main composer of the rock duo B'z, the best-selling music act in their native Japan by certifications.

Tak Matsumoto has a successful solo career where, in addition to winning several Japan Gold Disc Awards, he won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Album for Take Your Pick, which he made in collaboration with Larry Carlton.

Tak Matsumoto was inspired to pick up a guitar at the age of 13 when he heard Eric Clapton's playing on The Beatles song "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" for the first time.

Tak Matsumoto has said over the years that he has many favorite artists, from whom he has drawn much inspiration, from hard rock, particularly Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, Aerosmith and Van Halen, and Michael Schenker.

Tak Matsumoto has cited a love of classical music, which was the catalyst for the incorporation of strings into many B'z compositions.

Tak Matsumoto has worked with Tokyo Ska Paradise Orchestra for many years, and their work often appears on many of the earlier B'z albums.

Tak Matsumoto attended jazz school, but when he started working as a session musician and supporting tours like TM Network, his musicianship was cemented.

Tak Matsumoto continued his session work throughout the early and mid-1980s with acts such as Mari Hamada until deciding to jump on the emerging solo instrumental trend catching on in Japan at that time.

Tak Matsumoto recorded the solo album Thousand Wave and worked with future globe headliner Tetsuya Komuro as a touring guitarist for Komuro's band TM Network.

Tak Matsumoto always drew his tastes from blues, classical, and jazz, while Inaba preferred rock music.

Tak Matsumoto has ongoing friendships with musicians such as Barry Sparks, Marty Friedman, Billy Sheehan, Eddie Van Halen, Eric Martin, Jack Blades, Joe Perry, Pat Torpey, Steven Tyler, and Steve Vai, with whom Tak Matsumoto and Inaba recorded the song "Asian Sky" from the 1999 album, The Ultra Zone.

In 2002, Tak Matsumoto contributed music to two songs on Misia's fourth album, Kiss in the Sky; she invited him to be a part of the album after discovering his solo work.

Tak Matsumoto played guitar, produced the album, and wrote songs while Eric and Jack wrote lyrics.

Tak Matsumoto said he had this project idea for a long time.

In 2010, after the tour "Ain't No Magic" with B'z, Tak Matsumoto worked with guitarist Larry Carlton.

Together they embarked on a nationwide tour to support the album, with Tak Matsumoto saying that he "felt a little nervous playing 'Room 335' with Mr Larry Carlton every night".

In 2016, Tak Matsumoto released a three-track EP called Enigma, followed in 2017 by a collaboration album between himself and Hawaiian artist Daniel Ho, Electric Island, Acoustic Sea.

Tak Matsumoto won the award a third time for 2020's Bluesman.

Tak Matsumoto ranked first in a 2011 poll conducted by the Japanese search engine goo on who the Japanese people thought was the best guitarist to represent Japan.

Tak Matsumoto was given his own Signature Model Les Paul from Gibson in 1999.

Tak Matsumoto was added to the Gibson signature artist club as the first guitarist from Asia.

Tak Matsumoto currently holds the record with 7 different signature models produced, including "Model Double Cutaway".

Tak Matsumoto has amassed a substantial guitar collection, including the following:.

Tak Matsumoto is an avid collector of older guitar amplifiers, as well as an accomplished bass player.