Yosui was a model child from an upper middle class family from the Fukuoka prefecture. During his adolescence, he was instantly sensible to the birth of
The Beatles in 1963. He managed, with great difficulty, to redirect his studies toward a so-called musical option. He failed his exam in spite of his parents' pressure on the school administration in 1968. So it was in 1969, after finally passing his exam, that he had the freedom to start a career as a singer and songwriter.
In June of 1969, he participated in his first radio show under an Anglo-Saxon nickname,
André Mandore. He then sang the song
Kandore Mandore, which was a huge success with his audience. Two months later, on September 1st, the CBS Sony studio hurriedly signed him on for a single of the same name.
This event made quite an impact and was part of the legend of one of the greatest Japanese musicians of the twentieth century. However, due to his admiration of foreign artists, fans observed his strange imitation of another successful performer,
Michel Polnareff, who was also popular in Japan at the start of the decade.
Yosui was to become, in a way, an exact copy of the French star.
In 1972,
Inoue started to write his own story by becoming a legend. On July 1st, he released his first album,
kasa ga nai or
Rapture, in English. This first opus set
Inoue's style for the course of his career.
The first two singles from his first album sold roughly one million copies and his first tour was the cause of much excitement among his fans. He was then accompanied by the bands
the Mops and
Happy end.
He got married in 1974 and gave tribute to his wife by featuring her on the cover of his fourth album at the end of that year.
Another important year in this decade of success for the artist was 1975. With the contribution of some of his close relations,
Izumiya Takuo,
Komuro Shigeru and
Yoshida Yousui, either artists or otherwise, he created the Nakayashi Group. This group then created the record label FOR LIFE MUSIC ENTERTAINMENT (FLME). FLME is actually one of the greatest Japanese major labels and promotes, among others, another heavyweight artist,
Nagabuchi Tsuyoshi.
He and his wife divorced in 1976 and, even though his fifth album sold well enough, this separation marked a decline for the artist. In 1977 he hit rock bottom when he was arrested for possession of marijuana. Moreover, his close collaborators and friends were also arrested for drug trafficking, which involved around sixty people. This was to be a real scandal in Japan and they were sentenced to eights months in jail and two years probation. As soon as he was out of jail, he released a new album, the greatest of his career.
On August 30, 1978, he married his second wife,
Seri Ishikawa, and they had their first child, a son, three months later.
The artist then focused on regaining his lost public. It was with the release of the album
9. 5 karatto that he regained his status as a major artist in the Japanese musical world, selling more than one million copies.
Strengthened by his success, he put his musical career on hold and devoted himself to the composing of theme songs for dramas for fifteen years, starting in 1988. In 1994, he worked with
Tamio Okuda (ex
Unicorn).
In 1996, he made another big splash and surprised all of his fans by helping two young idols release their first album,
amiyumi, and single with the help of his friend
Tamio Okuda. These two young girls were
Onuki Ami and
Yoshimura Yumi from the band
PUFFY, who were to become huge stars after the release of their first album.
In 1999, in commemoration of thirty years of the song
Kandore Mandore, the song that started his career,
Inoue released
GOLDEN BEST. The release was a monster success.
After a pretty wild period at the turn of the century,
Inoue Yosui really slowed down his production. In 2006 he released a new album,
LOVE COMPLEX, with his friend
Tamio Okuda, which led to a successful acoustic duo tour in 2007.
