While Justin Bieber came up empty, Takahiro Matsumoto of the J-rock band B’z won big at the 53rd annual Grammy Awards in Los Angeles last night (Feb. 13).

The famed 49-year-old guitarist, commonly known as Tak Matsumoto, netted his very first Grammy gold (Best Pop Instrumental Album) for Take Your Pick, a collaboration with the equally legendary American guitarist Larry Carlton.

Carlton, whose licks Matsumoto admitted to copying as a teenager, has been recording since the 1960s and has played on over 100 gold and platinum records, including discs by Steely Dan, Michael Jackson and Billy Joel. Take Your Pick, which contains original compositions by the duo supported by American session players, was released last June and goosed by a two-month Japanese tour by the axe slingers. 

"I had never told anyone until now, but the Grammys was one of my dreams and a big goal," Matsumoto said yesterday after winning the award. This was Carlton’s fourth win and 19th nomination overall.

The win is likely to boost Matsumoto’s—and J-pop’s—growing profile in the West. As one half of the rock duo B’z with vocalist Koshi Inaba, the group has since 1988 sold more than 80 million units, which in domestic terms is roughly two-thirds of the Japanese population. B’z also has released a staggering 43 consecutive number one singles and 23 number one albums, in addition to having their handprints and signatures immortalized on Hollywood’s RockWalk in 2007.

In addition to Matsumoto, other Japanese winners at last night’s Grammys included classical pianist Mitsuko Uchida (Best Instrumental Soloist Performance with Orchestra); jazz pianist Hiromi Uehara as a member of the Stanley Clarke Band (Best Contemporary Jazz Album); koto harp performer Yukiko Matsuyama with the Paul Winter Consort (Best New Age Album); and Japanese American music director for the Orchestre Symphonique de Montreal Kent Nagano (Best Opera Recording).

Visit B’z online at http://bz-vermillion.com, Larry Carlton at www.larrycarlton.com, and view Grammy winners, photos and videos at www.grammy.com.

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