Budokan! Friday, April 28th, 1978

In America, despite glowing accolades from the music press, Cheap Trick's first three albums failed to make a dent on the charts. Halfway around the world, the story was altogether different. Enamored by their catchy tunes and cartoon image, Japan embraced Cheap Trick with Beatles-like fervor. Cheap Trick's first Japanese tour would inexorably transform their career. 1978's Cheap Trick at Budokan live album, bolstered by the hit singles "I Want You to Want Me" and "Ain't That a Shame," catapulted the Rockford, Illinois quartet to international superstardom. Capturing the audience hysteria and combustible musical muscle that earmarked Cheap Trick's historic Japanese concerts, Budokan! documents the band's complete April 28th, 1978 performance on DVD and CD, allowing fans to experience the group at the peak of their powers. While Cheap Trick at Budokan cherry picked selected highlights from multiple performances, the Budokan! CD, by contrast, delivers the complete nineteen song set (four songs that are not on the DVD), from the sledge-hammer opener "Hello There" to the thrilling finish of "Clock Strikes Ten." The DVD presents historic footage of the 1978 Budokan concert, aired only once on Japanese TV - the only existing visual record of the band in concert during a defining moment in their career. Bonus features include a new intimate conversation with all the members of Cheap Trick about their recollection of the historic events in Japan in 1978, plus two songs taped during Cheap Trick's 30th Anniversary concert at Budokan in April 2008.