Zero - Shishido Ryo

This is the cover of Shishido Ryo's first solo album, Zero which was released on 8 Feb. Comparing this to the last full album release which happens to be from Kawamura Takashi, the guest lineup for this album is considerably lesser since there's only Shishido's doubles partner, Ootori and Seigaku's Golden Pair of Ooishi Shuichirou and Kikumaru Eiji. Taka-san had at least 6 for his album though. Anyway, I feel that the guest lineup is like an enhancement to the existing package and should not take the limelight away from the lead character. Otherwise, you might end up with something which appears to be marketed based on the guest lineup instead of the character who is actually releasing that single/album. The most recent example would be the Seigaku Trio single released on 1 Jan where the number of guests was appalling considering that this is not a full-length album. It's almost as if nobody will buy the CD if they do not have a strong guest lineup.