Nearly
5 years after their last
studio album, the Backstreet
Boys mark a resolute return
with their 5th disc June
14 on Jive Records. The
12-song "Never Gone"
reflects the adult ideals
of a quintet that broke
music and concert sales
records the world over,
moving more than 73 million
albums (30 million in America)
since their introduction
in 1997.
Certainly, pop culture
remains on a first-name
basis with the five singers
that comprise BSB: Nick
Carter, Howie Dorough, Brian
Littrell, AJ McLean and
Kevin Richardson. When they
scored in the U.S. with
the debut platinum single
"Quit Playing Games
(With My Heart)"-followed
by such radio staples as
"Everybody (Backstreet's
Back)," "All I
Have To Give" and the
No. 1 (in 18 nations) "I
Want It That Way"-
the Backstreet Boys grew
to personify an unprecedented
and celebrated youth-driven
era in popular music.
As teen idols, they sold
more than 13 million copies
each of their first two
U.S. albums, "Backstreet
Boys" (1997) and the
No. 1 (in 25 nations) "Millennium"
(1999). "Black and
Blue" followed (2000),
moving 8 million copies,
and then "Hits: Chapter
One" (2001), another
platinum triumph. Along
the way, the group logged12
top 40 hits, 8 of those
reaching the top 10.
Today, nearly a decade
since their initial success-and
following a healthy 3-year
breather-each group member
admits that they needed
time to catch up, grow up
and gain some perspective
on the whirlwind of fame.
"We had been touring
pretty much non-stop for
7 or 8 years and we were
almost living in a bubble;
we had lost perspective
on a lot of things,"
Kevin says. "You need
to take care of yourself
and rest and be able to
reflect. This time off gave
us a chance to recharge
our batteries and step away
and see what has happened
in our lives, what we have
accomplished and to be thankful
for the opportunities that
we have had and thankful
for each other."
Brian became the first
Backstreet Father during
the break, Kevin took on
Broadway and London’s West
End with a starring role
in "Chicago,"
Nick put out a solo project
and Howie continued his
efforts with the Dorough
Lupus Foundation after the
loss of his oldest sister
Caroline in 1998. AJ McLean
worked through personal
demons with a well-publicized
stint in rehab.
"I've been sober for
2 ½ years," AJ says.
"I appreciate my family
more, these guys more and
myself more. Life is great.
It's worth living again."
"Never Gone,"
which BSB spent more than
a year recording, accomplishes
the formidable task of moving
beyond pop idol notoriety
to reflect what is happening
in the group's lives and
in the world. The project
features intensely personal,
upfront vocals, coupled
with production that spares
drum loops and synthesizers
for a mature, live, more
rootsy vibe. Don't worry-the
pandemic hooks and velvet
harmonies are still there,
behind lyrics that tell
universal stories of hope,
loss, redemption and love.
First single "Incomplete,"
released in April, proves
Backstreet Boys' enduring
relevance; in its first
week out, the ballad was
most-added at radio. By
the end of May, the song
was climbing the top 10
on Billboard's mainstream
top 40 chart as well as
the top 5 of Top Digital
Downloads. The accompanying
video clip reached No. 1
on AOL and garnered rotation
on MTV, VH1 and MuchMusic.
Title track, "Never
Gone," is among the
most moving songs on the
album. Written by BSB's
Kevin Richardson with Gary
Baker and Steve Diamond,
the harmony-drenched ballad
pays tribute to the death
of Kevin's father. It is
produced by Mark Taylor.
"That song has really
been important to each one
of us," AJ says. "In
addition to the loss of
Kevin’s father, I lost both
of my grandparents, Nick
his grandmother and Howie
his sister. We've all experienced
great losses, so this song
really touches us personally."
Additional name-brand collaborators
that assisted in launching
the Backstreet Boys' Chapter
2 include Billy Mann on
"Poster Girl",
and Switchfoot's John Fields
on "Lose It All".
Five for Fighting's John
Ondrasik contributes "Weird
World," a song that
examines in life in post
9/11 society.
The guys also worked with
John Shanks, the 2005 Grammy
Award Producer of the Year
("Safest Place To Hide");
and the venerable Max Martin,
who helped catapult to fame
Ace of Base, Britney Spears-and
BSB, with "Quit Playing
Games (With My Heart),"
"As Long As You Love
Me" and "Everybody
(Backstreet's Back)."
Martin collaborated on
4 of the 12 songs on "Never
Gone," including "Climbing
the Walls," a tour
de force of conflicting
emotion, coupled with a
melody so immediately gratifying,
you'll be singing along
by the second chorus; and
the melancholy love song
"I Still," which
features skyscraping vocals
and a magical mesh of harmonies
that should be a patented
trademark for the Backstreet
Boys. Martin also worked
with BSB on "Just Want
You To Know" and "Siberia."
Being in the studio together
for the first time in years,
it took the group some time
to integrate their different
musical influences. But
according to AJ, "Once
we got with Max, everything
shifted and we started going
more toward contemporary,
alternative pop with a little
R&B. We found exactly
what we are supposed to
be doing for this album.
It's more organic, with
more live instruments, and
a nice departure for us.
If we kept on doing what
we used to do-with the way
music sounds today-people
wouldn't care anymore. We
had to step ahead of ourselves."
Brian adds, "It was
essential for us to grow.
If we're not getting better
and challenging ourselves,
what are we here for?"
Certainly, the average
life span of most acts in
popular culture is far less
than a decade, but the Backstreet
Boys are proving that growing
with your audience-while
staying true to a track
record of timeless melodies-cultivates
the rare gift of endurance.
Indeed, Backstreet's back...
again.
"We're excited and
we hope our fans are, too,"
Kevin says. "We're
looking forward to a happy,
prosperous 2005."