Boyzone "Gave It All Away"

You might want to grab a tissue before you watch Boyzone's new video, "Gave It All Away." It was recorded before Stephen Gately's death, but the band used the video as an opportunity to make a tribute to him. It's heartfelt and appears quite genuine. The song, which features a gentle reggae beat, was written by Mika. I can't embed the video, but just click on the link above to see it. The song is the first single from a new Boyzone album, as yet untitled, due out in March.

Stephen Gately Dead

I'm back from my trip, but unfortunately greeted with this bad news. Stephen Gately of Boyzone was found dead today while on vacation in Majorca, Spain. He was 33.

Gately came out of the closet in the summer of 1999, becoming the first openly gay member of a major boyband. He and his partner Andrew Cowles entered into a civil union in 2006.

Boyzone was a major success, scoring 17 top 5 hits in the UK, including 6 #1s. Most recently, the band reunited for a reunion tour and greatest hits set last year, hitting #5 with new single "Love You Anyway." In 2000, Gately tried his hand at a solo career, hitting #3 in the UK with his first single "New Beginning."

My favorite Gately song was from Boyzone's third album Where We Belong. "You Flew Away," although credited to the band, features lead vocals from Gately, who also wrote it. It's rather apt way to remember him at the moment.

Boyzone - Back Again...No Matter What

Boyzone are back...on tour and with this new greatest hits package. The Irish group was the UK's biggest boyband from 1995 to 1999, filling the void between Take That and Westlife, both of whom were arguably more popular. While Take That had a trendier sound, Boyzone favored a more mature approach, despite a name that sounds like a supply store for gay clubbers.

Boyzone's 1999 greatest hits, By Request, was pretty comprehensive, so with this new set you get the three new singles: "Love You Anyway," the upbeat current single, "Better," a remake of Tom Baxter's recent hit, and "Can't Stop Thinking About You," which sounds a lot like Sugababes' "About You Now" and "Push the Button." Plus there's the group's final single before they split up (or took a break, since I'm not sure they ever officially broke) "Everyday I Love You." There's also a live version of Ronan Keating's "Life Is a Rollercoaster." Missing are two of the singles from their first album, "Key to My Life" and "So Good," although the better tracks from that work--"Love Me for a Reason" and "Coming Home Now" are included.

The group scored five top 5 hits from that first album, but their first #1s would come from their second album, the better of which is the soaring love ballad "Words." In 1998 they released their third album, which includes yet more #1 hits, such as "All that I Need" and the band's biggest hit ever "No Matter What," which was their only single to be popular in the US.

Still, as I said above, these are were all included on By Request, so if you've got that, just cherry pick the new tracks that interest you.