Flying
Without Brian… -
December 2006
By
Aoife Kelly
Westlife
reveal why they are in a World of Their Own
In
the past decade the clean-shaven and cherubic Westlife lads have become stalwart
veterans of the pop world and one of
With
14 British number ones, they’ve had the most number one singles (behind only
Elvis and The Beatles), they’ve sold out 95 Irish
concerts and have just released their eighth studio album prior to a whopping
eight-date stint at The Point in April.
The
chart-topping sensation’s longevity has surprised everyone – not least
themselves – and they’re now negotiating uncharted territory the likes of which
other bands, never mind boybands, can only dream of.
Even
their idols The Backstreet Boys, for whom they opened at The Point in 1998,
didn’t last as long, splitting after seven years due to dwindling sales. Take
That and their Irish forerunners Boyzone managed just
six years each.
Westlife’s
latest offering, The Love Album, is a collection of 11 power ballads. It was the
last record on their current deal, but they’ve just signed a new contract which
will see them through another five albums.
“We
never really put a time frame on it even though everyone, Louis [Walsh]
included, probably thought, well, we might get a greatest hits album out and
that would be it,” says Nicky.
“When
we got the Greatest Hits 1 it was 2003 and it was like, ‘This is where Boyzone finished up, This is where Take That
finished up.’ We felt we had so much more to give and the record label thought
so as well and we just went back into studio and kept
recording.”
The
only time they really wondered whether the game was up was in 2004 when Brian
McFadden announced he was leaving Westlife to spend more time with his
family.
“That
was a big kick in the arse to be honest, because we didn’t see it coming and the
media went on his side and everyone was saying it was like when Robbie left Take
That and Geri left the Spice Girls and the bands crumbled,” reveals
Nicky.
But
it turned out that Brian’s sudden and dramatic departure had little impact on
Westlife’s profile. In fact, they went on to achieve some of their greatest
success. Later that year they released their Rat Pack inspired album, Allow Us
To Be Frank, and last year they released their hugely
successful Face To Face album and the single, You Raise Me
Up.
Both
the album and the single went to number one in the British charts; the first
time the band held both top album and single position in the same
week.
“I
think it was nice in the years in the after-math [of Brian’s departure] to stick
two fingers up at everybody who didn’t believe it, including media, including
whatever. That was nice,” grins
Nicky.
Despite
their success, they still feel there’s more to achieve. Having just conquered
They’ve
worked with Mariah Carey, Diana Ross, Lulu, Donna Summer and Donny Osmond and on
other occasions they’ve sung with Sinead O’Connor, Dolores O’Riordan, and even
actor Kevin Spacey, who is said to be a very talented swing
singer.
On
The Love Album, at Louis Walsh’s suggestion, they did a duet with Brian
McFadden’s girlfriend, Delta Goodrem, on the old Air Supply Hit All Out Of Love.
Nicky
admits they were surprised, “Our initial reaction was, ‘What’s Brian going to
think? He used to be in the band and now we’re singing with his girlfriend – is
that going to be a problem?’ We rung Brian up and asked him what he thought. He
said, ‘Yeah, I think it’s a great idea! Why
not?’”
The
band still keep in touch with Brian. There is no
animosity between them, although they rarely get to meet up these days. And when
they do they don’t dwell on the past or analyze each other’s personal
lives.
“What
we both miss about each other is the laugh we used to have together,” says Mark
of his former bandmate. “Sometimes we just get really drunk and have a laugh,
you know, whether it’s in a casino or a nightclub.”
Both
Mark and Nicky can sympathize with the difficulties Brian is having in his
personal and professional lives at the moment.
“He’s
a good guy. We always said it – we never fell out with him. He really has a
heart of gold and he’s having a difficult time of it lately,” Nicky reveals.
“Brian had to do what he had to do for himself so we would never hold that
against Brian. Unfortunately at the time we were angry for lots of different
reasons. Three weeks away from a world tour, we were like ‘was our dream over?’
The press seemed to think so. There was a lot of anger there for a while but
never physically to him in a room or anything. But it was like ‘F**k him
anyway!’ You know? But we’ve got over that and now people ask us would we take
him back and the answer to that, unfortunately, is no. We’re in a different
place now. We’re not the Westlife we were when Brian was in it,” Nicky
says.
Mark
adds, “To be honest, equally the way we are saying we don’t think it would be
right for him to be in the band again, he wouldn’t think it would be right to
join us again.”
On
top of their successful careers, the Westlife boys have found much happiness in
their personal lives too. Shane and Nicky married their long-term girlfriends
Gillian Walsh and Georgina Ahern in 2003.
Shane
and Gillian had their first baby Nicole in July last year while Nicky and
It’s
been a great year for Mark since coming out and he is genuinely touched by the
support he has received from fans and the public.
“It’s
all been positive. I haven’t had one single negative response, comment,
reaction, nothing. I think that’s important for everyone to know,” Mark
reveals.
Over
the years the lads have taken stick about being in a boyband and even though
they’ve had two bottles thrown at them Nicky insists it’s mostly just
good-natured banter.
“I
think Boyzone carved the way for us,” he reveals. “They seemed to get an awful
lot of stick at the time. I remember one time in the very early days we were
doing a photoshoot on an open top bus and a guy pulled out of a side street in a
white van, looked up at us and just shouted, ‘Arse bandits!’ and it was like
something out of The Commitments,” recalls Nicky.
“We
pissed ourselves laughing. It was hilarious,” says Mark.
Nicky
adds, “Even now in pubs lads will come up and try and have a laugh with you, and
take the piss in a way that they’re not trying to belittle you or
anything.”
But
it does bother the Westlife boys to be considered role models for younger fans.
“I
live my life the way I want to live it,” says Nicky, “I don’t not do things
because I’m in Westlife. I just don’t do those things anyway in my own life. I
don’t do drags, I never have done. I do drink and if I get particularly drunk
I’m not worried about a 12-year-old reading it. I’m not. I’m not 12, I’m
28.”
Mark
agrees, “There is an element of a role model in us for our fans but we’re pop
singers, we’re not parents. They have parents to teach them right and wrong. I
think it’s too much to ask of anyone to be a parent figure to millions of
people, to all of our fans.”
The
Love Album is out now. Westlife will perform at The
Point Theatre, Dublin on 19, 20, 21, 23, 24, 26, 27, 28
April
Credit/Source:
Star
Time
/ Thanx
Luce
for
sending the scan