The result, a fitting tribute from his bandmates:
Gave it All Away
A catchy -- and fitting -- way to say goodbye.
Showing posts with label Boyzone. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Boyzone. Show all posts
Friday, January 22, 2010
I ..... I will learn to live before I die .
When Stephen Gately passed away suddenly last year, there were rumors he had completed his vocals for some new Boyzone songs this year.
The result, a fitting tribute from his bandmates:
Gave it All Away
A catchy -- and fitting -- way to say goodbye.
The result, a fitting tribute from his bandmates:
Gave it All Away
A catchy -- and fitting -- way to say goodbye.
Sunday, October 11, 2009
Death of a Guilty Pleasure
So, why a thought for an Irish boy band member who was found dead today when I ignore so many other celebrity deaths?
Because Boyzone's Stephen Gately was an optimistic voice at an important time in my life.
Anyone who's rummaged through my old cds knows I have an unexplainable loyalty to upbeat Irish boybands. It's a guilty pleasure you can feel free to blame on my daily doses of MTV the summer I lived in Ireland.
That alone would be enough reason for me to dust off the memories of music that simply makes me happy.
But Stephen Gately did something much more important, that likely went mostly unnoticed here in the United States. He came out to the world, when all convention said it would likely be inconvenient for him to be openly gay. In a world with few out entertainers, especially so early in their careers, it was heartening to see a young pop star fully, publicly embrace who he was, even if it involved beating the tabloids to the punch. As his solo career meandered off the pop charts, through London's West End and more-recently back to his boy band roots, he was important, if only because he chose not to hide an important part of his life from his fans.
Simply put, he was a public face for acceptance.
The news of his death today at 33, caught me off-guard.
Because Boyzone's Stephen Gately was an optimistic voice at an important time in my life.
Anyone who's rummaged through my old cds knows I have an unexplainable loyalty to upbeat Irish boybands. It's a guilty pleasure you can feel free to blame on my daily doses of MTV the summer I lived in Ireland.
That alone would be enough reason for me to dust off the memories of music that simply makes me happy.
But Stephen Gately did something much more important, that likely went mostly unnoticed here in the United States. He came out to the world, when all convention said it would likely be inconvenient for him to be openly gay. In a world with few out entertainers, especially so early in their careers, it was heartening to see a young pop star fully, publicly embrace who he was, even if it involved beating the tabloids to the punch. As his solo career meandered off the pop charts, through London's West End and more-recently back to his boy band roots, he was important, if only because he chose not to hide an important part of his life from his fans.
Simply put, he was a public face for acceptance.
The news of his death today at 33, caught me off-guard.
Monday, September 29, 2008
It's unbelievably hard to love you, but I love you anyway.
I won't even try to defend my Irish boy band fixation.
Given the fact that every manufactured musical five-pack is getting back together these days, it should really have come as no surprise that Boyzone have put together a new single.
The surprise?
Love You Anyway is toe-tappingly catchy. More refreshingly, this unabashed sacharine-pop (did you really expect anything else), doesn't really feel like a complete retread to the past.
Given the fact that every manufactured musical five-pack is getting back together these days, it should really have come as no surprise that Boyzone have put together a new single.
The surprise?
Love You Anyway is toe-tappingly catchy. More refreshingly, this unabashed sacharine-pop (did you really expect anything else), doesn't really feel like a complete retread to the past.
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