The Truth About Boybands

That's the whole truth
Ian Wylie
18/ 8/2007

FORMER Take That manager Nigel Martin-Smith isn't impressed by a certain pop talent search back on TV tonight.

"When you see shows like The X Factor, it's all about, can you sing a couple of bars in tune? What's that got to do with finding the next big thing?

"Most people can sing to some degree," he says. "And there's these buttons that they have in studios now that say, 'Autotune.' So the most important thing is - have they got star quality? Ironically, have they got the X Factor? And all of Take That did."

Narrated by former Spice Girl Emma Bunton, The Truth About Boybands (ITV1, tonight, 9.40pm) is a cut above what you might expect.

Back in the Manchester of 1990, Nigel watched New Kids On The Block on a Saturday morning TV show and decided to form his own boyband.

"I think I only met up with about 24 lads, and of those 24 I shortlisted six, and of those six I shortlisted five - Howard, Gary, Mark, Jason and Robbie.

"Gary was the only one who could sing at the time. Robbie was OK, but he was a bit theatrical.

"The first fan base was teenage girls and gay men - it was spandex, leather, metal. It was dodgy 80s disco gear. But it worked.

"Take That were the good guys. London's East 17 the bad. Soon the press were whipping up a north v south battle.

"The East 17 fans were scary, because they were a bit like East 17 - rough and ugly," adds Nigel.

Pop manager Louis Walsh created an Irish version of Take That and called them Boyzone. "If you've got two or three great singers, the others just have to be able to sing the harmonies and look good," he explains. "We basically copied Take That."

Lucky

Shane Lynch was among those Louis picked for the band. "As far as singing was concerned, if I did it in the shower, you were lucky," reveals Shane. "If you had a slight vocal talent, fair enough, you had a little bit of an edge.

"Generally speaking, it was how you looked and I guess I had the right look and I got in."

The two-part series documents the rise of Manchester-based Take That, the departure of a troubled Robbie Williams, the final decision to split and their recent triumphant return to the delight of millions of nostalgic fans.

Nigel recalls: "Robbie was my favourite because Robbie just wanted to perform. If Robbie had ever come to me and said, `Nigel, help.' Or, `I'm having a problem with something,' I would have done it.

"If I had to do it all again, I'd do everything exactly the same, because I think it was all perfect. The only thing, personally, that I would do is spend a bit more time telling them how much I love them - which is probably what I didn't do, certainly in Robbie's case. I think that's where I went wrong."

Next week's second programme begins with the 1996 split of Take That and the rush to try to fill the gap left behind.

It also charts what happened when boybands were away from the cameras - the drink, drugs and sex. "Behind closed doors when they go to hotels at night, they get drunk, they take drugs, they let in groupies," says Louis.

It all got too much for some, including Boyzone's Shane. "I'd wake up, get on the soup, have a few bevvies throughout the day, end up going to the TVs gargled up - not drunk, but trying to enlighten the day, because it was so monotonous.

"Every day it was an interview, every day it was TV, talking the same stuff. I spoke for the last few weeks about the same record, the same tour. I was trying to make it exciting again."

Louis concludes: "People looking for credibility in boybands, that worries me. They are what they are. They're selling sex to girls. Credibility? I don't think it's credible."

Top producer Pete Waterman also yearns for a sense of perspective. "Boybands, did they change my life? Nah. When I get to the Pearly Gates, and the Angel Gabriel asks me to show my record collection, there's certainly not going to be a Take That album in it."

Fuente: Manchester Evening News
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Yo quiero ver ese programa para ver que más joyas suelta Nigel (the devil)... Robbie su favorito?? Flipo!!