The best things in life are always worth waiting for. When Boyzone first called it a day back in 1999, the band always said the day would come when they would perform together again, but as the years slipped by, that prospect seemed increasingly unlikely. None of them could forget the inimitable chemistry between them whenever they performed as Boyzone, nor the sheer, deafening adulation that greeted them everywhere they went. Together, they had created something special; something the world wanted to see again. So, eight years on from their last live show in Dublin in 2000, the time had come for Boyzone to return to the stage and the studio.
Formed in 1993, Boyzone sold a staggering 15 million records, hit the UK number one spot an incredible six times and put Ireland on the musical map. Featuring Keith Duffy, Mikey Graham, Ronan Keating, Shane Lynch and Stephen Gately, they combined laid-back Irish charm with boyish good looks and five distinctive personalities that worked together to create something utterly unique. From the moment their debut album, Said And Done, crashed into the UK Number One spot in 1995, they started living a life they had never even dared dream possible.
“I honestly didn’t have any idea about anything that would happen to us,” Ronan remembers. “All I wanted to do was sing in a band, so my dream came true from the moment I got in the group and we started touring. I didn’t think about any of the rest of it.”
“We never really got time to take any of it in either,” Mikey says now. “If you were number one, you were on a plane to China the next day, so there was never time to stop and think about what was happening or how many records we’d sold or anything like that. We were always onto the next thing.”
Indeed, the accolades kept on coming. The group’s second album, A Different Beat, was released in 1996 and featured hits including , Isn’t It A Wonder, Picture Of You, the title track and the band’s first UK Number One single, Words. Its follow up, Where We Belong, was even more successful, spawning All That I Need, Baby Can I Hold You and the band’s best selling single, No Matter What. With sold out shows and top selling singles as far a field as Asia and right across Europe, everything Boyzone touched turned to gold.
“We had so much fun,” Stephen laughs. “That was the key to it lasting for so long, because a lot of boy bands don’t last as long as we did – eight years. I have to say, it was mostly good and happy when we were together, and that’s pretty unusual.”
Despite that, the band had other dreams beyond Boyzone too. Ronan had enjoyed a taste of solo success with his single, When You Say Nothing At All, and Mikey and Stephen also both wanted to record their own material without the band. After over six years in each other’s pockets, it seemed obvious that a break would do everyone good and the band agreed to take time out at the end of 1999.
“Everyone had had enough by that stage I think,” Ronan recounts. “Everyone had things they wanted to do. So we played our last show in January 2000 and that was it. I got on the plane to LA the next day to make my first album.”
“I just felt relief,” Mikey adds. “Huge relief. I wanted a bit of space and freedom. I hadn’t spent as much time with my own brother as I’d spent with those four guys and I wanted to go off and have my own life really.”
“It was perfect timing for the band to split then,” Shane agrees. “I was in self destruct mode. I was drinking just to get through the day and I was feeling the pressure. I just wanted to be at home doing nothing; I was totally burned out, so it was exciting to actually get that break.”
The split turned out to be more permanent than any of them had first intended with various reported remarks in the press stirring up resentment between them during their time apart. Ronan’s solo career had taken off in a big way, while Stephen also released a solo album then became a West End theatre star after overcoming depression. Mikey, too, followed his own album release by returning to college and working as both a songwriter and actor, while Keith starred in legendary UK TV soap, Coronation Street and went on to various critically acclaimed theatre roles. Shane, meanwhile, enjoyed a successful career in motor sports before taking part in the reality TV show, The Games, in 2004, when all his former band mates turned up to cheer him along in their first meeting in four years. Finally all five began talking again, airing any lingering grievances and paving the way for a possible future reunion, once they realised that, despite everything, their friendships hadn’t changed at all over the years.
“It was really hard to get five guys, who were all doing individual work, with the same amount of time off,” Stephen explains. “So we just kept in touch, kept talking and eventually we got to a time when it seemed like the perfect chance for us to do it and it all just fell into place from there.”
Thrilled to discover they were having as much fun working together again as they ever had, even the band themselves couldn’t anticipate the wildly enthusiastic reaction to their tour, ‘Back Again: No Matter What’, earlier this year. All five spent months planning a concert no one would ever forget, yet they were still staggered by the response to what both audiences and critics agreed was the band’s best show yet.
“The fans wanted to be entertained and feel nostalgic and maybe feel 10 or 15 years younger again for two hours and we could do that, no problem,” Keith explains. “We went out to enjoy every minute.”
“You never know how it will go,” Stephen confirms. “It’s a privilege if it works, if people want to see you again and liked what you did and luckily, that’s what’s happened. I’m so chuffed and happy that people wanted us to do it.”
“We were shocked by the reaction from people,” Ronan says. “Every night felt like the first night – it made the hairs stand up on the back of your neck. We just couldn’t believe the fans, and I think people were shocked at how good we were too. We’re eight years older but we were fitter and more passionate about it and I think we all sounded better than ever too.”
After all their years apart, touring together again made Keith, Mikey, Ronan, Shane and Stephen realise just how special and unique the connection between them is, and none of them wanted their final live date to mean the end of Boyzone again. Instead, they are set to release their Greatest Hits album, ‘Back Again: No Matter What’, complete with three new songs to give old and new fans alike a taster of what’s to come, of the way Boyzone sound now, eight years on.
“We decided to do a greatest hits to slowly reintroduce Boyzone,” Ronan explains, “but we wanted to have some new songs on there too because we have a brand new sound now. We knew how important it was to get that right, so we took our time and made sure we had the best songs. The new single, Love You Anyway, is like a big sing along Motown record, while Can’t Stop Thinking About You has an electronic, Kraftwerk sound that’s very different for us, and Better is a very raw, emotional ballad – but not the typical ballad you might expect from Boyzone.”
Together, the new songs show that, while their recent tour might have brought back great memories, Boyzone are very much a band of the future. Refreshed, reinvigorated and as passionate about working together as they have ever been, the five are having the time of their lives all over again and hope that this is just the beginning for them.
“Whatever happens,” Ronan concludes, “I think the best thing about all this is that we haven’t just got the band back, we’ve got our friends back. It’s a new age for us now. If this album goes well, there’s every chance there could be more, but we have to wait and see what happens.”