Heart Break

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Heart Break
Heart Break cover
Studio album by New Edition
Released 1988
Recorded 1987-1988
Genre R&B/Pop
Length 51:41
Label MCA
Producer(s) Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, New Edition, Jellybean Johnson
New Edition chronology
Under the Blue Moon
(1986)		 Heart Break
(1988)		 Home Again
(1996)


Heart Break is an album released by American R&B quintet New Edition on the MCA label in 1988. It's the first album to return the Boston-reared band as a quintet after the public exit of original member Bobby Brown and the first album to feature Johnny Gill as member of the group.

Contents

[edit] Overview

[edit] History

Near the end of 1986, New Edition was a group in transition. While still selling records, they weren't the top-selling teen group that they were in the beginning of their career. And though they had earned a reputation for creating R&B gems such as "Candy Girl", "Mr. Telephone Man" and "Cool It Now", the band members were no longer teenagers, having all reached 20, 21 years of age, and decided on their next album to go totally adult with their sound, which helped the group land famed producers Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, whose funky Minneapolis sound had helped Janet Jackson become a pop star with her Control album. Inspired by Jackson's success, New Edition sought to do the same with their new album. Also, the group had recruited Washington, D.C.-based baritone/tenor Johnny Gill, whose most notable success was as R&B singer Stacy Lattisaw's duet partner in their 1984 hit, "A Perfect Combination".

At first, before Gill was even thought of, trouble between the original members came about after Tresvant mentioned doing a solo album after former band mate and estranged best friend Bobby Brown had released his debut album, King of Stage, and earned a number one R&B hit with the ballad, "Girlfriend". In case of Tresvant leaving, Michael Bivins suggested bringing in 20-year-old Gill to replace him, which angered Tresvant, who said after much thought, that he wasn't willing to have Gill in the band as he admitted in a recent documentary. Gill nonchalantly accepted joining the group and in the spring of 1987, the band went into the studio to record Heart Break. While most of the album featured leads by Tresvant and occasional leads by Ricky Bell, Gill had special lead spots in some songs though he wanted to sing a lead song on his own to prove himself. Producers Jam and Lewis decided to give them the song, "Boys to Men". A song Gill had no apprehension of recording until his band mates and Jam & Lewis eventually convinced Gill to take the song and he reluctantly agreed but not before, as he said in a recent documentary, retorting "I'm gonna fuck this song up". Gill netted a perfect lead vocal on the first take of the song, which was the final song featured on the album. Eventually Gill became a part of the New Edition family and tensions between him and Tresvant cooled. On the album, Tresvant also felt of expressing himself over the sadness of losing band member Brown in a song titled "Competition". The news of the group recording the album ended any speculation of the group breaking up.

[edit] Release and reaction

Released two years after their last studio album and in the midst of Brown's breakthrough second solo album, Don't Be Cruel—as well as during the New Kids on the Block's breakthrough album, Hangin' Tough—Heart Break became New Edition's ultimate breakthrough in their transition from bubblegum pop band in the style of The Jackson 5 to a stellar grown-up R&B band in the style of The Temptations. This album also mixed the Minneapolis sound of Jam & Lewis with the burgeoning New jack swing subgenre, and often featured raps from Ronnie DeVoe and Michael Bivins, who had been rapping since the group's 1983 debut.

Heart Break peaked at #12 on the Billboard 200, #3 on the R&B Albums chart, and spawned five singles: "If It Isn't Love", "You're Not My Kind of Girl", "Can You Stand the Rain", "Crucial" and "N.E. Heartbreak," all of which all hit the top twenty on the R&B chart. Least four of the five singles released were top five R&B hits. Heartbreak became New Edition's most commercially successful release up to that point. After the promotion of this album, the group would amicably disband to forge solo careers, with Bivins, DeVoe and Bell forming the successful hip-hop/soul group BBD; Tresvant and Gill finding platinum success with their subsequent solo releases and alongside Brown's multi-platinum success as a solo artist made New Edition one of the few groups to have all the members forge successful solo careers.

[edit] Legacy

Many New Edition fans have called this particular album the most seminal NE album. Four fans from Philadelphia in particular were inspired by one of the songs on the album. Ironically, "Boys to Men", the song that Johnny Gill hated doing initially, ended up becoming the name of the group who changed their name to Boyz II Men. The group would end up being managed and mentored by Michael Bivins. Boyz II Men names New Edition as one of their most influential bands. In particular, the band's "If It Isn't Love" and "Can You Stand the Rain" are two of the group's most adored songs.

[edit] Tracklisting

  1. "Introduction" (1:04)
  2. "That's the Way We're Livin'" (Bell/Bivins/DeVoe/Gill/Tresvant) (4:02)
  3. "Where It All Started" (Harris/Lewis) (3:31)
  4. "If It Isn't Love" (Harris/Lewis) (5:09)
  5. "Skit #1" ( :35)
  6. "N.E. Heartbreak" (Harris/Lewis) (5:44)
  7. "Crucial" (Johnson/Keith) (4:33)
  8. "Skit #2" ( :44)
  9. "You're Not My Kind of Girl" (Harris/Lewis) (4:01)
  10. "Superlady" (Bell/Bivins/DeVoe/Gill/Tresvant) (5:01)
  11. "Can You Stand the Rain" (Harris/Lewis) (4:57)
  12. "Competition" (Tresvant) (4:28)
  13. "Skit #3" ( :38)
  14. "I'm Comin' Home" (Harris/Lewis) (5:06)
  15. "Boys to Men" (Harris/Lewis) (4:10)

[edit] Credits

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