New Kids on the Block (album)

New Kids on the Block is the self-titled debut album from American pop boy band New Kids on the Block.

Released in the spring of 1986, its very bubble-gum, pseudo early Osmonds/New Edition-esque stylings failed to garner any attention. As a result, the album went commercially unnoticed. In August 1989, during the success of their second album, Hangin' Tough, Columbia Records released the New Kids on the Block track "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" in an attempt to bring this album to the attention of the group's growing fanbase. The ploy worked; albums sales spiked. Subsequently, the New Kids on the Block album would eventually be certified 3x platinum by the RIAA; peaking at #25 on the U.S. Billboard 200.

Track listing

1. "Stop It Girl" (Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by Donnie Wahlberg and Joey McIntyre
   • Rap by Jordan Knight
2. "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" (Bell, Hart)
   • Lead vocals by Jordan Knight, Donnie Wahlberg, and Joey McIntyre
   • Spoken by Danny Wood
3. "Popsicle" (Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by Joey McIntyre and Jordan Knight
   • Rap by New Kids on the Block
4. "Angel" (Cappra, Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by Joey McIntyre and Danny Wood
5. "Be My Girl" (Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by Donnie Wahlberg
6. "New Kids on the Block" (Starr, Donnie Wahlberg)
   • Lead vocals by Donnie Wahlberg
7. "Are You Down?" (AJ Banks, Nuri, Donnie Wahlberg)
   • Lead vocals by Donnie Wahlberg, Joey McIntyre, and Danny Wood
8. "I Wanna Be Loved by You" (Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by New Kids on the Block
9. "Don't Give Up on Me" (Maurice Starr)
   • Lead vocals by Donnie Wahlberg, Jonathan Knight, Jordan Knight, and Joey McIntyre
10. "Treat Me Right" (Maurice Starr)
    • Lead vocals by Joey McIntyre

Singles

• "Be My Girl" - March 1986
• "Stop It Girl" - July 1986
• "Didn't I (Blow Your Mind)" - August 1989

Charts

Personnel

Principal performers

• Jordan Knight - lead and background vocals
• Jonathan Knight - lead and background vocals
• Joey McIntyre - lead and background vocals
• Donnie Wahlberg - lead and background vocals
• Danny Wood - lead and background vocals

Studio techs.

Maurice Starr - Producer

• Vocoder
• Strings
• Piano
• Backup vocals
• Moog Synthesizer
• Mixing
• Juno
• Guitar
• Engineer
• Emulator
• Drums (Bass)
• DX-7
• Drum Programming
• Bass
• Drums

Larkin Arnold - Executive Producer
Erik Nuri - Executive Producer
Christopher Austopchuk - Art Direction
Paul Arnold - Engineer
Phil Greene - Engineer, Mixing
Caroline Greyshock - Photography
Jimmy Johnson - Conga
Frank Heller - Engineer, Mixing
Gordon Worthy - Keyboards
Phaedra Butler - Backup Vocals
Pat Costa - Engineer
William Garrett - Engineer
Sidney Burton - Engineer, Mixing
Christopher Rich - Beat Box

Footnotes

• The group was originally named Nynuk. The name was changed to New Kids on the Block following the recording of the Donnie Wahlberg written album track of the same name.