After the pairing of two former members from Boyzone and Westlife into Boyzlife, the supergroup we didn’t know we wanted (we’re still unsure), we look at the hybrids that matched each other like a fine wine and cheese.
The term ‘supergroup’ implies that musicians joining forces from different acts is a dead cert for success. Not all supergroups are super; some disband after early hurdles while others keep running or are revived at various points over the years.
Fractures are to be expected when so many egos are involved and some music fans may wonder why they’re formed in the first place. But it’s easy to understand why musicians feel so compelled to start new projects. Often, they’ve had to compromise too much in their original guises or they’ve wanted to explore wildly different genres. And it can be better to enlist the talents of seasoned contemporaries than little-known musicians.
Lock up your daughters, and yourselves, it’s Boyzlife
Franz Ferdinand’s Alex Kapranos offered a simple explanation in an interview in which he addressed his 2014 merger with Sparks (as FFS). “In the different bands I’ve been in over the years, there’s always been these magical moments where you’re doing something that’s way beyond anything you’d do on your own…it’s good to capture [that].”
With Boyzlife (Boyzone, Westlife) releasing a new album in May ahead of a UK autumn tour, we look at the successes, losses and legacies left by such a meeting of minds.
The golden oldies
Cream
Key members: Eric Clapton (Yardbirds), Ginger Baker (The Graham Bond Organisation) and Jack Bruce (Manfred Mann)
Years active: 1966–1968, 1993, 2005
Noteworthy songs: ‘Sunshine Of Your Love’, ‘I Feel Free’, ‘White Room’
Arguably the first ever successful supergroup, Cream’s sprawling welding of rock, blues and jazz made an impact in their short reign. They formed seemingly at the right moment when psychedelia was infiltrating the swinging 60’s mainstream. Among a handful of hits, their third album, 1968’s ‘Wheels Of Fire’, became the UK’s first Platinum-selling double album.
Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young
Key members: David Crosby (The Byrds), Graham Nash (The Hollies), Stephen Stills (Buffalo Springfield), Neil Young (Buffalo Springfield)
Years active: 1968-1970, 1973-1974, 1976-2015
Noteworthy songs: ‘Ohio’, ‘Suite Judy Blue Eyes’, ‘Carry On’
Once dubbed “The American Beatles”, folk-rock supergroup Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (CSNY) have released dozens of albums between the incarnations of CSNY and Crosby, Stills & Nash (CSN – when Young is absent). Déjà Vu, the 1970 second album by CSN and the first as CSNY, remains the best-selling record of each member’s career to date and is certified 7x Platinum. But perennial personality clashes led to many hiatuses, with their final album, Looking Forward, released more than 20 years ago.
Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds
Key members: Nick Cave (The Birthday Party, Grinderman), Mick Harvey (The Birthday Party), Blixa Bargeld (Einstürzende Neubauten), Barry Adamson (Magazine), Warren Ellis (Grinderman)
Years active: 1983-present
Noteworthy songs: ‘Loverman’, ‘Red Right Hand’, ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow’
The Birthday Party frontman Nick Cave conceived the supergroup in 1983 with his bandmate Mick Harvey, as well as Einstürzende Neubauten’s Blixa Bargeld, Magazine’s Barry Adamson and PragVEC’s Jim G. Thirlwell. Since then, the group’s had a revolving door of musicians including fellow Aussie Warren Ellis, with whom Cave later founded Grinderman.
The award-winning band have enjoyed critical success in particular, though have secured commercial wins including their best-selling album to date, 1996’s Murder Ballads, which spawned a hit with the Kylie Minogue-featuring ‘Where The Wild Roses Grow.’
Rock steadies
Them Crooked Vultures
Key members: Josh Homme (Queens Of The Stone Age, Eagles Of Death Metal), Dave Grohl (Foo Fighters), John Paul Jones (Led Zeppelin)
Years active: 2009-2010 (on hiatus)
Noteworthy songs: ‘New Fang’, ‘Mind Eraser, No Chaser’
They might have released little music so far but the calibre of musicians in Them Crooked Vultures can’t be ignored. Homme, himself a member of Queens Of The Stone Age and Eagles Of Death Metal (as well as the The Desert Sessions collective and the since-disbanded Kyuss), is a totemic figure in rock. Likewise is Grohl, from his Nirvana days to fronting one of the most successful rock acts of all time in the Foos. John Paul Jones hardly needs an introduction.
Their 2009 debut single and hit, ‘New Fang’, landed them a Grammy Award. We haven’t heard much from them since, although they’re on hiatus so keep those peepers peeled….
Audioslave
Key members: Chris Cornell (Soundgarden), Tom Morello (Rage Against The Machine), Brad Wilk (Rage Against The Machine), Tim Commerford (Rage Against The Machine)
Years active: 2001–2007, 2017
Noteworthy songs: ‘Cochise’, ‘Like A Stone’, ‘Show Me How To Live’
The late Chris Cornell achieved some of his greatest successes with Audioslave after Soundgarden’s split in 1997. ‘Like A Stone’, from Audioslave’s 2002 self-titled album, was the highest charting song of Cornell’s career. Audioslave broke up sometime between 2006 and 2007, with Cornell confirming that it was due to “irresolvable personality conflicts as well as musical differences”. Perhaps supergroups aren’t all they’re cracked up to be.
Modern pop pairings
McBusted
Key members: Tom Fletcher, Danny Jones, Dougie Poynter and Harry Judd (McFly); James Bourne and Matt Willis (Busted)
Years active: 2013-2015
Noteworthy songs: ‘Air Guitar’, ‘Get Over It’
McBusted are the pop-rock UK supergroup that appeared to call it quits at the height of their popularity. Formed of McFly and two of the three Busted guys, their debut 2014 single ‘Air Guitar’ landed in the UK Top 20 and their debut eponymous album in the UK Top 10. A sold-out, 34-date nationwide tour followed. But they’ve since gone quiet, with both McFly and Busted releasing albums in the last three years.
Boyzlife
Key members: Keith Duffy (Boyzone), Brian McFadden (Westlife)
Years active: 2016-present
Noteworthy songs: ‘The One’, ‘A Little Saving’
After releasing their debut album Strings Attached comprising nine UK number one songs by Boyzone and Westlife in 2020, Keith Duffy (Boyzone) and Brian McFadden (Westlife) returned towards the end of 2021 with their first original song as Boyzlife. ‘The One’. The boyband heartthrobs of the 90s and 00s drop their first album of original material, Old School, in May, and will tour the UK this autumn.
It’s still early days for the duo, but a tour incorporating the best of their former band’s output as well as fresh new songs is bound to be a winner for pop ballad obsessives.
