"If You Go Away" is a song by American pop group

New Kids on the Block New Kids on the Block (also initialized as NKOTB) is an American boy band from Dorchester, Massachusetts. The band consists of brothers Jonathan and Jordan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood. New Kids on the Block enjoy ...

(although the group was credited under the moniker of NKOTB on the jacket.) Released as a stand-alone single on 1992, the only new song on the compilation '' H.I.T.S.'', it was later included on their 1994 album '' Face the Music''. Written by

John Bettis John Gregory Bettis (born October 24, 1946) is an American lyricist. He was originally part of the band Spectrum, which also featured Richard and Karen Carpenter. He wrote the lyrics for " Top of the World", a hit for both Lynn Anderson and Th ...

Trey Lorenz Trey Lorenz (born Lloyd Lorenz Smith; January 19, 1969) is an American R&B singer-songwriter and record producer. He was born in Florence, South Carolina and is a graduate of Wilson High School. Lorenz is best known for his duet with recording a ...

and

Walter Afanasieff Walter Afanasieff (born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasyev; February 10, 1958), formerly nicknamed Baby Love in the 1980s, is an American record producer and songwriter of Russian-Chinese descent. He was a collaborator with Mariah Carey on her first ...

, the latter of whom also served as the songs producer. Lead vocals are shared by

Jordan Knight Jordan Nathaniel Marcel Knight (born May 17, 1970) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He is a singer in the boy band New Kids on the Block (NKOTB), who rose to fame in the 1980s and 1990s, using a falsetto style of singing influenced by ...

and

Joey McIntyre Joseph Mulrey McIntyre (born December 31, 1972) is an American singer-songwriter and actor. He is best known as the youngest member of the pioneering boy band, New Kids on the Block. He has sold over one million records worldwide as a solo ar ...

, with a spoken word by

Danny Wood Daniel William Wood (born May 14, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and occasional actor. He is a member of the American boy band New Kids on the Block and also served as a choreographer for the band in late 80s and 90s. ...

. It was, at that point, the first song the group put out after having split with longtime manager and producer

Maurice Starr Larry Curtis Johnson (born July 14, 1953), better known by his stage name Maurice Starr, is an American musician, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work creating songs and albums with boy bands New Edition and New Kids on ...

Reception

The song returned the group to the US top twenty, peaking at number sixteen on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number nine on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, and was a commercial rebound for the group after having seen its three previous songs all fail to reach the Billboard Hot 100. The group performed the song on ''

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'', while addressing an alleged lip-synching controversy. The single was the group's last hit until the release of the top 40 hit " Summertime" in 2008, and to date remains its final top twenty entry.

Personnel

: lead vocals *

: spoken voice *

: songwriters *

: songwriter, producer, arranger, keyboards,

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bass, drum programming, percussion,

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acoustic guitar * Dan Shea: additional synthesizer and

MacIntosh The Mac (known as Macintosh until 1999) is a family of personal computers designed and marketed by Apple Inc., Apple Inc. Macs are known for their ease of use and minimalist designs, and are popular among students, creative professionals, and ...

programming *

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and

programming *

Michael Landau Michael Christopher Landau (born June 1, 1958) is an American musician, audio engineer, and record producer. He is a session musician and guitarist who has played on many albums since the early 1980s with Boz Scaggs, Minoru Niihara, Joni Mit ...

: guitar *

Claytoven Richardson Claytoven Richardson (born 1956, in Berkeley, California) is an American singer, instrumentalist, producer, songwriter, and author. Biography Born Clayton D. Richardson on May 23, 1956. Larry Batiste, a childhood friend (and later business p ...

, Gary Cirimelli, Skyler Jett: background vocals

Track listings

UK Vinyl, 7"''

#If You Go Away – 4:00 #Call It What You Want &C Pump It Up 7" Mix– 4:12 Maxi-CD''

#If You Go Away – 4:00 #Didn't I (Blow Your Mind) – 4:24 #Please Don't Go Girl – 4:30 #I'll Be Loving You (Forever) – 4:22

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:If You Go Away (New Kids On The Block Song) 1991 singles New Kids on the Block songs Pop ballads Songs with lyrics by John Bettis Songs written by Walter Afanasieff Columbia Records singles Song recordings produced by Walter Afanasieff Songs written by Trey Lorenz