Hanson Joined By Popper And Lang 'This Time Around'

05/09/2000 1:00 PM, Yahoo! Music
Craig Rosen

(5/9/00, 1 p.m. ET) - This Time Around, Hanson's highly anticipated follow-up to its 1997 debut studio album, Middle Of Nowhere, is out today (May 9). Joining Hanson brothers Isaac, Taylor, and Zac on This Time Around are several guest performers, including Blues Traveler singer and harmonica player John Popper and teenage guitar prodigy Jonny Lang. Popper's harmonica work can be heard on Hanson's second single from the album, "If Only."

Hanson first hooked up with Popper in 1998, when Blues Traveler was on tour. Taylor explained to LAUNCH that Hanson was invited backstage at a Blues Traveler show, and the rest is history. "Actually, the first thing they did was they invited us to play 'Mmmbop' at the end of the show, and we we're kind of, like, 'OK.' It seemed like such a crazy thing," he said. "We're fans of Blues Traveler, so it was very cool. We went out there and played and it was really awesome. John Popper soloed; it was very cool. And then John looked at us and he said, 'Hey, if you guys would ever want me to play on anything, I'd love to play on something,' so we just followed through with that."

Taylor added that working with Popper was a whole lot of fun for the band. "It was very cool. We had a total laugh! I mean, John is hilarious. John Popper is a hysterical guy, so we just had fun and laid the stuff down," he said.

Lang's performance on the title track and first single from the album, "This Time Around," came about in much the same manner, according to Taylor. "With Jonny Lang, it was similar. We were both in London and he was in town doing a show and we invited him to see... we went and saw a movie together and hung out a little bit and saw him a couple of more times," he explained. "And then we just sort of pursued the relationship and asked him if he would be into playing on an album, and he was also into the idea, so it just kind of went from there."

The release of This Time Around will keep the Tulsa, Oklahoma, brothers busy with press and promotion this week in New York City. Hanson will perform on The Rosie O'Donnell Show today (May 9), followed by an in-store autograph-signing session starting at 5 p.m. ET tomorrow (May 10) at the Coconuts record store located on 6th Avenue at 51st Street in Manhattan.

-- Jason Gelman, New York

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