For all you rabid Backstreet Boys fans marking off the days until the band's Black & Blue hits the streets on Nov. 21, there's good news. Fans can now download the band's first single, "Shape of My Heart," in its entirety. Jive Records struck a deal with Amplified.com to make the boy band's first single available for download on the band's official site, www.backstreetboys.com, until the day of the release.

But Jive, always sensitive to the needs of fans, didn't stop there. The label also put up snippets (ranging from a minute to a-minute-and-a-half long) of three other songs from the album, as well as the complete video of "Shape of My Heart." The site also features a twenty-eight-second message from the fabulous five thanking fans for their "enthusiasm and support throughout our career." The band enthuses in unison (though their mouths don't exactly move), "We hope you enjoy [Black & Blue] as much as we do."

"Yes, there are a few problems with [the message], but given that we did this on such a moment's notice it's understandable," says Jive's director of New Media Steve Savoca, who explained the video is being re-encoded for better viewing. Savoca also claims that the presence of a Backstreet Boys single on the Net, is "unprecedented."

"It was a tremendous amount of work to do but we're very, very pleased that the band recognizes the value of what is going on the Internet, and took the time to all get together and record their message," he says. While Savoca said it was too early to tell what kind of response the clips and download was getting, he says Jive expects "millions of fans" to download the personal message.

JAAN UHELSZKI
(November 11, 2000)