I Want You Back (NSYNC song)


"I Want You Back" is the debut single by American boy band NSYNC. It was released on October 4, 1996 in Germany and on January 20, 1998 in the UK and US as the first single from their self-titled debut album.

Background

The song was written and produced by Max Martin and his mentor at the time, Denniz Pop. NSYNC were flown over to Stockholm to record the song in 1996. Joey Fatone discussed the recording process in a retrospective interview with Billboard:
I remember "Want You Back", just being in the studio and recording, "What the hell are we doing?" In the sense of like, "I like the song, the song's really good, but do you think other people are gonna like it?" It's like, edgy for pop in a sense, you know. Then it drives in and you're like, "This is great!"

Composition

The song is based on common time, the tempo is 112 BPM and is played in the key of A-flat minor. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, NSYNC's vocal range spans from the low note E4 to the high note of G#5.

Releases

"I Want You Back" was released in October 1996 as the band's debut single in Germany and then as the band's first US single on January 20, 1998.

Commercial performance

"I Want You Back" reached the top ten in several regions, including Germany, Switzerland, New Zealand and Canada. The song also reached number one in the Netherlands. It peaked at number thirteen on the Billboard Hot 100.
The song has also been certified Gold in the US, Germany and Australia.

Music video

Two versions of the music video were released; one for the original release of the song, while the other was used for the song's global re-release.

Original version

The first video was shot in Stockholm, Sweden from August 15–16, 1996 by Alan Calzatti. It was released with the original German release of the song in October 1996. It features the group in a space station, with many high-tech effects playing out around them. The video was shot on a green screen, as each of the members were walking on treadmills. The group attempt to contact a girl through a computer, in order to bring her onto the ship, while they are dancing throughout the video. As of September 2019, the official German version of the music video has over 40 million views on YouTube.

Alternate version

The second video accompanied the British and US release of the song in 1998 and was directed by Jesse Vaughan and Douglas Biro in America. The video was partially shot in black-and-white, and featured the group performing in a warehouse, playing pool, riding jet-skis and driving around the neighborhood with a girl in a Cadillac interspersed throughout the video. JC Chasez felt that this version was the moment where "we just made a real music video".

Track listing

  1. "I Want You Back" – 3:22
  2. "I Want You Back" – 4:23
  3. "I Want You Back" – 5:24
  4. "I Want You Back" – 5:26
  1. "I Want You Back" – 3:20
  2. "Giddy Up" – 4:07
  1. "I Want You Back" – 3:22
  2. "Tearin' Up My Heart" – 3:26
  3. "You Got It" – 3:34
  4. "I Want You Back" – 5:24
  1. "I Want You Back" – 3:22
  2. "I Just Wanna Be with You" – 4:02
  3. "I Want You Back" – 4:28
  1. "I Want You Back" – 3:22
  2. "Everything I Own" – 4:10
  3. Exclusive interview – 5:06
  1. "I Want You Back" – 5:23
  2. "I Want You Back" – 5:28
  3. "I Want You Back" – 5:45
  4. "I Want You Back" – 4:27

    Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications