This summer, I witnessed history in East Rutherford, New Jersey: I watched Demi Lovato and Joe Jonas sing the mash-up of “This Is Me” and “Gotta Find You” from Camp Rock. When the screens at MetLife played that well-known clip of Lovato’s character, Mitchie, saying “She’s really good,” I pushed the possibility out of my mind. But then, Lovato walked on stage. At first, my mind could not compute what I was seeing — could it be? A Disney Channel reunion right before my very eyes? Indeed, it was. My jaw continued to drop for the remainder of Lovato’s time on stage. The next day, I rewatched Camp Rock — it’d be impossible to expect anything else, really — and began thinking about the young Jonas Brothers. No matter what you think about their sound, their music’s ability to transcend the boundaries of age and time must be admired. Kevin was 20, Joe was 18 and Nick was 15 when Camp Rock came out in 2008. They released A Little Bit Longer that same summer, and songs from that album continue to persist in the cultural milieu today (I did, in fact, audibly gasp when they opened their set with “Lovebug”). In honor of this monumental moment in popular culture, I’ve decided to give A Little Bit Longer another spin to start out the semester.
The album opens with the simple yet effective “BB Good,” sung by Joe. It’s a beautiful little pop-punk tune, perfectly in line with the Jonas Brothers’ image at the time. This is exactly the kind of music that made the Jonas Brothers stand out from the other all-male pop bands that dominated in the early 2000s. As Nick puts it, “The biggest misconception about us is that Jonas Brothers was and is a boyband. From the very inception of this group, though, it’s been a band. Especially back then, when it was really raw with loud guitars and loud drums. It wasn’t the most complex music around, but it was certainly in your face.” “BB Good” is followed by “Burnin’ Up,” one of the Jonas Brothers’ greatest hits and a personal favorite of mine. The play between Nick and Joe’s voices is just too good: the call-and-response present in so many of their tracks really works here, and leads up to that iconic “red dress” trilled by Nick. The bridge, also performed by Nick, is a clear indication of what we would hear from him vocally later on in his solo career in songs like “Jealous.” And — fun fact — Big Rob, who is featured on “Burnin’ Up,” was the Jonas Brothers’ bodyguard at the time!
For some reason, the Jonas Brothers sound even more like babies on “Shelf” than in any of the other songs on A Little Bit Longer; however, they sound like babies that can sing, and that’s enough for me. “Shelf” is definitely an underrated JoBros song, complete with Nick’s signature breathy falsetto and Joe’s grittier sound, topped off with a post-bridge breakdown that hits with every listen. “One Man Show” is raspy, rock-y and intense, with the Jonas Brothers insisting, “I'm a one man show (One man show) / I don't need no one (Need no one) / I'll be fine alone (Fine alone) / Oh, yeah.” Next up is “Lovebug,” another one of their more popular tracks — and for good reason. Nick wrote this one about Miley Cyrus, and it has one of the most singable choruses of any JoBros song. Despite that, the intense instrumentals after the bridge are without a doubt the highlight of the song.
“Tonight” follows “Lovebug,” and pales in comparison. Although it’s fast-paced and backed by some powerful guitar, it is also a bit repetitive. Nevertheless, it’s still a fun listen. “Can’t Have You” starts out a bit softer and epitomizes the pop-rock sound that fueled the late ’90s and early 2000s, somewhere in the family of Tal Bachman’s “She’s So High.” Yet again, Nick and Joe provide us with a gem of a call-and-response, and I posit that this song should be more popular than it is. “Video Girl” is a Jonas Brothers classic and a biting, punky track. Joe’s throatier sound goes full throttle here, and it makes the song. Meaghan Jette Martin, who plays Tess Tyler on Camp Rock, opens up the song with an awesome sound bite as well. “Pushin’ Me Away” demonstrates the cohesion of Joe and Nick’s voices, and it’s impossible to stop yourself from nodding along. In “Sorry,” Nick apologizes to Cyrus for his actions when they were together, and the angst in Nick’s voice during the second verse adds some gorgeous dimensionality to the track. “Got Me Going Crazy” is a bolt of electricity and a bit of a grunge moment for the JoBros. I couldn’t help but think of “Are You Gonna Be My Girl” by Jet for its similar vibe. The title track closes out A Little Bit Longer, and it focuses on Nick’s experience with Type 1 Diabetes. Nick took the opportunity for a ballad and ran with it, resulting in a sweeping three minutes to conclude the album.
The Jonas Brothers’ reunion with Demi Lovato was a blast of nostalgia that knocked me right off my feet and into this chair to cook up this first Test Spin of the semester, and I’m glad to be back. Thanks, JoBros.
Test Spins is a fortnightly throwback column reviewing and recommending classic and underrated albums from the past. It runs every other Friday.
Sydney Levinton is a junior in the College of Arts and Sciences. She can be reached at slevinton@cornellsun.com.
Sydney Levinton is a member of the Class of 2027 in the College of Arts and Sciences. She is the Arts and Culture Editor on the 143rd Editorial Board. She can be reached at slevinton@cornellsun.com.
