After almost a 10 year hiatus the Jonas Brothers returned with the much anticipated album, Happiness Begins on June 7th of this year. The resurgence of the Jonas Brothers brought old fans into a nostalgic feel as if they were still a 6th grader in middle school.
Despite being fairly popular prior to the release of their fifth studio album the Jonas Brothers were yet to climb to the peak of the charts with the closest song they got to the top was Burnin’ Up which peaked at #5. The Jonas Brothers rise to fame came from a series of albums from 2006 to 2009 with the addition of a trio of movies on Disney Channel, Camp Rock. Following the success of Camp Rock and their albums, the Jonas Brothers got their own show, Jonas in L.A. which ultimately failed after just two seasons. After the cancellation of the show, in 2010, the Jonas Brothers went back into the studio to record their fifth studio album. Problems between the brothers and their creative control tore the band apart and the Jonas Brothers were officially on hiatus in early 2013 with each member going on their separate ways. Nick Jonas, the youngest of the three brothers, ended up having a very successful solo career with two popular studio albums with countless hits within each one. Joe Jonas, the middle brother, also decided to embark on a solo career, but didn’t pan out as he had planned. Joe only released one album before calling his solo career quits and creating DNCE with some friends of his. DNCE, on the other hand, had a very successful debut with the hit single Cake By The Ocean from their first studio album. Kevin Jonas decided to go down another path which was to stay out of the spotlight. The Jonas Brothers officially announced their return almost 6 years after their hiatus announcement and almost a decade after the release of new music with the release of Sucker. Sucker ended up being the only #1 hit the Jonas Brothers could muster up to this date.
14. Happy When I’m Sad
Happy When I’m Sad is supposed to be a sad song, I think, but just doesn’t come off as one. It is too upbeat and poppy for the overall meaning of the song in my opinion which is sadness. Not a terrible song, but would I listen to it again – probably not.
13. Every Single Time
I don’t know what it is but I have a Caribbean vibe coming from this song. The song centers around always coming back to that person in your life no matter how good or bad they are for you in the long run which is a pretty relatable feeling. I like this song.
12. Don’t Throw It Away
I initially put this song a little closer to the top on my list, but it slowly worked its way back up. I don’t see much replay ability in this song and will most likely only be listened to once or twice. Definitely a B-side song to this overall stellar album.
11. Cool
Cool is a catchy song and it isn’t terrible just not great. As the second and final single released for the Happiness Begins album I was anticipating something really special and it was very underwhelming especially in comparison to Sucker, but still give it a listen maybe you will enjoy it more than me.
10. Comeback
Comeback is another song about coming back to that someone in your life. For some reason the Jonas Brothers are always going back to their significant other whatever the reason is. It is a very repetitive song, but overall not bad.
9. Strangers
Strangers is a very catchy upbeat song and is the epitome of pop music right now with the quick upbeat chorus and the slower verses and the bridge leading up to the chorus which hits you hard with a beat drop. I like the song a lot, but isn’t one I will be playing over and over from this album.
8. Used To Be
Used To Be is a sad song about someone that got away. The whole song is centered around someone one of the brothers used to love and them reminiscing their past relationship. I like this song a lot, give it a listen.
7. Trust
I like the guitar intro with the falsetto sounding voice along with it to start the song. It gives it a chill sound to the song. Trust is a song about not trusting yourself when you are with a certain person who is not good for you.
6. Hesitate
Okay, I lied. There are three love ballads on this album. I also realized that you most likely haven’t read the reviews on #4 and #3 which were two of the other love ballads so please disregard my first statement. Hesitate is an amazing song about doing anything for that special person in your life with no hesitation.
5. Rollercoaster
Rollercoaster is the perfect title for this song. It takes you on a trip and you leave feeling amazing when it’s finished. I don’t want to say too much about the song because I really want you to go and listen to it.
4. I Believe
Immediately the song will get stuck in your head. I Believe has a very relaxing beat with soothing lyrics about trusting someone and that they will lead you down the right path. It really is a sweet love ballad.
3. Love Her
Love Her along with I Believe are the two love ballads on the album. Love Her is about the feeling you get when you are around that significant other and their lyrics really do a good job of presenting that image.
2. Only Human
If any song could overtake Sucker for the top song on the album it would have been this one, but it couldn’t quite take it out of that top spot. Only Human is THE catchiest song on the album and is my favorite on the album when getting rid of the two singles.
1. Sucker
By this point in the summer I’d hope you’d know this song. Sucker is the best single and quite frankly the best song the Jonas Brothers have put out in a decade (coincidentally this is the only song plus the other 13 that they have released and since it is at #1 I’d hope it is the best song they have released, that’s all, carry on). Sucker has the perfect mix of drums, vocals, guitar from Kevin himself. I’d say my favorite part is Nick’s ability to go falsetto in his solo. Overall an amazing song and recommend listening to it, but let’s face it if you haven’t heard it yet you must be living under a rock.
Happiness Begins is a great album especially for a returning album. Could it have been improved? Yes. But, I’m very satisfied with their return and the album as a whole. I’d give it a solid 4.1 out of 5. A very respectable score. I recommend listening to this album start to finish even if pop isn’t your style, it’s just something different. Hope you enjoyed!