Teen trio draws on rock legends for inspiration

By John Benson

111Not only have the Jonas Brothers — Kevin, Joe and Nick — apparently done their rock history homework by listening to the aforementioned legends but this New Jersey tweener pop phenomenon act cites these music icons as main influences for the band’s recently released album “A Little Bit Longer.”

At a time when teenage stars are seemingly handled and manipulated to sound a certain way and perform other songwriters’ material, the Jonas Brothers appear to be different when it comes to songwriting. That is, they appear to be somewhat in control of their own career, having co-written all 12 tracks on “A Little Bit Longer.”

During a recent media telephone conference call, the Jonas Brothers discussed the new record and their influences.

“The new album is actually not that big of a change,” Nick said. “It’s a really good, you know, continuation of the last record. All of these songs that we were writing, we kind of started writing actually even before the last record [2007’s self-titled album] was released.”

Nick went on to talk specifically about how various elements of Elvis Costello, Johnny Cash and Prince can be heard on “A Little Bit Longer.” While it may sound condescending — as in what do these teenage “Camp Rock” kids playing pop rock for the Disney Channel crowd know about Costello, Cash and Prince? — the band was pressed to divulge specifics.

“As far as our music goes, Elvis Costello I fell in love with,” Nick said. “You know, I think ‘[I Don’t Want to Go To] Chelsea’ is one of my favorite songs of all times. Just the drum intro that we actually kind of like used part of that in our last tour, and it was a lot of fun. And one of the songs on our last record called ‘Australia’ was kind of inspired by that.

“And you know, Johnny Cash, there was a song that was going to be on this record called ‘Til I’m Home.’ Basically it was a tribute to Johnny Cash that we had written. It didn’t make this record. As far as Prince goes I mean, if you listen to [new single] ‘Burnin’ Up’ and you’ll hear like the flutes going on and it’s got that funky feel. And some of the other songs on the record, even ‘Sorry,’ the music comes down like a slower ‘Purple Rain’-esque type thing.”

This is an important time for the Jonas Brothers, who not only starred in the latest Disney Channel smash success film “Camp Rock” but are decidedly one of the biggest touring draws this summer with their “Burning Up Tour” selling out wherever it lands. This includes a Friday show at Blossom Music Center.

Naturally, the lifespan of a teen sensation is sometimes measured in months — not years — but the Jonas Brothers’ rising star shows no signs of slowing down. Not only is a television show in the works for 2009, but so is a new book and 3-D movie.

Such ancillary activities to their music career may come with the territory, but it was evident the media bought more into the Jonas Brothers celebrity machine than their music during the telephone conference call. During the first 15 minutes or so, only a few questions pertained solely to the group’s songwriting, while others asked about the group’s fashion sense and how it deals with fame.

When asked if, as a musician and songwriter, it was disheartening to have so much of the band’s focus be on matters outside of its music, a polished Nick replied, “I think for us we love the fact that we have been given lots of other opportunities, things that are going on in our career, besides just the music — you know, the acting, the tour. It’s all so amazing and important to us.”

He later added, “We really love what we do. I mean at the end of day, when we get to play a show and be with our fans, it’s all worth it. The early morning, the late nights, whatever it may be, it’s all worth it.”