Now or Never (Nick Carter album)

Now or Never is the debut solo album by Nick Carter, best known as a member of the Backstreet Boys, released on October 29, 2002 by Jive Records. The album debuted at #17 in its first week on the Billboard 200,[5] selling some 70,000 copies during first week in U.S. It fell out of the top 50 in its second week, but sold well enough to be certified Gold by the RIAA in December 2002.[6] Two singles were released from the album, neither of which had any impact on the US charts. The first single, "Help Me", did reach #9 on the Canadian Singles Chart.[7] "I Got You" was a major hit in Europe and Southeast Asia. A sneak preview of the album was attached to the end of the fourth album of little brother Aaron Carter, Another Earthquake, sampling 3 songs

Now or Never
Studio album by Nick Carter
Released	October 29, 2002 (US)
Recorded	February[1]-September 2002[2]
Genre	Pop, pop rock
Length	43:42
Label	Jive
Producer	Per Aldeheim, Martin Brammer, Gary Clark, Matthew Gerrard, Steve Mac, Max Martin, The Matrix, Rami, Josh Schwartz, Mark Taylor, Brian Kierulf
Nick Carter chronology
Before the Backstreet Boys 1989–1993 (2002) Now or Never (2002) I'm Taking Off (2011)
Singles from Now or Never
"Help Me" Released: June 24, 2002 "Do I Have to Cry for You" Released: August 2002 "I Got You" Released: February 14, 2003

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[3]
Entertainment Weekly	(C)[4]

Background

In 2002, when the Backstreet Boys expressed a strong desire to leave their management company, The Firm, Carter chose to remain with them to manage his solo career. As the group began recording their new album without him, he started working on his first solo album.[8] Now or Never was released on October 29, 2002, and it reached No. 17 on Billboard 200 and was certified gold, both in the United States and Canada. The lead single, "Help Me" achieved considerable worldwide success while the other single, "I Got You" was a minor hit in Europe. The album made the charts in many countries as well. He also launched a worldwide tour in support of the album.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Help Me"	Matthew Gerrard • Michele Vice-Maslin	Matthew Gerrard	3:09
2.	"My Confession"	Nick Carter • Gary Clark • Martin Brammer	Gary Clark • Martin Brammer	3:50
3.	"I Stand for You"	Carter • Brian Kierulf • Josh Schwartz	Brian Kierulf • Josh Schwartz	3:07
4.	"Do I Have to Cry for You"	Carter • Kierulf • Schwartz	Brian Kierulf • Josh Schwartz	3:37
5.	"Girls in the USA" (featuring Mr. Vegas)	Carter • Kierulf • Schwartz	Steve Mac	4:07
6.	"I Got You"	Max Martin • Rami Yacoub	Max Martin • Rami Yacoub	3:57
7.	"Is It Saturday Yet?"	Carter • Clark • Brammer • Stephen Lunt	Gary Clark • Martin Brammer	3:14
8.	"Blow Your Mind"	Martin • Yacoub • Per Aldeheim	Max Martin • Rami Yacoub • Per Aldeheim	3:34
9.	"Miss America"	Anna-Lena Gibson • Mark Taylor • Steve Lee	Mark Taylor	3:55
10.	"I Just Wanna Take You Home"	Martin • Yacoub • Aldeheim	Max Martin • Rami Yacoub • Aldeheim	2:55
11.	"Heart Without a Home (I'll Be Yours)"	Steve Mac • Wayne Hector	Steve Mac	4:46
12.	"Who Needs the World"	Charlie Midnight • Graham Edwards • Lauren Christy • Scott Spock	The Matrix	3:30

International bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Scandalicious"	Carter • Daniel Gibson • Douglas Carr • Julius Bengtsson	Douglas Carr	2:54
14.	"End of Forever"	Carter • Guy Chambers	Guy Chambers • Steve Power	3:48

Japanese bonus tracks

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
13.	"Scandalicious"	Carter • Daniel Gibson • Douglas Carr • Julius Bengtsson	Douglas Carr	2:54
14.	"Forever Rebel"	Carter • Wayne Johnson • Phil Thornalley	Phil Thornalley	3:48

Special edition bonus DVD

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Nick at the Beach"
2.	"Nick Classic Car Interview"
3.	"Nick in Stockholm"
4.	"Weblink"

Personnel

Credits for Now or Never adapted from AllMusic.[9]

• Per Aldeheim – engineer, guitar, guitar engineer, producer
• Alex G. – digital editing
• Dave Arch – string arrangements
• Keith B. Armstrong – mixing assistant
• Elan Bongiorno – make-up
• Martin Brammer – engineer, mixing, Pro Tools, producer, programming, vocals (background)
• Michael Brauer – mixing
• Nick Carter – illustrations, vocals (background)
• Alison Clark – vocals (background)
• Gary Clark – bass, engineer, guitar, keyboards, mixing, Pro Tools, producer, programming, vocals (background)
• Tom Coyne – mastering
• Michelle John Douglas – vocals (background)
• Geoff Dugmore – drums
• Rickard Evensand – drums
• Nick Friend – assistant
• Elisa Garcia – art direction, design
• Paul Gendler – guitar
• Matthew Gerrard – arranger, engineer, instrumentation, producer, programming, vocal arrangement
• Stefan Glaumann – mixing
• Steve Harvey – percussion
• Wayne Hector – vocals (background)
• Peter Kahm – bass
• Fridrik Karlsson – guitar
• Brian Kierulf – engineer
• Peter Kvint – guitar
• Chris Laws – drums, engineer
• Steve Lee – guitar (acoustic), vocals (background)
• Chris Lord-Alge – mixing
• Steve Lunt - A&R, composer
• Steve Mac – arranger, keyboards, mixing, producer
• Anthony Mandler – photography
• Max Martin – engineer, mixing, producer, vocal engineer, vocals (background)
• The Matrix – arranger, engineer, mixing, producer
• Pablo Munguia – vocal engineer
• Jackie Murphy – art direction
• Esbjörn Öhrwall – guitar
• Steve Pearce – bass
• Adam Phillips – guitar (electric)
• Daniel Pursey – assistant engineer, percussion
• Rami – engineer, mixing, producer
• Cesar Ramirez – assistant engineer, assistant vocal engineer
• Brandy St. John – stylist
• Christian Saint Val – assistant engineer
• Sank – engineer
• Andrew Scarth – engineer
• José Carlos Schwartz – bass, engineer, producer, vocals (background)
• Mark Taylor – engineer, mixing, producer
• Matt Tryggestad – vocal arrangement
• Michael Tucker – engineer
• Jeff Vereb – assistant engineer
• Jong Uk Yoon – assistant engineer

Charts

Chart (2002)	Peak position
Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria Top 75)[10]	66
Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[10]	41
German Albums (Media Control)[10]	25
Italian Albums (FIMI)[10]	44
Japanese Albums (Oricon)[11]	4
Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[12]	25
Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[10]	41
Swiss Albums (Swiss Hitparade)[10]	85
UK Albums (OCC)[13]	91
US Albums (Billboard)[14]	17

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[15]	Gold	50,000^^
Japan (RIAJ)[16]	Gold[17]	100,000^^
United States (RIAA)[6]	Gold	500,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

1. "Nick Carter Talks Plea Bargain, Solo Stuff & Backstreet". popdirt.com. 2002-02-25. Retrieved 2011-11-27.
2. "Nick Carter Said Backstreet Boys Had Become Boring". popdirt.com. 2002-09-24. Retrieved 2011-11-27.
3. Now or Never at AllMusic
4. David Browne (2002-10-28). "Now or Never Review | Music Reviews and News". EW.com. Retrieved 2011-11-27.
5. allmusic.com - Now or Never > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums
6. "American album certifications – Nick Carter – Now or Never". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
7. allmusic.com - Now or Never > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles
8. Strauss, Neil (August 18, 2002). "MUSIC; The Lost Boys: How a Pop Sensation Came Undone". New York Times. Retrieved August 24, 2012.
9. "Now or never – Credits". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved 2011-08-23.
10. Steffen Hung. "Nick Carter - Now Or Never". hitparade.ch. Retrieved 2011-11-27.
11. "ニック・カーターのリリース一覧" [A Look at Nick Carter's Releases]. Oricon. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
12. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
13. "Nick Carter Chart History Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 2016-01-17.
14. Now or Never at AllMusic
15. "Canadian album certifications – Nick Carter – Now or Never". Music Canada.
16. "Japanese album certifications – Nick Carter – Now or Never" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved January 17, 2014.
17. "GOLD ALBUM 他認定作品 2002年10月度" [Gold Albums, and other certified works. October 2002 Edition] (PDF). The Record (Bulletin) (in Japanese). Chūō, Tokyo: Recording Industry Association of Japan. 517: 10. December 10, 2002. Archived from the original (PDF) on February 24, 2012. Retrieved January 17, 2014.