by: Betsy Powell (pop music critic)

Hanson have earned the respect of jaded pop music critics

If you listen to the chatter on the Citizens for a Hanson Free America website, the ultra-wholesome all-brother trio from Tulsa, Okla., is avirus that needs to be stamped out.

"How do you save a drowning Hanson?" goes one of the tamer jokes. "Take your foot off his head."

What is it about these three blond, cute and very young--drummer Zac is only 12--pop sensations that brings up so much bile?

It may be their milk ad image--that they were actually in onesporting white moustaches doesn't help. Or their phenomenal success: their 1997 major label debut, MIDDLE OF NOWHERE, has sold 10 million copies worldwide (500,000 in Canada) fuelled by the success of singles "MMMBop," "Where's the Love," and "Weird." But unlike so many acts labelled bubblegum, Hanson can't be dismissed as a packaged-for-success no-talents. Quite the contrary.

Nor are they just another manufactured group like the ones they are usually lumped in with; Spice Girls, 'N Sync and Backstreet Boys.

What is apparent both in their recordings and live appearances (they're playing to a sellout crowd of 16,000 at the Molson Amphitheatre tomorrow night) is that despite their tender years the Hanson boys are the real thing who have even earned the respect of jaded pop music critics.

"MMMBop isn't some romper-rock novelty. It's fully realized pop that just happens to be sung by kids," ENTERTAINMENT WEEKLY wrote a while back. New York Times critic Neil Strauss roundly agreed. "The Spice Girls can be defended only on pop culture terms...Hanson, however, apart from its image and success, can be defended on purely musical grounds."

For the uninitiated, here is the Hanson debate, point/counterpoint:

HANSON is the latest in a string of pre-fab groups molded by an entertainment machine to attract millions of pre-pubescent fans.

Isaac, 17, Taylor, 15, and Zac, reared on a diet of '50s and '60s rock and soul, played barbecues, amusement parks and sang harmonies on Tulsa street corners and released two home-made CDs before they were discovered. They also play their own instruments.

YES, but on Middle of Nowhere the boys co-wrote nine out of 13 songs with professional songwriters. The label also enlisted notable producers, The Dust Brothers (Beck's co-producers, Beastie Boys) and Steve Lironi (Black Grape).

The Beatles didn't have help? (George Martin) Not to mention Hanson's label, Mercury, recently released THREE CAR GARAGE, a collection of songs from their first two CDs that demonstrates their talent for crafting sweet and catchy hooks and a natural ability to harmonize. Included on the disc is an embryonic version of "MMMBop" recorded long before big-name producers and record company entered the picture. The before and after versions sound almost identical, save for scratching, better musical support and studio polish.

THEIR lyrics are meaningless, the songs sophomoric. Singing "MMMBop" repetitively is annoying and stupid.

And songs like "Push It," (Garbage) or "Glycerine" (Bush) have some deep contextual meaning? The trio displays a flair for writing simple and direct lyrics about loss and the unpredictability of life. They also deliver their words with conviction, enthusiasm and spirit. "We have to change our point of view, if we want a sky of blue," Taylor sings in "Where's The Love."

HANSON jumped on the pop bandwagon. They are Jackson Five clones for the '90s.

Grunge, not Hanson's tuneful pop, ruled the music charts when the group played its first professional gig at a Tulsa music festival in 1992. Jackson Five comparisons are well deserved. The music is similarily bouncy and Taylor's soulful, upper-register delivery early Michael Jacksonesque. So what. What musical group hasn't borrowed from the past?

ALL this wholesomeness and goodness won't last. And wait until the egos kick in.

In that case someone forgot to tell Isaac who was recently interviewed by Reuters news agency. "Frankly, I think we're just pretty much average guys who got lucky."