All Saints (All Saints album)

All Saints is the debut studio album by English-Canadian girl group All Saints. It was released on 15 October 1997 by London Records. All Saints worked with many producers on the album: Cameron McVey, John Benson, Johnny Douglas, Karl "K-Gee" Gordon, Magnus Fiennes, Nellee Hooper, Karen Gibbs and Neville Henry.[1]

All Saints
Studio album by All Saints
Released	15 October 1997
Recorded	1997
Studio	Metropolis Studios
Genre	R&B pop
Length	60:45
Label	London Records
Producer	Cameron McVey Magnus Fiennes Karl "K-Gee" Gordon John Benson Johnny Douglas Nellee Hooper Neville Henry Karen Gibbs
All Saints chronology
All Saints (1997) The Remix Album (1998)
Singles from All Saints
"I Know Where It's At" Released: 18 August 1997 "Never Ever" Released: 10 November 1997 "Under the Bridge" / "Lady Marmalade" Released: 27 April 1998 "Bootie Call" Released: 31 August 1998 "War of Nerves" Released: 23 November 1998

Upon its release, the album received mixed reviews from music critics, some of whom praised the choice of singles and the group's musical direction. The album spawned three number-one singles in the United Kingdom: "Never Ever", the double A-side "Under the Bridge" and "Lady Marmalade", and "Bootie Call", as well as "I Know Where It's At" (#4) and "War of Nerves" (#7).

Critical reception

All Saints received mixed reviews from music critics, some of whom spoke favorably of the choice of singles and the group's musical direction, while others did not enjoy the music direction, and felt they lacked personality. Nick Butler of Sputnikmusic gave it a positive review, awarding it five stars out of five. He felt that the musical direction and sound "had aged well," and praised the group's creativity, as he stated they were "considered the credible alternative to the Spice Girls."[2] He stated, "I still enjoy the singles a lot when I hear them, if there was ever a war between the two groups, All Saints won it."[2]

Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic did not rate the album, but gave it a mixed review. In comparison to the Spice Girls, he felt All Saints lacked "personality," but was more charitable regarding their music direction, saying, "All four members have better voices than the Spices, and they all have a hand in writing at least one of the songs on their eponymous debut. ... More importantly, they and their producers have a better sense of contemporary dance trends—there are real hip-hop and club rhythms throughout the record."[3] He highlighted "Never Ever", "I Know Where It's At," and "Lady Marmalade" as the album's best tracks.

Chart performance

In the United Kingdom the album debuted at number twelve for the week beginning 6 December 1997, before progressing to a peak of number two on 17 January 1998, where it remained for three consecutive weeks. It spent a total of 66 weeks on the chart.[4] As of April 2016, the album has sold 1,469,771 copies in the United Kingdom.[5]

It peaked within the top forty in numerous countries, and reached the top ten in Switzerland, Australia, New Zealand, Netherlands, and Canada. The album was certified Platinum in the United States for shipments of over 1 million units.[6]

Singles

• "I Know Where It's At" was the group's first single. It was written by member Shaznay Lewis along with usual writing partner Karl Gordon, and contained a sample of Steely Dan's "The Fez." It was released on 18 August 1997. Commercially, the song proved to be a success worldwide, peaking in the top twenty in Canada, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia (where it was certified Gold), Ireland, and France. A music video was also shot, which featured the group in an urban setting.
• Their second single was "Never Ever." Written by Lewis and the song's producer, Sean Mather, it was released on 10 November 1997. The song remains the group's most successful and memorable hit, peaking at number one in Australia, New Zealand and United Kingdom, and achieving top-ten status in Ireland, Sweden, Canada, The Netherlands, France, Switzerland, Norway, and Austria. The song also peaked at number four on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, becoming the group's highest peaking single in that country.
• "Under the Bridge" and "Lady Marmalade, a double A-side single, was released. Although both songs are cover versions, they remain unique because each is lyrically altered from the original. They were released on 27 April 1998. "Under the Bridge" itself managed to chart in the top twenty in the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, New Zealand, Finland, and Sweden. "Lady Marmalade" charted as a single in Switzerland and France, but did not perform as well as the conjoined single.
• Their fourth single was "Bootie Call," released on 31 August 1998 in European countries only. It was the group's third consecutive number one in the United Kingdom, also charting in Belgium, Ireland, The Netherlands, and Sweden. A music video was also shot for the single.
• The group's fifth and final single was "War of Nerves." It was originally slated for release only in the United Kingdom on 23 November 1998, but was then released in New Zealand as well. While not as successful as its foregoing single releases, it did chart in New Zealand, Ireland, and the United Kingdom. A music video was shot, during which group member Melanie Blatt was pregnant.

Promotional singles

The song "Let's Get Started" was released in 1995 with only members Melanie Blatt and Shaznay Lewis, under the name All Saints 1.9.7.5. However, when the group welcomed sisters Nicole Appleton and Natalie Appleton, they renamed the group All Saints, and the title of the song was altered to "If You Wanna Party (I Found Lovin')," and featured on the album. The song was then re-recorded with the Appleton sisters, and was re-released in Japan only, in 1997. A music video was shot, which was exclusive to Japan.

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Never Ever"	Shaznay Lewis ⋅ Sean Mather ⋅ Robert Jazayeri	Cameron McVey ⋅ Magnus Fiennes	6:25
2.	"Bootie Call"	Lewis ⋅ Karl (K-Gee) Gordon	Gordon	3:36
3.	"I Know Where It's At" (original mix)	Lewis ⋅ Gordon ⋅ Walter Becker ⋅ Donald Fagen ⋅ Paul Griffin	McVey ⋅ Fiennes ⋅ Gordon	5:14
4.	"Under the Bridge"	Flea ⋅ John Frusciante ⋅ Anthony Kiedis ⋅ Chad Smith	Gordon ⋅ Nellee Hooper	4:59
5.	"Heaven"	All Saints ⋅ McVey ⋅ Fiennes	McVey ⋅ Fiennes	4:55
6.	"Alone"	Lewis ⋅ Gordon	Gordon	3:31
7.	"If You Wanna Party (I Found Lovin')"	Lewis ⋅ Gordon ⋅ Johnny Flippin ⋅ Michael Walker	Johnny Douglas	4:20
8.	"Trapped"	Melanie Blatt ⋅ Karen Gibbs	John Benson ⋅ Neville Henry	4:41
9.	"Beg"	Lewis ⋅ Benson ⋅ Douglas	Benson ⋅ Douglas	4:00
10.	"Lady Marmalade"	Bob Crewe ⋅ Kenny Nolan	Benson ⋅ Douglas ⋅ Gibbs ⋅ Henry	4:16
11.	"Take the Key"	Lewis ⋅ Gordon ⋅ Kirk Robinson ⋅ Nat Robinson	Gordon	4:14
12.	"War of Nerves"	Natalie Appleton ⋅ Nicole Appleton ⋅ McVey ⋅ Fiennes ⋅ Lewis	McVey ⋅ Fiennes	5:23
13.	"Never Ever" (Nice Hat Mix)	Lewis ⋅ Mather ⋅ Jazayeri	McVey ⋅ Fiennes ⋅ K-Gee Gordon (remixer)	5:12

Japanese edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"I Know Where It's At"			5:02
2.	"Bootie Call"			3:59
3.	"Never Ever" (radio edit)			5:13
4.	"Beg"			4:00
5.	"Under the Bridge" (original mix, different from the single/UK album version)			5:34
6.	"Gotta Get Busy" (aka "Get Bizzy", "Lady Marmalade" B-side)	Lewis ⋅ Gordon	Gordon	3:35
7.	"Heaven"			4:42
8.	"No More Lies" ("Under the Bridge" B-side)	Lewis ⋅ Gordon	Gordon	4:14
9.	"I Remember" ("Never Ever" B-side)	Lewis ⋅ Gordon	Gordon	4:06
10.	"Let's Get Started"			4:22
11.	"Trapped"			4:30
12.	"Take the Key"			4:12

Charts and certifications

Charts Chart (1997–98) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[7] 4 Austrian Albums (Ö3)[8] 15 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[9] 5 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[10] 9 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[11] 10 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[12] 7 Dutch Albums (MegaCharts)[13] 10 Finnish Albums (Suomen virallinen lista)[14] 24 French Albums (SNEP)[15] 19 German Albums (Media Control)[16] 12 Hungarian Albums (MAHASZ)[17] 22 Icelandic Albums (Tonlist)[18] 1 Irish Albums (IRMA)[19] 3 Italian Albums (FIMI)[20] 9 Japanese Albums (Oricon)[21] 65 Malaysian Albums (IFPI)[22] 9 New Zealand Albums (RIANZ)[23] 2 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[24] 12 Scottish Albums (OCC)[25] 2 Spanish Albums (PROMUSICAE)[26] 20 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[27] 13 Swiss Albums (Hitparade)[28] 3 Taiwanese Albums (IFPI)[29] 9 UK Albums (OCC)[25] 2 US Billboard 200[30] 40 Year-end charts Chart (1998) Position German Albums Chart[31] 83

Certifications and sales Region Certification Certified units/sales Australia (ARIA)[32] 2× Platinum 140,000^^ Belgium (BEA)[33] Gold 25,000^* Canada (Music Canada)[34] 3× Platinum 300,000^^ France — 200,000[35] Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[36] Gold 10,000^* Netherlands (NVPI)[37] Gold 50,000^^ New Zealand (RMNZ)[38] Platinum 15,000^^ Philippines — 140,000[39] Poland (ZPAV)[40] Gold 50,000^* Spain (PROMUSICAE)[41] Platinum 100,000^^ Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[42] Platinum 50,000^^ Taiwan (RIT)[43] Gold 25,000 United Kingdom (BPI)[44] 5× Platinum 1,469,771[5] United States (RIAA)[45] Platinum 1,200,000[46] Summaries Europe (IFPI)[47] 2× Platinum 2,000,000^* ^*sales figures based on certification alone ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

References

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3. All Saints – All Saints Review www.allmusic.com.
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5. Jones, Alan (15 April 2016). "Official Charts Analysis: The Lumineers' second album, Cleopatra debuts at No.1". Music Week. Intent Media. Retrieved 15 April 2016.
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17. "Top 40 album-, DVD- és válogatáslemez-lista – 1998. 15. hét" (in Hungarian). MAHASZ. Retrieved 6 June 2015.
18. "Tonlist Top 40". DV. Retrieved 9 February 2017.
19. "Hits of the World: February 14, 1998 (Pages 67)". Billboard. Billboard Magazine. 14 February 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
20. "Hits of the World: March 28, 1998 (Pages 60)". Billboard. Billboard Magazine. 28 March 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
21. Oricon Album Chart Book: Complete Edition 1970-2005. Roppongi, Tokyo: Oricon Entertainment. 2006. ISBN 4-87131-077-9.
22. "Hits of the World May 09, 1998 (Pages 58)". Billboard. Billboard Magazine. 9 May 1998. Retrieved 22 May 2013.
23. "New Zealand Charts > All Saints". charts.nz Hung Medien. Retrieved 30 August 2008.
24. NorwegianCharts.com All Saints page. Accessed 29 October 2006
25. "UK Charts > All Saints". Official Charts Company. Archived from the original on 15 June 2011. Retrieved 30 August 2010.
26. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
27. "Swedish Charts > All Saints". Retrieved 30 August 2010.
28. "Swiss Charts > All Saints" (in German). Retrieved 30 August 2010.
29. "Taiwan Albums Chart". March 1998. Archived from the original on 21 October 1999. Retrieved 18 June 2017.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link)
30. "All Saints > US album Charts". Retrieved 30 August 2010.
31. "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 8 September 2016.
32. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1998 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
33. "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – albums 1998". Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
34. "Canadian album certifications – All Saints – All Saints". Music Canada. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
35. Caulfield, Keith. "BRITS Big Scores Abroad". Billboard Nielsen Business Media. Retrieved 9 April 2015.
36. "International Platinum Disc". IFPI Hong Kong. Archived from the original on 6 February 2012. Retrieved 31 January 2014.
37. "Dutch album certifications – All Saints – All Saints" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 28 September 2011. Enter All Saints in the "Artiest of titel" box.
38. "Top 50 Albums Chart, 03 May 1998". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
39. Gonzales, David (17 April 1999). "Filipino Labels Expand Marketing". Billboard. p. 77. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
40. "Polish album certifications – All Saints – All Saints" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
41. "Solo Exitos 1959-2002 Ano A Ano: Certificados 1996-1999". Solo Exitos 1959-2002 Ano A Ano.
42. "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (All Saints; 'All Saints')". IFPI Switzerland. Hung Medien. Retrieved 28 September 2011.
43. "IFPI Taiwan | 1998". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Archived from the original on 5 December 1998. Retrieved 17 June 2017.
44. "British album certifications – All Saints – All Saints". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 28 September 2011. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type All Saints in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
45. "American album certifications – All Saints – All Saints". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 28 September 2011. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
46. Sexton, Paul (18 November 2006). Back for Good? Take That, All Saints Return To Records Shops. Billboard. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
47. "IFPI Platinum Europe Awards – 1998". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 28 September 2011.

External links

• Official site