#3 | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | September 2004 | |||
Recorded | 1993–1996 [1] | |||
Genre | Indie pop, alternative rock, britpop, glam rock, gothic rock | |||
Label | SF | |||
Producer | Siobhan Fahey, David A. Stewart, Alan Moulder, Flood, Andy Wright | |||
Shakespears Sister chronology | ||||
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Singles from #3 | ||||
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#3 is the third studio album released by British pop-rock music project Shakespears Sister, and the first to be released since the departure of Marcella Detroit in 1993. Originally scheduled for release in 1996, the album was shelved after the project's sole member, Siobhan Fahey, was dropped by London Records. London Records eventually gave the full rights of the album to Fahey in 2004, and the album was released through her website. Musically, #3 is a departure from the project's more pop-oriented previous albums, featuring a more rock and alternative-influenced sound. The album artwork was designed by Sarah Lucas, and in 2011, a two-disc expanded edition was released through major retailers. [2] The album spawned the top 30 single, "I Can Drive".
After the departure of Marcella Detroit in 1993, Fahey continued as Shakespears Sister's sole member and began work on #3 in the same year with Robert Hodgens and Dave Stewart. [1] After the mediocre performance of the album's lead single, Fahey was dropped from London Records in 1997. [1] #3 was not released until 2004, independently through Fahey's website. Fahey spoke on the circumstances surrounding the album's release in an interview: [3]
"I tried to fight for [#3] but you cannot win against the giants. I managed to get it through the back door and somehow, miraculously, they put pen to paper and gave it back. It was just sitting there on the shelf and someone said: 'Oh, give her back her record. She just wants to release it to the fans.' It's now out in its original form and features a duet with Billy Mackenzie [of The Associates]. That was the last thing he recorded before he died."
Fahey has stated she was not dropped because of the lacklustre performance of "I Can Drive", but due to her label thinking the album to be "too alternative for a woman of [my] age". [3] The album was released through major retailers in November 2012, in a new "Expanded Edition" of the album, featuring unreleased tracks, B-sides, and remixes. [2] The album cover, featuring a cut-out of Fahey sitting in a room with a tiled carpet and a wall made of newspaper articles, differed slightly between releases. The physical edition featured the artist and album titles written on the wall behind her, whilst the digital edition did not. Both the physical and digital editions of the Expanded Edition had the original titles and "Expanded Edition" written on the wall.
The album's lead single, "I Can Drive" was released in June 1996 to a modest commercial reception, peaking at No. 30 on the UK Singles Chart. [4] The single was not released internationally. [1] Following this, Shakespears Sister were dropped from London Records, making it their last release with the label. In September 2011, "Do I Scare You?" was released as a special promotional single exclusively through Shakespears Sister's website. [5]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "Go" | Siobhan Fahey, David A. Stewart, Robert Hodgens | 3:40 |
2. | "I Can Drive" | Fahey, Stewart, Hodgens | 4:05 |
3. | "Do I Scare You?" (with Billy Mackenzie) | Fahey, Hodgens | 4:57 |
4. | "Opportunity Knockers" | Fahey, Sophie Muller | 4:49 |
5. | "Can U Wait That Long?" | Fahey, Stewart | 4:20 |
6. | "Oh Dear" | Fahey, Muller | 4:03 |
7. | "Excuse Me John" | Fahey, Hodgens | 4:44 |
8. | "The Older Sister" | Fahey, Muller | 2:59 |
9. | "Singles Party" | Fahey, Hodgens | 3:58 |
10. | "I Never Could Sing Anyway" | Fahey, Hodgens | 4:10 |
Total length: | 41:45 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
11. | "Oh No, It's Michael" | Fahey, Stewart | 5:08 |
12. | "Suddenly" | Fahey, Muller | 3:42 |
13. | "Hopeless" | S. Merritt/C. Ewen (Future Bible Heroes cover) | 3:30 |
14. | "Dial F for Freedom" | 3:56 | |
15. | "Waiting" | S. Fahey/Maguire | 4:29 |
16. | "The Poison Tree" | 1:22 | |
Total length: | 63:46 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
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1. | "I Can Drive" (Pull Down Your Pants Mix) | Fahey, Stewart, Hodgens | 6:32 |
2. | "I Can Drive" (Pull Down Your Pants Dub) | Fahey, Stewart, Hodgens | 6:06 |
3. | "I Can Drive" (Roger Weed Remix) | Fahey, Stewart, Hodgens | 8:01 |
4. | "I Never Could Sing Anyway" (extended version) | Fahey, Hodgens | 7:19 |
5. | "Do I Scare You" (alternative mix) | Fahey, Hodgens | 3:43 |
6. | "Do I Scare You" (extended mix) | Fahey, Hodgens | 6:09 |
7. | "Do I Scare You" (Indian Strings Mix) | Fahey, Hodgens | 5:02 |
8. | "Do I Scare You" (demo) | Fahey, Hodgens | 4:16 |
9. | "Boy in a Band" | 3:34 | |
10. | "Seventeen" | 3:07 | |
11. | "The Attic Song" (#3 demo version) | Fahey, Muller | 4:29 |
12. | "What's It Like to Be So Wonderful?" (#3 demo version) | Fahey, Muller | 3:33 |
13. | "After All" (#3 demo version) | Fahey, Muller | 2:38 |
14. | "Excuse Me John" (demo) | Fahey, Hodgens | 3:56 |
15. | "So Cold" | 5:16 | |
Total length: | 73:35 |
Region | Date | Format | Label | Edition(s) | Catalog |
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n/a [a] | September 2004 [6] | CD | SF Records | Standard edition | SFCD002 |
United Kingdom | 18 April 2005 | CD, digital download | |||
n/a [a] | 20 August 2011 | Expanded edition | SFCD2-02 | ||
United Kingdom | 5 November 2012 [7] | ||||
^ a Released exclusively thorough Fahey's website
Bananarama are an English pop duo from London, formed as a trio in 1980 by friends Sara Dallin, Siobhan Fahey and Keren Woodward. Fahey left the group in 1988 and was replaced by Jacquie O'Sullivan until 1991, when the trio became a duo. Their success on both pop and dance charts saw them listed in the Guinness World Records for achieving the world's highest number of chart entries by an all-female group. Between 1982 and 2009, they had 30 singles reach the Top 50 of the UK Singles Chart.
Siobhan Maire Fahey is an Irish singer whose vocal range is a light contralto. She was a founding member of the British/Irish girl group Bananarama, who have had ten top-10 hits including the US number one hit single "Venus". She later formed the Brit Award- and Ivor Novello Award-winning musical act Shakespears Sister, who had a UK number one hit with the 1992 single "Stay". Fahey joined the other original members of Bananarama for a 2017 UK tour, and, in 2018, a North America and Europe tour.
Marcella Levy, known professionally as Marcy Levy and Marcella Detroit, is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. She co-wrote the 1977 Eric Clapton hit "Lay Down Sally" and released her debut album Marcella in 1982. She joined Shakespears Sister in 1988 with ex-Bananarama member Siobhan Fahey. Their first two albums, Sacred Heart (1989), and Hormonally Yours (1992), both reached the top 10 of the UK Albums Chart. Detroit sang the lead vocals on their biggest hit, "Stay", which spent eight consecutive weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart in 1992. Detroit left the band in 1993 and had a UK top 20 hit with "I Believe" in 1994. She formed the Marcy Levy Band in 2002, and finished third in the 2010 ITV series Popstar to Operastar.
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"I Can Drive" is a song by UK pop act Shakespears Sister, released in June 1996 as the lead single from their third studio album #3. The song was co-written and produced by Fahey's then-husband David A. Stewart and featured the now prominent record producer/writer Jimmy Hogarth on guitar.
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Songs from the Red Room is the fourth studio album by British pop-rock project Shakespears Sister, released in November 2009 through SF Records.
The discography of UK-based pop-rock act Shakespears Sister consists of four studio albums, five compilation albums, one EP, and seventeen singles. Originally a solo act consisting of ex-Bananarama member Siobhan Fahey, it eventually evolved into a duo between Fahey and Marcella Detroit. They released their debut studio album Sacred Heart in 1989, which reached number 9 on the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold by the BPI. The album's lead single, double A Side "Break My Heart / Heroine" did not chart, the second single however, "You're History", reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart, and managed similar top 20 success internationally. Their next three singles, "Run Silent", "Dirty Mind", and "Goodbye Cruel World", all failed to peak within the UK top 50. The second single from Hormonally Yours, "Stay" was the group's first and only number 1, staying at the top position for 8 weeks. The song also reached number 1 in Ireland and Sweden, and peaked within the top 5 in several other territories. Hormonally Yours peaked at number 3 in the UK and was certified double platinum, and reached similar success in international territories. The fifth and final single from the album, "My 16th Apology", was not a commercial success due to both members being on hiatus at the time.
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Shakespears Sister is an alternative pop and rock musical duo based in the United Kingdom that was formed in 1988 by singer-songwriter Siobhan Fahey, a former member of Bananarama. Shakespears Sister was initially a solo act, but became a duo by 1989 with the addition of American musician Marcella Detroit. Together they released two top 10 albums and a string of top 40 hits, including the 1992 hit "Stay" which peaked at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart for eight consecutive weeks. Detroit was sacked from the band in 1993, leaving Fahey as the sole member again until she ended the project in 1996. After working under her own name for some years, Fahey revived the Shakespears Sister name in 2009. In 2019, Fahey and Detroit reunited as Shakespears Sister for a tour and released a single, "All the Queen's Horses", and the EP Ride Again.
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