Richard Paul Astley is an English singer, radio DJ and podcaster. He gained fame through his association with the production trio Stock Aitken Waterman, releasing the 1987 album Whenever You Need Somebody, which sold 15 million copies worldwide and was certified Platinum by both the BPI and the RIAA. His debut single "Never Gonna Give You Up" was a No. 1 hit in over 25 countries, winning the 1988 Brit Award for Best British Single. The song also stayed at the top of the UK chart for five weeks in 1987 and was the best-selling single of that year. His 1988 single "Together Forever" also topped the US Billboard Hot 100 and was one of his eight songs to reach the UK Singles Chart Top 10.
"When I Fall in Love" is a popular song, written by Victor Young (music) and Edward Heyman (lyrics). It was introduced in Howard Hughes' last film One Minute to Zero as the instrumental titled "Theme from One Minute to Zero". Jeri Southern sang on the first vocal recording released in April 1952 with the song's composer, Victor Young, handling the arranging and conducting duties. The song has become a standard, with many artists recording it; the first hit version was sung by Doris Day released in July 1952.
Climie Fisher were a British pop duo formed by vocalist Simon Climie and former Naked Eyes keyboardist Rob Fisher. In 1987–88, they had two international hit singles: "Rise to the Occasion" and "Love Changes (Everything)".
"Never Gonna Give You Up" is a pop song by English singer Rick Astley, released on 27 July 1987. The song is widely regarded as Astley's most popular, as well as his signature song, and it is often played at the end of his live concerts. Written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, it was released by RCA Records as the first single from Astley's debut studio album, Whenever You Need Somebody (1987), with a music video directed by Simon West.
"Together Forever" is a song recorded by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley and released by RCA and BMG as the fourth single from his debut album, Whenever You Need Somebody (1987). The song reached number two in the United Kingdom, behind Neighbours star and fellow Stock Aitken Waterman artist Kylie Minogue's debut single "I Should Be So Lucky". The single was a worldwide hit, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on 18 June 1988, becoming Astley's second US chart-topper. It also topped the charts in Canada, Ireland and Spain, and was a top ten hits in many European countries.
Lament is the seventh studio album by British new wave band Ultravox, released on 6 April 1984 by Chrysalis Records. It was the last album featuring original drummer Warren Cann until the band's reunion album Brilliant in 2012. The album peaked at number eight on the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on 8 June 1984 for shipments of 100,000 copies. It also reached number 25 in Germany and number 115 in the United States.
"Whenever You Need Somebody" is a song written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, which became successful for two of their artists, namely O'Chi Brown and Rick Astley.
Rickrolling or a Rickroll is an Internet meme involving the unexpected appearance of the music video to the 1987 hit song "Never Gonna Give You Up", performed by English singer Rick Astley. The aforementioned video has over 1.5 billion views on YouTube. The meme is a type of bait and switch, usually using a disguised hyperlink that leads to the music video. When one clicks on a seemingly unrelated link, the site with the music video loads instead of what was expected, and they have been "Rickrolled". The meme has also extended to using the song's lyrics, or singing it, in unexpected contexts. Astley himself has also been Rickrolled on several occasions.
Hold Me in Your Arms is the second studio album by English singer Rick Astley, released on 26 November 1988 by RCA Records. It is the follow-up to his successful debut album Whenever You Need Somebody, and was his last album produced and written with the Stock Aitken Waterman team. It helped to continue Astley's commercial success, with it achieving Platinum and Gold certifications worldwide and three of the five singles from the album becoming Top 10 hits in the United Kingdom.
Greatest Hits is a compilation by English singer Rick Astley released in the UK in 2002 and in the US a year later. While the American version features alternate mixes focused between 1987 and 1991, the European version features hits up to his 2002 album Keep It Turned On. It sold over 100,000 copies in the UK and was certified gold by the BPI. The UK release saw the debut appearance of Astley's 2001 single "Sleeping", thus making it a brand-new track for listeners.
The discography of English singer and songwriter Rick Astley consists of nine studio albums, five compilation albums, two remix albums, and twenty-four singles.
Body & Soul is the fourth studio album by English singer Rick Astley released in 1993. It was not commercially successful and became the first album released by Astley to miss the UK album chart. It did enter the Italian album chart at #28. Two singles were released to support the album, "Hopelessly" which charted in the UK at #33 followed by "The Ones You Love" which peaked at #48.
"Cry for Help" is a song by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley, released as the first single from his third studio album, Free (1991). It was written by Astley and Rob Fisher, formerly one half of the 1980s pop outfits Naked Eyes and Climie Fisher. The Andraé Crouch Choir provided backing vocals. The song is a ballad, unlike Astley's earlier dance-oriented hit singles.
"Take Me to Your Heart" is a 1988 song recorded by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley. Written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, the song was released the same year as the second single from the album, Hold Me in Your Arms. Not released in North America, it was a success on the UK Singles Chart where it peaked at number 8 and was also a top ten and a top 20 in many European other countries. Celebrating the announcement of the Hold Me in Your Arms remastered edition studio album, the music video has been upgraded to 4K as of 14 April 2023. The single was also reissued as a digital EP on the same day.
"Giving Up on Love" is a song written and recorded by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley. It was produced by Daize Washbourn with Astley. The song was recorded for Astley's second album, Hold Me in Your Arms. The single peaked at number 38 in US Billboard charts. Never released as a single in the UK, this North American-only single was issued just prior to Astley's US tour. Celebrating the announcement of the Hold Me in Your Arms remastered edition studio album, the music video has been upgraded to 4K as of 28 April 2023. The single was also reissued as a digital EP on the same day.
"Hopelessly" is a pop song performed by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley and written by Rob Fisher and Astley. It was produced by Gary Stevenson and Astley. The song was recorded for Astley's fourth album, Body & Soul (1993). It was released as the album's second and first single on 3 April 1993 by RCA Records. The single peaked at number 33 on the UK Singles Chart, number 28 in the US and at number eight in Canada. It is still a recurrent play on most North America hot AC stations, given the fact that it was a hit single in that format. It was featured on the compilation Reflections of Love.
"Move Right Out" is a pop soul song performed by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley and written by Astley and Rob Fisher. It was produced by Gary Stevenson and Astley. The song was recorded for Astley's third album, Free, his first album without Stock Aitken Waterman companion. It was released as the album's second single on 25 March 1991 by RCA Records. The single peaked at number 58 on the UK Singles Chart. The song is written in the key of G minor.
"Never Knew Love" is a pop song performed by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley and written by Derek Bordeaux and John Paul Taylor. It was produced by Gary Stevenson and Astley. The song was recorded for and included on Astley's third album, Free. It was released on 17 June 1991 and peaked at number 70 on the UK Singles Chart.
"The Ones You Love" is a song performed by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley, written by Astley and Dave West. It was produced by Gary Stevenson and Astley, and recorded for Astley's third album, Body & Soul (1993). The song was released as the album's final single on 23 August 1993 by RCA Records and peaked at number 48 on the UK Singles Chart. After its release, Astley retired from music, and "The Ones You Love" served as his final single until the release of "Sleeping" in October 2001.
"She Wants to Dance with Me" is a song written and recorded by English singer-songwriter Rick Astley, released as the lead single from his second studio album, Hold Me in Your Arms (1988). The song was released in United Kingdom on September 12, 1988 by RCA, and became an international success, peaking in the top ten in many countries, including Canada, where it topped the chart, and the US and the UK, where it reached number six. In 2019, Astley recorded and released a "reimagined" version of the song for his album The Best of Me.
