Gareth Paul Gates is an English singer-songwriter and actor. He was the runner-up in the first series of the ITV talent show Pop Idol in 2002. As of 2008, Gates had sold over 3.5 million records in the UK. He is also known for having a stutter, and has talked about his speech impediment publicly. Gates used the McGuire Programme to manage his stutter and is now a speech coach with the programme.
"Unchained Melody" is a 1955 song with music by Alex North and lyrics by Hy Zaret. North wrote the music as a theme for the prison film Unchained (1955), hence the song title. Todd Duncan sang the vocals for the film soundtrack. It has since become a standard and one of the most recorded songs of the 20th century, most notably by the Righteous Brothers in 1965. According to the song's publishing administrator, over 1,500 recordings of "Unchained Melody" have been made by more than 670 artists, in multiple languages.
"Spirit in the Sky" is a song by American singer-songwriter Norman Greenbaum, originally written and recorded by Greenbaum and released in late 1969 from the album of the same name. The single became a gold record, selling two million copies from 1969 to 1970, and reached No. 3 on the US Billboard Hot 100 where it lasted for 15 weeks in the Top 100. Billboard ranked the record the No. 22 song of 1970. It also climbed to No. 1 on the UK, Australian and Canadian charts in 1970. Rolling Stone ranked "Spirit in the Sky" No. 333 on its list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time". Cover versions by Doctor and the Medics and Gareth Gates have also made the No. 1 spot in the UK.
Busted is the debut studio album by English pop punk band Busted. It was released in the UK in September 2002 and peaked at number 2 the following January after the success of second single "Year 3000", which reached number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. Five singles were released from the album: "What I Go to School For", "Year 3000", "You Said No", "Hurra, hurra, die Schule brennt" and "Sleeping with the Light On".
From Now On is the debut studio album by English recording artist Will Young. It was released by S Records on 7 October 2002, eight months after he won the first series of Pop Idol. The singer worked with a variety of writers and producers on the album, including Absolute, Cathy Dennis, Julian Gallagher, Stephen Lipson, Mike Peden, and Richard Stannard as well as Swedish musicians such as Jörgen Elofsson, David Kreuger, and Per Magnusson. Young co-wrote five songs on From Now On which also features a cover version of The Beatles' song "The Long and Winding Road," a duet with fellow Pop Idol finalist Gareth Gates.
"Anything Is Possible" is a song co-written by Chris Braide and Cathy Dennis for the winner of the first series of Pop Idol in the United Kingdom. Will Young won the competition and therefore released the song as his debut single, with production by Dennis and Oskar Paul. It debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, and has been certified 3× platinum by the British Phonographic Industry. It has since become the 14th best-selling single of all time in the UK, as well as the second best-selling UK single of the 21st century.
"Evergreen" is a song co-written by Jörgen Elofsson, Per Magnusson and David Kreuger, and originally recorded by Irish boy band Westlife. The song appears on their album World of Our Own (2001). It was composed in the traditional verse–chorus form in C major, with band members Shane Filan and Brian McFadden's vocal ranging from the chords of F#3 to B4.
What My Heart Wants to Say is the debut album from the runner-up of the first series of Pop Idol, Gareth Gates. The album was released on 26 October 2002, almost a year after his success on the show. The album was produced by a team of well-known producers, including Steve Mac, Jewels & Stone, Mike Peden and Cathy Dennis. The album features a range of Gates' own material, as well as covers of some of his favourite songs.
Go Your Own Way is the second studio album to have been released by British singer-songwriter and former Pop Idol runner-up, Gareth Gates. The album is essence split into two sections, with tracks one to ten representing "Night", and tracks eleven to nineteen "Day". In some regions, such as the United Kingdom and Europe, the two regions are split across in two discs; in other regions, the entire album is contained on one disc. The album is Gates' last release on the Sony BMG record label, as sales of Go Your Own Way were much lower than his first studio album, What My Heart Wants to Say, resulting in his record deal being terminated. Three singles were released from the album: "Spirit in the Sky", "Sunshine" and "Say It Isn't So".
"Anyone of Us (Stupid Mistake)" is the second single from English pop singer Gareth Gates' debut studio album, What My Heart Wants to Say (2002). It was written by Jörgen Elofsson, Per Magnusson, and David Kreuger and produced by Magnusson and Kreuger. The single was released on 8 July 2002, entering the UK Singles Chart at No. 1 and staying there for three weeks, going platinum for sales exceeding 600,000 copies. It was then released in mainland Europe in 2003, reaching No. 1 on the Dutch, Norwegian, and Swedish charts. The video for the single was filmed in Venice, Italy.
"Say It Isn't So" was the third and final single to be released from Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates' second studio album, Go Your Own Way (2003). The single was released on 1 December 2003, peaking at number four on the UK Singles Chart. The video for the song was shot in South Africa.
"Sunshine" is the second single released from Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates' second studio album, Go Your Own Way (2003). The single was released on 8 September 2003 and peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart. This was the second single from Gates that failed to reach the top spot. The promotional video was infamously available to vote to enter the MTV2 viewers chart despite the channel being entirely an alternative rock format. It gained under 10 votes and was included to vote on as a joke.
"Angel on My Shoulder" is the second and final single taken released from Pop Idol runner-up Gareth Gates' third studio album, Pictures of the Other Side. Gates describes the song as a song that "everyone can relate to in some way". He also points out that "lyrically, it talks about a figure in one's life who is there when things go wrong. It could be a partner, a friend or a relative". The single peaked at #22 on the UK Singles Chart and dropped out of the Top 40 the week after. Due to low sales of the album, and poor sales for his upcoming UK Tour, a third release from the album was cancelled and Gates was dropped from his record label.
The discography of English singer-songwriter Gareth Gates consists of three studio albums, nine singles, nine music videos and one live DVD. Gates rose to fame after appearing as a contestant on the first series of British television talent contest Pop Idol in 2002. After finishing as runner-up behind Will Young, Gates was given a recording contract with BMG and released his first single, a cover of "Unchained Melody", which was a number-one hit in the UK in March 2002. He went on to have three further number one singles in the UK Singles Chart and three albums that reached the top 30, including his debut album which reached number two in the UK Albums Chart.
"What My Heart Wants to Say" is the fourth single from English pop singer Gareth Gates' debut studio album of the same name. The song was written by Steve Mac and Jorgen Elofsson and produced by Mac. Upon its release on 9 December 2002, the single peaked at number five on the UK Singles Chart; it was Gates' first single not to reach the top spot in the UK.
Pop Idol was a British television talent show that ran for two series, in 2001 and 2003. The show was produced for ITV in a reality television format and aimed to unearth a previously undiscovered singer who could become an international success. Will Young was the winner of the first series and was awarded with a £1 million music recording contract. Young became the most successful contestant with a series of top-five hits, including his debut single "Anything Is Possible" / "Evergreen", which peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart in 2002 and broke chart sales figure records. During the next seven years he recorded two further number-one singles, while two of his four albums were number-one in the UK Albums Chart. In the second series, Michelle McManus emerged victorious. Her debut single "All This Time" charted at number one in January 2003. Her second single, "The Meaning of Love", charted at a peak of number 16 and an album of the same name reached number three in the UK Albums Chart.
The Hits is a greatest hits compilation album by British singer-songwriter Will Young. It was released on 16 November 2009. It contains twelve songs from Young's first four studio albums, From Now On (2002), Friday's Child (2003), Keep On (2005) and Let It Go (2008), plus two bonus tracks. The first is new single "Hopes & Fears", and the second is a ballad called "If It Hadn't Been for Love".
The Neon is the eighteenth studio album by English synth-pop duo Erasure, released on 21 August 2020 by Mute Records. The album debuted at number four on the UK Albums Chart with 8,394 copies sold in its first week.
