Praise (band)

Last updated

Praise were an English new-age music group formed in London in 1991, comprising Geoff MacCormack, Simon Goldenberg and Miriam Stockley. The group was considered to be foundational in the genre of ethnic electronica.

Praise released one self titled album in 1991, which was produced, engineered and mixed by Richard James Burgess. Praise combined European dance beats with a variety of traditional world samples and styles along with Miriam Stockley's vocals, in a manner that was continued by artists such as Enigma, Deep Forest and Adiemus (which also featured Stockley's vocals).

The tracks segue using soundscape elements, and the album was one of the few ever to be mixed using Qsound which provided virtual surround sound out of a pair of stereo speakers. MacCormack and Goldenberg arranged and performed many of the instrumental parts, the latter providing the necessary computer programming. Stockley arranged and performed the lead and many backing vocals.

All three have writing credits for Praise, and were supplemented by other specialised world performers. "Only You", the second track from Praise, was used for an advert for the Fiat Tempra. It was subsequently remixed by producers Andros Georgiou (second cousin of George Michael) and Pete Lorimer, and went on to become a hit single, peaking at number four on the UK Singles Chart. [1]

Stockley's vocals for this track were sampled extensively in the dance track of 2000, "Fiji" by Atlantis, which peaked at number 52 in the United Kingdom. [2] In the same year, they released the single "Dream On". Praise disbanded some time after Praise was released; Stockley went on to perform lead vocals on Karl Jenkins's Adiemus albums.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Utah Saints</span> English electronic music group

Utah Saints are an English electronic music duo consisting of members Jez Willis and Tim Garbutt. The band had three top-ten and another five top-40 singles on the UK Singles Chart in the 1990s, as well as number-one dance tracks in the UK and US. They were notable for pioneering use of sampling technology, in particular, their practice of manipulating samples from mainstream pop, rock, R&B and soul songs and combining them with contrasting dance beats, using the samples in a new context. The band wrote, produced and mixed all of their own music. The duo were joined on stage by additional musicians when they played live from 1991 to 2001. They were one of the first electronic groups to play as a live collective and supported both the Shamen and U2 live at 10 stadium shows. Since then the duo have performed live sets themselves.

Adiemus is a series of new-age music albums by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins. It is also the title of the opening track on the first album of the series, Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary, recorded in 1994 and released the next year.

<i>Free Yourself</i> (Fantasia album) 2004 studio album by Fantasia

Free Yourself is the debut studio album by American singer Fantasia, released by on November 23, 2004. After winning American Idol, Fantasia signed to J Records with 19 Entertainment and began recording her debut album, working with a variety of writers and producers, including Louis Biancaniello, Craig Brockman, Bryan-Michael Cox, Clive Davis, Jermaine Dupri, Missy Elliott, Sean Garrett, Jazze Pha, Darkchild, Harold Lilly, Ric Rude, Soulshock & Karlin, The Underdogs, Sam Watters and Nigel Wright.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">This Place Hotel</span> 1980 single by The Jacksons

"This Place Hotel" is a 1980 song by the Jacksons, written by Michael Jackson. While his brothers did not sing background vocals, they were credited with playing percussion on the album while brother Tito contributed a guitar solo. The song has a tempo of 98 beats per minute, making it notably slower than many of the other disco-based songs on the album. In the song, the protagonist speaks of a time when ten years ago, he took his girlfriend to a hotel for a romantic night—only to find out that it was designed specifically to break couples up. The staff at the hotel gave the girl the impression that he had cheated on her with someone else, something he did not do, which caused her to break up with him in the hotel.

<i>Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary</i> 1995 studio album by Adiemus, Karl Jenkins

Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary is the first album by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins, recorded in 1994 and released the next year as part of the Adiemus project. The title track "Adiemus" was used prior to the album's release in a 1994 Delta Air Lines television commercial.

<i>Radio Musicola</i> 1986 studio album by Nik Kershaw

Radio Musicola is the third studio album by the English singer-songwriter Nik Kershaw, released on 24 October 1986 by MCA Records, just under two years after Kershaw's previous studio album, The Riddle (1984). It was the first studio album to be produced by Kershaw. It features guest backing vocalists, including Icehouse's Iva Davies, and Night's Stevie Lange, and Miriam Stockley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Miriam Stockley</span> Musical artist

Miriam Arlene Stockley is a British singer. She was born in Johannesburg, South Africa, and her work is influenced by the African music of her home country. Her distinctive vocalise style gained international acclaim when Karl Jenkins launched the Adiemus project with Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary, with Stockley as the lead singer.

<i>Ciara: The Evolution</i> 2006 studio album by Ciara

Ciara: The Evolution is the second studio album by American singer Ciara, released on December 5, 2006, by LaFace Records. The album is separated into five sections, with each showcasing a different side of Ciara's artistry. The first features crunk&B and uptempo records, which mainly deal with feminine independence, while its successor, entitled The Evolution of Music features ballads dealing with the positives and struggles of love. The Evolution of Dance features dance tracks, The Evolution of Fashion deals with self-expression, while the last, entitled The Evolution of C, features tracks that discuss how Ciara has evolved as a person since the start of her career.

Talitha MacKenzie is a Scottish-American world music recording artist, and historical dance and music teacher and performer. Initially known as a vocalist in the original duo Mouth Music, she has maintained a solo career. Although most associated with Celtic and Gaelic music, she performs a wide range of early music and dance, as well as her own compositions.

<i>Cadavrexquis</i> 1993 studio album by Amanda Lear

Cadavrexquis is a studio album by French singer Amanda Lear, first released by Chène Music in 1993.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stand Back</span> 1983 single by Stevie Nicks

"Stand Back" is a song by American singer-songwriter Stevie Nicks from her second solo studio album The Wild Heart (1983). The song was released as the lead single from the album in May 1983 and reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Top Mainstream Rock Tracks chart in August of that year. "Stand Back" has been a staple in Nicks' live shows since its pre-album debut at the 1983 US Festival, and it has also been included in the Fleetwood Mac tour set lists since 1987.

<i>In Silico</i> (Pendulum album) 2008 studio album by Pendulum

In Silico is the second studio album by Australian drum and bass band Pendulum, released in Australia and Europe on 12 May 2008 by Warner Bros. Records and in the United States a day later by Atlantic Records. The album represents a change in sound for the band from their debut album Hold Your Colour away from drum and bass, incorporating more rock and electronic influences. The album peaked at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart on 18 May 2008. Singles from the album include "Granite", "Propane Nightmares", "The Other Side" and "Showdown". Mini discs of the song "The Tempest" were thrown out to the audience of the "Project Rev" live show.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Seven Cities (song)</span> 1999 single by Solarstone

"Seven Cities" is a musical single by Solarstone released in 1999 written and produced by Rich Mowatt and Andy Bury. The single is considered to be a Balearic trance anthem. The vocals for the 2002 re-release were co-written and performed by Elizabeth Fields. The original version contains a sample of a vocal by Miriam Stockley from the track Tintinnabulum by Adiemus.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wild (Namie Amuro song)</span> 2009 single by Namie Amuro

"Wild" is a song by Japanese singer Namie Amuro. It was released by Avex Trax on March 16, 2009, and serves as the lead single for her ninth studio album, Past<Future (2009). Furthermore, all physical and digital formats included the A-side titled "Dr.," which appears on the parent album. Amuro intended to depart from her previous releases with "Wild" and "Dr.", her first forays into new material. Michico, T. Kura, and Nao'ymt created and produced "Wild," which was recorded at Tokyo's Azabu-O-Studio with Ryosuke Kataoka's assistance.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Good Time (Inna song)</span> 2014 single by Inna featuring Pitbull

"Good Time" is a song recorded by Romanian recording artist Inna for Body and the Sun (2015)—the Japanese counterpart of her fourth studio album, Inna (2015)—Inna, and Party Never Ends (2013). Featuring the vocals of Cuban-American rapper Pitbull, it was made available for digital download on 15 July 2014 through Atlantic Records. "Good Time"—an uptempo dance-pop track featuring "hedonistic and cheerful" lyrics—was written by Steve Mac, Pitbull and Ina Wroldsen, while being solely produced by Mac.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alice Everyday</span> 1991 single by Book of Love

"Alice Everyday" is the eighth single released by the American synth-pop band Book of Love. The song was released prior to the band's third album, 1991's Candy Carol, as the first single.

"Adiemus" is a song written by Welsh composer Karl Jenkins and performed by Miriam Stockley with Mary Carewe. It was recorded by the Adiemus project and officially released on the 1995 Adiemus: Songs of Sanctuary album. Jenkins used the music for a setting of psalm verses, "Cantate Domino".

"Next Level" is a song recorded by Japanese recording artist and songwriter Ayumi Hamasaki taken from her tenth studio album Next Level (2009). The song was written by Hamasaki herself while the composition was by Dai Nagao and arrangement by HΛL. The song was conceived while Hamasaki was working on the studio album during her anniversary year, which was in April 2008. This year was to commemorate her ten-year anniversary since her debut single "Poker Face". "Next Level" was released as the album's lead and only promotional single on the same date as the album release digitally.

Mary Carewe is an English singer and vocal coach, best known as one of the lead vocalists in Karl Jenkins' musical project Adiemus, often singing harmonies with Miriam Stockley.

<i>Femme Fatale</i> (Akina Nakamori album) 1988 studio album by Akina Nakamori

Femme Fatale is the thirteenth studio album by Japanese singer Akina Nakamori. It was released on 3 August 1988 under the Warner Pioneer label. The album consist mainly of western arrangers that evokes to the listeners the danceable melody line in western style, which was not so well common and popular in Japan during late 80s.

References

  1. "Praise". Official Charts Company . Retrieved 6 July 2019.
  2. "Atlantis". Official Charts Company . Retrieved 6 July 2019.