"Safe from Harm" | ||||
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Single by Massive Attack | ||||
from the album Blue Lines | ||||
Released | 27 May 1991 [1] | |||
Length | 5:18 | |||
Label | Virgin | |||
Songwriter(s) | Daddy G, Andrew Vowles, Robert Del Naja, Shara Nelson, Billy Cobham | |||
Producer(s) | Massive Attack, Jonny Dollar | |||
Massive Attack singles chronology | ||||
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Shara Nelson singles chronology | ||||
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Audio sample | ||||
Massive Attack with Shara Nelson - Safe From Harm (7-inch version) (1991) |
"Safe from Harm" is the third single and opening track from Blue Lines ,the 1991 debut album from British trip hop collective Massive Attack,with vocals by Shara Nelson and Robert Del Naja. It was released in May 1991 by Virgin Records. The bass,guitar,and drums are sampled from the song "Stratus" by Billy Cobham,from his album Spectrum (with guitar by Tommy Bolin). Additional drums are sampled from "Good Old Music" by Funkadelic. Other samples come from Herbie Hancock's "Chameleon",and some of the background vocals are based on Johnny "Guitar" Watson's 1961 song Looking Back.
"Safe from Harm" (Perfecto Mix) is featured at the end of the Michael Mann-directed movie The Insider .
The liner notes to Blue Lines mention the movie Taxi Driver as an influence. [2]
Andrew Smith from Melody Maker described "Safe from Harm" as a "swooning,sultry cut" and "no less compelling than "Unfinished Sympathy". He added that it's "gathered round a deep,dense,dubbesque bassline,while ethereal strings and gently gliding pianos taunt Shara Nelson's sweet voice. It's a decadent,mesmeric,trance-inducing sound,one to lose yourself in completely." [3] Pan-European magazine Music &Media wrote,"With the atmospheric synthesizer sounds,the hefty bassline and the irresistible vocals by Shara Nelson,this follow-up to the European hit "Unfinished Sympathy",is likely to be as big." [4] Barbara Ellen from NME named it Single of the Week. [5] Mark Frith from Smash Hits commented,"Like the London Funki Dreds,the music of Bristol's Massive has a pounding bass line and reggae overtones,but Massive's records are also highly reminiscent of American soul music. "Safe from Harm" "works best as part of an LP,but still sounds good as a single." [6]
Chart (1991) | Peak position |
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Australia (ARIA) [7] | 132 |
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40) [8] | 23 |
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [9] | 48 |
Germany (Official German Charts) [10] | 33 |
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) [11] | 28 |
Netherlands (Single Top 100) [12] | 28 |
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade) [13] | 15 |
UK Singles (OCC) [14] | 25 |
US Alternative Airplay ( Billboard ) [15] | 28 |
US Dance Club Songs ( Billboard ) [16] | 35 |
US Dance Singles Sales ( Billboard ) [17] | 32 |
Massive Attack are an English trip hop collective formed in 1988 in Bristol by Robert "3D" Del Naja,Adrian "Tricky" Thaws,Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall.
Blue Lines is the debut studio album by English electronic music group Massive Attack,released on 8 April 1991 by Wild Bunch and Virgin Records. The recording was led by members Grantley "Daddy G" Marshall,Robert "3D" Del Naja,Adrian "Tricky" Thaws,and Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles,with co-production by Jonny Dollar. It also features contributions by singers Shara Nelson and Horace Andy. Generally regarded as the first "trip hop" album,Blue Lines blended elements of hip hop with dub,soul,reggae,and electronic music.
Beats International were a British dance music band and hip-hop collective,formed in the late 1980s by Norman Cook based in Brighton,East Sussex,England,after his departure from the Housemartins.
"Cherub Rock" is a song by American alternative rock band the Smashing Pumpkins. It is the first single from their second album,Siamese Dream (1993) and is the opening track. It was written by lead vocalist and guitarist Billy Corgan. It was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Hard Rock Performance.
"Good Times" is a disco soul song by American R&B band Chic from their third album Risqué (1979). It ranks 68th on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time,and has become one of the most sampled tunes in music history,most notably in hip hop music. Originally released with "A Warm Summer Night" on the B-side,it was reissued in 2004 with "I Want Your Love" on the B-side,a version which was certified Silver in the UK.
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"Unfinished Sympathy" is a song by the English trip hop group Massive Attack. It was released on 11 February 1991 under the temporary group name Massive. The song was written by the three band members Robert "3D" Del Naja,Andrew "Mushroom" Vowles and Grant "Daddy G" Marshall,the song's vocalist Shara Nelson and the group's co-producer Jonathan "Jonny Dollar" Sharp. It was released on 11 February 1991 as the second single from the band's first album,Blue Lines (1991),on the band's Wild Bunch label distributed by Circa Records. The name "Massive" was used to avoid a radio ban,as the track's release coincided with the Gulf War. Produced by Massive Attack and Dollar,the song incorporates various musical elements into its arrangement,including vocal and percussion samples,drum programming and string orchestration by the arranger Wil Malone.
Shara Nelson is an English singer and songwriter. She worked with Massive Attack in the early 1990s,and as a solo artist had five UK top 40 hit singles. Her 1993 debut album,What Silence Knows,was shortlisted for the Mercury Music Prize.
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Singles 90/98 is a limited edition 11 disc compilation album by Massive Attack released in 1998. It features all their vinyl and CD singles collected until 1998 with B-sides and a host of remixes totalling 63 tracks.
"Oh,Pretty Woman" or simply "Pretty Woman" is a song recorded by Roy Orbison,written by Orbison and Bill Dees. It was released as a single in August 1964 on Monument Records and spent three weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 from September 26,1964,the second and final single by Orbison to top the US charts. It was also Orbison's third single to top the UK Singles Chart.
"Don't Look Any Further" is a song by American singer Dennis Edwards featuring American singer-songwriter Siedah Garrett,released in April 1984 from the singer's debut album by the same name (1984). The song is written by Franne Golde,Dennis Lambert and Duane Hitchings. It peaked at No. 2 on the Billboard Black Singles chart and No. 72 on the Billboard Hot 100. In the UK,the song peaked at No. 45.
"Daydreaming" is a song by Massive Attack with vocals by Shara Nelson. The song samples "Mambo" by Wally Badarou,from his album Echoes (1984). "Daydreaming" was released as a single on 15 October 1990,six months before their debut album Blue Lines. It reached #81 in the UK Singles Chart.
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"Down That Road" is a song by British singer-songwriter Shara Nelson,released July 1993 on Cooltempo Records as the debut single from her first solo album,What Silence Knows (1993). The song peaked at number 19 on the UK Singles Chart,reached number one on the European Dance Radio Chart,and became a top-20 hit on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart.
"Uptight" is a song by English singer and songwriter Shara Nelson,released by Cooltempo in January 1994 as the fourth single from her first solo album,What Silence Knows (1993). Co-written by Nelson,the song was a top 20 hit in the UK,peaking at number 19 on the UK Singles Chart and number 12 on the UK Dance Singles Chart.
"Nobody" is a song by British singer-songwriter Shara Nelson,released in May 1994 as the fifth single from her first solo album,What Silence Knows (1993),through Cooltempo Records. The song peaked at number 49 on the UK Singles Chart and number 16 on the UK Dance Singles Chart.
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