Florence And The Machine Like A Version
Jason
So needless to say, I was elated to get my student ticket for a Sunday night performance at the Paper Mill Playhouse. While my train to Milburn, N.J., was canceled upon my arrival to Penn Station, I refused to let that bring me down, and hopped in a car to the Playhouse.
First, the set design and staging of the show was incredible. The sets looked like they had a million-dollar budget, from the elaborate Jay Gatsby mansion to the billboard of the eyes, every piece of set design was done carefully and with elegance. By far, the most beautiful set had to be the garden house decorated with flowers upon the arrival of Daisy meeting Jay. It was always a visually stunning scene in adaptations like the Baz Lurhmann movie from 2013, but it was expertly recreated in this stage musical version.
I think the issue of the lyrics then stems back into another gripe, which is the adaptation of the book itself. While keeping the major plot points and quotes from the book, the songs, which are meant to enhance each character and give the listener insight into how they think, felt out of place for each character.
I totally disagree. I thought the show was entertaining and kept me wanting more. All of the vocals were spot on and the dancing (especially the tap number) was incredible. I hope it gets to Broadway! I will be the first in line to purchase a ticket. THIS SHOW IS FABULOUS!!
"You Got the Love" is a song by British songwriting team the Source featuring American singer-songwriter Candi Staton. Originally released in 1986, the song was remixed and re-released in 1991, 1997, and 2006. It reached number three on the UK Singles Chart, number two on the UK Dance Singles Chart and number one on the UK Club Chart.
The original version is a soul/disco/gospel track, written by Anthony B. Stephens, Arnecia Michelle Harris and John Bellamy. British DJ Simon Harris was the first person to discover and license the song in 1986 when he was looking for tracks to release on his newly formed Music of Life label with DJ Froggy, Harris then took the track to Morgan Khan, the distributor of the new label, the track was licensed and released on Khan's StreetSounds Streetwave label. The original Candi Staton track had been recorded for a direct-to-video 1980s documentary about an obese man who was trying to lose weight. Staton said she couldn't remember having recorded a song called "You Got the Love". It was only later that she realised she had performed the song years earlier for the documentary. The producers of the video had selected the song for her to sing, but as they had no funds to pay her, they donated half of the copyright and publishing to Staton.[2]
The Candi Staton a cappella version was originally mixed over an instrumental version of the Frankie Knuckles/Jamie Principle house song "Your Love". This bootleg release was a studio recording of Eren Abdullah mixing the two pieces of vinyl together. The DJ Eren "Original Bootleg" mix was released by John Truelove's record label in 1991 and reached number four[3] in the UK Singles Chart.
It was remixed again in 2006 by Now Voyager, and this new version was called the "New Voyager Mix" (instead of "Now"), and was back with further new mixes by the Shapeshifters amongst others. This time the rights to the record were picked up by EMI's Positiva label (also the label the Shapeshifters were signed to), who scored another top ten hit, when the track reached number seven. The 2006 mix also featured more lyrics than the first two versions.
On 19 January 1991, Music Week named "You Got the Love" Pick of the Week.[8] Mandi James from NME wrote, "Bootlegs have kept the dancefloor boiling, provided healthy competition for the influx of white labels and given inspiration in the face of Technotronic megamixes. The best ideas have always been the most breathtakingly simple and usually caused the most consternation. 'You Got the Love' by the Source featuring Candi Staton, formerly known as 'Love/Rock', pays testimony to both those principles. It's an inspired combination of uplifting gospel vocals and Jamie Principle's proto-House classic 'Your Love', is currently sitting comfortably in the Top 40, and has a chequered history to match Black Box's 'Ride On Time'."[9]
Upon the 1997 remix, Alan Jones from Music Week commented, "A brilliant marriage of two different records, the Source featuring Candi Staton's "You Got The Love" was a truly inspired amalgam, well deserving its top five status in 1991. Six years on, it has been extensively remixed by the Rhythm Masters and David Morales & Frankie Knuckles. The new mixes work well, although the 1991 mixes remain the best. Well worth another outing."[10] James Hyman from the RM Dance Update gave the 1997 remix five out of five, adding, "Now 'Voyager's Epic' (which is managing to gain considerable airplay) borrows from Elgar's 'Enigma Variations' and, with the vocal, creates a parallel to Massive Attack's 'Unfinished Sympathy' via an uplifting and spinetingling surge."[11]
The planned 1986 video was supposed to feature a 900 pounds (410 kg) man wanting to lose weight. The filming was shelved when the actor portraying the character lost his weight to around 300 pounds (140 kg).[12]
The 1991 video shows silhouettes of men and women dancing on a white background, sometimes as individuals, couples or in groups, intercut with a sequence of close-ups of different faces miming to the lyrics. Grainy footage of a Northern line London Underground train entering a station also appears.
The 2006 version features the "New Voyager mix" in a black and white video. Set in London, it portrays an angelic young man (played by Neil Newbon) watching over the poor, lonely and vulnerable in the streets, subways and gardens. (Referencing the Wim Wenders film Wings of Desire)
English house music DJ, DJ Paulette named the song as one of her favourites in 1996, saying, "This is one of my desert island discs. It came out in about 1991/1992 and it's just fantastic, so strong. I remember the video being shown on TOTP, it charted really highly. The energy of the track is inspirational."[14]
The song was covered by English indie rock band Florence and the Machine as "You've Got the Love" and released as the fifth single from their debut album, Lungs (2009). It was first released on 1 December 2008 as the B-side to their second single "Dog Days Are Over". It was then later released as a digital download only single on 5 January 2009 in the United Kingdom only, after the mass praise it received during the release of "Dog Days Are Over". After being released before Lungs was finally recorded and released, it was later featured on the album as its bonus track.
The track, which is significantly shorter than the original, was produced by Charlie Hugall, who also produced three other tracks on Lungs. Hugall was also involved in the bass and percussion development of the song. The track features Isabella Summers on piano, Christopher Lloyd Hayden on drums, Tom Moth on harp, Rob Ackroyd on guitar and Florence Welch on vocals.
"You've Got the Love" is a fan favourite of the band and has been played at numerous festivals around the United Kingdom during 2008 and 2009. Including the Bestival, Glastonbury, Way Out West, Brighton, Electric Picnic, Leeds, Smash & Grab and with an acoustic version being performed at a festival in Reading. It's also been performed Live In Ibiza on BBC Radio 1 and at the BBC Live Big Weekend. Florence also made a guest appearance during the xx's 2010 Glastonbury Festival performance, where they played their remix of the track. In 2013, a children's choir rendition of the song was used in TV spots for Coca-Cola.[56] At Bestival 2014, Candi Staton performed the song live in a duet with Florence and the Machine.[57]
Contactmusic.com also commented on the song by saying that "The B-side cover of The Source ft. Candi Staton's "You Got the Love" is equally strong."[60] Dailymusicguide.com also positively reviewed the single, writing, "Florence + The Machine have used the format of the original remix but have certainly breathed new life into this old classic. With Florence Welch's distinctive voice she makes this song her own. The inclusion of a harp only adds to the gentle sway effect produced by the track, bursting gently in without malice at around eighteen seconds in. The song's lyrics are empowering: Florence's heavenly voice has a vulnerable quality which, as it has with relatively short career so far, grows stronger through You've Got The Love's verse and chorus. It's empowering, liberating and moving all at the same time, not least conveyed by the emotion in Welch's vocals. Rating: 4/5"[61]
Upon its original release, "You've Got the Love" reached number 158 on the UK Singles Chart. The song later re-entered the chart at number 124 and moved up to number 68 in the next week's chart. The following week it fell to number 75 before dropping out of the top 100.
It then re-entered the chart, two weeks later on 22 August 2009 at number 59, where it peaked before dropping out the top 100 again. Its re-entry pattern then continued when it re-entered three weeks later on 12 September 2009 at number 88. The song peaked at number 16, after the single's actual release in 2009. It spent a total of eight weeks within the top 100, longer than both previous singles "Kiss with a Fist" and "Dog Days Are Over".
In November 2009, BBC Sport used the song at the end of the Formula 1 coverage of the 2009 Abu Dhabi Grand Prix (and the whole 2009 season) for a season review video which covered highlights of all 17 races that were held that year.[62]
On 3 January 2010, "You've Got the Love" climbed 18 places to a new peak of number 13 on the UK Singles Chart after its use in the last episode of Gavin & Stacey on 1 January 2010. One week later, on 10 January 2010, the song peaked at number five in its 34th week on the chart, becoming the band's first top-10 single. Following their Brit performance in February 2010, "You've Got the Love" climbed to number 12, just missing out on the Top 10. It has spent 30 weeks on the UK Singles Chart. As of June 2018, the song has sold over 1.8 million combined sales/streams in that country.
c80f0f1006