Alone (i-Ten song) explained

Alone
Artist:i-Ten
Album:Taking a Cold Look
Released:June 1983
Recorded:1983
Studio:Goodnight L.A. Studios, Van Nuys, California
Genre:Rock, AOR
Length:3:58
Label:Epic
Producer:Keith Olsen, Steve Lukather

"Alone" is a song composed by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, who recorded it under the name i-Ten on their 1983 album Taking a Cold Look.

It was later recorded by actress Valerie Stevenson and actor John Stamos on the original soundtrack of the CBS sitcom Dreams in 1984. American rock band Heart covered it on their 1987 album Bad Animals, and this version reached number one in the US and Canada. In 2007 Celine Dion recorded it for her album Taking Chances. In 2010 Alyssa Reid used the music and lyrics for the chorus of her song "Alone Again".

Original Steinberg and Kelly version

"Alone" is a rock ballad composed by Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly, who recorded it under the name i-Ten on their 1983 album Taking a Cold Look. It was included as the third track of the album. It debuted inauspiciously and I-Ten did not record any other albums prior to disbanding.

Personnel

Dreams version

Alone
Type:single
Artist:Dreams
Released:November 7, 1984
Genre:AOR, Pop
Length:4:12
Label:Columbia
Album:Dreams
Prev Title:Jailhouse Rock
Prev Year:1984
Next Title:Fortune and Fame
Next Year:1984

In late 1984, actress Valerie Stevenson and actor John Stamos covered the song for the CBS Sitcom Dreams under their roles as Lisa Copley and Gino Minelli.

It appeared on the episode of the same name where the band perform the song for Frank and Louise's anniversary party. It is the earliest cover of the song. In that episode, Frank and Gino write a poem and turn it into a song. The episode aired on November 7, 1984. The song was released as a single that same day, but did not chart.

Heart version

Alone
Cover:Heart Alone.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Heart
Album:Bad Animals
B-Side:"Barracuda" (live)
Released:May 15, 1987 (Europe)[1]
Recorded:1987
Genre:Hard Rock, Power Ballad[2]
Length:3:39
Label:Capitol
Producer:Ron Nevison
Prev Title:If Looks Could Kill
Prev Year:1986
Next Title:Who Will You Run To
Next Year:1987

Heart released the song as the first single from their ninth studio album, Bad Animals, in May 1987. Their version is a power ballad[3] that begins with a piano line and a subdued vocal from Ann Wilson, leading to a synth-led hard-rock chorus. Tom Kelly, the song's coauthor and himself an experienced session singer, provided the high harmony parts on the record.[4] Cash Box said that it's "a potent, emotion-drenched rock ballad that features Ann Wilson's signature billowing, riveting vocal performance."[5]

"Alone" spent three weeks at No. 1 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 in July 1987. It ranked No. 2 on the Billboard Year-End Top Pop Singles of 1987. It is also Heart's most successful single in the United Kingdom, where it peaked at No. 3 on the UK Singles Chart in June, representing a commercial breakthrough for the band there as their first Top 40 hit. It is the band's only song to peak inside the UK Top 5.

The song was also a global hit, reaching No. 1 in Canada, the top five in Ireland, Norway, and Switzerland, the top ten in Australia, Belgium and the Netherlands as well as the top twenty in West Germany. An "unplugged" version of the song later appeared on Heart's 1995 album The Road Home. An extended version of "Alone" (5:30 long) was included on the Japanese 3" mini-CD of Heart's third single from Bad Animals, "There's the Girl".[6]

It earned the band a nomination for the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group at the 30th Annual Grammy Awards.

Music video

The video for the song was directed by Marty Callner, and was released in June 1987. It starts with Ann at the top of a balcony singing to Nancy, who is at the bottom (similar to the Romeo and Juliet balcony scene). Ann is then seen in all black, including a funeral veil and gown. The two sisters are then seen performing the refrain to an audience on stage, when Nancy's piano collapses at the first bang of the chorus. During the second verse, a broken-down and dilapidated set is seen, with Nancy playing the piano within it. Nancy is then seen riding atop a black horse. It then shows Ann, in the all-black outfit within the broken set and thereby resembling a witch, before cutting directly back to the stage performance as the song reaches its climax. As the song fades out, a shot of Ann and Nancy together is shown, with each one looking directly into each other's eyes, before finally finishing with a quick shot of Ann's face as the screen goes black.

Personnel

Additional musicians

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1987)!scope="col"
Peak
position
Australia (KMR)[7] 6
Canada (The Records Retail Singles Chart)[8] 1
Europe (European Hot 100 Singles)[9] 9
West Germany (Official German Charts)[10] 18

Year-end charts

Chart (1987)!scope="col"
Position
Australia (KMR)[11] 37
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] 62
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[13] 11
European Top 100 Singles (Music & Media)[14] 48
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[15] 56
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] 52
Norway Summer Period (VG-lista)[17] 9
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[18] 18
UK Singles (OCC)[19] 34
US Billboard Hot 100[20] 2
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)23

Certifications and sales

Celine Dion version

Alone
Cover:Celine Dion - Alone.jpg
Type:single
Artist:Celine Dion
Album:Taking Chances
Recorded:January 2007 Conway Studios, Studio at the Palms
Genre:Pop rock
Length:3:23
Producer:Ben Moody
Prev Title:The Prayer
Prev Year:2008
Next Title:My Love
Next Year:2008

Celine Dion covered "Alone" for her tenth English-language studio album, Taking Chances (2007). It was released as the second single in Europe and North America, and third in the United Kingdom in 2008. Produced by Ben Moody, ex-member of Evanescence, the song divided music critics. While some picked it as one of the best tracks on Taking Chances, others thought that the cover was too similar with the original.

Background and release

Dion covered "Alone" in 2007 for her tenth English studio album, Taking Chances, released that year. The version was produced by Ben Moody, former member of rock band Evanescence.[21] Dion's version features tinkling pianos and enveloping strings.[21] It was released as the second single in Europe and North America, and third in the United Kingdom. The digital single release in the UK on May 5, 2008, was coincided with the British leg of the Taking Chances World Tour.[22] In October 2008, "Alone" was included on the European version of .[23] A live version was included in the CD/DVD.[24]

Critical reception

Music critics were divided on "Alone". Stephen Thomas Erlewine from AllMusic picked the song as one of the best tracks on Taking Chances, and wrote that "Celine attempts to snatch Heart's 'Alone' from Carrie Underwood and cribs from Kelly Clarkson's operatic rock, two blatant thieveries that, when combined with the quartet of explicit changeups, gives Taking Chances a vaguely desperate vibe, as if Celine needs to prove that she still reigns supreme among all divas".[25] Sarah Rodman wrote for The Boston Globe that "Enlisting former Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody adds little; in fact, the carbon-copy arrangement doesn't pack as much windswept melodramatic punch as Dion's own 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now.' Great vocal, terrific melody, a fine rendition, but 'Alone' is already indelibly stamped by Heart's Ann Wilson".[26]

Toronto Star editor Ashante Infantry called this song "sentimental, cringe-worthy diva track". Chuck Taylor of Billboard called it "a rowdy cover".[27] Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone gave the song a negative review, writing: "That's nothing compared to Dion shrieking the ten millionth version of Heart's 'Alone' (mad pitchy, dog!), produced by ex-Evanescence guitarist Ben Moody – Amy Lee, meet the fugliest bullet you ever dodged".[28]

Commercial performance

The song debuted on November 24, 2007, at No. 85 on the UK Singles Chart. It spent two weeks on the chart. After selling 12,535 copies, it entered the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles at No. 24 and Canadian Hot 100 at No. 57. It entered the Swedish Singles Chart, due to strong digital sales, and peaked at No. 52.[29]

Music video and live performances

The music video was taken from Dion's CBS TV special That's Just the Woman in Me and released on March 8, 2008.[30] Dion promoted "Alone" at that time in France, performing it on Star Academy. On November 23, 2007, she went to the American talkshow The View to perform "Taking Chances" as well as "Alone".[31] Dion performed the song during most dates of her Taking Chances World Tour; the performance was included in the CD/DVD.[24]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2007–2008)Peak
position
Norway (VG-lista Airplay)[32] 37
Quebec (ADISQ)[33] 5
US Pop 100 (Billboard)[34] 86
US Adult Contemporary (Radio & Records)[35] 32

Year-end charts

Release history

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Heart singles.
  2. Web site: AllMusic Guide, Alone by Heart . allmusic.com . 15 June 2024.
  3. Web site: Bonnie Tyler's Total Eclipse of the Heart and the 20 other best power ballads. July 23, 2015. April 24, 2021. Telegraph.co.uk.
  4. Web site: Alone . Songfacts.com . October 5, 2009.
  5. Single Releases. Cash Box. May 9, 1987. August 8, 2022. 9.
  6. Web site: Japan 3" CD single. discogs. March 7, 2014.
  7. Book: David Kent. Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. St Ives, N.S.W. : Australian Chart Book. Australia. 1993. illustrated. 136. 0-646-11917-6. David Kent (historian).
  8. Hits of the World. Billboard. August 29, 1987. August 23, 2016.
  9. Hits of the World. Billboard. August 15, 1987. August 23, 2016.
  10. Web site: Heart - Alone. de. GfK Entertainment. August 23, 2016.
  11. Web site: Kent Music Report No 701 – 28 December 1987 > National Top 100 Singles for 1987. Kent Music Report, via Imgur.com. December 11, 2019.
  12. Web site: Jaaroverzichten 1987. Ultratop. nl. August 23, 2016.
  13. Web site: Top 100 Singles of '87. RPM. December 26, 1987. August 23, 2016.
  14. Web site: European Charts of the Year 1987: Singles. 34. Music & Media. December 26, 1987. April 9, 2022. 5. 11.
  15. Web site: Single Top 100 Van 1987. nl. Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. August 23, 2016.
  16. Web site: Jaaroverzichten - single 1987. Hung Medien. August 23, 2016.
  17. Web site: Topp 20 Single Sommer 1987. VG-lista. August 23, 2016. no. https://web.archive.org/web/20160916095042/http://lista.vg.no/liste/topp-20-single/1/dato/1987/periode/sommer. September 16, 2016. dead.
  18. Web site: Swiss Year-end Charts 1987. Hung Medien. August 23, 2016.
  19. Gallup Year End Charts 1987: Singles. Record Mirror. Spotlight Publications. London, England. 36. August 23, 2016.
  20. The Year in Music. Billboard. December 26, 1987. August 23, 2016.
  21. News: Celine Dion / Ben Moody Collaboration. October 17, 2012. Idolator.
  22. Web site: iTunes - Music - Alone - Single by Céline Dion. iTunes Store. October 17, 2012.
  23. Web site: The Essential . Exlibris.ch . de. July 15, 2011.
  24. Web site: Erlewine. Stephen Thomas. Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert : AllMusic. AllMusic. August 12, 2012.
  25. Erlewine, Stephen (November 17, 2007) Taking Chances - Review Allmusic AllMusic - Rovi Corporation Retrieved February 28, 2011.
  26. Rodman, Sarah (November 13, 2007) Dion takes few risks on 'Chances' The Boston Globe. Retrieved February 28, 2011.
  27. Taking Chances - Billboard Review. Taylor. Chuck. Billboard. March 10, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20071111120205/http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/content_display/reviews/albums/e3idd293825dd51c45c4645602dffc3375a. November 11, 2007. dead.
  28. Celine Dion: Taking Chances : Music Reviews. Sheffield. Rob. Rolling Stone. December 13, 2007. July 2, 2012. https://web.archive.org/web/20080201220106/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/celinedion/albums/album/16317192/review/17437037/taking_chances. February 1, 2008. dead.
  29. Web site: Steffen Hung . Swedish Singles Chart . Swedishcharts.com . May 12, 2012.
  30. http://www.celinedion.com/ca/node/75013 Celine's "Alone" Music Video - Now Inside TeamCeline!
  31. News: Celine Performing on The View! . September 15, 2012 . Celine Dion Web . November 22, 2007 . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20141228183532/http://www.celinedion.com/ca/node/70132 . December 28, 2014 .
  32. Web site: Norwegian Airplay Chart. VG-lista. October 11, 2014. dead. https://web.archive.org/web/20110722122648/http://www.ifpi.no/sok/index_charts.htm. July 22, 2011.
  33. Web site: Palmarès de la chanson anglophone et allophone au Québec. BAnQ. fr. March 17, 2019. August 9, 2018. https://web.archive.org/web/20180809215510/http://www.banq.qc.ca/collections/collections_patrimoniales/musique/collection_numerique/bd_specialisee/palmares/. dead.
  34. Web site: Celine Dion Awards. AllMusic. October 12, 2014.
  35. Web site: BDS Radio Charts. Radio & Records. October 13, 2023.
  36. Web site: 2008 - The Year in Music: Top Canada AC Songs. Radio & Records. 67. December 12, 2008. September 3, 2019.
  37. Music Upfront. Music Week. 13. 3 May 2008. 30 December 2022.