The Prayer (Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli song)
| "The Prayer" |
|
| Single by Céline Dion and Andrea Bocelli |
| from the album These Are Special Times and Sogno |
| Released |
March 1, 1999 (1999-03-01) |
| Format |
Promotional recording |
| Recorded |
Chartmarker Studios, Sony Sound Stage, Criteria Recording Studios |
| Genre |
Christmas, Christian, classical |
| Length |
4:29 |
| Label |
Columbia, Epic |
| Writer(s) |
David Foster, Carole Bayer Sager, Alberto Testa, Tony Renis |
| Producer |
David Foster, Tony Renis, Carole Bayer Sager |
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"The Prayer" is most commonly known as a duet between Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli. This duet is the second single from Dion's Christmas album These Are Special Times and first from Bocelli's album Sogno, and was released as a promotional single on March 1, 1999.[1]
"The Prayer" won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song from the Quest for Camelot movie in 1999, the second win in a row for a Celine Dion song. It was also nominated for an Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1999 and a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals in 2000. Dion performed it with Bocelli at both ceremonies.
First, "The Prayer" was recorded as two separate solo versions, Dion's in English and Bocelli's in Italian. They appeared on the Quest for Camelot soundtrack in May 1998. The duet was included on both artists albums, released a few months later. It was also featured on Dion's compilation The Collector's Series, Volume One (2000) and greatest hits My Love: Ultimate Essential Collection (2008). A re-recorded solo version by Celine Dion (re-named "A Mother's Prayer") appeared on her 2004 album Miracle. Dion performed "The Prayer" live during her Taking Chances Tour as a virtual duet with Bocelli on the screen; the performance was released in the Taking Chances World Tour: The Concert CD/DVD. The song appeared also on Bocelli's 2007 compilation The Best of Andrea Bocelli: Vivere. A live version by Bocelli and Heather Headley was included on his Under the Desert Sky DVD/CD and Vivere Live in Tuscany DVD/CD.
"The Prayer" was popular on the adult contemporary charts in Canada and the United States, peaking at number 8 and number 22 respectively.
Celine Dion and Josh Groban version
Celine Dion performed "The Prayer" live with Josh Groban, during her CBS TV special That's Just the Woman in Me, aired on February 15, 2008. This version was released as a music download in the U.S. and Canada, two days earlier. It entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 70 and appeared on a few other Billboard charts: Pop 100 at number 50, Hot Digital Songs at number 32 and Hot Digital Tracks at number 29. The single has sold 37,531 copies in its first week. In Canada, the song peaked at number 37 on the Canadian Hot 100 and number 19 on the Canadian Top Digital Downloads.
Groban also sang "The Prayer" live with Celine Dion 6 years earlier, at the Concert for World Children's Day in 2002. The two first sang the song together in 1999, when Groban filled in for Andrea Bocelli at rehearsal for the 1999 Grammy Awards. Nearly 10 years later, Groban and Bocelli performed the song together for the first time during the 50th Annual Grammy Awards.
Formats and track listings
1999 North American promotional CD maxi single
- "The Prayer" (Celine Dion and Andrea Bocelli) – 4:29
- "The Prayer" (Celine Dion) – 2:48
- "The Prayer" (Andrea Bocelli) – 4:10
2008 North American digital single
- "The Prayer" (Celine Dion and Josh Groban) (live) – 4:38
Charts
Cover versions
- Anthony Callea released the song as his debut single in Australia on December 19, 2004. It went on to become the highest and fastest-selling single by any Australian artist at that time a record he held for 5 years, to date it still remains the fastest selling single of all time. "The Prayer" debuted at number 1 on the ARIA Charts and stayed there for five weeks. It was certified 4x platinum by ARIA. The song was included on Callea's debut album Anthony Callea.
- Andrea Ross sings "The Prayer" as a solo song with English-only lyrics on her debut album Moon River.
- Marcelito Pomoy sung this song distinctively on the grand finals of Pilipinas Got Talent (season 2). He also released an album entitled "Duet Yourself" which includes his rendition of this song.
- Angie Stone also performed the song live with Josh Groban appearing on the Josh Groban in Concert bonus DVD.
- Filipina singer Charice Pempengco and Andrea Bocelli sang their version at Teatro del Silenzio in Italy.
- Charlotte Church and Josh Groban both sing "The Prayer" on Church's Enchantment album and Groban's debut album. They also did the same performance in her companion concert and as the closing song of the 2002 Winter Olympics Closing Programme.
- The youngest member of Celtic Woman, Chloë Agnew covered the English version of this song for both her self-titled and Walking in the Air albums with the help of her composer David Downes. The music video of this song for her solo DVD reveals that she wears a hooded outfit and holds a pink, yellow, turquoise and indigo umbrella with a ponytail braid walking past the beach in a cloudy day. In Celtic Woman: A New Journey, she sings it live on stage.
- Daniel Rodriguez and Kristin Chenoweth recorded it for Rodriguez's 2003 album From My Heart.
- Former Celtic Woman member Deirdre Shannon and her brother Matthew Gilsenan, a Celtic Tenor, both sing "The Prayer" for Shannon's self-titled album.
- Katharine McPhee first sang it on American Idol when she met Andrea Bocelli. When the singing competition ended, Bocelli asked McPhee to go on tour with him for a few dates. On tour they sang The Prayer together. Their duet was featured on David Foster's Hit Man CD/DVD.
- Southern gospel artists Lauren Talley and David Phelps recorded a duet of the song on Lauren's self-titled album.
- Peter Jöback and Sarah Dawn Finer performed the duet in Swedish, as "Min Bön". It appears on Jöback's 2008 Christmas album En god jul och ett gott nytt år.
- Sissel Kyrkjebø sang "The Prayer" with Josh Groban, but it is not released on the CD album yet.
- Tim Davis and Melody Davis, members of the Seventh Day Adventist group, The Heritage Singers, made a cover of the song, which has been sung in all concerts and tours.
- Yolanda Adams and Donnie McClurkin recorded an English version on McClurkin's 2003 album Again.
- Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban also sang the duet at the 2008 Grammys in honor of the life of Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti who had died previously that year.
- Polly Dozier and Will DuVal also sang the duet at the New Years Sunday service in Jackson, TN (2007).
- RyanDan, the Canadian identical twin duo recorded it on their self-titled debut album in 2007. It was dedicated to their mother who had been diagnosed with Parkinson's disease and the song was one of her favourite songs ever.
- Chris M. Allport, who was in Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End and The Bilderberg Club, and Ariana Richards who was in Jurassic Park, released their single version of "The Prayer" in December 2008. This recording is available on CD at CDBaby and as a digital download on CD Baby and iTunes. A portion of the proceeds of this record are donated to the David Foster Foundation. Chris M. Allport has also performed "The Prayer" live for benefit concerts in the Americas, Europe and Africa.
- The song appears on X Factor runner-up Rhydian's debut album Rhydian.
- David Burnham sings "The Prayer" with Elena Shaddow on his self-titled debut album.
- André Vásáry the Hungarian male soprano sings "The Prayer" in duet with himself on his album "Feast" (Ünnep) released in November 2010.
- The Mormon Tabernacle Choir performed a choral arrangement of "The Prayer" on their 2010 release "Heavensong". The album reached #1 on the Billboard charts for a crossover album.[11]
- Filipina singer, Jolina Magdangal made a cover of the original version from the film Quest for Camelot on August 3, 2011.
- Mary Ann Acevedo and Jometh Andujar covered a spanish version the song called "La Oración" in the concert tour of Los Favoritos. In 2010, Acevedo annunced she will include "La Oración" on her album El Amor es la Solución but now the release date is uncertain.
- Josh Groban and Jewl Anguay sing a version of "The Prayer" on a 9-11 themed Verizon commercial aired on 9-11-11.
- Darlene Koldenhoven (Grammy winner and 3× nominee; Yanni, Live at the Acropolis, Sister Act & Sister Act II) recorded her arrangement of "The Prayer" released on her Inspired by a True Story CD (6/28/11) and her Solitary Treasures CD (10/10/11). Darlene appeared live on-camera singing her original English-only arrangement in The Young and the Restless in 2002 and sang on the original version in the film Quest for Camelot.
- The Chilean tenor Tito Beltrán performed the song in duet with Jennifer Boldt at the TV Show Calle 7 as an honoring to the victims of the 2011 Chilean Air Force CASA 212 crash
- The song is performed as a duet by Jackie Evancho and Susan Boyle on Evancho's CD Dream With Me and and CD/DVD Dream With Me In Concert, which was also broadcast as a PBS special in 2011.
- Sandi Patty recorded "The Prayer" with her husband Don Peslis on her 2004 album Hymns of Faith...Songs of Inspiration; they recorded it again on her 2009 album Christmas Live.
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