| "True" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Spandau Ballet | ||||
| from the album True | ||||
| B-side | "Gently" | |||
| Released | 14 April 1983 | |||
| Format | 7", 12" | |||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||
| Genre | New Romantic, New Wave, rhythm and blues | |||
| Length | 4:58 (Promo 45 Edit) 5:40 (Single Version) 6:08 (12-inch Version) 6:29 (Album Version) |
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| Label | Chrysalis Records | |||
| Writer(s) | Gary Kemp | |||
| Producer | Jolley & Swain | |||
| Spandau Ballet singles chronology | ||||
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"True" is the title track from Spandau Ballet's 1983 album True, originally recorded at Compass Point Studios, Bahamas. It was composed by group leader, Gary Kemp, and is a six-minute (in its original album version) slow pop-ballad love song that in part pays tribute to the Motown artist Marvin Gaye and the sound he helped to establish.[1] The song was recorded before Gaye's murder a year later.
The song was a huge worldwide hit, peaking at number one in the UK for four weeks in the spring of 1983, becoming the sixth biggest selling single of the year, and charting highly in 20 other countries. It is Spandau Ballet's biggest hit and their most remembered song in the U.S., reaching number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the autumn of that same year and topping the adult contemporary chart for one week.[2] It is notable for its use in the 1984 film Sixteen Candles.
In 1985, the band performed the song during Live Aid. A new mix by Tony Swain and Gary Kemp was released in 2002 on the compilation album Reformation.
On 30 April 2008, the single celebrated its 25th anniversary, and in honour of this, EMI released a brand new True EP on 5 May 2008, which included the original single, the new mix found on Reformation and the remastered album version, plus a live recordings of "True" and "Gold" from the last show of the group's 1983 tour at Sadlers Wells.
Contents |
| Chart | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Adult Contemporary (RPM)[3] | 5 |
| Canadian Top Singles (RPM)[4] | 1 |
| Germany (Media Control AG)[5] | 9 |
| Ireland (Irish Singles Chart)[6] | 1 |
| Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[7] | 4 |
| Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[8] | 5 |
| New Zealand (RIANZ)[9] | 4 |
| Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[10] | 5 |
| UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[11] | 1 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[12] | 4 |
Parts of the original version have been sampled and used in a number of songs - most notably PM Dawn's 1991 U.S #1 hit Set Adrift on Memory Bliss, which contains a sample of the song's famous guitar hook. The song was also sampled in 1997 on the song "Serenade" by R&B all-female group Shades, by US female rapper Queen Pen in her 1998 single "It's True", and again in 2005 on the Nelly song 'N' Dey Say.
Lloyd's "You" contains an interpolation of "True". Lloyd sampled "True" again on the song "Forever" which is slated to be featured on his upcoming album King Of Hearts. Texas rapper Z-Ro used the sample for his song "Continue 2 Roll." Other notable covers include "Be There" by Silkk the Shocker, "True" by Underworld 805 Family and "True" by Soul:ID.
Paul Anka released a swing version of the song on his 2005 album, Rock Swings. Other pop versions include covers by Arnee and Joanna Wang. The opening sequence of True is sampled in the song "Ask About Me" by Girl Talk on the 2006 album Night Ripper. Also Queen Pen released her own version called, "It's True".
The Backstreet Boys sing part of the chorus during their song, "Bigger", on their 2009 This Is Us Tour.[13] Duvall covered the song on their 2003 album Volume & Density.
Versions of "True" have been featured in:
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