Dieu m'a donné la foi

"Dieu m'a donné la foi"
Single by Ophélie Winter
from the album No Soucy
B-side "Everlasting Love"
Released September 1995
Format CD single
Genre R&B, groove
Length 3:55
Label East West
Writer(s) D. Godsend, N. Hardt, B. Godsend, P. Jerry
Producer(s) Fred Fraikin, Guy Waku
Ophélie Winter singles chronology
"Dad" / "Pour Une Lady"
(1994)		 "Dieu m'a donné la foi"
(1995)		 "Le feu qui m'attise"
(1996)

"Dieu m'a donné la foi" (God Gave Me Faith) is a popular R&B song recorded by French singer Ophélie Winter. It was the second single from her debut album No Soucy and was released in November 1995. It achieved a huge success in France, where it topped the chart, and in Belgium (Wallonia). Although it was in fact her fourth single, it is generally considered by many people as her debut single, given that the previous three ones passed unnoticed. To date, it remains her biggest success and is her signature song.

This song has groove sonorities and draws its influence in the negro spiritual. As the title suggests it, the lyrics deals with spirituality.[1]

The song was used in 1997 French film Bouge!, in which Winter portrays a singer, and performs the song in English-language under the title "Living in Me". This version features on the English version of her album entitled Soon.

In France, "Dieu m'a donné la foi" debuted at the bottom of the chart (#49) on November 18, 1995 and regularly climbed until reaching the top ten six weeks later. It eventually hit #1 for a sole week, then dropped slowly, totalling 15 weeks in the top ten and 32 weeks on the chart.[2] It was certified Gold disc by the SNEP[3] and is at present the 1000th best-selling single of all time in France.[4] In Belgium (Wallonia), the single was charted for 27 weeks from February 3, 1996, and spent 16 weeks in the top ten, four of them at number three.[5]

Track listings

CD single
  1. "Dieu m'a donné la foi" — 3:55
  2. "Everlasting Love" — 5:05

Certifications

Country Certification Date Sales certified Physical sales
France[3] Gold 1996 250,000 347,000[6]

Charts

Chart (1995-1996) Peak
position
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[5] 3
French SNEP Singles Chart[2] 1
End of year chart (1995) Position
French Singles Chart[7] 81
End of year chart (1996) Position
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[8] 9
French Singles Chart[9] 16

Preceded by
"Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio		 French SNEP number-one single
February 24, 1996 (1 week) 		Succeeded by
"Gangsta's Paradise" by Coolio

References

  1. ↑ Elia Habib, Muz hit. tubes, p. 341 (ISBN 2-9518832-0-X)
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 "Dieu m'a donné la foi", in French Singles Chart Lescharts.com (Retrieved August 9, 2008)
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 French certifications Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved August 9, 2008)
  4. ↑ Best-selling singles of all time in France (the single is ex aequo with Modern Talking's "Brother Louie") Infodisc.fr (Retrieved August 9, 2008)
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "Dieu m'a donné la foi", in Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved August 9, 2008)
  6. ↑ Ophélie Winter's certifications and sales See: "Les Ventes" => "Toutes les certifications depuis 1973" => "WINTER Ophélie" Infodisc.fr (Retrieved August 9, 2008)
  7. ↑ 1995 French Singles Chart Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved January 30, 2009)
  8. ↑ 1996 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved August 1, 2008)
  9. ↑ 1996 French Singles Chart Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved May 28, 2010)