Cry for Help

"Cry for Help"
Single by Rick Astley
from the album Free
Released 21 January 1991
Format
Recorded 1990
Genre
Length
  • 4:51 (album version)
  • 4:17 (radio edit)
Label RCA
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Gary Stevenson
  • Rick Astley
Rick Astley singles chronology
"Ain't Too Proud to Beg"
(1989)		 "Cry for Help"
(1991)		 "Move Right Out"
(1991)

"Ain't Too Proud to Beg"
(1989)		 "Cry for Help"
(1991)		 "Move Right Out"
(1991)
Free track listing
"In the Name of Love"
(1)		 "Cry for Help"
(2)		 "Move Right Out"
(3)

"Cry for Help" is the title of the first single taken from British dance-pop singer Rick Astley's third studio album, Free. It was written by Rick Astley and Rob Fisher. The Andraé Crouch Choir provided backing vocals.

Released as a single in January 1991, "Cry for Help" reached the top 10 on both the UK Singles Chart in the United Kingdom as well as the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, where the song peaked at number seven on both sides of the Atlantic.[1][2] It reached number three in Canada, and it was a number one hit on the U.S. Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks chart.[3] The song's number seven UK chart placing meant that Astley became the first male solo artist to have his first eight singles reach the British top 10.

The song is a soul ballad, unlike Astley's other more dance-oriented hit singles (such as "Never Gonna Give You Up"). It was co-written by British singer Rob Fisher, formerly one half of the 1980s pop outfits Naked Eyes and Climie Fisher. To date, the song was Astley's last appearance in the top 10 in either the U.S. or U.K.

The song has been sung by Rick Astley in duet with Soren Sko and covered by Thomas Anders (ex-Modern Talking).

Track listing

  1. "Cry for Help" (single edit) – 4:03
  2. "Cry for Help" – 4:50
  3. "Cry for Help" (extended mix) – 6:26

Charts

Peak positions

Chart (1991) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA Chart)[4] 13
Austrian Singles Chart 22
Canadian Singles Chart 4
German Singles Charts 14
Irish Singles Chart 9
Spanish Singles Chart 11
Swedish Singles Chart 17
UK Singles Chart 7
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 7
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks 1

End of year charts

End of year chart (1991) Position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[5] 70
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks[6] 4
Dutch Top 40[7] 76
Australia (ARIA Chart)[8] 85

References

  1. ↑ UK Singles Chart info from chartstats.com
  2. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1996). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 6th Edition (Billboard Publications)
  3. ↑ Hyatt, Wesley (1999). The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits (Billboard Publications)
  4. ↑ "australian-charts.com > Rick Astley 'Cry For Help'". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2015-09-15.
  5. ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1991". Archived from the original on 7 July 2009. Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  6. ↑ "TOP ADULT CONTEMPORARY SINGLES 1991". Retrieved 2011-11-08.
  7. ↑ "Dutch Single Top 100 - 1991" (PDF). Retrieved 2009-09-15.
  8. ↑ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
Preceded by
"You're in Love" by Wilson Phillips		 Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single
27 April 1991 		Succeeded by
"Baby Baby" by Amy Grant
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