Pray (Take That song)

"Pray"
Cover of "Pray"
Single by Take That
from the album Everything Changes
Released	5 July 1993
Format	7" single, maxi single, 3" CD single
Recorded	1993
Genre	Pop, new jack swing
Length	3:44
Label	RCA, BMG
Songwriter(s)	Gary Barlow
Producer(s)	Steve Jervier, Paul Jervier, Jonathan Wales
Take That singles chronology
"Why Can't I Wake Up with You" (1993) "Pray" (1993) "Relight My Fire" (1993)
"Why Can't I Wake Up with You" (1993) "Pray" (1993) "Relight My Fire" (1993)
Music video
"Pray" on YouTube

"Pray" is a song by English boy band Take That. Written by Gary Barlow, it was released on 5 July 1993 as the second single from their second studio album, Everything Changes (1993). It is the first of twelve singles by the band to reach number one on the UK Singles Chart, staying at number one for four weeks,^[1] and starting a streak of four consecutive number one singles. The song has received a Gold sales status certification and sold over 438,000 copies in the UK, won Best British Single and Best British Video at the 1994 BRIT Awards, and was the finale of Take That's Beautiful World Tour (2007).

Music video

The video was directed by Gregg Masuak and shot in Acapulco, Mexico. The clip features the band members in the exotic location singing and dancing. The band members are paired with a goddess of the four elements, taking on a different form with each – Air (Mark Owen), Fire (Jason Orange), Earth (Robbie Williams) and Water (Howard Donald) – with the exception of Gary Barlow who is represented in a neutral black and white context. In Barlow's autobiography, he stated that after the disappointment of where "I Found Heaven" was filmed, the band were a lot happier about the location for this video. Reflecting on the video in 2005 for Take That: For the Record, Donald remarked: "We was doing all the sexual thing and stuff. ... Even then it felt a little bit uncomfortable. But girls like it. Girls like this kind of thing."^[2]

Personnel

• Gary Barlow – lead vocals
• Howard Donald – backing vocals
• Jason Orange – backing vocals
• Mark Owen – backing vocals
• Robbie Williams – backing vocals

Track listings

UK CD single #1 (74321 15450 2)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26
3. "Pray" (alternative club mix) – 5:21

UK CD single #2 (74321 15451 2)

1. "Pray" (club swing mix) – 5:37
2. "It Only Takes a Minute" (Tommy Musto Underground dub) – 6:32
3. "Once You've Tasted Love" (Harding & Curnow remix) – 4:20
4. "It Only Takes a Minute" (Tommy Musto Underground vocal) – 6:16

EU CD single (74321 15478 2)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26
3. "Pray" (alternative club mix) – 5:21

Japanese 3" CD single (BVDP-88)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26

Australian 'tour edition' CD single (74321 21112 2)(picture disc w/poster)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Relight My Fire" (live) – 8:07
3. "Could It Be Magic" (live) – 5:32
4. "It Only Takes a Minute" (live) – 4:11

Australian 'limited edition' CD single (74321 21113 2)(Personality Poster Pack)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26
3. "Pray" (alternative club mix) – 5:21
4. "Pray" (club swing mix) – 5:37
5. "It Only Takes a Minute" (Tommy Musto Underground dub) – 6:32
6. "Once You've Tasted Love" (Harding & Curnow remix) – 4:20
7. "It Only Takes a Minute" (Tommy Musto Underground vocal) – 6:16

UK cassette (74321 15452 2)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26

UK 7" single (74321 15453 2)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26

European 12" single (74321 15454 2)

1. "Pray" (radio edit) – 3:43
2. "Pray" (a cappella) – 4:26
3. "Pray" (alternative club mix) – 5:21
4. "Pray" (club swing mix) – 5:37

Chart performance

Chart succession

Certifications

Official versions

• Album version (3:45)
• Radio edit (3:34)
• A cappella (4:26)
• Alternative club mix (5:21)
• Swing club mix (5:37)
• Live On the Advision Mobile Studio (6:33)
• Live In Berlin (5:16)
• Live at Wembley (4:00)

References

1. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 555–6. ISBN 1-904994-10-5. 
2. ↑ Notman-Watt, David (Director) (17 November 2005). Take That: For the Record (Television production). London: FremantleMedia. 15:47 minutes in. 
3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Steffen Hung. "Take That - Pray". lescharts.com. Retrieved 2012-02-17. 
4. 1 2 "Take That - Pray". ultratop.be. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
5. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2012-02-17. 
6. ↑ "Hits of the World - Eurochart Hot 100". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 14 August 1993. p. 40. Retrieved 2012-07-21. 
7. ↑ source: Pennanen, Timo: Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972. Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava, 2006. ISBN 9789511210535. page: 280
8. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tout les Titres par Artiste". Infodisc.fr. Archived from the original on 14 June 2012. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
9. ↑ "Take That singles, German Singles Chart" (in German). musicline. Retrieved 2010-04-19. 
10. ↑ "Tonlist Top 40". DV. Retrieved 2017-02-09. 
11. ↑ Jaclyn Ward - Fireball Media Group. "The Irish Charts - All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
12. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Take That - Pray - swisscharts.com". swisscharts.com. Retrieved 2016-11-09. 
13. ↑ http://www.musicchartheaven.com/ttrobbiegary/tthits.htm. Retrieved 2014-03-31.  Missing or empty |title= (help)
14. ↑ "M-1 TOP 40". M-1.fm. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
15. ↑ "ChartArchive - The Chart Archive". Chartstats.com. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
16. ↑
    • Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: singles chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
17. ↑ "Billboard - Google Books". 2000-01-01. Retrieved 2014-03-31 – via Google Books. 
18. ↑ "Offizielle Deutsche Charts - Offizielle Deutsche Charts". offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved 2016-11-09. 
19. ↑ "Jaarlijsten 1993" (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 2016-07-18. 
20. ↑ "VG-lista - Topp 20 Single Sommer 1993". lista.vg.no. Retrieved 2016-11-09. 
21. ↑ "BPI : Home". Bpi.co.uk. Retrieved 2014-03-31. 
22. ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/chart-news/take-thats-official-top-40-biggest-songs-revealed__18247/ Official Charts Company - best selling Take That songs 24 March 2017

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics