"Promise Me" is a song by British singer-songwriter Beverley Craven. It is written by Craven and produced by Paul Samwell-Smith. Released by Epic Records as the lead single of her debut album, Beverley Craven, in 1990, the song initially failed to chart. Appearances on British TV and a successful UK tour prompted a re-release of the single in 1991, when it peaked at number three on the UK singles chart that May. It was successful across Europe, peaking at number two in Belgium and entering the top 10 in France, Ireland, and the Netherlands. The song became popular with loved ones of military personnel deployed to Iraq and Kuwait during the Gulf War.
Critical reception David Giles of Music Week stated that "on the evidence of this single, [Craven] is aimed at a Kate Bush level of epic grandeur, and, although the arrangement is classic enough, she lacks Bush's melodic inventiveness". Writing for AllMusic, Charles Donovan said that it was "now widely acclaimed as a contemporary standard".
Track listings All songs were written by Beverley Craven.
7-inch and mini-CD single "Promise Me" – 3:35 "I Listen to the Rain" – 2:55
Music video The music video for "Promise Me" shows footage of Beverley Craven singing the song while playing it on the piano, interspeded with scenes filmed at the Didcot railway station.Report on BBC's The One Show, archived at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtC5VTcph6I
Charts
Weekly charts Chart (1990–1991) PeakpositionAustralia (ARIA) 117Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) 16Europe (European Hit Radio) 14Luxembourg (Radio Luxembourg) 4 UK Airplay (Music Week) 5
Year-end charts Chart (1990) PositionBelgium (Ultratop) 32Netherlands (Dutch Top 40) 50Netherlands (Single Top 100) 51 Chart (1991) PositionEurope (Eurochart Hot 100) 80UK Singles (OCC) 29
Certifications
Release history RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)United Kingdom1990EpicJapan21 September 1990Mini-CDUnited Kingdom (re-release)25 March 1990Australia10 June 1991
Covers and sampling The song has been covered numerous times, most notably being reworked as a dance song by group Lazard, who re-titled the song "4 O'Clock (In the Morning)". Other cover versions are by Jodie Brooke Wilson, Hind, Lutricia McNeal, Sandy Lam, Tabea, and by Rosa López who released a Spanish version (titled "Júrame") in 2008; a more faithful Spanish version was named "Entre tú y yo" and was performed by Mexican actress Chantal Andere in 1992 for her second album and as the main title song of the telenovela Triángulo.Opening theme of Mexican telenovela "Triángulo" (Televisa 1992). Other notable covers are by Hong Kong Cantopop diva Sandy Lam titled as "Without You, But Still Love You",https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESQ0fdO7uqc Sany Lam - Without you, but Still Love You and Taiwanese Mandopop diva Winnie Hsin titled as "Selfish".https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LpF_TYm6oqI Winnie Hsin - Selfish Sometimes the Mandarin version and English version would be crossed over for singing competitions, as exemplified by British-Taiwanese singer (now newscaster) Annie Lin (林宜融).https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=75gXhA6NEVQ 2007.11.02「超級星光大道」翻譯歌曲指定賽-林宜融
In June 2012, Technoboy and Tuneboy sampled the song on their hardstyle single "Promise Me".Technoboy, Tuneboy & Ellie* – Promise Me Discogs.com Three months later, German techno band Scooter sampled "Promise Me" on their single "4 AM", in a nod to a 1993 breakbeat hardcore track by Orca, which also sampled verses from "Promise Me".
References