The discography of UK-based pop-rock act Shakespears Sister consists of four studio albums, five compilation albums, one EP, and seventeen singles. Originally a solo act consisting of ex-Bananarama member Siobhan Fahey, it eventually evolved into a duo between Fahey and Marcella Detroit. They released their debut studio album Sacred Heart in 1989, which reached number 9 on the UK Albums Chart and was certified gold by the BPI. The album's lead single, double A Side "Break My Heart / Heroine" did not chart, the second single however, "You're History", reached number 7 on the UK Singles Chart, and managed similar top 20 success internationally. Their next three singles, "Run Silent", "Dirty Mind", and "Goodbye Cruel World" (the lead single from their second album Hormonally Yours), all failed to peak within the UK top 50. The second single from Hormonally Yours, "Stay" was the group's first and only number 1, staying at the top position for 8 weeks. The song also reached number 1 in Ireland and Sweden, and peaked within the top 5 in several other territories. Hormonally Yours peaked at number 3 in the UK and was certified double platinum, and reached similar success in international territories. The fifth and final single from the album, "My 16th Apology", was not a commercial success due to both members being on hiatus at the time.
Detroit left the group shortly afterwards in 1993, and Fahey resumed as the sole full member of the group. "I Can Drive" was released as the lead single from Shakespears Sister's third album, #3, and peaked at number 30 in the UK. Following this, London Records opted not to release the third album and the act was dropped from their roster. #3 was only released in September 2004 through Fahey's own website after London Records gave her the full rights to the album. Fahey was planning to release her own solo album at the time, which was preceded by three singles, "Bitter Pill", "Pulsatron", and "Bad Blood", which peaked at numbers 108, 95, and failed to chart respectively. In 2004–05, two compilation albums were released, The Best of Shakespears Sister (composed mostly of hits and B-sides), and Long Live the Queens (composed entirely of B-sides, rarities, and unreleased material). Fahey revived the Shakespears Sister name in 2009, and released Songs from the Red Room, composed of her solo recordings. A compilation album, Cosmic Dancer, was released in 2011, also composed of Fahey's solo work, acoustic work by the wider group, and covers.
Following Fahey and Detroit's reunion in 2019, the band released a compilation album containing two new tracks, titled Singles Party, in July 2019, followed by a 5-track EP of new material, titled Ride Again. A UK tour followed later that year.
Albums
Studio albums Title Album details Peak chart positions Certifications UKUK chart peaks: Top 100 peaks, other than specified: N.B. This site lists compressed chart (exclusion rules applied) data for positions 76–100. "Pulsatron": Top 200 peaks from November 1994 to December 2010, other than "Fear Is Real": N.B. Peaks are listed under Siobhan Fahey. This site lists uncompressed chart (no exclusions applied) data for positions 76–200 between November 1994 and May 2001. "Fear Is Real": N.B. This release is listed under Psychonauts. AUSAustralian (ARIA) chart peaks: Top 50 peaks: Top 100 peaks from January 1990 to December 2010: "Dirty Mind": N.B. The HP column displays the highest peak reached. "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)": AUT CAN GERGerman chart peaks: Sacred Heart: Hormonally Yours: "You're History": "Stay": "I Don't Care": "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)": "My 16th Apology": NOR NZ SWE SWI US Sacred HeartReleased: 16 August 1989 Formats: LP, CD, cassette Label: FFRR 9 22 — — 71 — — 30 — — BPI: Gold ARIA: Gold Hormonally YoursReleased: 17 February 1992 Formats: LP, CD, cassette Label: London 3 20 21 33 12 15 17 25 15 56 BPI: 2× Platinum ARIA: Gold BVMI: Gold IFPI SWI: Gold #3Released: September 2004 Formats: CD, LP, digital download Label: SF — — — — — — — — — — Songs from the Red RoomReleased: 16 November 2009 Formats: LP, CD, digital download Label: SF, Palare — — — — — — — — — —
Compilation albums Title Album details Peak chart positions UK Best of Shakespear's SisterReleased: 22 November 2004 Formats: CD/DVD, digital download Label: London — Long Live the Queens!Released: 5 December 2005 Formats: CD Label: London — Cosmic DancerReleased: 29 October 2012 Formats: CD, Digital download Label: SF — RemixesReleased: 29 October 2012 Formats: CD, digital download Label: SF — Singles PartyReleased: 19 July 2019 Formats: CD, digital download Label: London 14
Extended plays Title EP details Peak chart positions UK Ride AgainReleased: 25 October 2019 Formats: Digital download, CD, vinyl Label: London 67
Singles Title Year Peak chart positions Certifications Album UK AUS AUT GER IRE NED NZ SWE SWI US "Break My Heart" / "Heroine"1988 112 — — — — — — — — — Sacred Heart "You're History" 1989 7 20 — 55 12 51 28 8 — — "Run Silent" 54 47 — — — — — — — — "Dirty Mind" 1990 71 65 — — — — — — — — "Goodbye Cruel World" 1991 59 — — — — — — — — — Hormonally Yours "Stay" 1992 1 3 4 3 1 28 5 1 2 4 BPI: Gold N.B. This site has inaccurate UK release dates for "Stay" and Hormonally Yours. ARIA: Gold RIAA: Gold "I Don't Care" 7 18 29 34 10 57 11 38 28 55 "Goodbye Cruel World"(remix) 32 — — — — — — — — — "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" 14 97 — 12 27 33 43 20 9 — "My 16th Apology" 1993 61 — — 63 — — — — — — "I Can Drive" 1996 30 — — — — — — — — — #3 "Bitter Pill" 2002 108 — — — — — — — — — Songs from the Red Room "Pulsatron" 2005 95 — — — — — — — — — "Bad Blood" — — — — — — — — — — "It's a Trip" 2010 — — — — — — — — — — "All the Queen's Horses" 2019 — — — — — — — — — — Singles Party "When She Finds You" — — — — — — — — — — Ride Again "—" denotes a recording that did not chart or was not released in that territory.
Promotional singles Title Year Album "Black Sky" 1992 Hormonally Yours "Cold" 2004 Songs from the Red Room "Dancing Barefoot" 2011 Cosmic Dancer "Someone Else's Girl" "Really Saying Something" "Do I Scare You?"(with Billy Mackenzie) #3 "A Christmas Number One" 2014 The MGA Sessions
Music videos Title Year Director(s) "Break My Heart (You Really)" 1988 Sophie MullerThe Best of Shakespear's Sister liner notes "Heroine" "You're History" 1989 "Run Silent" "Dirty Mind" 1990 The Craze Boys "Goodbye Cruel World" 1991 Sophie Muller "Stay" 1992 "I Don't Care" "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" "My 16th Apology" 1993 "I Can Drive" 1996 "Pulsatron" 2005 Morten MagnusS.F.T.R.R. liner notes "Bad Blood" Morten MagnusChristian Isak Isaksan "It's a Trip" 2010 Paul Boyd "All the Queen's Horses" 2019 Sophie Muller "When She Finds You" 2019 Sophie Muller
Other videos Title Year Director(s) "Sacred Heart" 1989 Beyond the Groove "Catwoman" 1992 Sophie Muller "Pulsatron" (Live Video Mix) 2005 Caroline Richards "Bad Blood" (Edit) Morten MagnusChristian Isak Isaksan "It's a Trip" (Live Video Mix) 2009 Caroline Richards "Someone Else's Girl" 2011 Morten MagnusKim Jakobsen
Home videos Title Album details Sacred HeartReleased: 1989 Formats: VHS Label: FFRR Hormonally YoursReleased: 1992 Formats: VHS Label: London S.F.T.R.R: VideosReleased: 11 April 2010 Formats: DVD Label: SF
Notes a These singles were released under Fahey's own name. Since their inclusion on Songs from the Red Room, they have been credited as Shakespears Sister songs.
References