Set Adrift on Memory Bliss

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“Set Adrift on Memory Bliss”
Single by P.M. Dawn featuring Spandau Ballet from the album Of the Heart, of the Soul and of the Cross: The Utopian Experience
Released	1991
Format	CD maxi 7" single
Genre	Pop/R&B
Length	4:10
Label	Polygram Records
Writer(s)	Gary Kemp Attrell Cordes
Producer	P.M. Dawn
P.M. Dawn featuring Spandau Ballet singles chronology
"Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" (1991) "Paper Doll" (1992)

"Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" is a popular song by P.M. Dawn. The song is built around samples of "True", a 1983 song by Spandau Ballet, and "Paid In Full", a song by Eric B and Rakim (which is based upon The Soul Searchers' 1974 song "Ashley's Roachclip", a drum break that appeared on the Ultimate Breaks and Beats compilation of Hip-Hop samples). This song was the group's first (and only) #1 hit on the Billboard Hot 100, and also reached #3 on the UK Singles Chart.

Contents 1 Cover versions and uses in the media 2 Track listings 3 Charts 4 See also 5 References

[edit] Cover versions and uses in the media

• Tony Hadley of Spandau Ballet made a cameo in the video to this song; he appears near the end of the video.
• The song was covered by the Backstreet Boys, and appears on their second album Backstreet's Back.
• The song was the first number one song after the debut of the Nielsen SoundScan system, which monitored airplay and sales more closely than before when Billboard had to rely on humans to report sales and airplay data. According to the test charts of the SoundScan system, "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" was at number one for at least three weeks, but officially has a one-week reign at number one.
• In the second verse, they mention 2 hit songs from 1985. "Careless whisper from a careless man" refers to "Careless Whisper" by Wham!, and "A neutron dance for a neutron fan" makes reference to "Neutron Dance" by The Pointer Sisters.
• In the video, Prince Be's image is the hippie alternative to Mr. T's gold chains, rings and bracelets. He wears a neck full of beads and hands covered in beads with stone rings to complete it.
• The line, "Christina Applegate, you gotta put me on" is a reference to the song "Bonita Applebum" by A Tribe Called Quest.
• The song appears in the movie, "I Now Pronounce You Chuck and Larry" (2007) during the middle portion and at the rolling credits.
• The drum beat from the song was originally derived from "Ashley's Roachclip" by The Soul Searchers; both iterations have been sampled commonly in various genres of hip hop and dance music.

[edit] Track listings

CD maxi

1. "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" (radio mix) (3:58)
2. "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" (extended mix) (6:03)
3. "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" (LP version) (4:12)
4. "For The Love of Peace" (3:29)

7" single

1. "Set Adrift on Memory Bliss" (radio mix) (3:57)
2. "For the Love of Peace" (3:29)

[edit] Charts

Chart (1991)[1] [2] [3] [4] [5] [6]	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100	1
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs	16
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	6
US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales	1
US ARC Weekly Top 40	1
Australian Singles Chart	7
Austrian Singles Chart	9
French Singles Chart	17
German Singles Chart	3
Irish Singles Chart	5
Italian Singles Chart	17
New Zealander Singles Chart	1
Swedish Singles Chart	7
Swiss Singles Chart	4
UK Singles Chart	3

Preceded by "When a Man Loves a Woman" by Michael Bolton

Billboard Hot 100 number-one single November 30, 1991

Succeeded by "Black or White" by Michael Jackson

[edit] See also

• Hot 100 number-one hits of 1991 (USA)

[edit] References