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Pray (Take That song)

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"Pray"
Single by Take That
from the album Everything Changes
Released5 July 1993 (1993-07-05)[1]
Genre
Length3:44
Label
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)
Music video
"Pray" on YouTube
"Pray – Odyssey version"
Single by Take That
from the album Odyssey
Released21 September 2018
Recorded1993, 2018
Length3:40
LabelPolydor
Songwriter(s)Gary Barlow
Producer(s)
Take That singles chronology
"New Day"
(2017) 		"Pray – Odyssey version"
(2018) 		"Out of Our Heads"
(2018)
Music video
"Pray – Odyssey version" on YouTube

"Pray" is a song by English boy band Take That. Written by band member Gary Barlow, the ballad was released on 5 July 1993 by RCA and BMG as the second single from the band's 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, and starting a streak of four consecutive number-one singles.[3] The song has received a Gold sales status certification and sold over 438,000 copies in the UK, won British Single of the Year and British Video of the Year at the 1994 Brit Awards, and was the finale of Take That's Beautiful World Tour 2007. The music video for "Pray" was directed by Gregg Masuak and filmed in Mexico.

The song won the Ivor Novello for Best Contemporary Song and Songwriter of the Year for band lyricist Gary Barlow in 1994.[4]

A newly arranged and recorded version was released on 21 September 2018 as the first single of their greatest hits album Odyssey. The album was released on 23 November 2018 followed by a Greatest Hits tour marking the band's 30th anniversary in 2019.

Critical reception

[edit]

AllMusic editor Peter Fawthrop described "Pray" as a "quality ballad" in his review of Everything Changes.[5] Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger complimented Barlow's songwriting on the song. He said that "at this point he was still the group's secret weapon – canny and professional enough to bring the hooks but with a streak of desperate earnestness. So the classic Take That song – "Pray" isn't their best, but it very much sets a template – wanders like a lost puppy on the verses then pulls itself together for a monster chorus."[6] Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian viewed it as "rather fine".[7] Chris Roberts from Melody Maker felt the song "boasted a fantastic chorus".[8] Another Melody Maker editor, David Bennun, named it "one of Nineties pop's most exalted moments, and the only song so far to justify the talk about Gary Barlow's writing talent."[9] A reviewer from Music & Media commented, "The five messiahs have found a juvenile congregation in the UK willing to lend its ear. Now they're praying for continental attention for their matchless bubble gum soul."[10]

Alan Jones from Music Week gave "Pray" three out of five. He found that it is a "fairly intricate mid-tempo workout [that] has pleasant harmonies and a glossy sheen, although the song itself is more slight than some of the group's previous efforts – none of which really matters, as it's bound for the Top Five."[11] In a retrospective review, Pop Rescue wrote that Barlow's "soft soulful vocals make light work of this whilst the rest of the group put in some great vocal harmonies. The song is light and summery, thanks to the 90s rent-a-beat".[12] Smash Hits gave "Pray" four out of five, praising the chorus as "a fab gospel tune with the group sharing vocals and doing those beautiful harmonies that they seem to be getting so good at these days." The magazine also declared it as "a pretty mature song" and "a definite number 1."[13] A reviewer from Staffordshire Sentinel complimented it as a "soulful ballad".[14]

In a 2012 retrospect Pray was awarded The Guardian Music Award for Best Number 1 Single of 1993 stating "filled with euphoria, guitar riffs and the boys' echoing vocals, this was Take That at their peak, and rightly kept them at No 1 for four weeks".[15]

Music video

[edit]

The accompanying music video for the song 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."[16] David Bennun from Melody Maker praised "the gorgeous, sinister, young Aryan cod-arcadia of "Pray", Leni Riefenstahl on MTV."[9] The video was later made available remastered on Take That's official YouTube channel in 2009, and had generated more than eight million views as of early 2024 on the platform.

Track listings

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Original version

[edit]

2018 version

[edit]
  • International digital single[23]
  1. "Pray – Odyssey version" (new arrangement and vocals) – 3:40

Personnel

[edit]

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[53] Gold 438,000[52]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 3 July 1993. p. 19. Retrieved 19 June 2021.
  2. ^ a b Petridis, Alexis (21 January 2021). "Take That's 20 greatest songs – ranked!". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 August 2024.
  3. ^ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 555–6. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. ^ "Archive | The Ivors | The Ivors Academy | Champions of Music Creators". The Ivors Academy. Retrieved 9 June 2024.
  5. ^ Fawthrop, Peter. "Take That – Everything Changes". AllMusic. Retrieved 18 February 2020.
  6. ^ Ewing, Tom (24 April 2012). "Take That – "Pray"". Freaky Trigger. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  7. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (22 October 1993). "Rock/pop: Take that back". The Guardian.
  8. ^ Roberts, Chris (18 December 1993). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 27. Retrieved 17 July 2023.
  9. ^ a b Bennun, David (23 March 1996). "Albums". Melody Maker. p. 35. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  10. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 29. 17 July 1993. p. 13. Retrieved 21 November 2019.
  11. ^ Jones, Alan (10 July 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream – Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 8. Retrieved 30 March 2021.
  12. ^ "Review: "Everything Changes" by Take That (CD, 1993)". Pop Rescue. 19 August 2015. Retrieved 3 April 2020.
  13. ^ "The New Take That Single!". Smash Hits. 23 June 1993. p. 49. Retrieved 9 December 2022.
  14. ^ Staffordshire Sentinel. 29 July 1993. p.25.
  15. ^ "Best No 1 singles, 1952–2012 – the full list | Music | guardian.co.uk". Guardian. London. 3 June 2012. Retrieved 30 July 2024.
  16. ^ Notman-Watt, David (Director) (17 November 2005). Take That: For the Record (Television production). London: FremantleMedia. 15:47 minutes in.
  17. ^ Pray (UK CD1 & European CD single liner notes). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74321154502.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ Pray (UK CD2 liner notes). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74321154512.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ^ Pray (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74321154507.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ^ Pray (UK cassette single sleeve). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74321154504.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  21. ^ Pray (Australian limited maxi-CD single liner notes). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74332116125.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. ^ Pray (Australian Tour Edition limited CD single liner notes). Take That. RCA Records, BMG. 1993. 74321211122.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. ^ Pray Odyssey version on iTunes
  24. ^ "Take That – Pray". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  25. ^ "Take That – Pray" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  26. ^ "Take That – Pray" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  27. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2913." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  28. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 2934." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  29. ^ Danish Singles Chart. 6 August 1993.
  30. ^ "Hits of the World – Eurochart Hot 100". Billboard. 14 August 1993. p. 40. Retrieved 21 July 2012.
  31. ^ "EHR Top 40" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 37. 11 September 1993. p. 22. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  32. ^ source: Pennanen, Timo: Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972. Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava, 2006. ISBN 9789511210535. page: 280
  33. ^ "Take That – Pray" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  34. ^ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (12. – 18. apríl)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 12 August 1993. p. 20. Retrieved 28 December 2020.
  35. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Pray". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  36. ^ 31 August 1993
  37. ^ "M-1 Top 40". M-1.fm. 24 October 1993. Archived from the original on 2 April 2015. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
  38. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 36, 1993" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  39. ^ "Take That – Pray" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  40. ^ "Take That – Pray". VG-lista. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  41. ^ "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 35. 28 August 1993. p. 24. Retrieved 20 March 2018.
  42. ^ "Take That – Pray". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  43. ^ "Take That – Pray". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  44. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
  45. ^ "The Airplay Chart" (PDF). Music Week. 7 August 1993. p. 26. Retrieved 30 April 2024.
  46. ^ Zimbabwe. Kimberley, C. Zimbabwe: singles chart book. Harare: C. Kimberley, 2000
  47. ^ "1993 Year-End Sales Charts: Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 51/52. 18 December 1993. p. 15. Retrieved 27 November 2019.
  48. ^ "Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1993" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 9 November 2016.
  49. ^ "Top 100 Singles 1993". Music Week. 15 January 1994. p. 24.
  50. ^ "Airplay Top 50 1993" (PDF). Music Week. 15 January 1994. p. 41. Retrieved 3 May 2024.
  51. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  52. ^ Myers, Justin (24 March 2017). "Take That's Official Top 40 biggest songs revealed". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 24 March 2017.
  53. ^ "British single certifications – Take That – Pray". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 13 August 2019.
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