Be Free with Your Love

"Be Free with Your Love"
Single by Spandau Ballet
from the album Heart Like a Sky
B-side"Be Free with Your Love (Dance Mix Edit)"
Released14 August 1989[1]
Recorded1988–1989
Length
  • 4:39 (single/album version)
  • 3:56 (Dance Mix Edit)
  • 6:36 (Extended Dance Mix)
  • 5:07 (Dub Mix)
LabelCBS
SongwriterGary Kemp
Producers
Spandau Ballet singles chronology
"Raw"
(1988)		 "Be Free with Your Love"
(1989)		 "Empty Spaces"
(1989)

"Be Free with Your Love" is a song by the English new wave band Spandau Ballet, released as the second single from their 1989 album Heart Like a Sky. It received mostly negative reviews and became their second consecutive single that failed to make the top 40 in the UK.

Background

Many of the songs written for the album, including "Free with Your Love", reflected a newfound rejuvenation that guitarist and primary songwriter Gary Kemp was experiencing thanks to his recent reconnection with eventual wife, actress Sadie Frost.[2]

The music video for "Be Free with Your Love" was filmed in Los Angeles.[3]

Release and commercial performance

"Be Free with Your Love" was released in the UK on 14 August 1989[1] and peaked at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.[4] It also reached number 11 in Italy,[5] number 37 in Belgium,[6] number 44 in the Netherlands,[7] number 52 in West Germany[8] and number 110 in Australia.

Critical reception

"Be Free with Your Love" received mostly negative reviews upon its release. Record Mirror's guest critic Stephen Duffy felt that he'd heard everything the song had to offer in its first minute.[9][a] Smash Hits guest critic Dr. Robert of The Blow Monkeys criticized Gary Kemp's songwriting and found the instruments added during the bridge to be preferable to Tony Hadley's singing.[10][b] Music & Media wrote that "Be Free with Your Love" begins "as a typical FM rock song, suddenly accelerating into a very fast pace, spiced up by energetic brass."[11]

Track listings

Charts

Weekly charts

Weekly chart performance for "Be Free with Your Love"
Chart (1989) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[16] 110
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[6]37
Italy (Musica e dischi)[5] 11
Italy Airplay (Music & Media)[17] 2
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[18]33
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[7]44
UK Singles (Official Charts)[4]42
West Germany (GfK)[8]52

Notes

  1. ↑ "Sounding like a decaffeinated Manassas (old hippy group) at 78rpm, the song is dispensed with in the first minute, leaving the rest of the disk to be filled with areba areba."[9]
  2. ↑ "Oh, I'd forgotten how bad Gary Kemp's lyrics were… But I've just been reminded! Something happens halfway through this which is a bit of an improvement—it breaks out with brass and it sounds a lot better because all these girlie-girlies start singing loudly so you can't hear old Tony Hadley!!"[10]

References

  1. 1 2 "I'm Free" (PDF). Record Mirror. Vol. 36, no. 32. 12 August 1989. p. 4. Retrieved 16 March 2024.
  2. ↑ Kemp 2009, pp. 254–256
  3. ↑ Hadley 2004, p. 211
  4. 1 2 "Spandau Ballet Songs and Albums | Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  5. 1 2 "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 1 March 2024. Select "Singoli" in the "Tipo" field, type "Be Free with Your Love" in the "Titolo" field and press "cerca".
  6. 1 2 "Spandau Ballet – Be Free with Your Love" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  7. 1 2 "Spandau Ballet – Be Free with Your Love" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  8. 1 2 "Offizielle Deutsche Charts (West Germany)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. To see the peak chart position, click 'TITEL VON', followed by the artist's name. Retrieved 15 March 2024.
  9. 1 2 Duffy, Stephen (19 August 1989). "Spandau Ballet: "Be Free With Your Love"". Record Mirror. Vol. 36, no. 33. p. 29. Retrieved 4 March 2024.
  10. 1 2 Dr. Robert (9–22 August 1989). "Spandau Ballet: "Be Free With Your Love"". Smash Hits. Vol. 11, no. 16. p. 66. Retrieved 5 March 2024.
  11. ↑ "Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 2 September 1989. p. 16. Retrieved 23 August 2026.
  12. ↑ Be Free with Your Love (7-inch single liner notes). Spandau Ballet. CBS. 1989. SPANS 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ↑ Be Free with Your Love (12-inch single liner notes). Spandau Ballet. CBS. 1989. SPANS T4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ↑ Be Free with Your Love (CD single liner notes). Spandau Ballet. CBS. 1989. SPANS C4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ↑ Be Free with Your Love (CD single liner notes). Spandau Ballet. CBS. 1989. SPANS P4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. ↑ "Spandau Ballet ARIA Chart history (complete 1988-2024)". ARIA. Retrieved 28 July 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
  17. ↑ "Playlist Report: Italy" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 6, no. 45. 11 November 1989. p. 13.
  18. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 39, 1989" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 15 March 2024.

Bibliography

  • Hadley, Tony (2004). To Cut a Long Story Short. London: Sidgwick & Jackson. ISBN 978-0-283-07386-1.
  • Kemp, Gary (2009). I Know This Much: From Soho to Spandau. London: Fourth Estate. ISBN 978-0-00-732330-2.
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