Swear It Again
1999 single by Westlife
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"Swear It Again" is a song by Irish boy band Westlife. The ballad[1] was released on 19 April 1999 in the United Kingdom as the first single from their self-titled debut album (1999). The song peaked at number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks, giving Westlife their first of 14 UK number-one singles. "Swear It Again" is Westlife's only single to have charted in the US, peaking at number 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and ranking number 75 on the Billboard Hot 100 year-end chart in 2000.Despite not having success in America, they would later have a tour in the United States 23 years later.
| "Swear It Again" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
Standard European artwork | ||||
| Single by Westlife | ||||
| from the album Westlife | ||||
| B-side | "Forever" | |||
| Released | 19 April 1999 | |||
| Studio | Rokstone (London, England) | |||
| Length | 4:07 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriters | ||||
| Producer | Steve Mac | |||
| Westlife singles chronology | ||||
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| Music videos | ||||
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| UK CD2 | ||||
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The single has sold over 600,000 copies in the UK and has achieved platinum status there. It is the band's fifth-best-selling single in combined sales and seventh-best-selling single in paid-for sales in the UK as of January 2019.[2]
Background
In Westlife - Our Story the band recalled being "excited" hearing the demo of this song saying "Wow, this is a great song. It's a big chorus, great harmonies. This is exactly what we want to be recording".[3]
"Swear It Again" is notable for being, along with "Flying Without Wings", one of the first two songs that Steve Mac wrote for both Westlife and Simon Cowell. The success of the two tracks led to Mac becoming Cowell's preferred producer and songwriter.[4] It was revealed that Cowell let his father Eric listen to all of the songs recorded by the group for their debut album to decide what would be the album's lead single, with Eric choosing "Swear It Again". Significantly, Eric died of a heart attack during the week the single was released.
The song's B-side, "Forever", was a significant choice because, as originally recorded by Damage, it first alerted Cowell to the talent of Steve Mac and then led to the producer working with Westlife.[4] It was composed in the traditional verse–chorus form in A major, with Filan and Feehily's vocal ranging from the chords of B3 to F♯5.[5]
An exclusive live track version of the single was included in the Arista Records 25th anniversary compilation album in 2000.[6]
Music video
The original version of the video was not released. Simon Cowell had spent £150,000 on it, didn't like it and ordered a re-shoot.[3]
The remade British music video features the band members in a mini theatre and singing on a stage fitted with lighting panel flooring while they face a screen with black-and-white videos of their studio recording process. This version was directed by Wayne Isham and aired in May 1999. The video was shot at Pinewood Studios in March 1999.[7]
The American music video features the band members at a car wash and subsequently washing a white car as they're singing the song. This version was directed by Nigel Dick and aired in June 2000.[7]
Honours and awards
| Year | Ceremony | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2001 | BMI Awards | Pop Award | Won |
| 2018 | Billboard | Best Boyband Songs of All-time (69th) | Won |
Track listings
|
UK CD1[8]
UK CD2[9]
UK cassette single[10]
European CD single[11]
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US CD and cassette single[12][13]
Australian CD single[14]
Australian and Japanese CD EP[15][16]
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Credits and personnel
Credits are lifted from the UK CD1 and Westlife liner notes.[8][17]
Studio
- Engineered and programmed at Rokstone Studios (London, England)
Personnel
- Steve Mac – writing, all keyboards, production, mixing, vocal arrangement
- Wayne Hector – writing, vocal arrangement
- Paul Gendler – all guitars
- Richard Niles – string arrangement
- Chris Laws – engineering, programming
- Matt Howe – mix engineering
- Daniel Pursey – mixing assistant
Charts
Weekly charts
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Year-end charts
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Certifications and sales
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[50] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[51] | Gold | 5,000* |
| New Zealand (RMNZ)[51] digital |
Gold | 15,000‡ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[52] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
| United States (RIAA)[53] | Gold | 600,000[54] |
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* Sales figures based on certification alone. | ||