"Around the World" is a song by English boy band East 17. Written by band members Brian Harvey and Tony Mortimer with Matt Rowe and Richard Stannard, and produced by the latter, it was released on 2 May 1994 by London Records as the lead single from the band's second album, Steam (1994). The song became their fourth top-10 hit in the United Kingdom, charting at number three on the UK Singles Chart. It was a top-10 hit also in Australia, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Israel, Lithuania, the Netherlands, and Zimbabwe. The music video for "Around the World" was directed by Katie Bell.
| "Around the World" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by East 17 | ||||
| from the album Steam | ||||
| Released | 2 May 1994 | |||
| Length | 4:37 | |||
| Label | London | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) | Richard Stannard | |||
| East 17 singles chronology | ||||
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| Music video | ||||
| "Around the World" on YouTube | ||||
Critical reception
In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton wrote that on the song, "[The band is] returning to the slick dancefloor balladry that first brought them to the Top 5 in the shape of "Deep". From here they can clearly only go from strength to strength."[1] Victoria Segal from Melody Maker remarked "that piano".[2] Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "East 17 has got the Walthamstow blues. The teen stars with street credibility can be "softies" too, suffering from homesickness while touring abroad as we learn from this ballad."[3] Alan Jones from Music Week gave "All Around the World" four out of five, viewing it as "a polished, shuffling vehicle for the usual East 17 posturing and trademark touches, with a slow rap to the fore and a subtle melody, Just what fans ordered, in fact."[4]
Stuart Bailie from NME wrote, "The new record would also suggest that East 17 are getting soft — a sappy tour bus ballad about how your soul can only truly feel at rest in Walthamstow."[5] Leesa Daniels from Smash Hits gave "All Around the World" a top score of five out of five and named it Best New Single, praising it as "incredible". She added, "Tony and Co have come up with a stunningly gorgeous record that has the slow, funky vibes that made "Deep" such a brilliant song. Never, ever has a single deserved to be number one as much as this one does. This proves once and for all that East 17 are, musically, the best band in Britain. Amen."[6]
Music video
The accompanying music video for "Around the World" was directed by Katie Bell[7] and released in May 1994. It shows the band performing underground and also in a forest. In between a female dancer appears, wearing a hat and dressed as the globe. The video received heavy rotation on MTV Europe[8] and was A-listed on Germany's VIVA in June/July 1994.[9]
Charts
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[36][pages needed] | Gold | 35,000^ |
| United Kingdom (BPI)[37] | Silver | 200,000^ |
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
Release history
| Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| United Kingdom | 2 May 1994 |
| London | [38] |
| Japan | 25 June 1994 | Mini-CD | [39] |