Once the frontwoman of UK band Blue Zone, which saw modest success with their single "Jackie", she became a major international star beginning with her guest vocal stint on Coldcut's record People Hold On.
Stansfield is probably best known for her first UK #1 single, All Around the World (1989), which also peaked at #3 in the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 the following year. Other worldwide hits from her debut solo album Affection include This is the Right Time (featuring a house music-styled production by Coldcut with Mark Saunders), Live Together, What Did I Do To You? and You Can't Deny It. "All Around the World" was the second song by a white female soloist to hit #1 on the Billboard R&B chart (the first being "Ooo La La La" by Teena Marie in 1988). "You Can't Deny It" also topped that chart. Affection went platinum in the U.S., and sold a total of five million copies worldwide.
In 1990, Stansfield was among a handful of high-profile artists to participate in the Red Hot + Blue charity album, which honored the songwriting career of Cole Porter, and benefitted AIDS research at a time when funding from government agencies was insufficient for those in need. She was given the chance to show her swing and jazz chops on the song "Down in the Depths" (video), which was one of a few throwback renditions to appear on the album. This likely won her the female lead in the independent film Swing (1999), for which soundtrack she also performed most of the songs. Thus began an illustrious and respected tradition of Stansfield offering jazz and torch songs to outside projects (she also sang I've Got the World on a String in the original movie soundtrack of 2003's Mona Lisa Smile).
In 1992, Stansfield won a BRIT Award as best British female solo artist. Her second album Real Love did not quite live up to the success of Affection, despite selling very well. However, it did spawn four Top 40 singles on the European charts: Change, All Woman, Time to Make You Mine and Set Your Loving Free. "Change" has since become one of her signature classics, and still receives regular air-play to this day. "All Woman" became Stansfield's third #1 single on the Billboard R&B chart, and due to the success of that song, the album went gold in the U.S. Filled with pathos and emotion, it is "kitchen sink soul", from the viewpoint of a woman taken for granted. Like "All Around the World", many critics initially believed that it had been performed by a black singer.
Stansfield continued recording disco-influenced soul throughout the 1990s. Her third album So Natural (1993) spawned three Top 40 European singles including the title track So Natural, In All the Right Places and Little Bit of Heaven, but the album was never released in the U.S. She had continued success throughout Europe, but her popularity in America had diminished.
sidenote: "In All The Right Places" was featured on the soundtrack of the movie Indecent Proposal (1993), for which Stansfield was shortlisted as the lead that eventually went to Demi Moore. You can catch her talking about it in this YouTube interview clip (@ 1:30).
Her self-titled fourth album Lisa Stansfield (1997) was a hit in Europe with two Top Ten singles - People Hold On (Dirty Rotten Scoundrels Mix) (a re-released dance mix by The Dirty Rotten Scoundrels) and The Real Thing, and the Top 40 track Never, Never Gonna Give You Up (a remake of the late Barry White's 1973 hit). Upon being released in the U.S., the album scored some mainstream attention, but fared much better in the dance clubs where remixes were very successful; an astonishing four singles - "Never, Never Gonna Give You Up", Never Gonna Fall, I'm Leavin', and "People Hold On" reached #1 on the Hot Dance Club Play chart. It charted modestly, peaking at #30 Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and #55 on the Billboard 200. Subsequently, The Remix Album was released due to revived interest in Stansfield within the dance community. The music video for "Never, Never Gonna Give You Up" (video) was an eye-catcher featuring her strolling nude down a city street, acquiring a few items of clothing along the way. VH1 featured the clip and even gave it the Pop-Up Video treatment. During the promotion for the single, Stansfield appeared on the RuPaul Show, but inexplicably, did not sing the song (or any others, for that matter).
Her 2001 album Face Up was less successful, barely charting through a lack of publicity, but featured the singles Let's Just Call It Love and 8-3-1, which found her experimenting with newer styles of R&B such as 2-step while continuing with her established sound. Stansfield's husband, Ian Devaney, delivered an arrangement for the ballad How Could You?, which displayed his love of Burt Bacharach's legacy. Only one single was officially released in the UK.
Following the release of Face Up, a 2-CD greatest hits collection titled Biography: The Greatest Hits was released in 2003, which sold well in the UK and Europe. Stansfield then parted ways with Arista/BMG, ending an 18-year association with the label.
Stansfield signed with ZTT Records from the UK, and her 2004 release The Moment was produced by Trevor Horn, well-known for his work with Seal, Grace Jones, and Frankie Goes to Hollywood, among others. The album was distributed in Europe by Edel, featuring the singles Treat Me Like a Woman (released as a double A-side with Easier) and If I Hadn't Got You, a song written by Chris Braide with ex-Squeeze songwriter Chris Difford. The album found her exploring more pop-oriented material, and focusing on lush ballads.
Despite this, as with her previous release, the album and supporting singles were not a success. At the time of the project's release, ZTT was directing large amounts of its resources into re-marketing its back catalogue, and producing the Trevor Horn concert for The Prince's Trust and its accompanying double CD Produced by Trevor Horn. The release of "Treat Me Like a Woman" was twice delayed, and the label eventually paired it with "Easier". While ZTT did erect a billboard to advertise the album in Stansfield's home area of Greater Manchester, print advertising and in-store displays were reportedly absent. Later that year ZTT dropped her from their label.
Stansfield's talents also extended into acting; she starred in the 1999 film Swing with actor Hugo Speer, and recorded covers of swing classics and a few original songs written in the style for the soundtrack. She later appeared on a London stage in The Vagina Monologues. In 2006, she guest-starred in the series Goldplated. In 2007, she starred in an episode of Marple: Ordeal by Innocence, and later joined the cast of The Edge of Love.
On June 2012, Lisa told the UK newspaper, The Sunday Mirror that she's working on her seventh studio album, her first in nine years, and that it is going to be released in spring 2013. Lisa announced in November 2012 that the album will be titled 'Seven'.
Official website: http://www.lisa-stansfield.com
Carry On
Lisa Stansfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Never to forsake me
Would never ever make me
Do it all on my own
Lately I've been feeling on the low
I can't pretend he's gone
But baby, if you got to go
I will carry on
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
And I will carry one
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
And I wonder at the spell you put me under
You tear my world apart
And then you let me go
Lately, I've been feeling kind of cold
Like this world is growing older
But baby, if you got to go
It's something you should know
I will carry on
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
And I will carry one
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
Love me but before you say goodbye
Just look me in the eye
I might cry but I won't
I will carry on
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
And I will carry one
I'll take it as it comes
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
The lyrics of Carry On by Lisa Stansfield are an insightful reflection on resilience and the aftermath of a break-up. The singer acknowledges that the world may not be kind to her, but it will never forsake her. She knows that she can’t pretend her lover hasn’t left her, but she chooses to carry on and take life one step at a time. She expresses her wonder at the powerful spell her lover cast on her, tearing her world apart and leaving her feeling cold. Despite this, she chooses to look her lover in the eye and asks them to love her, even if they must say goodbye. She acknowledges that she may cry, but she will continue to carry on.
The chorus in particular underscores the message of the song, expressing the idea that life is full of ups and downs and that we must carry on no matter what happens. The act of carrying on is portrayed as simple and straightforward - she will keep putting one foot in front of the other, and take life as it comes, step by step.
Overall, Carry On is a powerful reflection on resilience and the human ability to persevere in the face of adversity. Through her lyrics, Lisa Stansfield reminds us that we all have the strength within us to carry on, even when life seems to be falling apart.
Line by Line Meaning
This world will take me
The world will not abandon me, it will continue to exist with or without me.
Never to forsake me
The world will never abandon or leave me completely alone.
Would never ever make me
The world will not intentionally harm me.
Do it all on my own
I am not expected to do everything on my own, the world has my back.
Lately I've been feeling on the low
I have recently been experiencing sadness or depression.
I can't pretend he's gone
I cannot deny or ignore the fact that this person is no longer here.
But baby, if you got to go
But if you have to leave.
It's something you should know
I want you to be aware or informed of something.
I will carry on
I will continue to live and move forward.
I'll take it as it comes
I will face whatever challenges or obstacles come my way.
I'll keep putting one foot in front of the other one
I will keep moving forward, one step at a time.
And I wonder at the spell you put me under
I am amazed by the way you had an effect on me.
You tear my world apart
You destroy the structure and stability of my world.
And then you let me go
And then you leave me alone, without any explanation or closure.
Lately, I've been feeling kind of cold
I have been feeling emotionally distant or indifferent.
Like this world is growing older
I feel like the world is no longer as fresh or exciting as it once was.
Love me but before you say goodbye
If you still love me, before you leave.
Just look me in the eye
Simply make eye contact with me.
I might cry but I won't
I may become emotional, but I will not collapse or give up.
Contributed by James A. Suggest a correction in the comments below.