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
Never Gonna Fall
Lisa Stansfield Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Now I've started all over
Now not a day goes by when
I'm not sure you're the one
Cause you give me something baby
It's a feeling I just can't contain
You give me something baby
[Chorus]
You give me love you give me life
Darlin' what more can I want
I'm never gonna fail in love again
You're givin' me something more and I know
I won't be searching no more
I'm never gonna fall in love again
I wake and feel you by my side
And your touch is so tender
I'm so at home in your caress
In your arms
Cause you give me something baby
It's a feeling I just can't contain
You give me something baby
And it's something I'll never find again
[Chorus]
Cause I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
Oh I've found someone
Someone who I can depend on
And it changed my life
Knowing that I can survive
[Chorus]
Cause I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
I got you baby, you baby, you
The lyrics of Lisa Stansfield’s song “Never Gonna Fall” talk about a woman who has a dark past when it comes to love. She has searched for it, found it, and lost it. However, she opens her heart again and meets someone who brings her a feeling she can’t contain. In this relationship, she finds something she knows she will never find again. The love she feels is so deep that she wakes up with her partner by her side and feels at home in his touch. It is clear that the woman has moved on from her past experiences and found love that is true and fulfilling.
The chorus of the song emphasizes the change in the woman’s life since she found this love. She feels complete and doesn't need to search for anything else. The repetition of “you give me something” also highlights the intensity of the feeling she found in this new love. The song’s title “Never Gonna Fall” means that the woman has found security in this love and will never fall in love again because she knows that she has found the one for her. The song has a happy vibe, reflecting how the person she loves makes her feel loved and complete.
Line by Line Meaning
I searched, I found and I lost love
I have experienced the ups and downs of romantic relationships
Now I've started all over
I have moved on from past relationships and am starting fresh with someone new
Now not a day goes by when I'm not sure you're the one
I am deeply in love with my current partner and have no doubts about our relationship
Cause you give me something baby. It's a feeling I just can't contain
My partner gives me a sense of joy and satisfaction that I cannot fully express
You give me something baby. And it's something I'll never find again
My partner provides me with a unique and special kind of love that I believe cannot be replicated
You give me love you give me life. Darlin' what more can I want
My partner provides me with everything I need to feel fulfilled in life
I'm never gonna fail in love again. You're givin' me something more and I know I won't be searching no more. I'm never gonna fall in love again
My current partner has given me such a fulfilling and complete love that I have no desire to look for anything else or to go through the pain of another failed relationship
I wake and feel you by my side. And your touch is so tender. I'm so at home in your caress. In your arms
I feel safe, comfortable, and loved when I am with my partner
Cause I got you baby, you baby, you
I am grateful for and appreciative of my partner's presence in my life
Oh I've found someone. Someone who I can depend on. And it changed my life. Knowing that I can survive
My relationship with my partner has been transformative and has provided me with the stability and support I need to feel capable and empowered
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Written by: IAN OWEN DEVANEY, LISA JANE STANSFIELD
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind