In 1985, Astley was playing the club circuit as a singer with a soul band named FBI, when he was seen by the record producer Pete Waterman and persuaded to come to London to work at the PWL recording studio. Under the tutelage of production trio Stock Aitken Waterman, Astley was taught about the recording process and groomed for his future career, supposedly starting off as the recording studio 'tea boy'. During much of his career prior to the proliferation of music videos, many listeners assumed he was black. In one instance, the comedic entertainer, Sinbad, discussed him with a talk-show host, expressing his surprise that Astley was not "one of the brothers." Even after his visual appearance, it was still popular belief that he was miming for a black American singer. His brother Mark Astley helped to refute this assertion.
His first single was the little-known "When You Gonna" credited to Rick & Lisa, but his first solo outing was "Never Gonna Give You Up," released in 1987. It became an immediate success, spending five weeks at the top of the British charts and becoming the year's highest-selling single. It was the first of no fewer than 13 (world-wide) Top 30 hit singles for him.
The album Whenever You Need Somebody also reached Number One in the UK, and the hit singles continued, including the title track and a cover of Nat King Cole's "When I Fall In Love."
On 12 March 1988, "Never Gonna Give You Up" had also topped the U.S. singles chart and was followed by a second U.S. #1 on 18 June with his second U.S. single release "Together Forever."
By the end of the decade, Astley had parted company with Stock Aitken Waterman. He achieved one more major success with the 1991 ballad "Cry For Help," which reached the Top 10 in both the UK and the U.S. It featured a gospel choir arranged by Andraรฉ Crouch, who'd also been involved with Madonna's 1989 hit "Like A Prayer."
His next album Body & Soul was released in 1993. The album did not chart in the U.K. and managed to make The Billboard 200 peaking at a lowly #182. The two singles, The Ones You Love and Hopelessly performed very well on the adult contemporary chart, peaking at #19 and #4 respectively. Hopelessly also crossed over and peaked at #31 on the Top 40 Mainstream chart. For much of the 1990s and early 2000s, Astley remained largely out of the spotlight.
In 1991 the RIAA certified that two million copies of Whenever You Need Somebody had been sold. Total world sales of Astley's records (inclusive of singles, albums and compilation inclusions) have reached 40 million.
Almost 10 years after "Body & Soul", Rick finally returned to the music world and released "Keep It Turned On" in 2002. The album featured the single "Sleeping", which became a minor club hit, thanks to a set of remixes from U.S. house producer Todd Terry.
In 2005 Astley released the album Portrait in which he covered many classic soul standards such as "Vincent", "Nature Boy" and "Close To You".
In early 2006, Astley withdrew unexpectedly at the eleventh hour from appearing on the BBC TV celebrity/pro duets show Just the Two of Us after committing to the series. This led to criticism from those in the entertainment industry and media. His place was filled by opera singer Russell Watson, who eventually won the competition. The BBC failed to explain that Astley's withdrawal was due to his partner Lene Bausager being nominated for the 2006 Academy Award for Best Live Action Short Film for her produced/directed film "Cashback". Astley would have missed a crucial part of the show by attending the awards ceremony and so withdrew before the show started its run.
Based on various music charts in the UK, U.S. and Canada, Astley has charted a grand total of 14 (different) hit singles and 6 (different) hit albums as of March 2006.
During the later part of 2006 and the beginning of 2007, the song "Never Gonna Give You Up" became part of an internet meme similar to the "Duckrolling" of the 4chan game forums. A link would be submitted to the forum, in the first instances to a supposed trailer of a new game, and would redirect the user to the video. This process fondly became known as a "Rickroll", and the usage of which has developed exponentially since. As a result of the increased publicity Rick Astley's former record company (RCA) released a greatest hits album.
In 2008, he won the Best Act Ever prize at MTV EMA's. In the same year he Rick rolled America on National TV in Macy's Thanksgiving Parade..thanks to Cartoon Network
Whenever You Need Somebody
Rick Astley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'll bring my love to you
I've been stood up messed around
And taken for a fool
But next time round
I'm gonna change the rules
It's you I think about each and everyday
It's much too late for you to change your ways
I can't keep holding on expecting you to stay
When you're all alone and if you're feeling down
Call me, I'll be around
Whenever you need somebody
I'll bring my love to you
You don't have to say you love me
I just want to be with you
Lost inside your love is where I want to be
I'm just asking you to spend some time with me
Time and time you say you want to be free
And you can have some fun that's okay with me
You will never know just how good I feel
The joy inside of me makes me feel so real
When you're all alone and if you're feeling down
Call me, I'll be around
Whenever you need somebody
I'll bring my love to you
You don't have to say you love me
I just want to be with you
I'll bring my love to you
I just want to be with you
I'll bring my love to you
I just want to be with you
It's much too late for you to change your ways
I can't keep holding on expecting you to stay
When you're all alone and if you're feeling down
Call me, I'll be around
Whenever you need somebody
I'll bring my love to you
You don't have to say you love me
I just want to be with you
The lyrics of the song 'Whenever You Need Somebody' by Rick Astley depict a person who has been hurt and abandoned in love several times. However, despite all the pain, this person has decided to try once again and be brave enough to love someone. The lines 'I've been stood up messed around, And taken for a fool, But next time round, I'm gonna change the rules' show the resolution of this person to take control and not let the fear of being hurt again hover over his/her head.
The song's mood is emotional yet hopeful. The lines 'And I don't care about the things that people say, It's you I think about each and every day' reveal the intensity of the love this person holds for the one he/she is addressing. The chorus 'Whenever you need somebody, I'll bring my love to you, You don't have to say you love me, I just want to be with you' emphasizes the selflessness of this person's love.
The song portrays the narrative of a sincere lover who is facing rejection but is still holding onto the hope of winning over the person he/she loves. The lyrics suggest that the lover is willing to go the extra mile for his/her beloved by being present whenever they need him/her. The song is thus an expression of the pain and joy of love, and how it requires one to be courageous even in the face of rejection.
Line by Line Meaning
I'll bring my love to you
The singer promises to bring his love to the person he cares about
I've been stood up messed around
I have been rejected and deceived by others
And taken for a fool
Others have made me look foolish
But next time round
In the future
I'm gonna change the rules
I will change how I approach relationships
And I don't care about the things that people say
I don't care if others judge me
It's you I think about each and everyday
I think about you all the time
It's much too late for you to change your ways
You cannot change how you act now
I can't keep holding on expecting you to stay
I cannot keep expecting you to stay with me
When you're all alone and if you're feeling down
If you ever feel alone or sad
Call me, I'll be around
Please call me, I'll be there
You don't have to say you love me
You don't have to express your love for me
I just want to be with you
I simply want to be in your company
Lost inside your love is where I want to be
I want to be completely consumed by your love
I'm just asking you to spend some time with me
I'm only requesting that we spend some time together
Time and time you say you want to be free
You have said many times that you want to be independent
And you can have some fun that's okay with me
You can have fun without me, and I'm okay with that
You will never know just how good I feel
You will never understand how happy you make me
The joy inside of me makes me feel so real
I feel truly alive because of the joy you bring me
I'll bring my love to you
The singer promises again to bring his love to the person he cares about
Lyrics ยฉ BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: MIKE STOCK, MATT AITKEN, PETER WATERMAN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind