Closer (Shayne Ward album)

Closer is the fourth studio album by English pop singer Shayne Ward. It was released on 12 April 2015, as Ward's first independent release, funded through PledgeMusic. The album marks the debut release from MPG, a joint venture between Ward and music producer Mike Stock. The album features writing credits by Ward, Stock, Laura Walton and Johan Kalel, with production provided exclusively by Stock and Jimmy Junior. Recording took place between 2014 and 2015 in Stock's West Sussex studio.

Closer
Studio album by
Released12 April 2015 (2015-04-12)
Recorded2014–2015
Genre
Length35:14
LabelMPG
Producer
Shayne Ward chronology
Obsession
(2010)
Closer
(2015)
Singles from Closer
  1. "My Heart Would Take You Back"
    Released: 13 April 2015
  2. "The Way You Were"
    Released: 21 June 2015
  3. "Moving Target"
    Released: 16 October 2015

Background

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In 2011, it was reported that Syco Music had not renewed their recording contract with Ward due to the relative commercial failure of his third studio album, Obsession. It was announced in 2014 that Shayne will release his fourth album with Mike Stock and PledgeMusic. Stock confirmed that the entire album was recorded and produced using solar power.

Singles

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The first single "My Heart Would Take You Back" premiered on BBC Radio 2 on the Ken Bruce show on 24 February 2015 to a positive reception. Shayne Ward said of the song: "I sat down with Mike and said, 'I love The Stylistics, Temptations, The Chi-Lites and I would love to write something along the lines of that. I thought it would end up as an album track but from the moment we sent it to management, they jumped at it and said, 'We have to go with this as the lead track.'"[1]

A video for "The Way You Were" was released on 2 June 2015[2] with remixes due for release on 21 June.[3]

Track listing

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No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."My Heart Would Take You Back"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Laura Walton
  • Ward
3:28
2."Moving Target"
3:03
3."I Never Said"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Ward
3:15
4."The Way You Were"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:44
5."Too Much To Lose"
  • Stock
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:37
6."Crying, Lying Eyes"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:13
7."I'm So Proud of You"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:52
8."Make It Simple"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:10
9."Fake"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
3:13
10."I Let You Get Away"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Ward
3:11
Deluxe Edition Bonus Tracks
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
11."Rendez-Vous, The Place I Love"
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Ward
4:05
12."About You Now"3:48
13."If You Were Here Tonight"Monte Moir4:12
14."No Promises"
  • Jonas Schrøder
  • Lucas Sieber
3:28
15."My Heart Would Take You Back" (The JRMX Remix)
  • Stock
  • Kalel
  • Walton
  • Ward
5:31
16."My Heart Would Take You Back" (Voice Memo)  
17."Make It Simple" (Voice Memo)  
18."Moving Target" (Voice Memo)  

Charts

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Chart (2015) Peak
position
Irish Albums (IRMA)[4] 16
Irish Independent Albums (IRMA)[5] 7
Scottish Albums (OCC)[6] 24
UK Albums (OCC)[7] 17
UK Album Downloads (OCC)[8] 38
UK Independent Albums (OCC)[9] 2

Release history

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List of release dates, showing region, formats, label, editions, and reference
Region Date Format(s) Label Edition(s) Ref.
Various 12 April 2015
  • CD
  • digital download
  • Standard
  • deluxe
United Kingdom 13 April 2015

References

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  1. ^ "Shayne Ward: 'No bitterness towards Simon Cowell or Syco'". Reveal.
  2. ^ "Shayne Ward – The Way You Were". YouTube. 2 June 2015. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  3. ^ "The Way You Were (Remixes) – Single". iTunes Store. Retrieved 3 June 2015.
  4. ^ "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 17, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA.
  5. ^ "GFK Chart-Track – Independent Albums: Week 17, 2015". Chart-Track. IRMA.
  6. ^ April 2015/40/ "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  7. ^ April 2015/7502/ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  8. ^ April 2015/7003/ "Official Album Downloads Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  9. ^ April 2015/131/ "Official Independent Albums Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company.
  10. ^ Ward, Shayne. "Shayne Ward: Closer on PledgeMusic". United Kingdom: PledgeMusic. Retrieved 3 February 2015.
  11. ^ British release of Closer: