Grace (group)
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Grace was a 1990s British
dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance musi ...
act, consisting of the DJs
Paul Oakenfold Paul Mark Oakenfold (; born 30 August 1963), formerly known mononymously as Oakenfold, is an English record producer, remixer and trance DJ. He has provided over 100 remixes for over 100 artists including U2, Moby, Madonna, Britney Spears, Ma ...
and
Steve Osborne Stephen John "Steve" Osborne (born 1963) is a British record producer, living in Bath, England. He has worked with a wide variety of musicians, including Suede, the B-52s, A-ha, New Order, Elbow, U2, Happy Mondays, Placebo, Gregory Porter, D ...
and the
jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...
singer
Dominique Atkins Dominique Atkins (born 29 April 1970) is a British jazz and dance singer from London. She has been a member of such groups as Grace and The Space Brothers, among others. Her hit singles include "Not Over Yet", "Skin On Skin", "If I Could Fly", " ...
. The group's first single, " Not Over Yet" (originally released in 1993 and then again in 1995), had lead and backing vocals by the original frontwoman Patti Low. Atkins recorded her own lead vocals for "Not Over Yet" when it was included as the first track on the group's only album '' If I Could Fly''.


History

The group was initially named State of Grace, shortened to Grace following the discovery of another group of the same name. In existence from 1993 to 1997, the group served mainly to showcase Oakenfold and Osborne's production talents. They had seven
Top 40 In the music industry, the Top 40 is a list of the 40 currently most popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "To ...
hits, most notably the dance anthem " Not Over Yet", which peaked at #6 in the UK Singles Chart, and topped the
Hot Dance Music/Club Play The Dance Club Songs (also known as National Disco Action, Hot Dance/Disco Club Play, and Hot Dance Club Play) was a chart published weekly between 1976 and 2020 by ''Billboard'' magazine. It used club disc jockeys set lists to determine the mos ...
chart in the US. The original front-woman, Patti Low, also recorded one other track while involved with Grace called "Helpless", which was only released as the
B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...
on the tape cassette release of "Not Over Yet" in 1995. Low appeared in the 1995 promotional video for "Not Over Yet" and also performed live lead-vocals in Grace's appearance on ''
Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...
'' in early 1995. For reasons unknown, she was then replaced as the lead singer with Dominique Atkins, of whom Oakenfold had become aware through her vocals on the previous Perfecto release "Passion" by Jon of the Pleased Wimmin. Subsequent recordings and personal appearances would feature Atkins as lead singer. The September 1995 track "I Want To Live" (UK #30)/(UK Dance #6) which was a cover of the song by
Gavin Friday Gavin Friday (born Fionán Martin Hanvey, 8 October 1959) is an Irish singer and songwriter, composer, actor and painter, best known as a founding member of the post-punk group The Virgin Prunes. Early life Fionan Hanvey was born in Dublin an ...
(also covered by
Naomi Campbell Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is a British supermodel. Beginning her career at the age of eight, Campbell was one of six models of her generation declared supermodels by the fashion industry and the international press. She was th ...
) had the "Not Over Yet" lead singer Low on backing vocals. Further singles by Grace were "Skin on Skin" (UK #21), "Down to Earth" (UK #20), "If I Could Fly" (UK #29), " Hand in Hand" (UK #38) and
double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...
of "You're Not Mine" (renamed "Don't Call Me (You're Not Mine)") along with a re-release of "Down to Earth" (UK #29). The group released an album entitled '' If I Could Fly'' though this did not enter the chart. "Skin on Skin" was a reworking of Oakenfold's "Perfecto Mix" of U2's "
Lemon The lemon (''Citrus'' × ''limon'') is a species of small evergreen tree in the ''Citrus'' genus of the flowering plant family Rutaceae. A true lemon is a hybrid of the citron and the bitter orange. Its origins are uncertain, but some ...
" that was released in 1993. Indeed, the Orange Mix of "Skin on Skin" is even closer to the original Perfecto Mix of "Lemon". The Orange Mix later appeared as the second track on Oakenfold's acclaimed ''
Goa Mix ''The Goa Mix'' (also known as ''Goa Mix'') is a two-hour DJ mix by British musician and DJ Paul Oakenfold. It was originally broadcast on BBC Radio 1 as an ''Essential Mix'' on 18 December 1994 after the producer of the show, Eddie Gordon, ch ...
'' (1994). Atkins also recorded vocals for
Tilt Tilt may refer to: Music * Tilt (American band), a punk rock group, formed in 1992 * Tilt (British band), an electronic music group, formed in 1993 * Tilt (Polish band), a rock band, formed in 1979 Albums * ''Tilt'' (Cozy Powell album), 1981 ...
on their track "Rendezvous", which was retitled "Invisible", and was originally to be released as "Tilt feat. Grace", but the Grace title was dropped for the release. The group was dissolved in 1997, when Oakenfold was touring more frequently as a performance DJ and could not commit to recording. The group were on Oakenfold's
Perfecto Records Perfecto Records is a British trance record label, founded by Paul Oakenfold in 1989. Perfecto was also a remix team consisting of Paul Oakenfold and Steve Osborne and in its later years, Osborne was replaced by Andy Gray. Perfecto Records ha ...
. In 1999, "Not Over Yet" was re-released with new mixes by
Planet Perfecto Planet Perfecto was a dance supergroup, formed in 1997 by Paul Oakenfold, Ian Masterson and Jake Williams. They were signed to Oakenfold's record label, Perfecto Records. Musical career Their first release was "Georgie Girl" on 12" viny ...
(another Oakenfold pseudonym) though the radio version was an edited version of the original 1995 Perfecto Radio Edit. All new versions and remixes on the re-release however, contained a combination of the original backing vocals by Low and lead vocals by Atkins. It again reached the UK Top 20, peaking at number 16. In 2007, "Not Over Yet" was reworked by the
Klaxons Klaxons were an English Rock music, rock band, based in London. Following the release of several Gramophone record, 7-inch singles on different independent record labels, as well as the success of previous singles "Magick (Klaxons song), Magick ...
and renamed " It's Not Over Yet", for their album '' Myths of the Near Future''. In July 2011, new remixes of "Not Over Yet" were released by Perfecto. In December 2011, a new track for Grace (Dominique Atkins) was announced on Tilt's official Facebook page as being currently written.


Grace singles


"Not Over Yet" (1995)


Charts


"I Want to Live" (1995)


Critical reception

James Masterton James Masterton (born 2 September 1973) is a British music critic and columnist, his work focusing on the UK Singles Chart having been an online fixture on various sites since the 1990s. Masterton is also a producer for talkSPORT, and has worke ...
for ''
Dotmusic ''Dotmusic'' was a music webzine that existed as a standalone website from 1 June 1995 to December 2003. Initially intended as the web complement to the UK music industry trade magazine ''Music Week'', the site was relaunched in December 1998 as a ...
'' wrote, "Now Grace is back with her second hit single, this time a cover version of a
Gavin Friday Gavin Friday (born Fionán Martin Hanvey, 8 October 1959) is an Irish singer and songwriter, composer, actor and painter, best known as a founding member of the post-punk group The Virgin Prunes. Early life Fionan Hanvey was born in Dublin an ...
track which was released several times back in 1992 yet never once made the charts, an injustice which is now finally corrected by this new version." A reviewer from ''
Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as ''Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music We ...
'' rated the song four out of five adding, "Shades of It's All Over abound in this tuneful number which should echo the success of its predecessor." An editor, Alan Jones, wrote that "a lightly synth-textured, almost ethereal delight, it has only just been released to the clubs, but watch it go."
James Hamilton James Hamilton may refer to: Dukes *James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton (1606–1649), heir to the throne of Scotland *James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton (1658–1712), Scottish nobleman *James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Hamilton (1703–1743), Sco ...
from the '' RM'' Dance Update deemed it a "hypnotic cooing throbber".


Charts


"Skin on Skin" (1996)


Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the musi ...
from ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' praised the track. He wrote, "Oh-so-charming Perfecto U.K. ingenue Grace continues her rapid ascension into international pop consciousness with "Skin On Skin", a trance/NRG anthem inspired by producer (and Perfecto founder) Paul Oakenfold's 1995 underground hit "Orange". Her wispy, ethereal voice has a sharper edge here, no doubt urged on by the track's forceful bassline and racing synths. The double pack of remixes succeeds in giving DJs several shades of keyboard drama to work with, though the beat never goes below the wind-knocking pace of the primary A-side vocal version. For those who want to monitor the track's progression from "Orange" to "Skin On Skin", the original jam is also included. A winning single that leaves you wanting to hear more and more of this intriguing young performer."


Charts


"Down to Earth" (1996)


Critical reception

J.D. Considine from ''
The Baltimore Sun ''The Baltimore Sun'' is the largest general-circulation daily newspaper based in the U.S. state of Maryland and provides coverage of local, regional, national, and international news. Founded in 1837, the newspaper was owned by Tribune Publi ...
'' felt that "instead of riding the surging hook of "Down to Earth", her voice floats blithely atop it, swept away by the beats as completely as a dancer would be." A reviewer from ''
Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as ''Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music We ...
'' rated the song three out of five, adding, "The hook doesn't really hammer home but superb production ensures this track still has impact. Likely to be a moderate success."
James Hamilton James Hamilton may refer to: Dukes *James Hamilton, 1st Duke of Hamilton (1606–1649), heir to the throne of Scotland *James Hamilton, 4th Duke of Hamilton (1658–1712), Scottish nobleman *James Hamilton, 5th Duke of Hamilton (1703–1743), Sco ...
from the '' RM'' Dance Update described it as a "Dominique Atkins cooed scurrying sweet soundscaper". Also another editor, Tim Jeffery, gave it three out of five, declaring it as "another sweetly-sung melody from Grace over a succession of remixes" and a "commercial trancer". In 1997, ''Music Week'' rated the song four out of five. A reviewer wrote, "Singer Dominique Atkins looks set to repeat the success of Not Over Yet with this sweet slice of dancefloor pop with a chirruping vocal hookline."


Charts


"If I Could Fly" (1996)


Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the musi ...
from ''
Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...
'' praised the song, writing, "Once again, angelic Perfecto singer Grace hits the mark with yet another brilliantly crafted single, "If I Could Fly". Dreamy as can be, the track has been properly tweaked by
Smith & Mighty Smith & Mighty are an English trip hop group from Bristol, England, consisting of Rob Smith, Ray Mighty and Peter D Rose. They pioneered the Bristol sound producing Massive Attack's "Any Love". The Bristol sound being a precursor to trip hop. ...
and
LTJ Bukem Daniel Andrew Williamson (born 20 September 1967), better known as LTJ Bukem (), is a British drum and bass musician, producer and DJ. He and his record label Good Looking are most associated with the jazzy, atmospheric side of drum and bass m ...
."


Charts


"Hand in Hand" (1997)


Charts


See also

*
List of number-one dance hits (United States) ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine has published Billboard charts, charts ranking the top-performing dance music songs in the United States since 1974. Originally a top-ten list of tracks that garnered the largest audience response in N ...
*
List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart A list is a set of discrete items of information collected and set forth in some format for utility, entertainment, or other purposes. A list may be memorialized in any number of ways, including existing only in the mind of the list-maker, but ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Grace (Band) English electronic music groups English techno music groups British trance music groups British musical trios