"Set Me Free" is a song by American singer

Jermaine Stewart William Jermaine Stewart (September 7, 1957 – March 17, 1997) was an American R&B singer, best known for his 1986 hit single " We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off", which peaked at number five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. It also peaked w ...

, which was released in 1992 as the only single from his unreleased fifth studio album '' Set Me Free''. It was written by Stewart and Jesse Saunders, and produced by Saunders. It reached No. 45 on the ''

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 ...

'' Hot Dance Maxi-Singles Sales chart.

Background

"Set Me Free" was Stewart's debut single for

Reprise Records Reprise Records is an American record label founded in 1960 by Frank Sinatra. It is owned by Warner Music Group, and operates through Warner Records, one of its flagship labels. Artists currently signed to Reprise Records include Green Day, En ...

and saw him embarking on a Hip Hop/House-influenced sound. "Set Me Free" was aimed at the club scene, with various remixes created by David Shaw and Winston Jones. When the single was met with limited commercial success, Reprise shelved the upcoming album of the same name. Stewart began recording a new album, ''Believe in Me'', in the mid-1990s, but he died of AIDS-related liver cancer in March 1997 before it was completed.

Music video

The song's music video was directed by David Florimbi and

Rupert Wainwright Rupert Wainwright is an English film director, film and television director, with credits including ''Blank Check (film), Blank Check'' (1994), ''The Sadness of Sex'' (1995) and ''Stigmata (film), Stigmata'' (1999). He is also a music video prod ...

, and produced by Paul Schiefer for Fragile Films, with Terance Power as the executive producer.

Critical reception

On its release,

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 ...

of ''

'' commented, "Long-absent Stewart switches labels with a slick, trend-conscious funk jam that benefits greatly from his warm and appealing voice. Tasty remixes inject a slinky, R&B-juiced house tone that could work equally well over urban airwaves and on club dancefloors."

Formats

12-inch single #"Set Me Free" (Classical Club Mix) - 6:46 #"Set Me Free" (Classical Club-Stremental) - 6:20 #"Set Me Free" (Ambient House Mix) - 4:16 #"Set Me Free" (Funky Dub Version) - 6:14 #"Set Me Free" (Piano Trax) - 5:57 #"Set Me Free" (Don't Call Me I'll Call U R&B Version) - 5:30 CD single #"Set Me Free" (I Gotta Go Single Edit) - 3:44 #"Set Me Free" (Album Version) - 4:17 #"Set Me Free" (Don't Call Me I'll Call U R&B Version) - 5:30 #"Set Me Free" (Classical Club Mix) - 6:46 #"Set Me Free" (Ambient House Mix) - 4:16

Personnel

* Executive Producer – Benny Medina * Keyboards – Cevin Fisher,

Fred McFarlane Frederick Craig McFarlane (November 14, 1959 – September 3, 2016) was an American R&B songwriter, record producer and multi-instrumentalist. McFarlane's career as a songwriter and producer spanned more than 30 years. He wrote or co-wrote a nu ...

, Peter Daou * Producer – Jesse Saunders * Co-producer – Jermaine Stewart * Remixes of "Set Me Free", Additional Producer – David Shaw, Winston Jones * Remixer of "Set Me Free (Ambient House Mix)" – Jesse Saunders

Charts

References

{{Jermaine Stewart 1992 songs 1992 singles Jermaine Stewart songs Reprise Records singles Songs written by Jermaine Stewart