Always & Forever (Eternal album)

Always & Forever is the debut studio album by British girl group Eternal. It was released through EMI on 29 November 1993 and is the only studio album by Eternal to feature Louise Nurding, who left the group to embark on a solo career prior to the release of their follow-up album, Power of a Woman (1995). The album became a commercial success, spending 63 weeks in the top 40 of the UK Albums Chart,[5] selling over one million copies in the UK alone and yielding six hit singles. As of 1997, the album had sold over four million copies worldwide.[6] In June 2019, Always & Forever was ranked at number 15 on the Official Charts Company's Top 40 biggest girl band studio albums of the last 25 years.[7]

Always & Forever
Studio album by
Eternal
Released28 November 1993
Recorded1992–1993
Studio
  • Prime Time (Los Angeles)
  • Sarm West, Roundhouse (London)
  • Mad Fly Productions (New York)
Genre
Length58:32
Label
Producer
Eternal chronology
Always & Forever
(1993)		 Power of a Woman
(1995)
Singles from Always & Forever
  1. "Stay"
    Released: 20 September 1993
  2. "Save Our Love"
    Released: 3 January 1994
  3. "Just a Step from Heaven"
    Released: 18 April 1994
  4. "So Good"
    Released: 8 August 1994
  5. "Oh Baby I..."
    Released: 24 October 1994
  6. "Crazy"
    Released: 12 December 1994
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Gavin Report(favorable)[2]
The Observer(negative)[3]
Smash Hits[4]

Single releases

Always & Forever yielded six top 20 singles, two of which reached top 5: "Stay" and "Oh Baby I...".[8] "Stay" was the first single to be released from the album, peaking at No. 4 in the UK Singles Chart. This was followed by "Save Our Love" and "Just A Step From Heaven", both of which peaked at No. 8. "So Good" was the next single, peaking at No. 13, followed by "Oh Baby I..." which reached No. 4. "Crazy" was the final single released from the album, peaking at No. 15 in the UK Singles Chart.

Commercial performance

Always & Forever was a huge success, peaking at number 2 on the UK Albums Chart, and was later certified 4× Platinum by the BPI for sales of over 1.2 million copies. The album spent over 76 weeks in the charts. After its release at the end of 1993, it slowly climbed the album chart peaking at No. 3 in May 1994 shortly after the release of the third single, "Just a Step from Heaven". The album stayed in the chart throughout 1994 becoming that year's third best-selling album in the UK,[9] before climbing to No. 2 in January 1995. The album broke records for being the first to sell over one million copies in the UK by a female group.[10] As of 2015, it is the only album by a debut act to contain six top 15 hits and the first album by a female group to be nominated for best album at the BRIT Awards. The album had an American release in March 1994, selling 81,000 copies by December 1994.[11]

Track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Stay"
  • Bobby Khouzouri
  • Mark Steven
Nigel Lowis3:56
2."Crazy"BeBe Winans
  • Winans
  • Tim Simenon (co.)
4:02
3."Save Our Love" (West End Mix)
Lowis4:21
4."Oh Baby I..."
  • Golden
  • Faragher
5:29
5."I'll Be There"
  • Geoffrey Williams
  • Simon Stirling
Lowis5:13
6."Sweet Funky Thing"
  • Golden
  • Faragher
4:46
7."Never Gonna Give You Up"
  • Maria Christanson
  • Golden
  • Faragher
  • Golden
  • Faragher
3:58
8."Just a Step from Heaven"
  • Dennis Charles
  • Ronnie Wilson
4:16
9."Let's Stay Together"
  • Charles
  • Wilson
4:38
10."This Love Is for Real"
Lowis3:44
11."So Good"
Lowis3:57
12."If You Need Me Tonight"
  • Charles
  • E. Bennett
  • V. Bennett
  • Bryan
  • Nurding
  • Wilson
  • Charles
  • Wilson
4:00
13."Don't Say Goodbye"
  • Charles
  • E. Bennett
  • V. Bennett
  • Bryan
  • Nurding
  • Wilson
  • Charles
  • Wilson
4:14
14."Amazing Grace"John Newton
  • Charles
  • Wilson
1:50

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[29] Gold 35,000[11]
Germany — 35,000[30]
Ireland (IRMA)[31] Gold 7,500^
Japan (RIAJ)[32] Gold 100,000[11]
Netherlands (NVPI)[33] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[34] 4× Platinum 1,400,000[30]
United States — 81,000[11]
Summaries
Worldwide — 4,000,000[35]

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References
  1. Wynn, Ron. "Review: Always & Forever – Eternal". AllMusic. Retrieved 26 August 2009.
  2. Lai, Annette M. (18 February 1994). "Gavin Picks — Albums" (PDF). Gavin Report. Retrieved 14 March 2022.
  3. Spencer, Neil. "Review: Eternal – Always & Forever (EMI CDEMD 1053)". The Observer Review. Guardian Media Group (12 December 1993): 9.
  4. Frith, Mark. "New Albums". Smash Hits. p. 52. 24 November 1993.
  5. Myers, Justin (27 March 2018). "Little Mix's Glory Days sets UK chart record as the longest-reigning Top 40 girl group album ever". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  6. "Billboard (6 September 1997)". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 6 September 1997. p. 62. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  7. "The Official Top 40 biggest girl band studio albums of the last 25 years". Official Charts Company. 13 June 2019. Retrieved 26 December 2020.
  8. "Eternal". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
  9. Spencer, Neil. "Feature: Arts Review Of 1994: Pop". The Observer Review. Guardian Media Group (18 December 1994): 8.
  10. "Eternal". ArtInBase. Archived from the original on 12 March 2012. Retrieved 27 September 2012.
  11. "Eternal Hopes Hits Go 'Forever': E.M.I. UK Group Breaking In US". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 3 December 1994. p. 3. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
  12. "Australiancharts.com – Eternal – Always & Forever". Hung Medien.
  13. "Ultratop.be – Eternal – Always & Forever" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  14. "Dutchcharts.nl – Eternal – Always & Forever" (in Dutch). Hung Medien.
  15. "European Top 100 Albums" (PDF). Music & Media. 28 January 1995. p. 20. Retrieved 31 December 2021 – via worldradiohistory.com.
  16. "Lescharts.com – Eternal – Always & Forever". Hung Medien.
  17. "Offiziellecharts.de – Eternal – Always & Forever" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts.
  18. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Eternal". Hung Medien.
  19. "Oricon Top 50 Albums: 1994-03-30" (in Japanese). Oricon.
  20. "Charts.nz – Eternal – Always & Forever". Hung Medien.
  21. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  22. "Eternal | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart.
  23. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  24. "eternal Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard.
  25. "eternal Chart History (Heatseekers Albums)". Billboard.
  26. "eternal Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard.
  27. "Chart Archive – 1990s Albums". Retrieved 24 September 2011.
  28. "Dutchcharts.nl – Jahreshitparade 1995". Hung Medien. Retrieved 1 August 2010.
  29. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1994 Albums" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 31 August 2022.
  30. Tilli, Robbert (1 April 1995). "EMI Throws Eternal "A Platinum Celebration"" (PDF). Music & Media. p. 8. Retrieved 28 December 2021.
  31. "The Irish Charts - 2013 Certification Awards - Gold". Irish Recorded Music Association. Retrieved 1 February 2013.
  32. "Japanese album certifications – Eternal – Always & Forever" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  33. "Dutch album certifications – Eternal – Always & Forever" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 15 July 2012. Enter Always & Forever in the "Artiest of titel" box. Select 1994 in the drop-down menu saying "Alle jaargangen".
  34. "British album certifications – Eternal – Always & Forever". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 July 2012.
  35. "Diverse And Promising Acts On The Horizon: Up-And-Comers, Veteran Acts Shape The EMI Of Tomorrow". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 6 September 1997. p. 62. Retrieved 18 December 2017.
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