Dedicated
Studio album by
Lemar
Released24 November 2003
Length51:35
LabelRCA
Producer
Lemar chronology
Dedicated
(2003)		 Time to Grow
(2004)
Singles from Dedicated
  1. "Dance (with U)"
    Released: 18 August 2003
  2. "50/50 & Lullaby"
    Released: 17 November 2003
  3. "Another Day"
    Released: 23 February 2004

Dedicated is the debut album by English singer Lemar. It was released on 24 November 2003 by RCA Records. The now defunct girl group The 411 provided backing vocals for a number of tracks.

Background

Sony Music signed Lemar to a five-record deal after his success on the BBC Television programme Fame Academy in 2002. His first single "Dance (with U)" was written with Craig Hardy and Fitzgerald Scott who had previously worked with Keith Sweat. The second single "50/50" was recorded by the Norwegian Stargate production team. Fingaz, who has produced hits by British group Big Brovaz, also produced the song "What About Love". Lemar also recorded a version of "Let's Stay Together" by Al Green which was one of his featured songs by Fame Academy.

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
The Guardian[2]

BBC Music critic Karen Goodchild called Dedicated "a great album that is packed full of potential hits that showcase Lemar's amazing vocal ability. That, coupled with the fact that Lemar co-wrote several of these tracks, will surely mean that he'll be around a lot longer than the other over-hyped reality TV stars."[3] Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian found that Dedicated presented Lemar "as North London's answer to Luther Vandross: a romantic of the old school who sells a song with understated sleekness and a hint of chest fur. The contents are all Obika co-writes save for a hip-hoppety version of Al Green's "Let's Stay Together;" the mid-tempo boudoir grooves hardly do justice to the voice, but at least lay the foundations for what could be a substantial future."[2] AllMusic rated the album three stars out of five.[1]

Commercial performance

The first single from the album, "Dance With U", reached number 2 on the UK singles charts in early 2003. His first album Dedicated was released late in 2003 with additional singles "50/50" and "Another Day" also achieving chart success in the UK. Following the success of the album, he commenced his first headlining tour of the UK. Dedicated was certified platinum by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for sales in excess of 300,000 copies.[4]

Track listing

Dedicated track listing
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."Dedicated" (Intro)Lemar Obika
  • Fingaz
  • Lemar
1:08
2."Dance (With U)"
  • Craig Hardy
  • Obika
  • Fitzgerald Scott
3:08
3."Fresh"
  • Abdul Bello
  • Obika
Skillz3:25
4."50/50"
Stargate3:24
5."Another Day"
  • Scott
  • Skyler Sinclair
  • William Whedbee
  • Rawling
  • Paul Meehan
4:02
6."Sweet Love"
  • Karl "JD" Daniel
  • Obika
Daniel3:35
7."No Pressure"
Cutfather & Joe3:38
8."Body Talk"
Best Kept Secret3:20
9."What About Love?"
  • Obika
  • Scott
Fingaz3:39
10."Good Woman"
  • Brown
  • Brown
  • Craig
  • Obika
Best Kept Secret3:47
11."Let's Stay Together"
Nigel Lowis3:57
12."Hot Summer"
  • D. Brown
  • Craig
  • Obika
  • T. Brown
Best Kept Secret3:25
13."Alright With Our Love"
  • Nigel Lowis
  • Obika
  • Scott
Rawling4:20
14."Lullaby"
Cutfather & Joe3:22
15."All I Ever Do (My Boo)"ObikaLemar3:20

Personnel

  • Jarl Ivar Andersen – multi instruments
  • Pete Beachill – trombone
  • Joe Belmaati – keyboards, programming
  • Dave Bishop – saxophone
  • Tim Briley – assistant engineer, mixing assistant
  • James Cruz – mastering
  • Snake Davis – saxophone
  • Joe Fields – engineer
  • Fingaz – keyboards, producer
  • The 411 – background vocals
  • Matt Furmidge – assistant engineer
  • Carrie Grant – vocal arrangement
  • Simon Hale – horn arrangements, string arrangements, horn conductor, string conductor
  • Michael Hansen – percussion
  • Craig Hardy – producer
  • Lawrence Johnson – vocals, choir arrangement
  • Marc Lane – engineer
  • Vanessa Letocq – production coordination
  • The London Session Orchestra – strings
  • Andy Love – producer
  • Nigel Lowis – producer
  • Paul Meehan – arranger, programming, producer
  • Roy Merchant – engineer, mixing
  • Mikkel SE – multi instruments
  • Matz Nilsson – mixing
  • Nicole Nodland – photography
  • Adam Phillips – guitar
  • Nick Raphael – A&R
  • Brian Rawling – arranger, producer
  • Fitzgerald Scott – vocal arrangement, vocal engineer, vocal producer
  • Alan Simpson – guitar
  • Alexis Smith – assistant engineer
  • Stargate – producer
  • Ren Swan – mixing
  • John Themis – guitar
  • Derek Watkins – trumpet
  • Gavyn Wright – orchestra leader
  • Jong Uk Yoon – engineer, mixing

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Dedicted
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[4] Platinum 300,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. 1 2 Allmusic review
  2. 1 2 Sullivan, Caroline (19 December 2003). "Lemar, Dedicated". The Guardian. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  3. ↑ Goodchild, Karen. "Lemar, Dedicated". BBC Music. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
  4. 1 2 "British album certifications – Lemar – Dedicted". British Phonographic Industry.
  5. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Lemar – Dedicated". Hung Medien. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  6. ↑ "Lemar | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 14 October 2020.
  7. ↑ "End of Year Album Chart Top 100 – 2003". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
  8. ↑ "The Official UK Albums Chart 2004" (PDF). Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 April 2021.
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