"Young Hearts Run Free"
Single by Candi Staton
from the album Young Hearts Run Free
B-side"I Know"
Released1976
GenreDisco, R&B, soul
Length
  • 4:08 (Album Version)
  • 3:51 (7" Version)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)David Crawford
Producer(s)David Crawford
Candi Staton singles chronology
"Six Nights and a Day"
(1975)		 "Young Hearts Run Free"
(1976)		 "Run to Me"
(1976)
Music video
"Young Hearts Run Free" (1976) on YouTube
Music video
"Young Hearts Run Free" (1999) on YouTube

"Young Hearts Run Free" is a disco song written by David Crawford and originally recorded by American soul singer Candi Staton in 1976. In 1996, it was covered by American house music singer Kym Mazelle for the triple-platinum selling soundtrack of Romeo + Juliet. Rolling Stone ranked "Young Hearts Run Free" number 150 their list of "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" in 2022,[1] while Billboard ranked it among the "500 Best Pop Songs of All Time" in 2023.[2]

Candi Staton version

"Young Hearts Run Free" is a disco pop-funk track written and produced by David Crawford. According to Staton, the song's genesis was a conversation she had with Crawford over lunch in Los Angeles: Staton – "Dave Crawford was always asking me: 'What's happening in your life'...and I was [then] with someone I shouldn't have been with and it was hard getting out of that...very abusive relationship"[3] "I [noticed] that [Crawford] was taking notes, and he said, 'You know, I'm gonna write you a song. I'm gonna write you a song that's gonna last forever'".[4]

Released in 1976 from the album of the same title, it spent a week at number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart. It also peaked at number twenty on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart.[5] Along with the tracks "Run to Me" and "Destiny", "Young Hearts Run Free" went to number eight on the dance/disco charts.[6] "Young Hearts Run Free" was one of only two songs by Staton to reach the top 10 on the UK Singles Chart, it peaked at number two behind The Real Thing's "You to Me Are Everything".[7] The 1976 single releases had "I Know" on the B-side.

The song is referenced in Staton's 1978 single "Victim" in the lyrics, "I became a victim of the very song I sing, I told you 'young hearts run free'. When I didn't listen to myself . . ."[8] It was used in the 2009 video game Grand Theft Auto: The Ballad of Gay Tony on the in-game radio station K109 The Studio.[9]

In the 2018 documentary Studio 54, "Young Hearts Run Free" plays during the closing credits.

Critical reception

Billboard wrote, "A classic country ballad in a disco leisure suit, as Candi Staton extols the virtues of romantic independence over a soul-stirring horn groove, while simultaneously lamenting that she didn’t practice what she’s preaching in her own relationship."[2] The Guardian said the song "sounds blissful – as if specifically designed to waft out of radios during the sweltering summer of 1976 – but the lyrics are a rueful, downcast cautionary tale of 'lost and lonely' marital discord and years 'filled with tears'."[10] Rolling Stone called it, "still one of the greatest, soaring and melancholy, with Staton's vocal almost unbearably felt".[1]

Charts

Chart (1976) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[11] 4
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] 19
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[13] 38
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[14] 21
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[15] 15
US Billboard Hot 100 20
US Hot Soul Singles (Billboard) 1
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[16] 50
UK Singles (OCC) 2
Chart (1986) Peak
position
Ireland (IRMA) 26
UK Singles (OCC) 47
Chart (1999) Peak
position
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[17] 91
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[18] 33
Scotland (OCC) 29
UK Singles (OCC) 29
UK Indie (OCC)[19] 6

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[20] Platinum 600,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Kym Mazelle version

"Young Hearts Run Free"
Single by Kym Mazelle
from the album Romeo + Juliet
Released1996
Recorded1996
GenreHouse
Length3:59
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)David Crawford
Producer(s)Nellee Hooper
Kym Mazelle singles chronology
"Love Me the Right Way '96"
(1996)		 "Young Hearts Run Free"
(1996)		 "Have a Nice Day"
(1997)
Music video
"Young Hearts Run Free" on YouTube

"Young Hearts Run Free" was covered by American house music singer Kym Mazelle and released in 1996 as the second single for the triple-platinum selling soundtrack of Romeo + Juliet by Capitol Records.[21][22] On August 15, 1997, Mazelle performed the song on the UK's Top of the Pops.[23] The single has since become one of Mazelle's signature hits. In 1998, the song was included on the director's remix album Something for Everybody. In December 2005, Mazelle performed a short version of the song during her guest appearance as a contestant on The Weakest Link during the "Rock and Pop Special".

Critical reception

J.D. Considine from The Baltimore Sun viewed the cover version as a "game but unnecessary remake".[24] A reviewer from Music Week gave it three out of five, noting that here, Nellee Hooper is at the controls for Mazelle's "pumped up version of the soul classic", lifted from the Romeo + Juliet soundtrack."[25] Alan Jackson from The Times commented, "And yet another, with Candi Staton's glorious original subjected to house frenzy."[26] In 2012, Australian music channel Max featured Mazelle's version of "Young Hearts Run Free" in their list of "1000 Greatest Songs of All Time".[27]

Music video

The music video features Mazelle in a sleeveless dress wearing gold jewelry as well as a burgundy dress in other scenes. The video was filmed in late 1996. Several scenes and footage from the Romeo + Juliet film appear in the video. The video also features actor Harold Perrineau, who played Mercutio in the film, wearing a white outfit and a platinum blonde afro wig, miming to Mazelle's voice.

Track listing

  • Maxi-single
  1. "Young Hearts Run Free" (Album Version) – 3:59
  2. "Young Hearts Run Free" (Kiss My Brass – Main Vox Edit) – 3:45
  3. "Young Hearts Run Free" (Young Hearts Dub Free - Underground Dub) – 6:10
  4. "Young Hearts Run Free" (Kiss My Brass Main Vox) – 8:10

Charts

Chart (1996–1997) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[28] 11
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)[29] 44
France (SNEP)[30] 29
Germany (Official German Charts)[31] 88
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[32] 16
Scotland (OCC) 17
UK Singles (OCC)[33] 20
UK Dance (OCC)[34] 29

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[35] Gold 35,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

  1. 1 2 Dolan, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa; Matos, Michaelangelo; Shaffer, Claire (July 22, 2022). "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  2. 1 2 "The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List". Billboard. October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  3. ↑ Staton, Candi (June 6, 2011). "Candi Staton". The Chris Watts Show (Interview). Interviewed by Chris Watts. 107 Meridian FM.
  4. ↑ Enzinna, Wes (December 2, 2010). "Interview with Candi Staton". Oxford American. Archived from the original on December 11, 2010.
  5. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 549.
  6. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 245.
  7. ↑ "Singles Chart For 10/07/1976". Official Charts Company. July 17, 1976. Retrieved January 8, 2012.
  8. ↑ "Candi Staton - Victim Lyrics | LetsSingIt Lyrics". Letssingit.com. Retrieved October 17, 2021.
  9. ↑ "Grand Theft Auto IV: The Ballad of Gay Tony (Video Game 2009)". IMDb.com. Retrieved March 13, 2022.
  10. ↑ Alexis Petridis. "The 70 greatest No 2 singles – ranked!". The Guardian.
  11. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970-1992. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  12. ↑ "Candi Staton – Young Hearts Run Free" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  13. ↑ "Candi Staton – Young Hearts Run Free" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  14. ↑ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 4289a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  15. ↑ "Candi Staton – Young Hearts Run Free". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  16. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 228.
  17. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. August 14, 1999.
  18. ↑ "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (Vikuna 21.10. - 28.10. 1999 43. Vika)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). p. 11.
  19. ↑ "Official Independent Singles Chart Top 50". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 November 2018.
  20. ↑ "British single certifications – Candi Staton – Young Hearts Run Free". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 19 November 2021.
  21. ↑ Romeo + Juliet – Original Soundtrack. AllMusic. Retrieved on October 8, 2017
  22. ↑ Romeo + Juliet | Gold & Platinum Database. Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved on October 8, 2017
  23. ↑ Kym Mazelle — Young Hearts Run Free. BBC Online — Top of the Pops' Video Archive. Retrieved on March 28, 2017
  24. ↑ Considine, J.D. (November 7, 1996). "CD Reviews". The Baltimore Sun. p. 7.
  25. ↑ "Reviews: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. July 26, 1997. p. 27. Retrieved August 15, 2022.
  26. ↑ Jackson, Alan (August 16, 1997). "The week's top pop releases; Records". The Times.
  27. ↑ "Top 1000 Greatest Songs Of All Time – 2012". Max. 2012. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
  28. ↑ "Kym Mazelle – Young Hearts Run Free". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  29. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100" (PDF). Music & Media. August 23, 1997. Retrieved January 9, 2018.
  30. ↑ "Kym Mazelle – Young Hearts Run Free" (in French). Les classement single.
  31. ↑ "Kym Mazelle – Young Hearts Run Free" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 22 February 2019.
  32. ↑ "Kym Mazelle – Young Hearts Run Free". Top 40 Singles.
  33. ↑ "Kym Mazelle - UK Chart". Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 17, 2016.
  34. ↑ "Official UK Dance Singles Chart (10 August 1997-16 August 1997)". officialcharts.com. Retrieved February 12, 2018.
  35. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved September 4, 2022.
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