Songoftheday 12/1/21 - If I had one wish boy I'd wish you next to me, and it could be in summer fall or spring boy cause you make my heart sing...

 

 

"Never Gonna Let You Go" - Faith Evans

from the album Keep The Faith (1998)

Billboard Hot 100 peak: #17 (two weeks)

Weeks in the Top-40: 6

 

Today's song comes from R&B singer Faith Evans, whose second album Keep The Faith had spun off a pair of top ten pop crossover hits with "Love Like This" and "All Night Long". The third release from the set was the love ballad "Never Gonna Let You Go". Written and produced by Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds and Damon Thomas, the song has gospel undertones anchoring the rather bland lyrics, which Faith delivers a bit woodenly, like she's preparing to sing each note independently of each other on most of the track, with short bursts of actually letting go (no pun intended). Until I reheard this, I completely forgot about the song (and I even had bought the single back in the day)...

"Never Gonna Let You Go" became the third top-40 pop hit from Keep The Faith in September of 1999. At urban radio, the song actually did better than its two predecessors spending a week at #1 on Billboard magazine's R&B Singles chart. 

A fourth single from the album, "Lately I", was co-written by song doctor supreme Diane Warren, and co-produced by adult-pop king David Foster, but got little notice at mainstream radio, only becoming a minor hit on the R&B Singles chart at #78. But have "faith", Evans will return to the series.

(4/10)

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Here's Faith performing "Never Gonna Let You Go" live for a TV appearance in 1999...

and lastly, another TV appearance in 2000...

Up tomorrow: New York rapper shakes things up?