Ultra Nate Free

'Free'

Single by Ultra Naté

from the album Situation: Critical

Released

March 31, 1997

Format

Genre

House

Length

5:52(Album Version)
3:25 (Mood II Swing Radio Mix)

Label

Strictly Rhythm

Songwriter(s)

Lem Springsteen
John Ciafone

Producer(s)

Springsteen
Ciafone

Ultra Naté singles chronology

'How Long'
(1994)

'Free'
(1997)

'Found a Cure'
(1998)

Music video

'Free' on YouTube

Mar 25, 2014 After hearing 'Free', Ultra Nate made me a fan of her music! The cd has 6 different mixes from a wide range of dj's. And nobody knows hot to mix a song better than them. Junior Sanchez will make you fan of his work for sure. The cd was also nicely completed with 4 other tracks that aren't 'free.

'Free' is a song by American recording artist Ultra Naté released on March 31, 1997 by her record label Strictly Rhythm. The song was co-written by Naté , Lem Springsteen and John Ciafone while production was held by both Springsteen and Ciafone. 'Free' was served as the lead single from her third studio album, Situation: Critical (1997). Musically, the song is a house influenced song that incorporates strong '90s soul, dance, garage and disco.

'Free' received positive reviews from contemporary music critics, who commended her vocal ability and production. The song has been noted as one of the best dance anthems during the '90s era. The song became Naté's most successful single to date, charting in many countries around the world. 'Free' reached number one in Italy and peaked inside the top ten in Canada, France, Iceland, Ireland, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. The song also managed to chart on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 75, and reached number one on the BillboardHot Dance Club Songs chart.

5Charts and certifications

Critical reception[edit]

'Free' received positive reviews from most music critics. AllMusic had highlighted three official versions of the song as 'AllMusic Track Picks': the Bob Sinclar Remix, Jason Nevins Mix and the original version of the song.^[1] A reviewer from the publication Resident Advisor awarded the song four stars out of five. The reviewer said 'This is a solid package from Curvve Recordings. “Free” has already received widespread plays from jocks worldwide, this time around it appears that it may well do the same. An absolute crowd puller, and an essential release for any house dj that is looking for something to fill up a dance floor in seconds.' Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report commented: 'Don't let this one slip by without a careful listen.'^[2]

Music video[edit]

The music video of 'Free' was directed by Fenton Bailey and Randy Barbato.^[3] It features Naté performing in an empty hospital. There are two different edits of the video, with some different scenes.

Impact and legacy[edit]

DJ Magazine ranked it number 5 in their list of the 'Top 100 Club Tunes' in 1998.^[4]

MTV Dance placed 'Free' at #31 in their list of 'The 100 Biggest 90's Dance Anthems of All Time' in November 2011.^[5]

Mixmag included the song in their list of 'The 30 best vocal house anthems ever' in 2018. They wrote: 'The opening bars are delicate, but soon enough the bumping production kicks in, underpinning a vocal that burns with the potency of the sun’s surface, encouraging dancers to live by Ultra Naté’s words and be free.'^[6] In 2019, 'Free' was also included in their list of 'The 20 best diva house tracks'.^[7]

Track listing[edit]

'Free' (Mood II Swing Radio Edit) – 3:41
'Free' (Full Intention Radio Edit) – 3:20
'Free' (Mood II Swing Extended Vocal Mix) – 12:09
'Free' (Full Intention Vocal Mix) – 6:50
'Free' (R.I.P. Up North Mix) – 6:45
'Free' (R.I.P. Down South Dub) – 6:25
'Free' (Mood II Swing Live Mix) – 7:42
'Free' (Mood II Swing Dub Mix) – 8:52
'Free' (Full Intention Sugar Daddy Dub) – 6:05

Charts and certifications[edit]

Weekly charts[edit]

Chart (1997)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)^[8]	31
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)^[9]	33
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)^[10]	22
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[11]	11
Belgium Dance (Ultratop)^[12]	7
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)^[13]	10
Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)^[14]	4
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[15]	8
France (SNEP)^[16]	6
Germany (Official German Charts)^[17]	42
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)^[18]	10
Ireland (IRMA)^[19]	9
Italy (Hit Parade Italia)^[20]	1
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)^[21]	29
Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[22]	28
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[23]	30
Norway (VG-lista)^[24]	17
Scotland (Official Charts Company)^[25]	5
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)^[26]	28
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[27]	6
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)^[28]	4
UK Dance (Official Charts Company)^[29]	2
US Billboard Hot 100^[30]	75
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)^[31]	1

Year-end charts[edit]

Chart (1997)	Position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)^[32]	56
Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)^[33]	44
France (SNEP)^[34]	36
Italy (Hit Parade Italia)^[20]	16
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)^[35]	29
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)^[36]	20

Certifications[edit]

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
France (SNEP)^[37]	Gold	250,000^*
United Kingdom (BPI)^[38]	Gold	400,000^{^}
^*sales figures based on certification alone ^{^}shipments figures based on certification alone

Remixes[edit]

In 2005, Curvve Recordings released the official remixes of 'Free'. Remixers included:
- 'Free' (Oscar G remix)
- 'Free' (Junior Sanchez Remix)
- 'Free' (Brick City Remix)
- 'Free' (Corbett and Troia remix)
- 'Free' (Jason Nevins Remix)
In 2016, Defected Records released a Deep House remix/mashup of 'Free' made by Claptone, called 'The First Time Free (Claptone Remix)'. This track includes the guitar riff from 'Free', overlaid with the vocals from 'The First Time', by Roland Clark.

References[edit]

^'Ultra Naté - Songs'. AllMusic.
^Sholin, Dave (15 August 1997). 'Gavin Picks > Singles'(PDF). Gavin Report. No. 2168. p. 62. Retrieved 16 April 2018.
^'Ultra Nate Free'. mvdbase.com. Retrieved March 4, 2017.
^'DJ Magazine Top 100 Club Tunes (1998)'. discogs.com. Retrieved 4 March 2017.
^MTV Dance - Tuesday 27.12.2011
^'The 30 best vocal house anthems ever'. Mixmag. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
^'The 20 best diva house tracks'. Mixmag. Retrieved 16 September 2019.
^'Australian-charts.com – Ultra Naté – Free'. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Austriancharts.at – Ultra Naté – Free' (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Ultratop.be – Ultra Naté – Free' (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Ultratop.be – Ultra Naté – Free' (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Ultratop Dance 13/09/1997'. ultratop.be. Retrieved 16 May 2018.
^'Ultra Naté Chart History (Canadian Digital Songs)'. Billboard. Retrieved 27 February 2019.Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |magazine= (help)
^'Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 3344.' RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Music & Media: Eurochart Hot 100'(PDF). Music & Media.
^'Lescharts.com – Ultra Naté – Free' (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Offiziellecharts.de – Ultra Naté – Free'. GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (14.08.1997 - 21.08.1997)'(PDF) (in Icelandic). Dagblaðið Vísir - Tónlist. Retrieved 6 February 2018.
^'The Irish Charts – Search Results – Free'. Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^ ^a^b'I singoli più venduti del 1997' (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
^ 'Nederlandse Top 40 – week 38, 1997' (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Dutchcharts.nl – Ultra Naté – Free' (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Charts.nz – Ultra Naté – Free'. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Norwegiancharts.com – Ultra Naté – Free'. VG-lista. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100'. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Swedishcharts.com – Ultra Naté – Free'. Singles Top 100. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Swisscharts.com – Ultra Naté – Free'. Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Official Singles Chart Top 100'. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40'. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Ultra Naté Chart History (Hot 100)'. Billboard. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Ultra Naté Chart History (Dance Club Songs)'. Billboard. Retrieved 14 April 2018.
^'Rapports annuels 1997' (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
^'RPM '97 Year End Top 50 Dance Tracks'. RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
^'Classement Singles – année 1997' (in French). Archived from the original on 7 March 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2019.
^'Swiss Year-End Charts 1997' (in German). Retrieved 12 November 2018.
^'Top 100 Singles 1997'. Music Week. 17 January 1998. p. 27.
^'French single certifications – Ultra Nate – Free' (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
^'British single certifications – Ultra Naté – Free'. British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 14 April 2018.Select singles in the Format field.Select Gold in the Certification field.Type Free in the 'Search BPI Awards' field and then press Enter.

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