"Hands to Heaven" is a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

by English new wave band Breathe, taken from their debut studio album, '' All That Jazz'' (1987). The song released as their fifth UK single on 20 October 1987 by

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

and as the band's second single in the US the following year. It was written by group members David Glasper and Marcus Lillington, and produced by

Bob Sargeant Robert Sargeant (20 November 1947 – 13 July 2021) was a British musician and record producer. Life and career Born in North Shields, Sargeant played keyboards in various local bands before joining regional R&B band the Junco Partners in 1966 ...

. The B-side features an instrumental track "Life and Times". "Hands to Heaven" was Breathe's breakthrough hit internationally. The single peaked at 4 on the UK Singles Chart in August 1988. That same month in the United States, it logged two weeks at No. 2 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song also reached No. 2 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Adult Contemporary chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by sta ...

. "Hands to Heaven" also became a top-10 hit in Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, and Norway.

Music video

The music video, directed by Eamon McCabe, features the group in a surreal dream sequence, with the lead singer falling asleep in a black London taxicab and waking at the end, being driven away by the driver.

Track listings

All songs were written by David Glasper and Marcus Lillington and published by Virgin Music, Inc. UK 7-inch single (SIREN SRN68) :A. "Hands to Heaven" – 4:18 :B. "Life and Times" – 4:46 A special limited edition of the 7-inch single which included photos, lyrics and Fan Club address was released in the UK (SRNL 68). US 7-inch single and cassette single (A&M AM-2991/TS-2991) :A. "Hands to Heaven" – 4:17 :B. "Life and Times" – 4:44 UK 12-inch single (SIREN SRNT68) :A1. "Hands to Heaven" (extended Heaven) – 6:23 :B1. "Hands to Heaven" (radio mix) – 4:18 :B2. "Life and Times" – 4:46 A special limited edition of the 12-inch single featured a poster sleeve. UK CD single (SIREN SRCD 68)1 # "Hands to Heaven" – 4:18 # "All That Jazz" (12-inch version) – 6:15 # "Stay" (7-inch version) – 3:50 # "Life and Times" – 4:44

Personnel

Band * David Glasper – vocals * Marcus Lillington – guitars, keyboards * Ian "Spike" Spice – drums * Mike Delahunty – bass Guest musician * Paul "Shilts" Weimar – saxophone Production * Arranged by Breathe * Engineer: John Madden ("Hands to Heaven", "Stay") * Mixing: John Madden ("Life and Times"), Chris Porter ("All That Jazz") * Remixing: Chris Porter ("Hands to Heaven")

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Cover versions

* Filipino pop singer

Christian Bautista Christian Joseph Morata Bautista (born October 19, 1981) is a Filipino singer, actor, host, and model. He was a finalist of ''Star in a Million'', a Philippine reality show aired on ABS-CBN channel, winning 4th place in the competition in 2003. ...

covered the song for his self-titled debut album ''

'' in 2004 and later the single released on 5 April 2005.

In popular culture

The song was used for the Michael and Julia characters on the American soap opera '' Santa Barbara''.

References

External links

Single release info at discogs.com

Official music video
{{Authority control 1987 songs 1987 singles A&M Records singles Breathe (British band) songs Song recordings produced by Bob Sargeant Pop ballads 1980s ballads