"Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" is a song by British-based pop duo

Shakespears Sister Shakespears Sister is an alternative pop and rock musical duo based in the United Kingdom that was formed in 1988 by singer-songwriter Siobhan Fahey, a former member of Bananarama. Shakespears Sister was initially a solo act, but became a duo ...

, and was released as the fourth single from their second album, ''

Hormonally Yours ''Hormonally Yours'' is the second studio album by British pop-rock act Shakespears Sister, released on 17 February 1992 by London Records. The album went on to become a critical and commercial success, and is their best-selling album to date. ...

''. The single peaked at number 14 and spent six weeks on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. Internationally, the single peaked within the top 40 in Germany, Ireland, the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland.

Background

The single was released in the UK on 26 October 1992. The album version of the song was remixed for its single release, featuring more bass and adding drums. The single version is also slightly extended, with a repeat of the chorus towards the end of the song. The single sleeve artwork was created by

Laurence Dunmore Laurence Dunmore is a graphic designer and film director whose first major collaboration was the British production of '' The Libertine'' in 2005. He is a member of Ridley Scott Associates and has directed advertisements for AT&T, BMW, ING and T ...

, with photography by

Derek Ridgers Derek Ridgers (born 20 October 1950) is a British photographer known for his photography of music, film and club/street culture. He has photographed people including James Brown, the Spice Girls, Clint Eastwood and Johnny Depp, as well as polit ...

Critical reception

Tom Demalon from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

described the song as a "stellar glam-tinged

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 ...

with a dreamy chorus".

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

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 ...

'' called it a "

Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developme ...

-esque rock ballad." He added, "A soft, rolling piano line is surrounded by deep

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: ''altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In 4-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in choruses by ...

harmonies and nimble guitars. Booming, swaying, and completely memorable chorus is icing on the cake." The Daily Vault's Michael R. Smith stated in his album review, that "the spellbinding grand finale of "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" is just icing on the cake." A reviewer from ''

Liverpool Echo The ''Liverpool Echo'' is a newspaper published by Trinity Mirror North West & North Wales – a subsidiary company of Reach plc and is based in St Paul's Square, Liverpool, Merseyside, England. It is published Monday to Sunday, and is Liverp ...

'' wrote, "Songs that mention the radio always do well on the radio. It's because DJs are so big-headed. But this one - a re-mixed track from the ''

'' album - does sound good on radio." Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' commented, "Hello out there in radio land, stay for a while for another ballad by the hippest sisters around." Pop Rescue said it is a "great" track.

Music video

The accompanying

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

for "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" was directed by British director

Sophie Muller Sophie Luise Elisabeth Muller (born 31 January 1962) is a British music video director who has directed more than 300 music videos. She won a Grammy Award for Annie Lennox's 1992 ''Diva'' video album, and an MTV Video Music Award for Lennox's son ...

and is made in black-and-white as an old movie. It depicts the duo performing inside what appears to be a closet that is being opened in the beginning and closed at the end of the video.

Track listings

* 7-inch single and cassette # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (7-inch version) — 4:24 # "

Stay Stay may refer to: Places * Stay, Kentucky, an unincorporated community in the US Law * Stay of execution, a ruling to temporarily suspend the enforcement of a court judgment * Stay of proceedings, a ruling halting further legal process in a tri ...

" (André Betts remix) — 4:28 * UK limited-edition CD single # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (7-inch version) — 4:23 # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (alternative piano version) — 4:23 # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (album version) — 4:06 # "Stay" (André Betts remix) — 3:49 * UK CD single # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" — 4:24 # "Black Sky" (Dub Extravaganza Part 2) — 10:39 # "Goodbye Cruel World" (BTO remix) — 7:06 # "Stay (André Betts 12-inch remix) — 4:28 * European and Australasian CD single # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (7-inch version) — 4:23 # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" (alternative piano version) — 4:23 # "Goodbye Cruel World" (BTO remix) — 7:06 # "Stay" (André Betts remix) — 3:49

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Cover versions

The Bates version

"Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" was covered by German

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

band

the Bates __NOTOC__ The Bates were a German punk band, founded in Eschwege, federal state of Hessen, in 1987. The name referred to the character Norman Bates from Alfred Hitchcock's 1960 film, '' Psycho''. The Bates were mainly known for their cover ve ...

, and was released as the group's lead single in 1994.

Track listing

* CD single # "Hello" – 3:21 # "All in All" – 2:28 # "It's a Heartache" (Punch in the Face demo mix) – 1:52 # "Hello" (Punch in the Face demo mix) – 3:14 # "Worse Than the Devil" (Punch in the Face demo mix) – 1:51

Queensberry version

"Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" was covered by German

girlgroup A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...

Queensberry, and released as the lead single off the second album On My Own in October 2009.

Track listing

* CD single # "Hello (Turn Your Radio On)" – 3:18 # "Welcome to My World" (written by Andrew Bojanic, Elizabeth Hooper, Jim Marr, Wendy Page) – 3:46

Charts

References

{{Authority control 1990s ballads 1992 singles 1992 songs 2009 singles Black-and-white music videos London Records singles Music videos directed by Sophie Muller Queensberry (band) songs Rock ballads Shakespears Sister songs Songs about radio Songs written by David A. Stewart Songs written by Marcella Detroit Songs written by Siobhan Fahey Virgin Records singles Warner Records singles