"One for Sorrow" is a song by British

pop-dance Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...

group Steps, released as the third single from their debut album, ''

Step One Step(s) or STEP may refer to: Common meanings * Steps, making a staircase * Walking * Dance move * Military step, or march ** Marching Arts Films and television * ''Steps'' (TV series), Hong Kong * ''Step'' (film), US, 2017 Literature * ' ...

'' (1998). It also became the quintet's first single to reach the top five 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 ...

. Debuting at number two and spending 11 weeks on the UK chart, the song established Steps's intention to revive the

ABBA ABBA ( , , formerly named Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Anni-Frid or Björn & Benny, Agnetha & Frida) are a Swedish supergroup formed in Stockholm in 1972 by Agnetha Fältskog, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson, and Anni-Frid Lyngstad. The group's ...

sound, striking a considerable resemblance to their 1980 hit "

The Winner Takes It All "The Winner Takes It All" is a song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA. Released as the first single from the group's seventh studio album, '' Super Trouper'' (1980), it is a ballad in the key of G-flat major, reflecting on the end of a relatio ...

". A remixed version became their debut US single in 1999 and was featured on the ''

Drive Me Crazy ''Drive Me Crazy'' is a 1999 American teen romantic comedy film based on the novel ''How I Created My Perfect Prom Date'' by Todd Strasser. Originally entitled ''Next to You'', the film's title was changed to ''Drive Me Crazy'' after one of the s ...

'' film soundtrack. It peaked at number 38 on the US ''

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 ...

Hot Dance Club Play Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...

chart in October 1999.

Release

Unlike Steps' previous single "Last Thing on My Mind", which featured solo vocals by all three girls, Claire performs lead vocals on all of the verses, which are harmonised with Faye, before the entire group join in for the chorus. On 29 July 2015, Claire Richards premiered a new solo acoustic version of the track at an event celebrating

Pete Waterman Peter Alan Waterman, (born 15 January 1947) is an English record producer, songwriter, radio and club DJ, television presenter, president of Coventry Bears rugby league club and a keen railway enthusiast. As a member of the Stock Aitken Waterm ...

's career at the

Royal Festival Hall The Royal Festival Hall is a 2,700-seat concert, dance and talks venue within Southbank Centre in London. It is situated on the South Bank of the River Thames, not far from Hungerford Bridge, in the London Borough of Lambeth. It is a Grade I l ...

. This was her first solo single, and was released the following day via her official SoundCloud.

Chart performance

"One for Sorrow" reached number two in the United Kingdom on 30 August 1998, during its first week on the

, and spent 11 weeks on the listing. The song reached number one in the

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, ...

region of Belgium and entered the top 10 in Ireland as well as on the

Eurochart Hot 100 The European Hot 100 Singles was compiled by '' Billboard'' and ''Music & Media'' magazine from March 1984 until December 2010. The chart was based on national singles sales charts in 17 European countries: Austria, Belgium (two charts separately ...

. Outside Europe, "One for Sorrow" peaked at number 13 in New Zealand, number 26 on the Canadian ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Dance 30 chart, and number 34 in Australia. In the US, the song peaked at number 38 on the ''

Dance Club Songs Dance Club Songs is a chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It is a national look over of club disc jockeys to determine the most popular songs being played in nightclubs across the country. It was launched as t ...

chart in October 1999.

Critical reception

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 ...

editor Jon O'Brien described the song as "melancholic

dance-pop Dance-pop is a popular music subgenre that originated in the late 1970s to early 1980s. It is generally uptempo music intended for nightclubs with the intention of being danceable but also suitable for contemporary hit radio. Developing from a ...

". Lucas Villa from AXS noted that

Richards Richards may refer to: *Richards (surname) In places: * Richards, New South Wales, Australia * Richards, Missouri, United States * Richards, Texas, United States In other uses: * Richards (lunar crater) Richards is a small lunar impact crate ...

"took the song's tragic wordplay to church in a powerhouse performance." He added that it "stands as one of Steps' finest pop moments."

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 ''

'' wrote, "U.K. youth quintet Steps is all about conjuring up the timeless

in its debut U.S. single, a joyous romp that will propel hands into the air and, with the proper push from Jive, send this song into the upper reaches of the pop charts—where it's already been across much of Europe. This U.S. mix is the tastiest kind of

bubble gum Bubble gum or bubblegum is a type of chewing gum, designed to be inflated out of the mouth as a bubble. Bubble gum flavor While there is a bubble gum "flavor" – which various artificial flavorings including esters are mixed to obtain – it ...

, with a happy-go-lucky dance beat from production maestro

Tony Moran Anthony "Tony" Moran is a DJ, record producer, remixer, singer and songwriter known for remixing popular songs. In 2007, he hit number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Dance Club Play chart twice with " Walk Away" featuring Kristine W and "Kee ...

; a solid, zippy vocal; and a sing-along

chorus Chorus may refer to: Music * Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse * Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound * Chorus form, song in which all verse ...

that sticks with maddening proficiency." A reviewer from ''

Birmingham Evening Mail The ''Birmingham Mail'' (branded the ''Black Country Mail'' in the Black Country) is a tabloid newspaper based in Birmingham, England but distributed around Birmingham, the Black Country, and Solihull and parts of Warwickshire, Worcestershire ...

'' commented, "The nearest thing you'll get to an ABBA tribute song in the top ten. This sounds just like the Swedes around the time their complex inter-band relationships were hitting a rocky patch." Can't Stop the Pop described "One for Sorrow" as a "brilliant moment in '90s pop music", adding that "this is pop music with a heart". They complimented Richard's vocals, stating that the track is "the perfect showcase for the power and range of her vocals." Scottish newspaper '' Daily Record'' stated, "It sounds like ABBA, but Steps prove they are the real thing with their biggest hit yet". Gary James from Entertainment Focus noted that "starting with the rain effect and gentle tickle of the piano, Claire’s voice tells the tale of wanting love but getting uncertainity [sic] as it builds to a big power chorus." ''

Sunday Mirror The ''Sunday Mirror'' is the Sunday sister paper of the ''Daily Mirror''. It began life in 1915 as the ''Sunday Pictorial'' and was renamed the ''Sunday Mirror'' in 1963. In 2016 it had an average weekly circulation of 620,861, dropping marke ...

'' commented, "Pop's next big things crank up the ABBA again minus the beards thankfully."

Music video

There were made two different

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

for the song; one for the European market and one for the US market. The first one was filmed in Italy. In the beginning, Claire performs alone inside a villa, standing by a window. Later the group performs in front of a field of

sunflower The common sunflower (''Helianthus annuus'') is a large annual forb of the genus ''Helianthus'' grown as a crop for its edible oily seeds. Apart from cooking oil production, it is also used as livestock forage (as a meal or a silage plant), as ...

Track listings

* UK CD1 and Australian CD single # "One for Sorrow" – 4:20 # "One for Sorrow" (instrumental) – 4:20 # "Too Weak to Resist" – 3:50 * UK CD2 # "One for Sorrow" – 4:20 # "One for Sorrow" (W.I.P. Remix) – 6:53 # "One for Sorrow" (acapella mix) – 4:16 * UK cassette single # "One for Sorrow" – 4:20 # "One for Sorrow" (W.I.P. Remix) – 6:53 * European CD single # "One for Sorrow" – 4:20 # "One for Sorrow" (instrumental) – 4:20 * US CD single # "One for Sorrow" (US mix) – 3:30 # "One for Sorrow" (UK mix) – 4:22 * US 12-inch single :A1. "One for Sorrow" (Tony Moran's extended club) – 8:12 :A2. "One for Sorrow" (original version) – 4:17 :B1. "One for Sorrow" (Soul Solution extended vocal mix) – 5:05 :B2. "One for Sorrow" (Pimp Juice's Summer Fung 12-inch) – 6:38

Credits and personnel

A-side: "One for Sorrow"

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''

''. Recording * Recorded at PWL Studios, Manchester in 1998 * Mixed at PWL Studios, Manchester * Mastered at Transfermation Studios, London Vocals * Lead vocals – Claire Richards * Background vocals – Faye Tozer, Lisa Scott-Lee, Lee Latchford-Evans, Ian "H" Watkins Personnel * Songwriting – Mark Topham, Karl Twigg, Lance Ellington * Production – Karl Twigg, Mark Topham, Pete Waterman * Mixing – Les Sharma * Engineer – Chris McDonnell * Drums – Chris McDonnell * Keyboards – Karl Twigg * Guitars – Mark Topham, Barry Upton * Banjo – Sean Lyons * Violin – Chris Haigh

B-side: "Too Weak to Resist"

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''Step One''. Recording * Recorded at PWL Studios, Manchester in 1998 * Mixed at PWL Studios, Manchester * Mastered at Transfermation Studios, London Vocals * Lead vocals – Ian "H" Watkins * Background vocals – Claire Richards, Faye Tozer, Lisa Scott-Lee, Lee Latchford-Evans Personnel * Songwriting – Dan Frampton * Production – Dan Frampton, Pete Waterman * Mixing – Dan Frampton * Engineer – Dan Frampton, Chris McDonnell * Drums – Pete Waterman * Keyboards – Dan Frampton, Karl Twigg * Guitars – Greg Bone

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1998 songs 1998 singles Steps (group) songs Jive Records singles Pete Waterman Entertainment singles Songs about heartache Songs written by Lance Ellington Songs written by Mark Topham Songs written by Karl Twigg UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles