"Salva Mea" (faux Latin for "save me") is a song by British

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

band

Faithless Faithless are an English band that formed in 1995, with its core members being Rollo, Sister Bliss and Maxi Jazz. Their first album, '' Reverence'', was released in 1996 and their most recent, ''All Blessed'', in 2020. They have sold millions ...

, written by members

Rollo Rollo ( nrf, Rou, ''Rolloun''; non, Hrólfr; french: Rollon; died between 928 and 933) was a Viking who became the first ruler of Normandy, today a region in northern France. He emerged as the outstanding warrior among the Norsemen who had se ...

Sister Bliss Ayalah Deborah Bentovim (born 30 December 1970), better known by her stage name Sister Bliss, is a British keyboardist, record producer, DJ and songwriter. In the studio, she is best known for her work with Rollo Armstrong as one half of the pr ...

, and

Maxi Jazz Maxwell Fraser (14 June 1957 – 23 December 2022), better known by his stage name Maxi Jazz, was a British musician, rapper, singer, songwriter and DJ. He was the lead vocalist of British electronic band Faithless from 1995 to 2011 and 2015 t ...

. The female vocals on all versions are performed by Rollo's sister

Dido Dido ( ; , ), also known as Elissa ( , ), was the legendary founder and first queen of the Phoenician city-state of Carthage (located in modern Tunisia), in 814 BC. In most accounts, she was the queen of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre (t ...

. "Salva Mea" was released in 1995 as the group's first single and became a hit on the

UK Dance Singles Chart The UK Dance Singles Chart and the UK Dance Albums Chart are music charts compiled in the United Kingdom by the Official Charts Company from sales of songs in the dance music genre (e.g. house, trance, drum and bass, garage, synthpop) in record s ...

; following a re-release in 1996, it peaked at number nine 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 ...

. The single topped the US

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 twice—during its first chart run in 1996 and again in 1997 when the track was

remix A remix (or reorchestration) is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, video, poem, or photograph can all be remixes. The o ...

ed and reissued.

Critical reception

In a retrospective review of the '' Reverence'' album, Justin Chadwick from Albumism commented, "While “

Insomnia Insomnia, also known as sleeplessness, is a sleep disorder in which people have trouble sleeping. They may have difficulty falling asleep, or staying asleep as long as desired. Insomnia is typically followed by daytime sleepiness, low energy, ...

” is phenomenal, it was primarily the epic grandeur and sinister soundscape of “Salva Mea” that blew me away and made me fall madly in love with

’ transcendent sound. Among the group’s myriad standout songs, it’s still my most beloved." Upon the 1995 release, Alan Jones from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' called it "the piece de résistance" of the album, noting that "the severely under-rated single" marked

as "the

Jim Steinman James Richard Steinman (November 1, 1947 – April 19, 2021) was an American composer, lyricist and record producer. He also worked as an arranger, pianist, and singer. His work included songs in the adult contemporary, rock, dance, pop, mus ...

of dance music." In 1996, a reviewer from the magazine rated it three out of five, adding that "this pizzicato synth-driven floorfiller, with its distinctive changes in tempo and vocals, should emulate their recent number three hit Insomnia." Jones said, "Finally, the inevitable has happened and Faithless's finest recording Salva Mea is back with even more new mixes. As far over the top as Rollo &

have ever got, it's an epic tune and every inch a Top 10 hit."

Music video

A black-and-white

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 ...

was produced to promote the single, directed by British director

Lindy Heymann Lindy Heymann is a British director and assistant director, known for '' Showboy'' (2002), ''The Laughing King'' (2016) and ''Kicks'' (2009). Career She received a British Independent Film Award (BIFA) for Best Directorial Debut for her featur ...

Track listings

* UK CD 1995 # "Salva Mea" (Slow Version) – 4:11 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Mix) – 11:51 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Mix) – 9:37 # "Salva Mea" (

Remix) – 8:43 * Australian CD 1996 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Edit) – 4:02 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Edit) – 4:51 # "Salva Mea" (Radio Version) – 4:08 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Mix) – 11:50 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Mix) – 9:33 # "Salva Mea" (Sister Bliss Remix) – 8:42 # "Salva Mea" (Floating Mix) – 8:11 * German CD 1996 # "Salva Mea" (Radio Edit) – 3:47 # "Salva Mea" (C.E.C. Edit) – 4:59 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Edit) – 4:51 # "Salva Mea" (96 Remix) – 9:11 # "Salva Mea" ( Way Out West Remix) – 7:48 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Mix) – 8:36 * US CD 1996 # "Salva Mea" (Radio Version) – 4:08 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Radio Version) – 4:51 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Mix) – 11:48 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Mix) – 9:35 # "Salva Mea" (Sister Bliss Remix) – 8:40 * UK CD 1 – 1997 # "Salva Mea" (Radio Edit) – 4:36 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Mix) – 11:51 # "Salva Mea" (Way Out West Remix) – 7:48 # "Salva Mea" (Slow Version) – 4:10 # "Salva Mea" (Floating Mix) – 8:12 * UK CD 2 – 1997 # "Salva Mea" (Radio Edit) – 4:36 # "Salva Mea" (Epic Mix) – 11:51 # "Salva Mea" (Sister Bliss Mix) – 8:43 # "Salva Mea" (DJ Quicksilver Remix) – 6:52 # "Salva Mea" (Tuff Mix) – 7:57

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1995 singles 1995 songs 1996 singles 1997 singles Black-and-white music videos Cheeky Records singles Faithless songs Music videos directed by Lindy Heymann Number-one singles in Switzerland Songs written by Maxi Jazz Songs written by Rollo Armstrong Songs written by Sister Bliss