Spirit (Leona Lewis album)
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''Spirit'' is the debut studio album by English singer
Leona Lewis Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in the London Borough of Islington, she attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Lewis achieved nationa ...
, released by
Syco Music Syco Music is a defunct division of Syco Entertainment founded by British entrepreneur and record executive Simon Cowell. Originally founded as S Records, the label launched while Cowell was still employed by BMG, the label oversaw music relea ...
in November 2007 in the United Kingdom and Ireland, followed by a worldwide release during early 2008. The album made Lewis the first UK solo artist to debut at number one with a debut album, in the US, on 26 April 2008. ''Spirit'' became the fastest-selling debut album in the UK, at time of release. It also became the fastest album to sell one million copies by a solo female in the UK. The album remains the best-selling debut album by a female artist in the UK, and is one of the best-selling albums in UK chart history. Spirit is officially the best-selling debut album by a female artist in the 21st century, according to the
Official Charts Company The Official Charts (legal name: The Official UK Charts Company Limited) is a British inter-professional organization that compiles various "official" record charts in the United Kingdom, Ireland and France. In the United Kingdom, its charts in ...
After winning the third series of reality singing contest ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...
'' in December 2006, Lewis began recording the album in Sweden, the United Kingdom and United States, working with a variety of writers and producers. Critics praised the album for creating a contemporary album using such a variety of producers, and for showcasing Lewis's voice. The release of the album marked Lewis as the first winner of a major television talent show in both the UK and US to be given a major global launch with a debut album. The album debuted at number one in nine countries, including the United Kingdom, United States and Germany, and peaked in the top five in a further eight countries. It held the record for the biggest digital album sales in a week ever for a new artist. The album was the sixth biggest-selling of 2008 in the world, as according to the
IFPI The International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI) is the organisation that represents the interests of the recording industry worldwide. It is a non-profit members' organisation registered in Switzerland and founded in Italy in 1 ...
.Biggest Selling albums of 2008 (Worldwide)
''IFPI''
It has gone on to sell over eight million copies worldwide, and was the fourth best-selling album of the 2000s in the UK, where it has since sold over 3.12 million copies and remains the best-selling debut album by a female artist. In October 2019, Spirit was recognised as the seventh best-selling album of the 21st century in the UK. ''Spirit'' spawned seven singles, including two from a re-release of the album. Lead international single "
Bleeding Love "Bleeding Love" is a song recorded by English singer Leona Lewis for her debut studio album ''Spirit'' (2007). It was written and originally recorded by Jesse McCartney, and was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder. The song was released as t ...
" went on to top the charts in 36 countries, becoming one of the best-selling singles by a female of all-time. It was nominated for
Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...
and
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...
at the
51st Grammy Awards The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 8, 2009, honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the b ...
, and British Single of the Year at the
2008 Brit Awards Brit Awards 2008 was the 28th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 20 February 2008 at the Earls Court in London. The ceremony ...
. Follow-up single " Better in Time" also fared well, charting in the top 10 in 13 countries and reaching number 11 in the US. After a well received performance of Snow Patrol's " Run" whilst promoting ''Spirit'', Lewis recorded a
cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
for the re-release of the album, titled ''Spirit – The Deluxe Edition'', which was released as a download-only single in the UK, where it charted at number one, going on to be the third Platinum-selling single from ''Spirit'', following ''X Factor'' winner's single " A Moment Like This" and "Bleeding Love".


Background

In December 2006, Lewis won the third series of British reality singing contest, ''The X Factor'', her prize being a £1 million recording contract with Sony BMG, for which
Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...
is an A&R executive. Cowell also mentored Lewis on the show. During the live final, Lewis duetted with
Gary Barlow Gary Barlow (born 20 January 1971) is an English singer, songwriter, record producer, and television personality. He is the lead singer of the British pop group Take That. Barlow is one of the United Kingdom's most successful songwriters, havi ...
of band
Take That Take That are an English pop group formed in Manchester in 1990. The group currently consists of Gary Barlow, Howard Donald and Mark Owen. The original line-up also featured Jason Orange and Robbie Williams. Barlow is the group's lead singer ...
, who told Cowell, "This girl is probably fifty times better than any other contestant you have ever had, so you have a big responsibility to make the right record with her." Cowell admitted that Barlow's words resonated with him, and thus the decision was made to not rush her debut album, as he wanted an "incredible record" of original material, which he believed could not be done in less than a year. Lewis also wanted a high quality album that she could feel proud of. Cowell told Lewis that he did not care if the album took three years to make, he wanted to get it right. On 25 April 2007, a press release was sent out revealing that Simon Cowell and Clive Davis, chairman and CEO of
J Records J Records was an American record label owned and operated by Bertelsmann Music Group until it was transferred to Sony Music Entertainment when they acquired all of BMG’s record labels in late 2008. It was distributed through the RCA Music Gro ...
, would work together in a first-of-its-kind partnership on both the song and producer selection for the album. Lewis performed a showcase for several American music executives at the
Beverly Hilton Hotel The Beverly Hilton is a hotel located on an property at the intersection of Wilshire and Santa Monica boulevards in Beverly Hills, California. The Beverly Hilton has hosted many awards shows, charity benefits, and entertainment and motion pi ...
in Beverly Hills, California. Lewis named the album ''Spirit'' because "it is my heart and soul and the voice within that says everything is possible." The album originally had a September 2007 deadline, but was delayed due to Lewis suffering from
tonsillitis Tonsillitis is inflammation of the tonsils in the upper part of the throat. It can be acute or chronic. Acute tonsillitis typically has a rapid onset. Symptoms may include sore throat, fever, enlargement of the tonsils, trouble swallowing, and en ...
and waiting for producers to become available.


Writing and recording

Lewis recorded the album in several locations the first being London, England, where she worked with Steve Mac, who produced the songs "Homeless" and " Footprints in the Sand". "Homeless" was written by
Jörgen Elofsson Kjell Åke Jörgen Elofsson (born 14 January 1962) is a Swedish songwriter. He was one of the writers of the songwriter-team at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm (along with Denniz PoP, Max Martin, Kristian Lundin, Andreas Carlsson, Rami Yacoub, ...
, and was previously recorded by Swedish singer Darin. "Footprints in the Sand" was written by Per Magnusson,
David Kreuger David Kreuger is a Swedish songwriter and music producer. Career David Kreuger began at Cheiron Studios in the spring of 1993. During the period 1993-1997, he worked with Per Magnusson on several projects. Together, they produced and wrote so ...
,
Richard Page Richard Lewis Page (born 22 February 1941) is a former Conservative Member of Parliament (MP) in the United Kingdom from 1976 to 1979 and from December 1979 to 2005. Early life Born the son of Victor Charles Page, he went to the independent H ...
and
Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...
. The song is an adaptation of the Christian poem "
Footprints Footprints are the impressions or images left behind by a person walking or running. Hoofprints and pawprints are those left by animals with hooves or paws rather than feet, while "shoeprints" is the specific term for prints made by shoes. The ...
", and Lewis commented "Originally it was a poem; it's very inspirational so we put it into a song. I think it is very moving, with a very emotional lyric and I really love to sing this song". Cowell came up with the idea to base a song around the poem, and asked Kreuger and Magnusson whether they could write something dealing with this subject. They took the idea to a songwriting session the pair already had scheduled with Page at his home in
Malibu, California Malibu ( ; es, Malibú; Chumash: ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate and its strip of the Malib ...
and they finished the song the following day. When Cowell mentioned the song concept to Lewis, she agreed that it could be "really quite interesting". In Los Angeles, California, Lewis teamed up with OneRepublic singer
Ryan Tedder Ryan Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. As well as being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band OneRepublic, he has an independent career as a songwriter and producer for various artists since th ...
, with whom she recorded two songs, "
Bleeding Love "Bleeding Love" is a song recorded by English singer Leona Lewis for her debut studio album ''Spirit'' (2007). It was written and originally recorded by Jesse McCartney, and was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder. The song was released as t ...
" and "Take a Bow". In February 2007, OneRepublic frontman Ryan Tedder and pop singer-songwriter Jesse McCartney had written the song "Bleeding Love" for '' Departure'', McCartney's third studio album. However, his record label, Hollywood Records, did not like the song. Tedder believed it was a "massive" song and the record company was "out of their mind". McCartney wanted to keep it for himself as he had a personal attachment to the song, but it did not work out. Tedder had previously made the decision not to work with contestants from the singing competition ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'', but he had not heard of ''The X Factor''. After being shown a website about Lewis, he thought that "her voice just sounded unreal," saying that "from a writer's perspective, this girl – with or without a TV show – has one of the best voices I've ever heard." On hearing that Cowell was looking for songs for Lewis's debut album, Tedder rearranged "Bleeding Love", changed the key and tailored it to suit her voice. "Take a Bow" was written and produced by Tedder,
Louis Biancaniello Louis John Biancaniello is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Biancaniello's skills were developed while working alongside producer Narada Michael Walden with whom he produced hits for Shanice '' I Love Your Smile'', Whitney ...
, Wayne Wilkins and Sam Watters. Watters and Biancaniello also wrote "Yesterday", with Jordan Omley, Michael Mani, and Nina Woodford. " Better in Time" was recorded in Los Angeles with producer
J. R. Rotem Jonathan Reuven Rotem is a South African-born record producer, songwriter and music publisher. Biography Early life Rotem was born in South Africa to Jewish Israeli people, Israeli immigrant parents. He moved to Canada at the age of two an ...
, who wrote the song along with
Andrea Martin Andrea Louise Martin (born January 15, 1947) is an American-Canadian actress, singer, and comedian, best known for her work in the television series '' SCTV'' and ''Great News''. She has appeared in films such as '' Black Christmas'' (1974), ''W ...
. " I Will Be" is a cover of an Avril Lavigne song, written by Lavigne,
Dr. Luke Lukasz Sebastian Gottwald (born September 26, 1973), known professionally as Dr. Luke, Tyson Trax, and Made in China, is an American record producer and songwriter. His professional music career began in the late-night television sketch comedy ...
and
Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com
known profess ...
, that was released as an iTunes bonus track and on the Limited edition of her album ''
The Best Damn Thing ''The Best Damn Thing'' is the third studio album by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne. It was released on 11 April 2007, by RCA Records. The album represents a musical departure from her earlier studio album '' Under My Skin'' (2004), w ...
''. "The Best You Never Had" was also record in LA, written and produced by Billy Steinberg and Josh Alexander, "
The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" is a 1957 folk song written by British political singer-songwriter Ewan MacColl for Peggy Seeger, who later became his wife. At the time, the couple were lovers, although MacColl was still married to his ...
", a cover of the Ewan MacColl song, was recorded in both Atlanta and Los Angeles. It was produced by Wayne Wilkins, Sam Watters and Louis Biancaniello. "I'm You" was recorded in Atlanta with
Ne-Yo Shaffer Chimere Smith (born October 18, 1979), known professionally as Ne-Yo, is an American singer, songwriter, actor, dancer, and record producer. He gained fame for his songwriting abilities when he penned Mario's 2004 hit " Let Me Love You ...
, "Angel", a Stargate production, was written by Stargate, Espen Lind, Amund Bjørklund and Johnta Austin, and recorded in New York. Lewis co-wrote "Here I Am" with
Walter Afanasieff Walter Afanasieff (born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasyev; February 10, 1958), formerly nicknamed Baby Love in the 1980s, is an American record producer and songwriter of Russian-Chinese descent. He was a collaborator with Mariah Carey on her first ...
and Brett James in LA. Lewis wanted to be involved in the writing process, and said that Cowell allowed her to do so as it was "her album". She noted "I've not been given a formula to follow. I had the time to find my feet and co-write a lot of material. I've learned a lot and Simon and Clive really listen to me." In
Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...
, Lewis worked with producers Alonzo "Novel" Stevenson and
Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and film producer. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfirmed events in ...
on the song "Whatever It Takes", which Lewis co-wrote together with Novel and Tony Reyes. In
Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
, Lewis worked with
Salaam Remi Salaam Remi Gibbs (born May 14, 1972) is a Grammy winning American record producer known for his association with Nas, Amy Winehouse, Robby, Fugees, Fergie, Estelle, Black Thought, and Miguel, and for his reggae-tinged (often referred to as ...
, and "Forgiveness" was recorded. It was written by Lewis, Remi and
Kara DioGuardi Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi (; born December 9, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, and singer. She writes music primarily in the pop rock genre. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; sales o ...
. Lewis's debut single, a cover of
Kelly Clarkson Kelly Brianne Clarkson (born April 24, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter, author, and television personality. She rose to fame after winning the first season of ''American Idol'' in 2002, which earned her a record deal with RCA. Her debu ...
's " A Moment Like This", is included as a bonus track on releases in the UK, Ireland and Japan. Two new songs were recorded in 2008 to help the album appeal more to an American audience: " Forgive Me", which was written and produced by
Akon Aliaune Damala Badara Akon Thiam (; born April 16, 1973), known mononymously as Akon, is a Senegalese-American singer, record producer, and entrepreneur. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of " Locked Up" (featuring Styles P ...
, and "Misses Glass" written by Mad Scientist and RockCity. In an interview with Digital Spy, Lewis explained "I wanted to do something a bit different and the chance to work with Akon came about. I'm really pleased with how it's turned out and it's great that it's different, rather than what I always do."


Music and lyrics

Commenting on the album's lyrics, Lewis said, "
hey Hey or Hey! may refer to: Music * Hey (band), a Polish rock band Albums * ''Hey'' (Andreas Bourani album) or the title song (see below), 2014 * ''Hey!'' (Julio Iglesias album) or the title song, 1980 * ''Hey!'' (Jullie album) or the title s ...
reflect things that I'm really passionate about. I have to be able to put myself in the song for it to ring true to me. If it doesn't ring true to me, it's not going to be believable to anyone else." Lewis described the album's style as "classic songs with a contemporary edge", containing R&B and "fresh pop" styles, ballads and "soulful up-tempo numbers". It has an American style, with some electronic 1980s sounds; however, the songs are not beat-driven or following the latest trends, but are songs that can be performed acoustically. Opening track "Bleeding Love" employs a
church organ Carol Williams performing at the United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel.">West_Point_Cadet_Chapel.html" ;"title="United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel">United States Military Academy West Point Cadet Chapel. ...
which is audible throughout the song until the bridge. Synthesized strings are also prominent throughout the song, which intermittently integrates wood block percussion throughout the track. A heavy, distorted marching band-like drum loop backs the song.Sheet music for "Bleeding Love". Sony BMG Music Entertainment Publishing (2008). McCartney wrote the song about his longtime girlfriend, and said: "I kept thinking about being in love so much that it hurts. I was away from my girlfriend for four months at the time and I really wanted to uitand fly home. I was so in love that it was painful. It was like bleeding, it cut me open." The song refers to someone in a relationship who is extremely blinded by love. Regardless of the numerous warnings from her friends and the fact that she is emotionally hurt by her lover, she continues to love him and accepts the pain. Metaphorically, this is represented in his "cutting her open"; however, all she can do is "bleed love" for him. "Whatever It Takes" was described as a "chipper slice of soul-pop, anchored by a surprisingly bone-shaking beat", followed by "Homeless". "Yesterday" has been described as "a smoochy R&B slow jam". "Better in Time" is a pop and R&B song set in a moderate tempo.Sheet music for "Better in Time". Sony BMG Music Entertainment Publishing (2008). Lyrically the song talks about someone who cannot forget her ex-partner, and at the end the protagonist knows that "it will all get better in time". "Footprints in the Sand" incorporates elements of pop and R&B genres, and contains a
gospel Gospel originally meant the Christian message (" the gospel"), but in the 2nd century it came to be used also for the books in which the message was set out. In this sense a gospel can be defined as a loose-knit, episodic narrative of the words a ...
production performed by the choir and features "crashing drums". It incorporates keyboard instruments, guitar, bass and includes a choir performance by The Tuff Session Singers. The song is about "standing by someone and being there for people who need your help." "Forgive Me" is an R&B, soul and dance-pop song written in A minor.Sheet music for "Forgive Me". Sony BMG Music Entertainment Publishing (2008). The song refers to a protagonist in a one-sided relationship who leaves her boyfriend and eventually finds someone to reciprocate her love. Though she has found love from someone else, she defends herself and asks her ex-boyfriend for forgiveness.


Singles

Syco managing director, Sonny Takhar, initially expected at least five singles to be released from the record, stating "every track is a potential single – we really are spoiled for choice." ''Spirit'' spawned seven singles, two of which came from ''Spirit – The Deluxe Edition''. " A Moment Like This" was available as a digital download in the UK and Ireland from midnight on 17 December 2006, after Lewis won the third series of ''The X Factor'', followed by a CD release on 20 December. It became the fastest selling UK single when it was downloaded more than 50,000 times within thirty minutes of release. On 24 December, "A Moment Like This" was crowned the 2006 UK
Christmas number-one single In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...
, and it stayed at number one in 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 ...
for four weeks and in the Irish Singles Chart for six weeks. It was the second biggest selling single of 2006, behind
Gnarls Barkley Gnarls Barkley are an American soul duo, composed of singer-songwriter CeeLo Green and producer Danger Mouse. They released their debut studio album, ''St. Elsewhere'', in 2006. It contained their hit single "Crazy", which peaked at number two ...
's Crazy, and went on to be certified platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...
. "
Bleeding Love "Bleeding Love" is a song recorded by English singer Leona Lewis for her debut studio album ''Spirit'' (2007). It was written and originally recorded by Jesse McCartney, and was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder. The song was released as t ...
" was released in October 2007 in the UK and Ireland, followed by a worldwide release in early 2008. It entered the UK Singles chart at number one with sales of 218,000 copies, which was the biggest first-week sales of 2007 to date. It stayed at number one for seven weeks in the UK, and reached number one in a further thirty-three countries, including the United States, where Lewis became the first British solo female to reach number one since Kim Wilde's "
You Keep Me Hangin' On "You Keep Me Hangin' On" is a song written and composed by Holland–Dozier–Holland. It was first recorded in 1966 by American Motown girl group the Supremes, reaching number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. American rock band Vanilla Fudge ...
" in 1987. Written by
Jesse McCartney Jesse McCartney (born April 9, 1987) is an American actor and singer. He achieved fame in the late 1990s on the daytime drama ''All My Children'' as JR Chandler. He later joined boy band Dream Street, and eventually branched out into a solo m ...
and
Ryan Tedder Ryan Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. As well as being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band OneRepublic, he has an independent career as a songwriter and producer for various artists since th ...
, the song was planned for McCartney's third solo album, but his record label did not like it, so Tedder rearranged the song to fit Lewis's voice. The song was well received by critics, who praised Lewis's vocal performance. It was nominated for
Record of the Year The Grammy Award for Record of the Year is presented by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to "honor artistic achievement, technical proficiency and overall excellence in the recording industry, without reg ...
and
Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...
at the
51st Grammy Awards The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 8, 2009, honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the b ...
, and British Single at the
2008 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2008 was the 28th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 20 February 2008 at the Earls Court in London. The ceremony ...
. " Better in Time" was Lewis's second worldwide single, released in March 2008 in the UK and during spring and summer throughout the rest of the world. In the UK it was released as a double A-side with " Footprints in the Sand", in aid of
Sport Relief ''Sport Relief'' was a biennial charity event from Comic Relief, in association with BBC Sport, established in 2002. It was the idea of Kevin Cahill, CBE, who had joined Comic Relief in 1991 to establish a new department as Director of Educat ...
. The single reached a peak of number two in the UK, and was certified silver by the BPI. It peaked within the top ten in a further thirteen countries, and at number eleven in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. The song received positive reception from critics, and was nominated for British Single at the
2009 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2009 was the 29th edition of the British Phonographic Industry's annual Brit Awards. The awards ceremony was held at Earls Court in London, and was broadcast live on ITV on 18 February at 8pm (GMT). Duffy became the first female ar ...
. " Forgive Me" was released between July and November 2008 throughout Europe, Australia, New Zealand and Japan, and was the first single from the re-release of ''Spirit''. Critics praised the change in direction for her, although the lyrical content was criticised. It reached number five in the UK, and also peaked within the top ten in Ireland, Italy, Sweden and Turkey. " Run" was released as a download-only single in the UK and Ireland in November 2008, and later worldwide. Lewis first performed "Run" on the
Live Lounge The Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio stations BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. It was originally hosted by Simon Mayo, and later by Jo Whiley on her weekday mid-morning, and later weekend lunchtime radio shows, then by Fearne Cotton ...
section of ''
The Jo Whiley Show ''The Jo Whiley Show'' was a British weekday later weekend radio show on BBC Radio 1 hosted by Jo Whiley. The programme was on air from February 2001 to March 2011 and was broadcast each weekday morning between 10:00am and 12:45pm, and later 13:0 ...
'', where artists perform two songs: one song of their own and one by another artist, in an acoustic format. After positive fan reaction Lewis decided to record a studio version for the re-release of her album. Critics praised her version, which spent two weeks atop the UK Singles chart, giving Lewis her third UK number one. It also reached the number one spot in Austria and Ireland, and reached the top ten of Finland, Germany and Switzerland. The finale single " I Will Be" was released in January 2009, only in North America; it peaked at number 66 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number 83 in Canada.


Release and promotion

The release of the album marked Lewis as the first winner of a major television talent show to be given a global launch with a debut album. ''Spirit'' was re-released on 17 November 2008 in the UK following the release of " Forgive Me". It also features "Misses Glass" from the American version of the album, and Lewis's cover of Snow Patrol's " Run". In addition to the extra tracks, the deluxe featured a DVD containing all of Lewis's music videos to date except the video for "Run". The deluxe edition was released on 3 February 2009 in the US, including two out of three of her b-sides as well as the single mix for "Run", which is 34 seconds shorter than the international album version. The accompanying DVD includes all of Lewis's music videos, with the exception of "A Moment Like This", along with a live video of "I Will Be". On 24 September 2007, Lewis performed a special album launch party at the Mandarin Oriental Hotel in
Knightsbridge Knightsbridge is a residential and retail district in central London, south of Hyde Park. It is identified in the London Plan as one of two international retail centres in London, alongside the West End. Toponymy Knightsbridge is an ancien ...
, London. She performed "Bleeding Love", "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Homeless" and "Whatever It Takes". Lewis went on a two-day UK regional radio tour to promote the album and single "Bleeding Love" on 11 and 12 October. This was followed by an appearance on '' This Morning'' on 15 October. Lewis performed "Bleeding Love" live on the fourth series of ''
The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for '' Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...
'' on 20 October 2007. From 29 October 2007, ''Spirit'' was BBC Radio 2's Album of the Week. In November 2007 she performed "Bleeding Love" and a cover of the Snow Patrol song "Run" on
BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
's
Live Lounge The Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio stations BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. It was originally hosted by Simon Mayo, and later by Jo Whiley on her weekday mid-morning, and later weekend lunchtime radio shows, then by Fearne Cotton ...
show. Lewis performed "Bleeding Love" and "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" on Saturday Night Divas. During February and March 2008, Lewis promoted the album in Europe. In February, Lewis made her American TV performance debut on ''
The Oprah Winfrey Show ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', often referred to as ''The Oprah Show'' or simply ''Oprah'', is an American daytime syndicated talk show that aired nationally for 25 seasons from September 8, 1986, to May 25, 2011, in Chicago, Illinois. Produced ...
'' singing "
Bleeding Love "Bleeding Love" is a song recorded by English singer Leona Lewis for her debut studio album ''Spirit'' (2007). It was written and originally recorded by Jesse McCartney, and was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder. The song was released as t ...
". Then through the course of late March and early April Lewis carried out a large scale promotional tour throughout America appearing and performing on TV shows including ''
The Tonight Show with Jay Leno ''The Tonight Show with Jay Leno'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jay Leno that first aired from May 25, 1992, to May 29, 2009. It resumed production on March 1, 2010 and ended on February 6, 2014. The fourth incarnation of the ...
'', ''
The Ellen DeGeneres Show ''The Ellen DeGeneres Show'' (often shortened to ''Ellen'' or ''The Ellen Show'') is an American daytime television variety comedy talk show that was created and hosted by its namesake Ellen DeGeneres. Debuting on September 8, 2003, it was pro ...
'', '' Jimmy Kimmel Live!'', ''
Tyra Banks Show ''The Tyra Banks Show'', also known as and shortened to ''Tyra'' or ''The Tyra Show'', was an American talk show hosted by Tyra Banks that aired from 2005 to 2010. While Banks's show covered a variety of topics, there was a sensationalized focus ...
'', '' Good Morning America'', '' Late Show with David Letterman'' and ''
TRL TRL or trl may refer to: Arts * Temporary Residence Limited, a record label * ''Total Request Live'', a former MTV show * TRL Awards (''Total Request Live''), an Italian music award Libraries * Tampines Regional Library, a regional library in Ta ...
'', with a performance in late April on ''
American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to Ap ...
'' followed by a promotional tour of Australia. In November 2009, dates in the United Kingdom and Ireland were confirmed for her debut concert tour, entitled The Labyrinth, supporting both ''Spirit'' and her second album ''
Echo In audio signal processing and acoustics, an echo is a reflection of sound that arrives at the listener with a delay after the direct sound. The delay is directly proportional to the distance of the reflecting surface from the source and the lis ...
''.


Critical reception

''Spirit'' received positive reviews from most music critics upon its release. At
Metacritic Metacritic is a website that aggregates reviews of films, TV shows, music albums, video games and formerly, books. For each product, the scores from each review are averaged (a weighted average). Metacritic was created by Jason Dietz, Marc ...
, which assigns a normalised rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an
average In ordinary language, an average is a single number taken as representative of a list of numbers, usually the sum of the numbers divided by how many numbers are in the list (the arithmetic mean). For example, the average of the numbers 2, 3, 4, 7 ...
score of 65, based on 13 reviews, which indicates "generally favourable reviews". IGN's Chad Grischow described ''Spirit'' as the "perfect showcase for ewis'fantastic skills", praising her ability to sing both upbeat tracks and "tender piano ballads". Chris Elwell-Sutton of the ''
Evening Standard The ''Evening Standard'', formerly ''The Standard'' (1827–1904), also known as the ''London Evening Standard'', is a local free daily newspaper in London, England, published Monday to Friday in tabloid format. In October 2009, after be ...
'' said that ''Spirit'' will be "a very successful album with some much-needed grit." Digital Spy's Nick Levine gave the album four out of five stars, claiming that although Lewis had a pallet of different producers working with her, they managed to prevent her from sounding "too fusty or old-fashioned." Stephen Thomas Erlewine of
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 databa ...
said "Lewis can hit those big notes but make it seem easy, never straining her voice and building nicely to the climax. Unlike most divas, there is a human quality to her voice, as she's singing to the song, not singing to her voice." He compared it to Mariah Carey's debut album, but criticised the old-fashioned sound.
Popjustice Popjustice is a music website founded in 2000 by UK freelance music journalist Peter Robinson, who has worked for ''NME'', ''The Guardian'', '' Attitude'' and many others. It is composed of the work of editor Robinson, features editor Michael Cr ...
's review was brief, summing up that " 'Spirit''has four absolutely blinding tracks on it, three far better than average tracks on it, and some others which are quite good. There are no totally chronic songs on ''Spirit'' apart from 'A Moment Like This'." ''
The Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
''s Sarah Rodman praised Lewis's ability to make unremarkable songs sound impressive, saying "The tracks are impeccably manicured, super-tuneful, and offer lyrics about the various agonies and ecstasies of love that are unremarkable in and of themselves but reach nuclear-threat levels of desperation thanks to Lewis's voice." In the mixed reviews critics generally praised Lewis's voice but criticised the music. Lyndsey Winship from
BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio ...
complimented Lewis's vocal ability but perceived a lack of "hooks, innovation and personality". On Lewis's vocals Robert Christgau commented "The subtle flutter of her finest melismatics could give an open-minded person goose bumps. Her coarser melismatics, however, are the usual showoff BS and probably also a commercial prerequisite, like not having a harelip." Sal Cinquemani of Slant Magazine praised Lewis's voice but criticised the mixture of styles within the album. ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
''s Nate Chinen felt the album did not live up to the standards of lead single "Bleeding Love", but was successful in showcasing Lewis's vocal capabilities. Caroline Sullivan of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'' was disappointed, saying "
ewis An electrical wiring interconnect system (EWIS) is the wiring system and components (such as bundle clamps, wire splices, etc.) for a complex system. The term originated in the aviation industry but was originally designated as Electrical Intercon ...
has clearly invested every scrap of energy into these songs ..but being able to belt 'em out is only half the story, and if there's a personality here, it's well hidden." Victoria Segal of ''
The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper '' The Sunday Times'' (f ...
'' praised Lewis's voice, but criticised the music, saying "
ewis An electrical wiring interconnect system (EWIS) is the wiring system and components (such as bundle clamps, wire splices, etc.) for a complex system. The term originated in the aviation industry but was originally designated as Electrical Intercon ...
has a powerful voice but on ''Spirit'' it seems to have paralysed her collaborators creatively. Instead of taking the opportunity to craft it into new and exciting shapes, it has been stuck in a big spotlit display case, revolving slowly and rather boringly on a velvet cushion of overstuffed balladry." She concluded by saying, "If Lewis is looking for the greatest love of all – public adoration – she will have to do better than this."


Accolades

At the
2008 BRIT Awards Brit Awards 2008 was the 28th edition of the Brit Awards, an annual music awards ceremony in the United Kingdom. It was organised by the British Phonographic Industry and took place on 20 February 2008 at the Earls Court in London. The ceremony ...
Lewis was nominated for four awards, including British Album of the Year for ''Spirit'', and was the favourite to win most awards, however she walked away empty handed. She garnered three nominations at the
51st Grammy Awards The 51st Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 8, 2009, honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2007, through September 30, 2008. Robert Plant and Alison Krauss were the b ...
including
Best Pop Vocal Album The Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Album is an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality vocal pop music albums. Awards in several ...
. At the 2008
Music of Black Origin Awards The MOBO Awards (Music of Black Origin, also known as the MOBOs) are an annual British music award presentation honouring achievements in " music of black origin", including hip hop, grime, UK Drill, R&B, soul, reggae, jazz, gospel, and ...
''Spirit'' won the MOBO award for Best Album and Lewis was nominated for Best UK Female. The album was nominated in the
2008 MTV Europe Music Awards The 2008 MTV EMAs (also known as the MTV Europe Music Awards) were held at the Echo Arena in Liverpool, England, on 6 November 2008. It was hosted by Katy Perry. This was the second time the awards have taken place in England. Nominations Winne ...
Album of the Year category, whilst Lewis won Best UK + Ireland Act and was nominated for Act of 2008 and Europe's Favourite Act. ''Spirit'' won Best Album 2008 at the
Urban Music Awards The Urban Music Awards (UMA) is a hip-hop, R&B, dance, and soul music awards ceremony which was launched by Jordan Kensington in 2003 and is now held in several countries. The US version of the award ceremony, the Urban Music Awards USA, was ...
, and was nominated for Worst Album at the
NME Awards The ''NME'' Awards is an annual music awards show in the United Kingdom, founded by the music magazine '' NME'' (''New Musical Express''). The first awards show was held in 1953 as the ''NME'' Poll Winners Concerts, shortly after the founding ...
. In December 2008 Lewis was named Top New Artist by '' Billboard'' magazine. Additionally, Lewis was nominated for Breakout Artist at the 2008 Teen Choice Awards, won the
World Music Award The World Music Awards is an international award show founded in 1989 under the patronage of Albert II, Prince of Monaco and co-founder/executive producer John Martinotti. The event is based in Monte Carlo. Awards are presented to the world' ...
s for Best New Artist and Best Pop Female, and was awarded the Shooting Star
Bambi Award The Bambi, often called the Bambi Award and stylised as BAMBI, is a German award presented annually by Hubert Burda Media to recognize excellence in international media and television to personalities in the media, arts, culture, sports, and oth ...
.


Commercial performance

On 19 November 2007, ''Spirit'' debuted on the
UK Albums Chart The Official Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales and (from March 2015) audio streaming in the United Kingdom. It was published for the first time on 22 July 1956 and is compiled every week by the Official Charts ...
at number one with first-week sales of 375,872 copies, making it the fastest selling debut album in the UK, beating
Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, ...
' ''
Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not ''Whatever People Say I Am, That's What I'm Not'' is the debut studio album by English rock band Arctic Monkeys, released on 23 January 2006 by Domino Recording Company and on 21 February 2006 in the United States. The album includes their fir ...
'' (2006) by 12,000 copies, until the release of Susan Boyle's debut album ''
I Dreamed a Dream "I Dreamed a Dream" is a song from the 1980 musical ''Les Misérables''. It is a solo that is sung by the character Fantine during the first act. The music is by Claude-Michel Schönberg, with orchestrations by John Cameron. The English lyric ...
'' in November 2009, which sold 410,000 copies in its first week. It was the fourth fastest selling album of all time, behind '' Be Here Now'' ( Oasis, 1997), '' X&Y'' (
Coldplay Coldplay are a British rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer Will Champion and creative director Phil Harvey. They met at University ...
, 2005) and ''
Life for Rent ''Life for Rent'' is the second studio album by English singer Dido, released by Arista Records on 29 September 2003. The album was produced by her brother Rollo Armstrong and American songwriter Rick Nowels. Work on the album began in mid-20 ...
'' (
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 ...
, 2003). The album remained at number one for seven weeks, and reached one million sales after 29 days, making it the fastest album to sell one million copies by a solo female in the UK. ''Spirit'' was the second biggest selling album of 2007 in the UK, behind ''
Back to Black ''Back to Black'' is the second and final studio album by English singer and songwriter Amy Winehouse, released on 27 October 2006 by Island Records. Winehouse predominantly based the album on her tumultuous relationship with then-ex-boyfrien ...
'' (
Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A membe ...
, 2006). For each of the first seven weeks it sold over 100,000 copies, a record which was later equalled by '' JLS'' ( JLS, 2009), and beaten by '' 21'' (
Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a rec ...
, 2011), which sold over 100,000 copies for twelve weeks. On 23 November 2008, the album returned to number one for a week, following the release of the deluxe version of the album. In the UK ''Spirit'' was the fourth best-selling album of the 2000s, and is the twentieth best-selling album of all time. The album has been certified ten-times platinum by the
British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with ...
, with sales of 3.1 million by December 2014. It is the 4th best selling album of the millennium in the UK, and as of November 2015 has sold 3,132,668 copies in the UK. ''Spirit'' entered the
Irish Albums Chart The Irish Albums Chart is the Irish music industry standard albums popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association (IRMA). The charts were previously compiled on behalf of IRMA by Chart-Track, and have been compiled by the ...
at number one, making it the fastest selling debut album ever, beating the
Arctic Monkeys Arctic Monkeys are an English rock band formed in Sheffield in 2002. The group consists of Alex Turner (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Jamie Cook (guitar, keyboards), Nick O'Malley (bass guitar, backing vocals), and Matt Helders (drums, ...
by a margin of 6,000 sales. The album remained at the top of the chart for two weeks before being knocked off by
Shayne Ward Shayne Thomas Ward (born 16 October 1984) is an English actor and singer. He rose to fame as the winner of the second series of ''The X Factor''. His debut single, "That's My Goal", was released in the United Kingdom on 21 December 2005 an ...
's '' Breathless''. It was the biggest selling album in 2007, and the fourth best selling album in 2008. The standard version of the album has been certified seven-times platinum, and the deluxe version four-times platinum. In February 2008, the album debuted at number one on both the Australian
ARIA Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...
and the New Zealand
RIANZ Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...
chart and went on to be certified platinum in both territories. In Germany the album spent one week at the top spot, and went on to be certified triple-gold for shipments of 300,000 copies. ''Spirit'' also topped the Austrian and Swiss charts, reaching certifications of platinum and double-platinum respectively. It was certified four-times platinum by the International Federation of the Phonographic Industry for sales of more than four million copies in Europe. In the US, ''Spirit'' debuted at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200, selling 205,000 copies in its first week, which made Lewis the first British solo artist to top the chart with a debut album, and the first British female to hit number one with an album in over twenty years when
Sade Adu Helen Folasade Adu ( yo, Fọláṣadé Adú ; born 16 January 1959), known professionally as Sade Adu or simply Sade ( ), is a Nigerian-born British singer, known as the lead singer of her eponymous band. One of the most successful British fe ...
topped the chart in February 1986 with '' Promise''. As of 30 June 2008 the album has been certified platinum. The album also reached number one in Canada and was certified platinum on 30 May 2008. According to the IFPI, ''Spirit'' was the sixth best selling album of 2008, and has gone on to sell over seven million copies worldwide.


Track listing


Deluxe edition


Personnel

Credits adapted from Allmusic. Vocals *Tawatha Agee –
choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...
*Ravaughn Brown –
background vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...
*Robin Clark – choir *Michelle Cobbs – choir *Benny Diggs – choir *Tavia Ivey – background vocals *
Leona Lewis Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in the London Borough of Islington, she attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Lewis achieved nationa ...
 – lead vocals, background vocals *Tammy Lucas – choir *Cindy Mizelle – choir *Billy Porter – choir *
Vaneese Thomas Vaneese Yseult Thomas (born August 24, 1952) is an American R&B, jazz and soul blues singer, best known for her 1987 US ''Billboard'' R&B chart hit single, "Let's Talk It Over". In addition, in more recent times, she has supplied backing vocal ...
 – choir *
Fonzi Thornton Alfonso "Fonzi" Thornton is a U.S. songwriter/producer and vocal contractor. In a career spanning 40 years, Thornton has sung backing vocals for top artists across many genres of music. His vocal credits can be found on the recordings of Are ...
 – choir, vocal contractor Musicians *
Walter Afanasieff Walter Afanasieff (born Vladimir Nikitich Afanasyev; February 10, 1958), formerly nicknamed Baby Love in the 1980s, is an American record producer and songwriter of Russian-Chinese descent. He was a collaborator with Mariah Carey on her first ...
 – keyboards *Josh Alexander – guitar, keyboards *Dave Arch – organ, piano *
Louis Biancaniello Louis John Biancaniello is an American songwriter and record producer. Career Biancaniello's skills were developed while working alongside producer Narada Michael Walden with whom he produced hits for Shanice '' I Love Your Smile'', Whitney ...
 – keyboards *Amy Chang – violin *Jack Daley – bass *
Mikkel Storleer Eriksen Stargate is a record producing and songwriting team composed of Tor E. Hermansen (born 14 October 1972) and Mikkel S. Eriksen (born 10 December 1972), based in Los Angeles. The team's genres include R&B, pop and hip hop. Stargate was establis ...
 –
instrumentation Instrumentation a collective term for measuring instruments that are used for indicating, measuring and recording physical quantities. The term has its origins in the art and science of scientific instrument-making. Instrumentation can refer to ...
*Stephen Ferrera – drums *Karen Freer – celli *
Eric Hudson Eric Hudson (born October 15, 1986) is an American and Grammy award-winning music producer. His parents are Curtis and Phyllis Bivins-Hudson. Curtis is a songwriter and producer, and most notably the co-writer of Madonna's song "Holiday", co-writ ...
 – instrumentation *Daniel Laufer – celli *Chris Laws – drums * Espen Lind – guitar *Phillip Lowman – drums * Steve Mac – keyboards, synthesizer *
Max Martin Karl Martin Sandberg (; born 26 February 1971),Max Martin
allmusic.com
known profess ...
 – piano *John Paricelli – guitar *Steve Pearce – bass *William Pu – violin *Tony Reyes – guitar * J.R. Rotem – instrumentation *Olga Shpitko – violin * Alonzo "Novel" Stevenson – keyboards * Ian Thomas – drums *
Wayne Wilkins Wayne Wilkins is a British record producer, songwriter, record engineer and record mixer. He has produced and written for artists such as Rick Astley ("Cry for Help"), Natasha Bedingfield (" These Words", " Single" and " Love Like This"), Bey ...
 – keyboards *Steven Wolf – drums,
percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a beater including attached or enclosed beaters or rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or struck against another similar instrument. Ex ...
Production *John Adams – assistant *Walter Afanasieff – arranger, producer, programming *Josh Alexander –
digital editing Digital media is any communication media that operate in conjunction with various encoded machine-readable data formats. Digital media can be created, viewed, distributed, modified, listened to, and preserved on a digital electronics device. ' ...
,
engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the limit ...
, producer, programming *Chris Lord-Alge – mixing *Dave Arch – string arrangements *
Dallas Austin Dallas L. Austin (born December 29, 1970) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and film producer. Biography Early life During a 2019 interview with DJ Vlad, Dallas Austin detailed previously unknown or unconfirmed events in ...
 – producer *Matt Beckley – producer * Haydn Bendall – string engineer *Tom Bender – assistant, mixing assistant *Louis Biancaniello – engineer, mixing, producer, programming *Chris Brooke – vocal engineer * David Campbell – string arrangements *David Channing – engineer *Lloyd Cooper – assistant *
Simon Cowell Simon Phillip Cowell (; born 7 October 1959) is an English television personality, entrepreneur and record executive. He is the creator of '' The X Factor'' and ''Got Talent'' franchises which have been sold around the world. He has judged on ...
 – executive producer * Clive Davis – executive producer *Rich Davis – production co-ordination *Craig Durrance – engineer *Mikkel Storleer Eriksen – engineer * Geoff Foster – string arrangements *Chris Garcia – digital editing, engineer *Serban Ghenea – mixing *Tyler Gordon – digital editing, programming *Aniela Gottwald – assistant *Tatiana Gottwald – engineer *Keith Gretlein – engineer *Mick Guzauski – mixing *Janne Hansson – engineer *Nate Hertweck – assistant *Chris Holmes – engineer *Eddie Horst – string arrangements *Josh Houghkirk – assistant *Eric Hudson – producer *James Ingram – assistant *Jaycen Joshua – mixing *Rouble Kapoor – engineer *Nik Karpen – assistant *Chris Laws – digital editing, editing, engineer *Carlton Lynn – engineer, mixing *Doug McKean – engineer * Steve Mac – arranger, producer *
Graham Marsh Graham Vivian Marsh MBE (born 14 January 1944) is a retired professional golfer who was one of the leading Australian players of his generation. During his career he won more than 70 tournaments around the world, including 10 on the European T ...
 – producer, engineer *Vlado Meller – mastering *Greg Ogan – engineer *
Leon Pendarvis Leroy Leon Pendarvis (born 1945) is an American session musician. He plays keyboards and is a background vocalist. He is also an occasional guitarist. The artists he has worked with over the years include Bonnie Raitt on her ''Streetlights'' album ...
 – string arrangements, string conductor *Dave Pensado – mixing *Trent Privat – assistant *Daniel Pursey – engineer *Tim Roberts – assistant *Scott Roewe – digital editing * J.R. Rotem – arranger, producer *Wesley Seidman – engineer *Robert Smith – engineer *Chris Soper – engineer *Billy Steinberg – producer * Alonzo "Novel" Stevenson – producer, programming *Tim Sturges – assistant, assistant engineer *Ren Swan – engineer, mixing *Tom Syrowski – engineer *Phil Tan – mixing *
Ryan Tedder Ryan Tedder (born June 26, 1979) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. As well as being the lead vocalist of the pop rock band OneRepublic, he has an independent career as a songwriter and producer for various artists since th ...
 – producer * Aliaune "Akon" Thiam – producer *Giorgio Tuinfort – producer *Seth Waldmann – engineer *Sam Watters – engineer, mixing, producer, vocal producer *Josh Wilbur – engineer *
Wayne Wilkins Wayne Wilkins is a British record producer, songwriter, record engineer and record mixer. He has produced and written for artists such as Rick Astley ("Cry for Help"), Natasha Bedingfield (" These Words", " Single" and " Love Like This"), Bey ...
 – engineer, mixing, producer, programming *Steven Wolf – producer *Emily Wright – engineer, production co-ordination


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Decade-end charts


All-time charts


Certifications


Release history


See also

*
List of best-selling albums This is a list of the world's best-selling albums of recorded music. To appear on the list, the figure must have been published by a reliable source and the album must have sold at least 20 million copies. This list can contain any types of al ...
*
List of number-one albums of 2008 (Australia) The highest-selling albums in Australia are ranked in the Australian Recording Industry Association albums chart, also known as the ARIA Charts, published by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA). The data are compiled from a ...
* List of number-one albums of 2008 (Canada) *
List of number-one albums of 2007 (Ireland) These are the Irish Recorded Music Association's number one albums of 2007, per the Top 100 Individual Artist Albums chart. See also *2007 in music * List of number-one albums (Ireland) External linksCurrent Irish Albums Chart – Top 100 ...
* List of number-one albums of 2008 (New Zealand) *
List of UK Albums Chart number ones of the 2000s The UK Albums Chart is a weekly record chart based on album sales from Sunday to Saturday in the United Kingdom; during the 2000s, a total of 274 different albums by 170 artists reached number one. The chart was compiled weekly by the Official ...
* List of ''Billboard'' 200 number-one albums of 2008 *
List of best-selling albums in the United Kingdom The best-selling album in the United Kingdom is ''Greatest Hits'', a compilation album by the British rock band Queen that was first released in 1981. , it has sold more than 7 million copies, of which approximately 124,000 have been from ...
*
List of best-selling albums of the 2000s (decade) in the United Kingdom The UK Albums Chart is a music chart compiled by the Official Charts Company that calculates the best-selling artist albums of the week in the United Kingdom. Since 2005, the chart has been based on the sales of both physical and digital albu ...
*
List of best-selling albums of the 2000s (century) in the United Kingdom The UK Albums Chart is a music chart compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) that calculates the best-selling albums of the week in the United Kingdom. Initially based solely on the sales of albums in the vinyl and CD formats, digital albu ...


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Spirit (Leona Lewis Album) 2007 debut albums Albums produced by Akon Albums produced by Clive Davis Albums produced by Dallas Austin Albums produced by Dr. Luke Albums produced by Eric Hudson Albums produced by J. R. Rotem Albums produced by Ryan Tedder Albums produced by Salaam Remi Albums produced by Sam Watters Albums produced by Stargate Albums produced by Steve Robson Albums produced by Walter Afanasieff Leona Lewis albums J Records albums Syco Music albums