If You Asked Me To
Encyclopedia
"If You Asked Me To" is the title of a song
written and originally released as the lead single
for Patti LaBelle
's seventh solo studio album, entitled Be Yourself
, and for the Licence to Kill
soundtrack. The song is a ballad written by critically acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren
. The lyrics are from the point of view of a woman who pleads to her significant other:
movie, Licence to Kill
. LaBelle's version peaked at number 79 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
, at number 10 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
, and at number 11 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
.
The music video was filmed shortly after Jacqueline "Jackie" Padgett died of lung cancer
at age 43, and just one day after her funeral. (She was the third of Patti LaBelle's sisters to die; all three of Patti's sisters died before age 44.) As such, the context of the song changed dramatically, as a mourning LaBelle, dressed in black, sings the song in a church (with candles and mourning lilies), intercut with shots of her in tears.
Despite being a Top 10 hit on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
charts, the song did not crossover to the pop charts until Céline Dion
covered it three years later. Regarding the subject, LaBelle once explained during an interview used for the liner notes of her 1999 Greatest Hits album what she believed to be the reason for this fact: "I knew the song was a hit when I recorded it, and I was happy that Celine did it and did so well with it. But the arrangements are so close and we both have pretty powerful voices...so who knows why my version didn't take off. Maybe it was timing..."
covered "If You Asked Me To" and released it as the second single
from her eponymous
album. It was produced by Walter Afanasieff
and was released on April 6, 1992 in the United States, and later the same year in the rest of the world.
The B-side of this single contains an unreleased track called "Love You Blind," which was written by Jay Oliver and Sheryl Crow
, and produced by Walter Afanasieff.
The music video for the song was directed by Dominic Orlando and filmed in Chatsworth
and Hollywood, Los Angeles
. It was released in April 1992 and included later on Dion's 2001 DVD video collection All the Way… A Decade of Song & Video
.
The song was a hit in the United States and Canada. "If You Asked Me To" reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100
(number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and number 11 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales
) and did even better on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
chart, spending three weeks at number 1. In Canada, it reached number 3 on the Canadian Singles Chart
and number 1 on the Contemporary Hit Radio Chart. The single had moderate success elsewhere. "If You Asked Me To" was released twice in the United Kingdom: first, in June 1992, when it peaked at number 60, and the second time in December 1992, when it reached number 57. According to Nielsen SoundScan
, the single has sold 415,000 copies in the U.S.
"If You Asked Me To" was included on the North American versions of Dion's greatest hits All the Way… A Decade of Song in 1999 and My Love: Essential Collection
in 2008.
Worldwide CD single
Australian/European CD maxi single
UK CD maxi single
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
written and originally released as the lead single
Lead single
A lead single is usually the first single released by a musician or a band before the release of its home album.During the era of the grammophone record, all music arrived in the marketplace as what is now termed a single, one potential hit song backed by an additional song of generally less...
for Patti LaBelle
Patti LaBelle
Patricia Louise Holte-Edwards , better known under the stage name, Patti LaBelle, is a Grammy Award winning American singer, author and actress who has spent over 50 years in the music industry...
's seventh solo studio album, entitled Be Yourself
Be Yourself (Patti LaBelle album)
Be Yourself marked Patti LaBelle's ninth solo album and her first since 1986's platinum hit, Winner in You, released in 1989 on the MCA label, her second album with the company...
, and for the Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill (soundtrack)
The soundtrack to Licence to Kill, the 16th James Bond film of the same name, was released by MCA Records in 1989.Because the usual James Bond composer John Barry was not available at the time due to the fact he was undergoing throat surgery, the soundtrack's more upbeat and suspenseful score was...
soundtrack. The song is a ballad written by critically acclaimed songwriter Diane Warren
Diane Warren
Diane Eve Warren , is a US songwriter. Her songs have received six Academy Award nominations, five Golden Globe nominations, including one win and seven Grammy Award nominations, including one win. She was inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2001...
. The lyrics are from the point of view of a woman who pleads to her significant other:
- "If you asked me to
- I just might change my mind
- And let you in my life forever."
Patti LaBelle (James Bond) version
"If You Asked Me To" was first featured on the soundtrack of the 1989 James BondJames Bond
James Bond, code name 007, is a fictional character created in 1953 by writer Ian Fleming, who featured him in twelve novels and two short story collections. There have been a six other authors who wrote authorised Bond novels or novelizations after Fleming's death in 1964: Kingsley Amis,...
movie, Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill
Licence to Kill, released in 1989, is the sixteenth entry in the Eon Productions James Bond series and the first one not to use the title of an Ian Fleming novel. It marks Timothy Dalton's second and final performance in his brief tenure in the lead role of James Bond...
. LaBelle's version peaked at number 79 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, at number 10 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
, and at number 11 on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
.
The music video was filmed shortly after Jacqueline "Jackie" Padgett died of lung cancer
Lung cancer
Lung cancer is a disease characterized by uncontrolled cell growth in tissues of the lung. If left untreated, this growth can spread beyond the lung in a process called metastasis into nearby tissue and, eventually, into other parts of the body. Most cancers that start in lung, known as primary...
at age 43, and just one day after her funeral. (She was the third of Patti LaBelle's sisters to die; all three of Patti's sisters died before age 44.) As such, the context of the song changed dramatically, as a mourning LaBelle, dressed in black, sings the song in a church (with candles and mourning lilies), intercut with shots of her in tears.
Despite being a Top 10 hit on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
charts, the song did not crossover to the pop charts until Céline Dion
Celine Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
covered it three years later. Regarding the subject, LaBelle once explained during an interview used for the liner notes of her 1999 Greatest Hits album what she believed to be the reason for this fact: "I knew the song was a hit when I recorded it, and I was happy that Celine did it and did so well with it. But the arrangements are so close and we both have pretty powerful voices...so who knows why my version didn't take off. Maybe it was timing..."
Céline Dion version
Céline DionCeline Dion
Céline Marie Claudette Dion, , , is a Canadian singer. Born to a large family from Charlemagne, Quebec, Dion emerged as a teen star in the French-speaking world after her manager and future husband René Angélil mortgaged his home to finance her first record...
covered "If You Asked Me To" and released it as the second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
from her eponymous
Celine Dion (album)
Celine Dion is an eponymous album by Canadian singer Céline Dion, released on March 31, 1992. It is her second English album and 17th in total...
album. It was produced by Walter Afanasieff
Walter Afanasieff
Walter Afanasieff is a multiple Grammy-award-winning record producer and songwriter. He is best known for his long association with Mariah Carey, for whom he was producer and co-writer for several years, beginning in 1990...
and was released on April 6, 1992 in the United States, and later the same year in the rest of the world.
The B-side of this single contains an unreleased track called "Love You Blind," which was written by Jay Oliver and Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Crow
Sheryl Suzanne Crow is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, musician, and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, folk, hip hop, country and pop...
, and produced by Walter Afanasieff.
The music video for the song was directed by Dominic Orlando and filmed in Chatsworth
Chatsworth, Los Angeles, California
Chatsworth is a district of Los Angeles, California, United States; in the northwestern San Fernando Valley. The district is bordered by the Santa Susana Mountains and unincorporated Los Angeles County lands to the north, Porter Ranch to the northeast, Northridge to the east, West Hills, Canoga...
and Hollywood, Los Angeles
Hollywood, Los Angeles, California
Hollywood is a famous district in Los Angeles, California, United States situated west-northwest of downtown Los Angeles. Due to its fame and cultural identity as the historical center of movie studios and movie stars, the word Hollywood is often used as a metonym of American cinema...
. It was released in April 1992 and included later on Dion's 2001 DVD video collection All the Way… A Decade of Song & Video
All the Way… A Decade of Song & Video
All the Way... A Decade of Song & Video is Céline Dion's sixth home video release. It's a collection of her English music videos, released on February 20, 2001. This retrospective anthology features videos and live performances of many Céline Dion favorites, with nine signature singles and seven...
.
The song was a hit in the United States and Canada. "If You Asked Me To" reached number 4 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
(number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay and number 11 on the Hot 100 Singles Sales
Hot 100 Singles Sales
The Hot Singles Sales chart is a chart released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States. It measures sales of commercial singles and is one of three component charts, along with the Hot 100 Airplay and the Hot Digital Songs, that determine the chart positions of singles on the...
) and did even better on the Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
chart, spending three weeks at number 1. In Canada, it reached number 3 on the Canadian Singles Chart
Canadian Singles Chart
The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....
and number 1 on the Contemporary Hit Radio Chart. The single had moderate success elsewhere. "If You Asked Me To" was released twice in the United Kingdom: first, in June 1992, when it peaked at number 60, and the second time in December 1992, when it reached number 57. According to Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan
Nielsen SoundScan is an information and sales tracking system created by Mike Fine and Mike Shalett. Soundscan is the official method of tracking sales of music and music video products throughout the United States and Canada...
, the single has sold 415,000 copies in the U.S.
"If You Asked Me To" was included on the North American versions of Dion's greatest hits All the Way… A Decade of Song in 1999 and My Love: Essential Collection
My Love: Essential Collection
My Love: Essential Collection is a greatest hits album by Canadian recording artist Celine Dion. It was released by Columbia Records on October 24, 2008 as the follow up to her previous English-language compilation, All the Way... A Decade of Song . Before releasing My Love: Essential Collection,...
in 2008.
Formats and track listings
U.S. CD single- "If You Asked Me To" – 3:55
- "Where Does My Heart Beat NowWhere Does My Heart Beat Now"Where Does My Heart Beat Now" is a hit song from Céline Dion's English debut album called Unison. It was released as the first single in Canada on October 6, 1990 and United States on November 19, 1990, and in other parts of the world in 1991....
" – 4:33
Worldwide CD single
- "If You Asked Me To" – 3:55
- "Love You Blind" – 4:35
Australian/European CD maxi single
- "If You Asked Me To" – 3:55
- "Love You Blind" – 4:35
- "Halfway to Heaven" – 5:05
UK CD maxi single
- "If You Asked Me To" – 3:55
- "Where Does My Heart Beat Now" – 4:33
- "Love You Blind" – 4:35
Peak positions
| Chart (1992) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart ARIA Charts 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 singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
52 |
| Canadian Record's Retail Singles Chart The Record (magazine) The Record was a Canadian music industry magazine that featured record charts, trade news and opinions. David Farrell launched the publication in mid-1981, continuing its printed version until August 1999 when The Record continued as a website-based publication... |
3 |
| Canadian Record's Contemporary Hit Radio Chart The Record (magazine) The Record was a Canadian music industry magazine that featured record charts, trade news and opinions. David Farrell launched the publication in mid-1981, continuing its printed version until August 1999 when The Record continued as a website-based publication... |
1 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
1 |
| Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary RPM (magazine) RPM was a Canadian music industry publication that featured song and album charts for Canada. The publication was founded by Walt Grealis in February 1964, supported through its existence by record label owner Stan Klees. RPM ceased publication in November 2000.RPM stood for "Records, Promotion,... |
1 |
| Dutch Singles Chart Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
27 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
26 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
57 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
4 |
| US Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 1 |
End of year charts
| End of year chart (1992) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 28 |