Jesus Loves You (band)
Encyclopedia
Jesus Loves You were a British
band, founded by the singer Boy George
. The music of the band is a mixture of electronic dance music
, Indian classical music
and western pop music
. Their lyrics are about love
, spirituality
and the equality
of all human beings.
, he tried to start a solo career. He succeeded with the singles
taken from his debut album Sold
in 1987. For the next two albums he wanted to break out in a new direction, by dabbling in electronic dance music
. The singles taken from the two albums didn't attain much commercial success, but on the other hand they were often played at clubs.
In order to achieve commercial success again, Boy George founded the band "Jesus Loves You" together with other musicians. He thought the band would be more successful if nobody knew that he was the leader of the band. Boy George adopted the pseudonym
"Angela Dust". "After the Love", the first song by Jesus Loves You that was released as a single, is about the separation from his ex-bandmate Jon Moss
. Ironically, he wrote the song together with Moss.
The first three singles by Jesus Loves You only had modest success in the UK singles chart
. On a journey across India
Boy George got to know the Hare Krishna
movement. He was impressed with the Hare Krishna philosophy, and as a result he wrote the song "Bow Down Mister". This was a crucial reversal point for the band, because it was their first religious song. "Bow Down Mister" was released as a single in 1991 and it became a hit in the United Kingdom, with a peak of #27, their highest position, France
, Switzerland
, Germany
and most notably in Austria
, where it peaked at #2 in the official singles chart
.
Because of this success, the debut album of Jesus Loves You was released in the same year, called The Martyr Mantras. Meanwhile, Boy George felt more and more grateful to Hare Krishna. The religion helped him to conquer his heroin addiction, he said.
In late 1991 remix
es of "Generations of Love" and "After the Love" were released as singles.
In July 1992 Jesus Loves You performed in the Moscow
Luzhniki Stadium
in front of about 35,000 attendees, during a Hare Krishna festival (the festival also took place in St. Petersburg, Riga
and Kiev
, but Jesus Loves You only participated in Moscow event).
In December 1992 the release of the second album Popularity Breeds Contempt was planned. The single "Sweet Toxic Love" (with "Am I Losing Control" as B-side) was pre-released, but the record company Virgin Records
was so disappointed in the chart positions of the single that the album wasn't released. The remaining songs that were recorded for the album haven't been released. Jesus Loves You disbanded a short time later.
In 2005, a white label 12" and a one-sided promo 12" was released in the summer, using the Jesus Loves You pseudonym. The track was called "Love Your Brother". On the info sheet included with the white label, there was a talk about "expect an album in September", but that never happened. The track got some reviews which were good.
Note: The singles only were released in Europe at first, and after 1991 also in Australia
. No single was released in the United States
. The album The Martyr Mantras was released as a Boy George album in the United States, and not as Jesus Loves You.
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
band, founded by the singer Boy George
Boy George
Boy George is a British singer-songwriter who was part of the English New Romantic movement which emerged in the early 1980s. He helped give androgyny an international stage with the success of Culture Club during the 1980s. His music is often classified as blue-eyed soul, which is influenced by...
. The music of the band is a mixture of electronic dance music
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
, Indian classical music
Indian classical music
The origins of Indian classical music can be found in the Vedas, which are the oldest scriptures in the Hindu tradition. Indian classical music has also been significantly influenced by, or syncretised with, Indian folk music and Persian music. The Samaveda, one of the four Vedas, describes music...
and western pop music
Pop music
Pop music is usually understood to be commercially recorded music, often oriented toward a youth market, usually consisting of relatively short, simple songs utilizing technological innovations to produce new variations on existing themes.- Definitions :David Hatch and Stephen Millward define pop...
. Their lyrics are about love
Love
Love is an emotion of strong affection and personal attachment. In philosophical context, love is a virtue representing all of human kindness, compassion, and affection. Love is central to many religions, as in the Christian phrase, "God is love" or Agape in the Canonical gospels...
, spirituality
Spirituality
Spirituality can refer to an ultimate or an alleged immaterial reality; an inner path enabling a person to discover the essence of his/her being; or the “deepest values and meanings by which people live.” Spiritual practices, including meditation, prayer and contemplation, are intended to develop...
and the equality
Egalitarianism
Egalitarianism is a trend of thought that favors equality of some sort among moral agents, whether persons or animals. Emphasis is placed upon the fact that equality contains the idea of equity of quality...
of all human beings.
Band history
After Boy George left the band Culture ClubCulture Club
Culture Club are a British rock band who were part of the 1980s New Romantic movement. The original band consisted of Boy George , Mikey Craig , Roy Hay and Jon Moss...
, he tried to start a solo career. He succeeded with the singles
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...
taken from his debut album Sold
Sold (album)
Sold is the debut solo album by British pop rock / soul singer Boy George, released in 1987, for Virgin Music label, including the following hit singles, "Everything I Own" , "Keep Me In Mind" , "To Be Reborn" , and the title track "Sold" .-Overview:The album was a big success in Europe, and a...
in 1987. For the next two albums he wanted to break out in a new direction, by dabbling in electronic dance music
Electronic dance music
Electronic dance music is electronic music produced primarily for the purposes of use within a nightclub setting, or in an environment that is centered upon dance-based entertainment...
. The singles taken from the two albums didn't attain much commercial success, but on the other hand they were often played at clubs.
In order to achieve commercial success again, Boy George founded the band "Jesus Loves You" together with other musicians. He thought the band would be more successful if nobody knew that he was the leader of the band. Boy George adopted the pseudonym
Pseudonym
A pseudonym is a name that a person assumes for a particular purpose and that differs from his or her original orthonym...
"Angela Dust". "After the Love", the first song by Jesus Loves You that was released as a single, is about the separation from his ex-bandmate Jon Moss
Jon Moss
Jon Moss is an English drummer best known as a member of the 1980s pop group Culture Club. He has also played with other bands, including London, The Nips and The Damned.-Early life:...
. Ironically, he wrote the song together with Moss.
The first three singles by Jesus Loves You only had modest success in the 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 ...
. On a journey across India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
Boy George got to know the Hare Krishna
International Society for Krishna Consciousness
The International Society for Krishna Consciousness , known colloquially as the Hare Krishna movement, is a Gaudiya Vaishnava religious organization. It was founded in 1966 in New York City by A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada...
movement. He was impressed with the Hare Krishna philosophy, and as a result he wrote the song "Bow Down Mister". This was a crucial reversal point for the band, because it was their first religious song. "Bow Down Mister" was released as a single in 1991 and it became a hit in the United Kingdom, with a peak of #27, their highest position, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and most notably in Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
, where it peaked at #2 in the official singles chart
Ö3 Austria Top 40
Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann...
.
Because of this success, the debut album of Jesus Loves You was released in the same year, called The Martyr Mantras. Meanwhile, Boy George felt more and more grateful to Hare Krishna. The religion helped him to conquer his heroin addiction, he said.
In late 1991 remix
Remix
A remix is an alternative version of a recorded song, made from an original version. This term is also used for any alterations of media other than song ....
es of "Generations of Love" and "After the Love" were released as singles.
In July 1992 Jesus Loves You performed in the Moscow
Moscow
Moscow is the capital, the most populous city, and the most populous federal subject of Russia. The city is a major political, economic, cultural, scientific, religious, financial, educational, and transportation centre of Russia and the continent...
Luzhniki Stadium
Luzhniki Stadium
The Grand Sports Arena of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex in Moscow, or briefly Luzhniki Stadium , is the biggest sports stadium in Russia. Its total seating capacity is 78,360 seats, all covered. The stadium is a part of the Luzhniki Olympic Complex, previously called the Central Lenin Stadium...
in front of about 35,000 attendees, during a Hare Krishna festival (the festival also took place in St. Petersburg, Riga
Riga
Riga is the capital and largest city of Latvia. With 702,891 inhabitants Riga is the largest city of the Baltic states, one of the largest cities in Northern Europe and home to more than one third of Latvia's population. The city is an important seaport and a major industrial, commercial,...
and Kiev
Kiev
Kiev or Kyiv is the capital and the largest city of Ukraine, located in the north central part of the country on the Dnieper River. The population as of the 2001 census was 2,611,300. However, higher numbers have been cited in the press....
, but Jesus Loves You only participated in Moscow event).
In December 1992 the release of the second album Popularity Breeds Contempt was planned. The single "Sweet Toxic Love" (with "Am I Losing Control" as B-side) was pre-released, but the record company Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
was so disappointed in the chart positions of the single that the album wasn't released. The remaining songs that were recorded for the album haven't been released. Jesus Loves You disbanded a short time later.
In 2005, a white label 12" and a one-sided promo 12" was released in the summer, using the Jesus Loves You pseudonym. The track was called "Love Your Brother". On the info sheet included with the white label, there was a talk about "expect an album in September", but that never happened. The track got some reviews which were good.
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Version (A-side) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 ... |
DE Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
AT Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
CH | FR Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
|||
| 1989 | "After the Love" | 68 | — | — | — | — | 10 Glorious Years Mix |
| 1990 | "Generations of Love" | — | — | — | — | — | Land of Oz Mix |
| "One on One" | — | — | — | — | — | Fon Force Mix | |
| 1991 | "Bow Down Mister" | 27 | 6 | 2 | 15 | 29 | A Small Portion 2 B Polite Mix |
| "Generations of Love" | 35 | — | 30 | — | — | La La Gone Gaga Mix | |
| "After the Love" | — | — | — | — | — | Naughty Norman Normal's Nightie Edit | |
| 1992 | "Sweet Toxic Love" | 65 | 51 | 14 | — | — | Deliverance Mix |
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart positions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
DE Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
AT Ö3 Austria Top 40 Ö3 Austria Top 40 is the name of the official Austrian singles chart, as well as the radio show which presents it, aired Fridays on Hitradio Ö3. The show presents the Austrian singles, ringtones and downloads chart. It premiered on 26 November 1968 as Disc Parade and was presented by Ernst Grissemann... |
CH | FR Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
||
| 1991 | The Martyr Mantras The Martyr Mantras The Martyr Mantras is a 1990 album by Boy George. It was credited to Jesus Loves You worldwide, a move to help people concentrate on the music rather than on the popular artist's name, except in North America, where it was credited to Boy George upon its release there in 1991, as requested by... |
60 | — | 13 | — | — |
Note: The singles only were released in Europe at first, and after 1991 also in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
. No single was released in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The album The Martyr Mantras was released as a Boy George album in the United States, and not as Jesus Loves You.