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Let Me Be Your Fantasy

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"Let Me Be Your Fantasy"
Single by Baby D
from the album Deliverance
Released26 October 1992 (1992-10-26)
Genre
Length
  • 7:49 (album version)
  • 3:52 (radio edit)
Label
Songwriter(s)Floyd Dyce
Producer(s)Floyd Dyce
Baby D singles chronology
"Day Dreaming"
(1990) 		"Let Me Be Your Fantasy"
(1992) 		"Destiny"
(1993)
"Casanova"
(1994)
"Let Me Be Your Fantasy"
(1994)
"(Everybody's Got to Learn Sometime) I Need Your Loving"
(1995)
Music video
"Let Me Be Your Fantasy" on YouTube

"Let Me Be Your Fantasy" is a song by British musical group Baby D. It was written and produced by band member Floyd Dyce and the vocals were sung by Dorothy Fearon (also known as Dorothy "Dee" Galdes and Dee Galdes-Fearon).[4][5] It was originally released by Production House Records in October 1992, when it reached No. 76 on the UK Singles Chart. In November 1994, London Records subsidiary Systematic re-released the song, and it subsequently became a UK No. 1 hit for two weeks. A partially black-and-white music video was produced to promote the single.

In 1996, it was included on the group's only album, Deliverance. Same year, it earned an award for Best Dance Tune at the International Dance Music Awards in London.[6] And Mixmag ranked it No. 42 in their ranking of the "100 Greatest Dance Singles of All Time". The rave track is now widely regarded as a classic of its genre. Dyce has said "My idea for Fantasy was to try to develop an original song on top of hard beats: something you could sing along to as you were raving."[7]

Background and release

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"I was watching The X Factor once and some girl came on and sang 'Fantasy'. I was like, 'Woah, OK! That's a strange one!' It's become a modern standard in some ways, and I do feel honoured to be a part of something like that."

—Floyd Dyce talking to The Guardian about the song.[7]

Floyd Dyce of Baby D had been in a jazz, funk and soul band in the early 80's that had been working with Jamaican–English record producer Phil Fearon. When Fearon later developed his own production company, Production House Records, Dyce joined and started working as in-house producer for several acts. It was here he met Fearon's wife and vocalist on "Let Me Be Your Fantasy", Dorothy Fearon.[7] Dyce wrote the song as a response to the clubs he was frequenting at the time, where much of the music they played was sample-heavy. He told in an 2024-interview, "I had this idea for a sample in my head, but it came out completely differently. I got Dee to sing what I thought would be this burst of a sample, but then I wrote the song around it. Back then in the hardcore scene, there weren't too many tracks with full-on vocals: it meant the label was unsure [about it]! But when it was played, people went mental."[8]

Critical reception

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Larry Flick from Billboard wrote, "Now here is a melting pot of street vibes. Hip hop-induced break beats percolate beneath aggressive, rave-ish keyboards while Baby D purrs and pouts like a peppy pop ingenue. The end result is a gem of a single with a left-of-center quality that endears after repeated listens. Could become a sleeper smash with the right amount of promotional TLC."[9] Tom Ewing of Freaky Trigger called the song "uplifting, always ready to drop in a big hook, keeping the rushy spirit of UK house alive." He stated that "its breakbeat undercarriage gives "Let Me Be" a rough, robust chunkiness which plays well off Baby D's powerful vocals."[10]

In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton said that "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" "is the closest thing the underground dance scene has to a long lost classic."[11] Simon Price from Melody Maker named it one of the "two most precious moments of the Pop Year '95" alongside "Dreamer" by Livin' Joy, as they both reached the number one position on the UK Singles Chart that year. He also praised it as a "sublime Italo-drum'n'bass classic".[12] Maria Jimenez from Music & Media declared it as a "techno houser", adding, "Don't miss the beat".[13] Alan Jones from Music Week rated the song four out of five, adding, "Somewhere between house, garage and techno, it's sure to score."[14] Jake Barnes from Muzik deemed it as "jungle-lite".[15] James Hamilton from the Record Mirror Dance Update described it as a "plaintive girl wailed galloper", with its "episodic spurting stop/start 0-134.8-0bpm".[16] Richard Wilson reviewed the song for Smash Hits, saying, "This is quite nice. I'd listen to it again. I like the orchestration and the way it changes. It's well put together. Yes, I really like that one too."[17]

Chart performance

[edit]

"Let Me Be Your Fantasy" reached No. 76 on the UK Singles Chart when first released on 26 October 1992 by the independent Production House Records.[18][19] It remained popular, and the single was reissued in the UK on 7 November 1994 by London Records subsidiary Systematic Records,[20][21] after a sale of 20,000 units on the Production House label. It entered the chart at No. 3 before climbing to No. 1 the following week, where it remained for two weeks.[22] It was the 18th best-selling single of 1994 in the UK.[23] On the Eurochart Hot 100, "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" peaked at No. 5 in December 1994. It was also a top-20 hit in Finland, the Netherlands, Sweden and Switzerland. The song was released for a third time in 2000 as a UK garage remix by Trick or Treat. This version, featuring MC Tails, peaked at No. 16.[24]

Music video

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The accompanying music video for "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" is mostly made in black-and-white, but some scenes are shown in colours. In many scenes, singer Dorothy Fearon is seen in the middle of three lit candles on each side. Other scenes show the two male members of Baby D or several dancers performing choreography. Sometimes these are also seen in the middle of the six lit candles. A woman with a long head scarf and a couple, both with bald heads, also appear in the video. Some scenes are made to look like billowing water, with Fearon wearing black sunglasses in the background.[25]

Impact and legacy

[edit]

"Let Me Be Your Fantasy" was voted No. 1 record of all time on Kiss FM, London.[26] It earned an award for Best Dance Tune at the 1996 International Dance Music Awards,[27] and same year, British electronic music and clubbing magazine Mixmag ranked the song No. 42 in its "100 Greatest Dance Singles of All Time" list, adding,

"It took almost three years for "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" to worm its way into the British public's affections, to shift from hardcore anthem to chart topping smash. In retrospect, the only thing that's surprising is that it took so long. "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" - a sneaky paen to ecstasy's 'warm embrace' disguised as a love song - was perhaps the most commercial tune that the hardcore scene ever produced. Massive pianos, crunching breaks and a ravealong chorus meant its appeal spread wider than white gloved Vicks sniffers. Far enough, in fact, to get it voted the Kiss listeners' favourite tune of all time in a recent poll."[28]

In 2011, MTV Dance placed the song at No. 13 in their list of "The 100 Biggest 90's Dance Anthems of All Time".[29] In 2015, Sam Richards from The Guardian wrote that "Let Me Be Your Fantasy was the biggest crossover hit of the rave era."[7] In 2018, Mixmag listed "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" as one of "The 30 Best Vocal House Anthems Ever",[30] and The Vinyl Factory included the song in their list of "10 Essential Piano-driven UK Rave Records From 1990-1994".[1] In 2020, The Guardian ranked the song No. 76 in their list of "The 100 Greatest UK No 1s", writing:

"The lyrics are essentially a QVC infomercial for the eroto-psychedelic effects of ecstasy – 'Lotions of love flow through your hands / See visions, colours every day' – and the music is shamelessly designed to intensify drug experiences. The junglist breakbeats keep the energy high, while the big piano chords and yearning vocals are like a head massage from some bloke you just met but nevertheless now feel a deeper kinship with than your immediate family."[31]

In 2022, Classic Pop ranked "Let Me Be Your Fantasy" number seven in their list of the top 40 dance tracks from the 90's, noting "a mammoth piano hook that's hard to escape from".[32]

Track listing

[edit]
  • UK CD single - 1994 issue on Systematic Records [SYSCD4]
  1. Radio Edit
  2. Original Mix
  3. Dancing Divaz Club Mix
  4. Ruffer Remix
  5. Cool Breeze Slow + Low Remix
  6. DJ Professor's X Club Mix
  7. Ray Keith Remix

Charts

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Original version

[edit]

Trick or Treat remix

[edit]
Chart (2000) Peak
position
Germany (GfK)[50] 90
Scotland (OCC)[51] 31
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[52] 96
UK Singles (OCC)[24] 16
UK Dance (OCC)[53] 3

Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[54] Platinum 600,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

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  • In 2007, the song was covered by German trance project 4 Clubbers.
  • In 2010, Pictureplane sampled the whole song in his version titled "Beyond Fantasy".
  • In 2020, the song was covered by Gok Wan and Craig Knight and featured vocals by Kele Le Roc.
  • In 2022, the song was covered by MODE12 and featured vocals by Daniel Pearce (as DTale).

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b "10 essential piano-driven UK rave records from 1990-1994". The Vinyl Factory. 30 November 2018.
  2. ^ "Breakbeat Hardcore Vinyl 1991-1993. Visual Research & Catalog". calameo.com.
  3. ^ Stanley, Bob (13 September 2013). "Bassline Changed My Life: Dance Music". Yeah Yeah Yeah: The Story of Modern Pop. Faber & Faber. p. 674. ISBN 978-0-571-28198-5.
  4. ^ 1000 UK Number One Singles by Jon Kutner & Spencer Leigh, page 401, ISBN 978-1844492831
  5. ^ "Dee-finitive times". Leicester Mercury. Leicester. 9 May 2013. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
  6. ^ Kwaku (20 April 1996). "Awards shows celebrate thriving state of dance music in U.K.". Billboard. Volume 108. Issue 16.
  7. ^ a b c d Richards, Sam (3 September 2015). "From Voodoo Ray to Infinity and beyond – the story of the UK's biggest rave anthems". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 4 September 2015.
  8. ^ Ottewill, Jim (23 October 2024). "I Wrote That: Floyd Dyce on Baby D's number one 'Let Me Be Your Fantasy'". M Magazine. Retrieved 24 October 2024.
  9. ^ Flick, Larry (5 March 1994). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. Retrieved 31 January 2020.
  10. ^ Ewing, Tom (28 April 2013). "Baby D – "Let Me Be Your Fantasy"". Freaky Trigger. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  11. ^ Masterton, James (20 November 1994). "Week Ending November 26th 1994". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved 9 September 2021.
  12. ^ Price, Simon (13 January 1996). "Albums: In Praise Of Handbag". Melody Maker. p. 30. Retrieved 9 May 2024.
  13. ^ Jimenez, Maria (24 December 1994). "Short Grooves" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 52. p. 5. Retrieved 16 March 2021.
  14. ^ Jones, Alan (5 November 1994). "Market Preview: Mainstream - Singles" (PDF). Music Week. p. 14. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  15. ^ Barnes, Jake (1 February 1996). "Albums" (PDF). Muzik. p. 78. Retrieved 5 April 2020.
  16. ^ Hamilton, James (12 November 1994). "Dj directory" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). p. 11. Retrieved 22 April 2021.
  17. ^ Wilson, Richard (21 December 1994). "1994 No1 Singles". Smash Hits. p. 51. Retrieved 6 October 2024.
  18. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 24 October 1992. p. 21. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  19. ^ a b 1992 UK singles chart peak for "Let Me Be Your Fantasy": "The 76-100 pos. UK-Charts-Thread > 14 November 1992". Archived from the original on 12 October 2015. Retrieved 12 October 2015 – via Imgur.
  20. ^ "Single Releases" (PDF). Music Week. 5 November 1994. p. 23. Retrieved 29 June 2021.
  21. ^ The Complete Book of the British Charts (Third Edition) by Neil Warwick, Jon Kutner & Tony Brown, page 95
  22. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  23. ^ a b "Top 100 Singles 1994". Music Week. 14 January 1995. p. 9.
  24. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  25. ^ "BABY D - Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Original Version)". YouTube. Retrieved 1 August 2020.
  26. ^ "Baby D — Deliverance". Smash Hits. 31 January 1996. p. 19. Retrieved 29 November 2024.
  27. ^ Kwaku (20 April 1996). "Awards shows celebrate thriving state of dance music in U.K.". Billboard. Volume 108. Issue 16.
  28. ^ "The 100 Greatest Dance Singles of All Time". Retrieved 14 September 2017.
  29. ^ MTV Dance. 27 December 2011.
  30. ^ "The 30 best vocal house anthems ever". Mixmag. Retrieved 15 December 2018.
  31. ^ Beaumont-Thomas, Ben; Petridis, Alexis; Snapes, Laura (5 June 2020). "The 100 greatest UK No 1s: 100-1". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  32. ^ "90s Dance – The Essential Playlist". Classic Pop. 21 February 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2024.
  33. ^ "Top 60 Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 7 November 1992. p. 20. Retrieved 29 September 2020.
  34. ^ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart – Week Ending 07 May 1995". ARIA. Retrieved 25 April 2017 – via Imgur.
  35. ^ "Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  36. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 50. 10 December 1994. p. 14. Retrieved 16 January 2018.
  37. ^ "European Dance Radio" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 5. 4 February 1995. p. 44. Retrieved 28 September 2022.
  38. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  39. ^ "Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  40. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Let Me Be Your Fantasy". Irish Singles Chart.
  41. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 4, 1995" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  42. ^ "Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  43. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  44. ^ "Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy". Singles Top 100.
  45. ^ "Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy". Swiss Singles Chart.
  46. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  47. ^ "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  48. ^ "The RM Club Chart" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). 29 October 1994. p. 6. Retrieved 20 May 2023.
  49. ^ "Jaarlijsten 1995" (in Dutch). Stichting Nederlandse Top 40. Retrieved 3 December 2019.
  50. ^ "Baby D feat. MC Tails – Let Me Be Your Fantasy (Trick or Treat Remix)" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  51. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  52. ^ "Baby D feat. MC Tails – Let Me Be Your Fantasy %5BTrick or Treat Remix%5D". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 14 February 2021.
  53. ^ "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 13 May 2019.
  54. ^ "British single certifications – Baby D – Let Me Be Your Fantasy". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 1 September 2023.
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