I Want to Be Free

"I Want to Be Free" is the seventh UK single by the band Toyah, fronted by Toyah Willcox, and was released on 7 May 1981.

Not to be confused with I Want to Be Free (Elvis Presley song).
"I Want to Be Free"
Single by Toyah
from the album Anthem
B-side"Walkie Talkie", "Alien"
Released7 May 1981
GenreNew wave
LabelSafari Records
Songwriter(s)[Willcox/Bogen]
Producer(s)Nick Tauber
Toyah singles chronology
"Four from Toyah"
(1981)		 "I Want to Be Free"
(1981)		 "Thunder in the Mountains"
(1981)

Backed by an appearance on Top of the Pops, and bolstered by the performance of the previous single, "I Want to Be Free" entered the UK Top Ten with a peak at #8, and helped push the album Anthem into the UK Albums Chart, where it reached number two. As well as peaking at #10 in South Africa (source: rock.co.za), the single also found Top 40 success in New Zealand and Australia, where it peaked at number 35.[1]

The two B-sides on this single were eventually included on the 1999 reissue of Anthem, and they were also featured on the 2005 compilation The Safari Singles Collection Part 2: 1981-1983.

"It was resonated with how I felt about my school years which was very strong even if I was only 22", Toyah said in a 2003 interview, speaking of the song's lyrics.[2]

Track listing
7" Vinyl
  • A: "I Want to Be Free" (Wilcox/Bogen)
  • B1: "Walkie Talkie" (Wilcox/Bogen)
  • B2: "Alien" (Wilcox/Bogen/Glockler)

Catalogue Number: SAFE34

Produced by Nick Tauber. Published by Sweet 'n' Sour Songs Ltd.

Both sides ran at 45RPM. There were two variations of the single artwork - one with a black border, one with a white border.

Personnel

Charts
Chart (1981) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] 35
United Kingdom (Official Charts Company) 8

References
  1. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. Note: Used for Australian Singles and Albums charting from 1970 until ARIA created their own charts in mid-1988.
  2. "Toyah - Rock Legends Documentary 2003 Part 2". Carlton television. Retrieved 2011-01-01.
  3. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 312. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
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