Set Me Free (Jermaine Stewart song)


"Set Me Free" is a song by American singer Jermaine Stewart, released in 1992 as the only single from his withdrawn fifth studio album Set Me Free. It was written by Stewart and Jesse Saunders, and produced by Saunders. It reached No. 45 on the Billboard Hot Dance Maxi-Singles Sales chart.

Background

"Set Me Free" was Stewart's debut single for Reprise Records and saw him embarking on a Hip Hop/House-influenced sound that dominated the 1990s music decade. "Set Me Free" was aimed at the club scene, with various remixes created by David Shaw and Winston Jones. However, it was met with limited success, and as a result of the single's failure to become a bigger success, the upcoming album of the same name was shelved. After the album was shelved, Stewart lived in silence until the mid-1990s where he began recording a new album titled Believe in Me. As Stewart was suffering from AIDS at the time, the album was never completed with Stewart dying of AIDS-related liver cancer in March 1997.
A music video was filmed to promote the single. It was directed by David Florimbi and Rupert Wainwright, and produced by Paul Schiefer, while Terance Power was the video's executive producer for Fragile Films.

Critical reception

Upon release, Billboard commented: "Long-absent Stewart switches labels with a slick, trend-conscious funk jam that benefits greatly from his warm and appealing voice. Tasty remixes inject a slinky, R&B-juiced house tone that could work equally well over urban airwaves and on club dancefloors."

Formats

;12" single
  1. "Set Me Free " - 6:46
  2. "Set Me Free " - 6:20
  3. "Set Me Free " - 4:16
  4. "Set Me Free " - 6:14
  5. "Set Me Free " - 5:57
  6. "Set Me Free " - 5:30
;CD single
  1. "Set Me Free " - 3:44
  2. "Set Me Free " - 4:17
  3. "Set Me Free " - 5:30
  4. "Set Me Free " - 6:46
  5. "Set Me Free " - 4:16

    Chart performance

Personnel