"Shine"
Single by Vanessa Amorosi
from the album The Power
B-side"Steam"
Released15 May 2000 (2000-05-15)
Length3:52
LabelTransistor Music
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Axel Breitung
Vanessa Amorosi singles chronology
"Absolutely Everybody"
(1999) 		"Shine"
(2000) 		"The Power" / "Everytime I Close My Eyes"
(2000)

"Shine" is the third single from Australian singer-songwriter Vanessa Amorosi's debut album, The Power (2000). After its release on 15 May 2000, the ballad[1] debuted and peaked at number four on the Australian Singles Chart and earned a platinum disc from the Australian Recording Industry Association. On 29 January 2001, it was released in Europe, reaching the top 50 in Austria, Germany, and Switzerland. "Shine" won an APRA Award in 2001 for Most Performed Australian Work.[2]

"Shine" was adopted by airline Ansett Australia for their final advertising campaign before the company went bankrupt and had to shut down. "I jinxed them with my song!" Amorosi said. "That was heartbreaking, actually. We had some little goodbye parties and stuff. It was horrible".[3] Mark Holden covered the song in 2004 for his Live at the George Ballroom DVD/EP.

Background

The original lyrics to "Shine" were much darker. Mark Holden was responsible for the success of her song "Shine", which Amorosi wrote for a friend from high school who committed suicide. Amorosi says:

"Mark changed a line in it. He said the song didn't work, or that one particular line in it didn't work. The line went 'Everyone you see, everyone you know is gonna die' and he didn't like the word 'die'. He thought it was just wrong. We were all sitting around trying to find a substitute, and we were all stuck on the word 'try'. But Mark came up with the idea of changing it to 'shine' and it all came together. That's Mark's magic. He has a great ear for music. He knows exactly what makes a hit.[4] I think it was a good outcome, because something that was tragic became positive, but... I could never go back to changing it to 'die' now. It is what it is. A lot of my music on The Power was very personal, because I suppose that's what sets me apart from the other songwriters. I'm very blunt and honest with melodies and lyrics. I like to get straight to the point. So I think with "Shine" I tried to make it uplifting but it was very, very personal - and quite an upsetting song."[3]

Live performances

Amorosi sang "Shine" at the Opening Ceremony of the 2000 Sydney Paralympics, which was broadcast in 80 countries. She also performed "Shine" at the 2002 Commonwealth Games closing ceremony in Manchester.

Track listings

Charts

Certifications

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[14] Platinum 70,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
Australia 15 May 2000 CD Transistor Music [15]
Europe 29 January 2001 Universal [1]
United States 28 August 2001 Contemporary hit radio [16]
4 September 2001
[17]

References

  1. ^ a b Cairo, Raul (10 March 2001). "Airborne" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 18, no. 11. p. 10. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  2. ^ "Most Performed Australian Work". APRA Awards. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  3. ^ a b Rip It Up: Vanessa Amorosi Interview
  4. ^ MCV-Melbourne Community Voice: Absolutely Amorosi
  5. ^ Shine (Australian CD single liner notes). Vanessa Amorosi. Transistor Music. 2000. SCBK622.((cite AV media notes)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. ^ a b "Vanessa Amorosi – Shine". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  7. ^ Shine (European CD single liner notes). Vanessa Amorosi. Universal Music. 2001. 158 577-2.((cite AV media notes)): CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. ^ "Vanessa Amorosi – Shine" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  9. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 18, no. 10. 3 March 2001. p. 11. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  10. ^ "Vanessa Amorosi – Shine" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  11. ^ "Major Market Airplay – Week 10/2001" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 18, no. 10. 3 March 2001. p. 21. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
  12. ^ "Vanessa Amorosi – Shine". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 November 2019.
  13. ^ "2000 ARIA Singles Chart". ARIA. Retrieved 27 September 2020.
  14. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2000 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 19 June 2014.
  15. ^ "Shine". click2music.com.au. Archived from the original on 29 October 2000. Retrieved 18 June 2023.
  16. ^ "CHR/Pop: Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1416. 24 August 2001. p. 114. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  17. ^ "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1417. 31 August 2001. pp. 41, 75. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
Categories