# I'll Set You Free

> Mediated Wiki article. Canonical URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/I'll_Set_You_Free
> Markdown URL: https://mediated.wiki/source/I'll_Set_You_Free.md
> Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'll_Set_You_Free
> Source revision: 1341099985
> License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)

"**I'll Set You Free**" is a song by [The Bangles](/source/The_Bangles). It first appeared on their third album *[Everything](/source/Everything_(The_Bangles_album))* in 1988, and was later released as its fourth single in Europe in 1989 as a "goodbye" single to its fans. "I'll Set You Free" was released as a single in Australia in 1990 to promote their [*Greatest Hits*](/source/Greatest_Hits_(The_Bangles_album)).

## Personnel

The song was composed by guitarist and vocalist [Susanna Hoffs](/source/Susanna_Hoffs) with Eric Lowen and [Dan Navarro](/source/Dan_Navarro),[2] and produced by [Davitt Sigerson](/source/Davitt_Sigerson).

The track was re-recorded and mixed by [Bernard Edwards](/source/Bernard_Edwards) for release as a single, with additional engineering by Larry Alexander.[3] The album version of the song runs to 4 minutes 27 seconds, and the single version lasts 24 seconds longer. As well as a thicker sound than the original recording, the single version has a more forceful introduction and a different lead vocal by Hoffs.

An edit of the single vesion was released in the United Kingdom, with a duration of 4:09.

## Single

In the UK its primary [B-side](/source/A-side_and_B-side) was "Watching the Sky", another album track from *Everything*. The British 12" and CD singles also included a remix of "[Walking Down Your Street](/source/Walking_Down_Your_Street)" by [David Kahne](/source/David_Kahne) as a bonus track.[3] In Australia the song was backed by "Everything I Wanted"[4] — later released as a single in its own right in 1990[5] — and was housed in a different picture sleeve.

Unlike the preceding three singles from *Everything*, all of which had reached the [UK Top 40](/source/UK_Singles_Chart), "I'll Set You Free" only reached number 74 in the United Kingdom.[5][6] It was also a minor hit in Australia, reaching number 81 in July 1990.[7] No [promotional film](/source/Music_video) was made for the single, as the band had broken up a few weeks earlier.

The single version of "I'll Set You Free" was included on *[Greatest Hits](/source/Greatest_Hits_(The_Bangles_album))* (1990) and *Best of The Bangles* (1999), though the album version was included on the vinyl version of *Gold* (2020).

The UK single version - which runs 4:09 - was included on the Bangles *Japanese Singles Collection* (2024).

## Reception

Writing in *[Rolling Stone](/source/Rolling_Stone)* in 1988, Jimmy Guterman wrote: "On numbers like "I'll Set You Free" and "Make a Play for Her Now", their harmonies are the clearest and most evocative they've ever been – their voices float, coalesce and soar".[8]

## Covers

"I'll Set You Free" was covered by the song's songwriters, [Eric Lowen](/source/Eric_Lowen) & [Dan Navarro](/source/Dan_Navarro), on their 1993 album *Broken Moon*. Their version featured Susanna Hoffs on backing vocals.

## Charts

Chart (1989) Peak position Australian Singles Chart[9] 81

## Notes

1. Strong, Martin Charles (1995). [*Great Rock Discography*](https://archive.org/details/greatrockdiscogr00stro/page/40/mode/2up?q=Bangles). Canongate Press. p. 40. ISBN 978-0-86241-541-9.

1. [VH1.com](http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/bangles/20193116/lyric.jhtml)[dead link]

1. [Discogs](http://www.discogs.com/release/640897)

1. [eil.com](http://eil.com/shop/moreinfo.asp?catalogid=324629)

1. ["The Bangles"](https://web.archive.org/web/20080422091833/http://www.thebangles.info/discography.php). Archived from [the original](http://www.thebangles.info/discography.php) on 2008-04-22. Retrieved 2008-04-22.

1. ["UK Official Charts: Bangles"](http://www.officialcharts.com/artist/22369/bangles/). Official Charts Company. 2016. Retrieved 16 December 2016.

1. Ryan, Gavin (2011). *Australia's Music Charts 1988-2010*. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.

1. *[Rolling Stone](https://web.archive.org/web/20071203182416/http://www.rollingstone.com/artists/thebangles/albums/album/134716/review/5943868/everything)*

1. ["This Week In 1990: July 1, 1990"](https://www.chartbeats.com.au/post/1july1990). Retrieved 2024-08-09.

---
Adapted from the Wikipedia article [I'll Set You Free](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'll_Set_You_Free) by Wikipedia contributors ([contributor history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/I'll_Set_You_Free?action=history)). Available under [Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/). Changes may have been made.