Story of the song: All Around the World by Lisa Stansfield

From The Independent archive: Robert Webb on the 1989 chart-topper

Global success: Lisa Stansfield (PA)

The trio of Lisa Stansfield and former Rochester schoolmates Ian Devaney and Andy Morris started out as the oddly named Ede Bopp, soon rebranding themselves as Blue Zone.

When Stansfield went solo in 1989, she retained Devaney (whom she had married) and Morris as writing partners. As they sat around the piano, Morris found a chord sequence that perfectly fitted Stansfield’s low vocal range. The song took shape as a Barry White-style soul ballad, complete with a seductive, moaning intro.

Studio time was booked and Stansfield completed her vocals in one take. “We transferred the original vocals to 24-track, added some strings and transferred it back to eight-track,” recalled Devaney. The completed take was mixed at Stansfield and Devaney's house and “All Around the World” was finished. It was released on Arista in October 1989, climbed to No 1 in the UK and, true to its title, was a hit worldwide.