It’s your desire: Bananarama releases new single, announces ‘Glorious

Mark Mattock/IN SYNK/London Records

Back in 1983, six years before Taylor Swift was even born, Bananarama was the first act to have a top 10 hit with a song called “Cruel Summer.” Now the most frequently charting female group of all time is back with a new song and an upcoming album called Glorious — The Ultimate Collection.

The new song is a dance floor anthem called “Feel the Love,” which the duo says is about “believing in yourself, focusing on what you want and not listening to negativity.” Group member Keren Woodward says of the track, “It was a process of making something soaring and uplifting. And we’ve gone to town with the harmonies, which we love.”

Glorious — The Ultimate Collection is a two-CD set that features music from across the group’s entire history. Hits include “Really Saying Something,” “Cruel Summer,” “Robert De Niro’s Waiting,” “Venus,” “A Trick of the Night,” “I Heard a Rumor,” “Love in the First Degree,” and dance hits like “Move in My Direction” and “Look on the Floor.” A three-CD deluxe edition adds 10 remixes.

“We wanted this to be a unique collection, a celebration of all the twists and turns in our career,” says Sara Dallin.

Keren notes, “At times we have maybe felt that we haven’t received the credit, respect, and recognition we deserve, certainly sometimes purely down to the fact we were born female. I feel the collection of songs we have amassed over the last four decades hopefully speak for themselves, so I don’t have to.”

If you preorder the album from the group’s official store, you’ll receive access to a presale for Bananrama’s London show on April 3.