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Song / Whatever I Do (Wherever I Go)

Hazell Dean / Whatever I Do (Wherever I Go)

"Whatever I Do (Wherever I Go)" is a Hi-NRG song written and produced by British hitmaking team Stock Aitken & Waterman, which became a hit for singer Hazell Dean in 1984.

Dean, having had a top 10 hit in early 1984 with "Searchin' (I Gotta Find a Man)", was looking for a follow-up single. Through her label Proto Records, she contacted music producers Stock Aitken & Waterman, who had by then worked with fellow Proto records artists Divine and Agents Aren't Aeroplanes, but were virtually unknown by then.

The song was originally titled "Dance Your Love Away", and was given to American artist, Michael Prince, to record. When Hazell Dean contacted Stock Aitken Waterman, they offered her to listen to the backing track of Divine's "You Think You're A Man". She liked it, so she needed a single with them. Matt Aitken came up with idea of using the backing track of "Dance Your Love Away " with re-written lyrics, which could be suitable for Hazell, who hated the chorus. Mike Stock and Matt Aitken rewrote it, with the song being re-titled "Whatever I Do (Wherever I Go)". "Dance Your Love Away" was released as a single in 1985.

The single was released in July 1984, and it became an instant smash, peaking at #4 in the UK Singles Chart, spending 11 weeks in the chart. It became the singer's highest placed single in the UK, along with her 1988 single "Who's Leaving Who". It was also Stock Aitken & Waterman's first of many top 10 singles in the UK charts.

Due to this success, Dean went on to record her album with Stock Aitken & Waterman. The resulting LP, Heart First, released in November 1984, was fully produced by Stock Aitken & Waterman, except for "Searchin' (I Gotta Find a Man)".

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