The Finest (song)

"The Finest" is a 1986 hit single for the American band The S.O.S. Band. It is the fifth track on their sixth studio album Sands of Time and it is one of the group's last songs to feature the vocals of original lead singer Mary Davis. R&B singer, Alexander O'Neal shares vocals with Mary Davis. "The Finest" was a major success on the US R&B charts, reaching number two and was their last entry on the Hot 100, where it peaked at number 44.[1] On the dance charts, "The Finest" peaked at number eight[2] and was also their second top 20 hit on the UK Singles chart, reaching number 17.

"The Finest"
Single by The S.O.S. Band
from the album Sands of Time
B-side"I Don't Want Nobody Else"
Released1986
Format
  • 7"
  • 12"
Genre
Length6:06
LabelTabu
Songwriter(s)Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis
Producer(s)Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis
The S.O.S. Band singles chronology
"Even When You Sleep"
(1986)		 "The Finest"
(1986)		 "No Lies"
(1987)

Track listing

7" Single

  1. "The Finest" - 4:35
  2. "I Don't Want Nobody Else" - 4:19

12" Single

  1. "The Finest" (Extended Version) - 6:38
  2. "The Finest" (Instrumental) - 6:17
  3. "The Finest" (Acapella) - 2:05

Charts
Chart (1986) Peak
position
UK Singles Chart 17
US R&B Chart 2
US Dance Chart 8
US Hot 100 Chart 44

"Finest Dreams"
"Finest Dreams"
Single by Richard X featuring Kelis
from the album Richard X Presents His X-Factor Vol. 1
B-side"Music for an Imaginary Mobile Phone Commercial"
Released11 August 2003 (2003-08-11) (UK)
FormatCD single, 12" single
Recorded2003
GenreElectropop
Length4:14
LabelEMI
Songwriter(s)James Harris III, Terry Lewis, Philip Oakey, Philip Adrian Wright
Producer(s)Richard X
Richard X singles chronology
"Being Nobody"
(2002)		 "Finest Dreams"
(2003)
Kelis singles chronology
"Young, Fresh n' New"
(2001)		 "Finest Dreams"
(2003)		 "Milkshake"
(2003)

In 2003, "The Finest" was covered by English mashup producer Richard X featuring vocals by American R&B singer–songwriter Kelis. This version of the song was entitled "Finest Dreams" and is a mash-up with backing based upon an instrumental remix of The Human League track "The Things That Dreams Are Made Of" (taken from the Dare album).

The song was released on 11 August 2003 in the United Kingdom as the third single from Richard X's debut album, Richard X Presents His X-Factor Vol. 1. The single peaked at number eight on the UK Singles Chart the week ending 23 August 2003 and also reached number 35 in Ireland. The music video was directed by Oli Goldsmith.

Track listings

UK CD single

  1. "Finest Dreams" (Richard X featuring Kelis) – 4:14
  2. "Finest Dreams" (Part Two) (Richard X featuring Kelis) – 5:15
  3. "Music for an Imaginary Mobile Phone Commercial" – 3:05

UK 12" single

  • Side A:
  1. "Finest Dreams" (Richard X featuring Kelis) – 4:14
  • Side B:
  1. "Finest Dreams" (Part Two) (Richard X featuring Kelis) – 5:15
  2. "Music for an Imaginary Mobile Phone Commercial" – 3:05

Charts
Chart (2003) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[3] 6
Ireland (IRMA)[4] 35
Ireland Dance (IRMA)[5] 6
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[6] 15
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[7] 8
UK Dance (Official Charts Company)[8] 3

Other versions
  • Foul Play sampled and sped up the vocals for their 1993 jungle/hardcore track "The Finest"
  • The song was sampled in MF Doom track, The Finest from 1999 album Operation: Doomsday.
  • British all-girl R&B trio Truce covered the song in 1995. The track peaked at number 54 on the UK singles chart.
  • Italian DJ and producer Roberto Surace sampled the vocals for his 2019 track “Joys”. This track hit number one on the US Dance Club Songs chart.[9]

References
  1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 540.
  2. Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 240.
  3. "Ultratop.be – Richard X feat. Kelis – Finest Dreams" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  4. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Richard X". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
  5. "Top 10 Dance Singles, Week Ending 14 August 2003". GfK Chart-Track. Retrieved June 15, 2019.
  6. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  7. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  8. "Official Dance Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  9. "Dance Club Songs – October 12, 2019". Billboard. October 9, 2019. Retrieved October 9, 2019.
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