*In 1991, mesmerizing vocalist Oleta Adams scored a hit with her single “Get Here,” the first of her career released on a major label. The Brenda Russell-penned and performed remake quickly resonated with audiences. It even became the unofficial anthem for the Gulf War, with its lyrics, “You can reach me by caravan / Cross the desert like an Arab man,” embraced by soldiers fighting in Desert Storm.
Adams had released two albums independently before her major label debut, “Circle of One,” skyrocketed to platinum status powered by the Grammy-nominated “Get Here” and three other well-received singles. But her 1993 follow-up album, “Evolution,” was not nearly as hot.
When RadioScope caught up with this gospel-reared preacher’s daughter in the winter of ’96, Adams was promoting her third album, “Moving On,” hoping to recapture some of the magic that sprinkled her major label debut five years earlier.
With an original airdate of January 13, 1996, here’s our RadioScope segment on Oleta Adams and her third album, “Moving On.” Listen below.
Four singles were released from “Moving On.” Lead single “Never Knew Love” didn’t do well in the U.S., but gave Adams her fourth Top 40 hit in the UK. The second single, a re-recorded and remixed song from her first album, “Rhythm of Life,” gave Adams her fifth and final Top 40 hit in the UK to date. The final two singles from the album, the ballads “We Will Meet Again” and “Life Keeps Moving On,” also failed to connect with audiences.
Adams’ latest album, 2017’s “Third Set,” was a collection of jazz covers and acoustic versions of several original tracks from her previous studio albums.
