77-year-old CLIFF RICHARD to release his first album in 14 years of new material

In the last hundred years of Christians recording music, it's Cliff Richard, with the possible exception of Johnny Cash, who has sold the most records. Sir Cliff has been an ambassador for British pop since the '50s. However, as his legion of fans all know, the last two or three years have been hugely traumatic for the pop star. The 77-year-old singer has now announced that he will be releasing a new album, 'Rise Up', on 23rd November, and that the title and lyrics reflect the "bad period" he has been through.

The mass media has recently chronicled how the veteran was awarded £210,000 in damages and £850,000 in costs after a judge ruled in his favour and found that BBC coverage of a police raid on his home in 2014, following a child sex assault allegation, was a "very serious" invasion of his privacy. The music star announced his new 16-song album - Sir Cliff's first album in 14 years of new material - from London's Abbey Road Studios, where he recorded his debut single "Move It".

Cliff said, "I chose 'Rise Up' as the title track because after the bad period I went through in my life, I've managed to rise up out of what seemed like a quagmire. I love the lyric 'They're never gonna break me down/They're never gonna take me down/They know I'm gonna rise up feeling stronger'. It is always great to sing lyrics you can 'feel' and I really felt those words! So, I believe that we have the right title for the album and I am so thrilled in the way that it has turned out. I loved singing every track. To have these great writers supplying me with their songs is an honour!"

Cliff went on to say he was excited that the record may be a "revival for me" and by the prospect of a new audience tuning in to listen to him, but "if they don't like it, they can buy something else." He added, "Give me a chance, that is all we can ask. . . close your eyes and tune in. My longevity should be considered a plus, not a drawback. It was 14 years ago that I last made a record of original songs. That's quite a gap and I thought that was behind me, I thought I'd never get the chance to do it again and there it is - 'Rise Up' is here."

'Rise Up' sees Cliff reunite with another veteran pop star, Olivia Newton-John, for the first time in nearly 25 years, on the track "Everybody's Someone". The two stars had previous worked together on the duet "Had To Be" in 1995. 'Rise Up' will also feature re-workings of four of his classic hits, including "Devil Woman" and "Miss You Nights", using Sir Cliff's original vocals though now with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

A numbered limited edition 7" single of the album's title track will be released in October along with the song "Schoolboy Crush" - the original B-side to "Move It" - to mark Sir Cliff's 60th anniversary in the music industry.

After the invasion of privacy BBC trial, Cliff spoke about his Christian faith to the Daily Mail. He said, "I think it's stronger than ever because I've had to rely on it in recent years much more than I've ever had to."

Sir Cliff also said, "In the darkest moments, I've never felt totally lost or alone, although sometimes you do think to yourself, 'How am I going to get out of this mess?' So, if anything, I believe harder and more furiously now than I did before."
South Yorkshire Police has agreed to pay Sir Cliff £400,000 after settling a claim he brought against the force.