Diamond Life

Sade

Epic (UK), 1985

http://www.sade.com

REVIEW BY: Mark Millan

ORIGINALLY PUBLISHED: 08/21/2008

Sade didn’t exactly burst onto the mid-‘80s music scene like Madonna, Cyndi Lauper, and several others did. The group, which consisted of Sade Adu, Stuart Matthewman, Paul Spencer Denman, and Andrew Hale, formed in 1983 after Latin band Pride (which Adu fronted) split up, leaving the principal members free to begin composing their own music. Later that year Sade, was signed by Portrait Records (later bought out by Epic) to record and release their debut album.

Diamond Life was the result of several months of hard work that ended up sounding as fresh and smooth today as it did back then. The first single, “Your Love Is King,” was released to almost zero recognition and little fan-fare, quickly stalling at the bottom end of the British charts. However, after almost six months of heavy promotional work by both the band and label, the song became a top ten hit and renewed interest saw the release of the album to a newly keen public.

“Your Love Is King” was the obvious choice for the first single and why it didn’t hit instantly, I’ll never know. A sax intro gives way to a smooth jazzy pop song driven by a seductive groove, and Adu’s sexy sultry voice does justice to her even more sultry looks, as evidenced by the cover shot. The second and third singles released were “When Am I Going To Make A Living” and “Hang On To Your Love,” which both gained top forty status but didn’t set the world on fire as planned.my_heart_sings_the_harmony_web_ad_alt_250

It wasn’t until the fourth and final single, “Smooth Operator,” was released in late ‘84 that the album really took off. The song would become a top five US hit and so America’s love affair with Sade began. The song is five minutes in pop heaven with a lush arrangement complemented by a funky groove and great lyrics about, well, a smooth operating ladies’ man who breaks hearts as fast as he wins them. The accompanying video stayed on heavy rotation on MTV for over a year and remains one of the decade’s finest pop moments.

The funkiest, chunkiest song here is “Cherry Pie,” a funk groove married with a highly infectious chorus that has Adu lamenting a sizzling affair with her “son of a gun” lover boy she cut loose. “Frankie’s First Affair” is almost pure jazz; again the band’s tight but sparse arrangement leaves room for plenty of sax and piano fills that fold so easily around Adu’s intoxicating vocals.

“Sally” is a great blues song that tells the story of New York City hooker Sally and her sad but somewhat meaningful existence. The haunting arrangement sets the mood for Adu’s tale of Sally, who provides comfort to her down-and-out clients from various walks of life, leading Adu to say, “Put your hands together for Sally / She saved all those young men.”

“I Will Be Your Friend” and “Why Can’t We Live Together” close out this remarkable album. The former is a sweet song of support for a friend, while the latter covers a great Timmy Thomas song. It’s been covered many times, but this is the definitive version with its slow, percussive rhythm, beefed up by some funky guitar chops and Adu’s soaring vocals: simply brilliant.

Diamond Life went on to become one of the most successful debuts by a group in pop history. Robin Millar’s production excels at showing us how great the 1980’s could sound; it’s as exciting and exotic today as it was back then. Unfortunately, Sade to date has only released five studio albums since 1984. The up-side to this is that there are no duds in their catalogue, just five albums of glorious pop music by one of the genre’s best ever bands.

So while I (and I suspect many others) are patiently awaiting the next burst of activity from Sade, I’ll keep enjoying the great stuff they have put down so far that fortunately, like a fine wine, just gets better with time. A Diamond Life indeed.

Rating: A

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© 2008 Mark Millan and The Daily Vault. All rights reserved. Review or any portion may not be reproduced without written permission. Cover art is the intellectual property of Epic (UK), and is used for informational purposes only.