Diamond Life

Diamond Life
Studio album by Sade
Released 16 July 1984 (1984-07-16)
Recorded October–November 1983
Studio The Power Plant
(London, England)
Genre
Length 44:31
Label
Producer Robin Millar
Sade chronology
Diamond Life
(1984)		 Promise
(1985)
Singles from Diamond Life
  1. "Your Love Is King"
    Released: 25 February 1984 (UK)
  2. "When Am I Going to Make a Living"
    Released: 26 May 1984 (UK)
  3. "Smooth Operator"
    Released: 15 September 1984 (UK)
  4. "Hang On to Your Love"
    Released: 8 December 1984 (US)

Diamond Life is the debut studio album by English band Sade. It was first released in the United Kingdom on 16 July 1984 by Epic Records and in the United States on 27 February 1985 by Portrait Records. After studying fashion design, and later modelling, Sade Adu began backup singing with British band Pride. During this time Adu and three of the original members of "Pride"—Paul Anthony Cook, Paul Denman and Stuart Matthewman—left the group to form their own band called Sade. Following various demos and performances, Sade received interest from record labels and later signed to Epic.

Recording for the album began in 1983 at The Power Plant in London and took a total of six weeks to complete. The album's content was written by the group Sade whilst the production was handled by Robin Millar. A total of fifteen songs were recorded for the album with the use of live instruments that used sonically experimental material. The album contained a variety of musical elements including soul, jazz and sophisti-pop, with lyrics revolving mainly around themes of love. The album spawned four singles, including the hit singles "Your Love Is King" and "Smooth Operator".

Upon release, Diamond Life was met with acclaim from music critics, and went on to win the Brit Award for Best British Album in 1985. Commercially, the album was also a success, charting highly in the UK and US, and was later certified multi-platinum in both regions. Diamond Life went on to sell over six million copies worldwide, becoming one of the top-selling debut recordings of the era, and became the best-selling debut by a British female vocalist, a record that stood for twenty-four years.

Background

After studying fashion design, and later modeling briefly, Sade began backup singing with British band Pride, during this time she formed a songwriting partnership with Pride's guitarist/saxophonist Stewart Matthewman; together, backed by Pride's rhythm section Paul Anthony Cook and Paul Denman, they began doing their own sets at Pride gigs.[1] Her solo performances of the song "Smooth Operator" attracted the attention of record companies, and in 1983, Adu and Matthewman, split from Pride, along with bassist Paul Denman and drummer Paul Anthony Cook to form the band Sade.[1][2] By the time she performed her first show at London's Heaven nightclub she had become so popular that 1,000 people were turned away at the door.[3] In May 1983, Sade performed for the first time in the United States, at Danceteria Club in New York. On 18 October 1983 Sade Adu signed with Epic Records, while the rest of the band signed to her as contractors in 1984.[4]

Recording

Prior to signing the record deal, the group recorded Diamond Life in six weeks. It was recorded at The Power Plant in London. After cutting the proposed singles “Smooth Operator” and “Your Love is King,”, the first album track recorded was “Sally,” a song about the Salvation Army.[5] During recording the band worked collectively on the musical direction, rehearsing each song in details and then recording it. .[5] The song “When Am I Going to Make a Living” was started by Sade on the back of a cleaning ticket after she picked her clothes up from the cleaners. She had no money and she wrote down, “When Am I Going to Make a Living.”[5]

Producer Robin Millar met the band in 1983, and the band members had never worked in a professional studio and only had demos and recordings from the BBC studios and EMI publishing studios. Millar booked a week's worth of studio time and noted that the limitations of recording before computers had an impact upon the sound. "We used a real piano and a Fender Rhodes piano, painstakingly synching them up." They recorded fifteen songs,[6] all written by Adu and members of the group, except "Smooth Operator" written exclusively by Adu and Ray St. John. They also recorded a cover version of "Why Can't We Live Together" (1972) by Timmy Thomas.[7]

For the recording of "Cherry Pie" the band had no mixing desks with automation, each member had their job of putting a bit of echo, delay, or changing a level.[5] Then Millar would edit between the different mixes. Speaking about this Stuart Matthewman said "Very often, we would have six people at the mixing desk at the same time."

Content

Lyrically the album revolves around themes of love, discussing both the positive and the negative of relationships, the music features jazzy textures, built over prominent basslines, smooth drums and subtle guitar. The album also features heavy use of brass instruments and keyboards.[8] According to Paul Lester of the BBC, the album is "sufficiently soulful and jazzy yet poppy, funky and easy listening," Lester described the album is being predominantly a quiet storm album with elements of mellifluous R&B.[9] Sade's vocals on the album were described as "deliberately icy, her delivery and voice aloof, deadpan, and cold" while Ron Wynn of All Music, stated that the album contained "slick production and quasi-jazz backing".[10]

In a contemporary review, Stephen Holden of The New York Times said Diamond Life, "eschews the synthesizers that dominate British pop to make music that resembles a cross between the rock-jazz of Steely Dan and the West Indian-flavored folk-pop of Joan Armatrading. Smoldering Brazilian rhythms blend with terse pop-soul melodies and jazzy harmonies to create a sultry, timeless nightclub ambiance."[11] Rolling Stone called it soul music with "self-possessed sophistication", and described Sade's vocal as "thick and rich".[12]

The album opens with the single "Smooth Operator", musically song cross between R&B, jazz, adult contemporary, pop and dance music over a light production.[13] The song contains a Latin-style percussion and lusty saxophone and features lyrics about an "international playboy."[14] “Your Love is King,” is a dynamic smooth ballad, that contains wrenching vocals performed by Sade and saxophone solo by Stuart Matthewman. The following song on the album is the uptempo track “Hang On to Your Love”, the song contains a thumping groove with lyrics that revolve around someone holding on to a relationship when things are going bad.[15] “Sally,” is a haunting laid-back, bluesy ballad that was compared to the work of Billie Holiday might have recorded, the album closes with a remake of Timmy Thomas’ 1972 song “Why Can’t We Live Together.”[15]

Release and promotion

"Your Love Is King" was released as the album's lead single on 25 February 1984, the song was a success in European territories charting at number seven in Ireland and number six on the UK Singles Chart.[16][17] The song was less successful in the US where it peaked at number 54 on the US Billboard Hot 100[18] "When Am I Going to Make a Living" was released as the album's second single in the UK on 26 May 1984, the single was less successful than its predecessor charting at number 28 on the Irish Singles Chart[16] and number 36 on the UK Singles Chart.[19] However the song did fare well else where peaking at number 12 on the Dutch Top 40.[20]

The third single "Smooth Operator" became the most successful song in the US from the album, "Smooth Operator" was first released on 15 September 1984. In Europe the song fared well peaking at number 19 in the UK,[21] the song also reached the top twenty in Austria, Switzerland, France and Germany.[22][23] The song was a huge success in the US where it peaked at number-five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and the US Billboard Hot Black Singles, as well as peaking at number-one on the US Billboard Adult Contemporary chart.[24]

Commercial performance

The album reached number two in the UK Album Chart, and sold over 1.2 million copies in the UK[25] The album was also a hit internationally, reaching number one in several countries and the top ten in the US where it has sold in excess of 4 million copies. Diamond Life had international sales of over 6 million copies, becoming one of the top-selling debut recordings of the 1980s and the best-selling debut ever by a British female vocalist until Duffy's Rockferry in 2008.[1] The album has sold 983,000 copies in the United States since the introduction of Soundscan.[26] The album was a commercial success in France where it peaked at number one on the French Albums Charts and was later certified double platinum after selling 1,348,400 copies.[27][28]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[29]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music[30]
The Great Rock Discography7/10[31]
Music Story[31]
MusicHound R&B2.5/5[32]
Rolling Stone[12]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[33]
Smash Hits8½/10[34]
Uncut[35]
The Village VoiceB[36]

In a contemporary review for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau applauded Sade's "taste, concept, sound", and avoidance of indulgent musicianship, arguing that these qualities enhanced the "humanitarian" themed songs. The range of both the singer's "grainy voice" and "well-meaning songwriting" was questioned by Christgau, who found "Hang On to Your Love" and "Smooth Operator" more "warming" than "seductive" and incapable of sustaining the rest of the album.[36] Lynn Van Matre from the Chicago Tribune deemed the record "casual cocktail-lounge elegance", performed "with far more style than substance".[37] Los Angeles Times critic Connie Johnson said "there's an earthy substance to some of the cuts--not much substance, but enough to draw you back for another listen", while crediting Sade for knowing how to "clamp personal style onto recycled R&B idioms and make it all look invitingly new".[38] Paul Lester was more enthusiastic in a retrospective review for BBC Music, crediting Sade for her ability to write "songs that were sufficiently soulful and jazzy yet poppy, funky yet easy listening, to appeal to fans of all those genres".[9] Paul Evans called Diamond Life a "victory of attitude" in The Rolling Stone Album Guide (1992), writing that Sade "projects a wised-up sensuality, and the record neither creaks with the revivalism of Harry Connick nor the sterility of Simply Red, to name but two of Sade's neo-cocktail rivals."[39]

Diamond Life was voted the 14th best album of the year in the 1985 Pazz & Jop, an annual poll of American critics, published by The Village Voice; "Smooth Operator" was voted 25th in the singles poll.[40] The album also won the 1985 Brit Award for the Best British Album.[25] The video for "Smooth Operator", directed by Julien Temple, was nominated for two MTV Video Music Awards in 1985, Best Female Video and Best New Artist.[41]

Legacy

Sade and the band were credited as being Influential to neo soul, the band achieved success in the 1980s with music that featured a sophisti-pop style, incorporating elements of soul, pop, smooth jazz, and quiet storm.[42][43] Lester credited the album with giving quiet storm music a "wide, even international audience".[9] The band was part of a new wave of British R&B-oriented artists during the late-1980s and early 1990s that also included Soul II Soul, Caron Wheeler, The Brand New Heavies, Simply Red, Jamiroquai, and Lisa Stansfield.[44] Allmusic's Alex Henderson writes that, "Many of the British artists who emerged during that period had a neo-soul outlook and were able to blend influences from different eras".[44] Following the coining of the term "quiet storm" by Smokey Robinson, Sade was credited for helping give the genre a worldwide audience.[9]

Track listing

CD and LP
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Smooth Operator"
4:15
2."Your Love Is King"
3:41
3."Hang On to Your Love"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
5:55
4."Frankie's First Affair"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
4:39
5."When Am I Going to Make a Living"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
3:27
6."Cherry Pie"
6:20
7."Sally"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
5:23
8."I Will Be Your Friend"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
4:45
9."Why Can't We Live Together"Timmy Thomas5:28

Some cassette editions, like the initial US and Canadian editions, use the above standard track listing. Others used the track listing below, that included "Smooth Operator/Snake Bite" and "Love Affair with Life" from the single for "Your Love Is King."

Cassette (side one)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Smooth Operator"/"Snake Bite"
  • Adu
  • St. John/Matthewman
  • Hale
  • Denman
7:28
2."Your Love Is King"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
3:41
3."Hang On to Your Love"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
5:55
4."Frankie's First Affair"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
4:39
5."When Am I Going to Make a Living"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
3:27
Cassette (side two)
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
6."Cherry Pie"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
  • Hale
  • Denman
6:20
7."Sally"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
5:23
8."I Will Be Your Friend"
  • Adu
  • Matthewman
4:45
9."Why Can't We Live Together"Thomas5:28
10."Love Affair with Life"Adu4:35

Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Diamond Life.[7]

Sade

Additional personnel

Charts

Certifications

Region CertificationCertified units/Sales
Australia (ARIA)[72] 4× Platinum 280,000^
Canada (Music Canada)[73] 2× Platinum 200,000^
France (SNEP)[74] 2× Platinum 600,000*
Germany (BVMI)[75] Platinum 500,000^
Netherlands (NVPI)[76] Platinum 100,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[77] Platinum 15,000^
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[78] Gold 50,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[79] 4× Platinum 1,200,000^
United States (RIAA)[80] 4× Platinum 4,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Background". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 3 March 2015.
  2. ↑ Sandall, Robert (31 January 2010). "Sade Emerges from Her Own Country Retreat". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 31 January 2010.
  3. ↑ "Britain's Smooth Operator from the 80s Who's Outselling Adele in America (Despite Living as a Recluse in the Cotswolds)". Mail Online. Retrieved 25 November 2014
  4. ↑ "Sade - Biography". Last.fm. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  5. 1 2 3 4 "Recording". Red Bull Music Academy. Retrieved March 3, 2015.
  6. ↑ Lindvall, Helienne (May 18, 2011). "Behind the Music: The Secrets of Sade's Success". The Guardian. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  7. 1 2 Diamond Life (CD liner notes). Sade. Epic Records. 1984. 481178 2.
  8. ↑ dannyboy89 (March 3, 2013). "Sade - Diamond Life". Sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  9. 1 2 3 4 Lester, Paul (11 January 2010). "Review of Sade – Diamond Life". BBC Music. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
  10. ↑ Wynn, Ron. "Sade > Diamond Life > Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  11. ↑ Holden, Stephen (January 30, 1985). "The Pop Life; 'Diamond Life,' Sade's Debut Album". The New York Times. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  12. 1 2 Smith, Danyel (10 March 2004). "Sade: Diamond Life". Rolling Stone. New York. Archived from the original on 31 January 2009. Retrieved 3 December 2012.
  13. ↑ Montgomery, James (September 17, 2014). "100 Best Singles of 1984: Pop's Greatest Year - 17 | Sade, "Smooth Operator"". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 September 2015.
  14. ↑ Jonas, Liana. "Sade - Smooth Operator - Song Review". AllMusic. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  15. 1 2 "Classic Soul Album: Sade's 'Diamond Life'". Soul Train. February 2, 2015. Retrieved 17 September 2015.
  16. 1 2 "The Irish Charts". IRMA. Archived from the original on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 8 January 2009.
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  18. ↑ "Sade > Charts & Awards > Billboard Singles". Allmusic. Retrieved 8 January 2009.
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  20. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 34 – 1984". Top 40 (in Dutch). Retrieved 11 January 2009.
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  30. ↑ Larkin, Colin (2011). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th concise ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0-85712-595-8.
  31. 1 2 "Diamond Life". Acclaimed Music. Retrieved 3 February 2017.
  32. ↑ Graff, Gary; du Lac, Josh Freedom; McFarlin, Jim, eds. (1998). "Sade". MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. ISBN 1578590264.
  33. ↑ Sarig, Roni (2004). "Sade". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian. The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 712–13. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. Retrieved 13 January 2013.
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  41. ↑ Stage6 · Diva Channel · Videos Archived 15 September 2007 at the Wayback Machine.
  42. ↑ Genre: Sophisti-pop. Allmusic. Retrieved 9 May 2010.
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  44. 1 2 Henderson, Alex (1 August 2003). British Soul. Allmusic. Retrieved 6 March 2011.
  45. 1 2 3 4 Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). Sydney: Australian Chart Book. p. 263. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between mid 1983 and June 19, 1988.
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  72. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2011 Albums". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 22 January 2012.
  73. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Sade – Diamond Life". Music Canada. 30 April 1986. Retrieved 31 January 2011.
  74. ↑ "Les Albums Double Platine". InfoDisc (in French). Archived from the original on 21 February 2014. Retrieved 8 November 2012.
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  76. ↑ "Dutch album certifications – Sade – Diamond Life" (in Dutch). Nederlandse Vereniging van Producenten en Importeurs van beeld- en geluidsdragers. Retrieved 31 January 2011. Enter Diamond Life in the "Artiest of titel" box.
  77. ↑ "New Zealand album certifications – Sade – Diamond Life". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 30 June 2017.
  78. ↑ Salaverrie, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (PDF) (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Madrid: Fundación Autor/SGAE. p. 918. ISBN 84-8048-639-2. Retrieved 31 July 2018.
  79. ↑ "British album certifications – Sade – Diamond Life". British Phonographic Industry. 2 March 1987. Retrieved 31 January 2011. Select albums in the Format field. Select Platinum in the Certification field. Type Diamond Life in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
  80. ↑ "American album certifications – Sade – Diamond Life". Recording Industry Association of America. 2 February 1995. Retrieved 31 January 2011. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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