Sade

I still recall the day our record store (!) manager delivered her debut CD for the "New Releases" stand.

She does things on her own terms and isn’t really interested in being a touring artist. It’s not that they could make her a big star it’s that she didn’t really want to be a big star.

I love her. She drops an awesome album every few years , tours and then disappears.

She has a handful of really great, sexy songs.

There is no 'her'; Sade are a band that go by the lead singer's first name. Their last album and tour were circa 2011/12. If you missed their tour, you'll probably have to wait till about 2022 based on the frequency of their more recent releases. Plus, Sade (the singer) is a self-professed hermit. She hates touring and prefers limited social interaction.

Love Sade.

R5 I had no idea it was the name of the band. I thought it was her stage name.

Her name is Helen , not Sade

Her full name is Hele Folasade Adu. Her nick name is Sade and the band is named after her.

It's pronounced in American English like "Shahhh-Dayy".

But the original record had a not on teh side saying "Shar-day) which in British English or at least Received pronunciation would sound more like SHAHHHH to an american (i.e. not pronouncing the final R).

thus loads of Americans still call her "SHARRRRR-Day"

Love Sade. One of the greatest.

R5 Fyi, Helen Folasade Adu, CBE (Yoruba: Fọláṣadé Adú [fɔ̄láʃādé ādú]; born 16 January 1959), known professionally as Sade Adu or simply Sade (/ʃɑːˈdeɪ/ shah-DAY), is a British Nigerian singer, songwriter, and actress, known as the lead singer of her self-titled band.

From the not really good but worth watching musical "Absolute Beginners."

I love this song.

[quote] Soundtrack to the mid to late 80s for me. What happened to her? Did they not know how to market her?

I'm sorry, but what ARE you talking about, OP?

Sade - the singer and the band - sell millions of records every time they release one. Anything she's done after Lovers Rock has been released with virtually no airplay, but sells like hotcakes.

She isn't a pop tartlet who needs to be shoved down everyone's throats. She records at her own whims and has for years. She's almost 60 and the band has managed to record an album every 10 years on average. (Yes, the initial albums were closer together.)

Not sure why you think she disappeared or didn't get promoted enough. The way it's been done is her decision. Had the record company got its way, she would have made two albums a year and been on a constant hamster wheel of touring and promotion.

Uh, they are richer than god and their albums always sell shitloads. They’re already recording the next album.

But more importantly what Gap playlists are they on?

That's the thing I love about Sade is that they transcend genres, radio, etc. They've carved their own niche in the music landscape so that whenever they release a new album, people are interested. They don't need radio play (although it helps) so much because they have a loyal fan base and somehow their music moves with the times.

When Sade was first signed to a recording contract, instead of accepting an advance like most struggling musicians do, they chose to forgo any money upfront in exchange for a much higher than usual percentage of their royalties. The end result is that they're rich as fuck and can afford to take whole decades off if they want.

Saw her on her last two tours, fabulous! They are great live.

Yes she's hugely wealthy - she's made a mint. (She's seriously lucky if you ask me - her records sound like she could, and does, put them out in her sleep.)

Her net worth is $70 million.

She has a post-op tranny kid now.

I had no idea how wealthy she was and that she had hit albums after the 80s . Obviously people are buying her albums but I have not heard any airplay or videos, nor have I ever met any Sade Superfans in the us or London. I guess the word gets out somehow. I am impressed

I always thought the lyric was "Be brave when your john is rough" but it's "Be brave when the journey is rough!"

My favourite.

She's good friends with Tina Turner. She was at Tina's wedding.

She's like Enya. Both of them have very large, incredibly loyal fanbases who've stuck with them for three decades and made them *very* rich. Sade usually sells out concerts at places like NYC much more quickly than many pop stars du jour even though she's unlikely to be played outside adult contemporary radio. She's wealthy, loves her privacy and can afford to release something and tour only when she feels inspired to do so. I have huge respect for how she runs her career and how private she is besides promoting new material when there is one. BTW, didn't she contribute a song for the most recent Ava DuVernay movie?

Yes, she did r27.

Such an amazing voice. Very sexy and my GOD? What a stunning woman. Radiant Beauty...still looks gorgeous.

I'd switch teams for her- and I'm gay as fuck!

Paradise is such a great song.

I recall when they first charted in the US with Smooth Operator. It was unlike anything else that anyone was producing in popular music at the time.

My favorites are "Sweetest Taboo" and "Never As Good As the First Time".

No Ordinary Love and Cherish the Day are simply brilliant. They haven't aged a day.

I never tire of the first four albums

I once got an promotion because of Sade.

I was waiting tables in a restaurant in the early Naughts when I was an undergrad and put a Sade CD in the player of the restaurant. The owner came in and I waited on him. He asked “What’s this music?” I told him it was Sade and I brought it in because I thought it fit the place more than the Shania Twain they had been playing. The next day I went in and was informed I was the new front of the house manager.

Turn down the lights and remember the NYC of the 80s

I always liked the mournful quality of this song.

R22

Yes. I follow him on Instagram.

Mae West ...I mean Madonna could learn a thing or two from Sade on how to age gracefully and remain beautiful and sexy

Helen has the most enviable life, face, personality, talent. I could go on but I’m just making myself mad and sick with envy.

I’m thankful she exists, more than that.

One of the most beautiful woman on the planet.

R37 How sad. Why couldn't she wear men's shirts before getting her breasts cut off? Wonder where she'll end up in a few years.

Sade's feminine cooing is like being ensconced in velvet. She may be Madonna's age, but unlike her, is aging quite gracefully and chooses not to be overexposed.

Soldier of Love was probably her best album and it got almost no notice/fanfare.

Oh, we noticed, R43. We just didn’t need to talk to THEM about it.

The first four albums were stunning, peaking with Love Deluxe.

The studio albums since are lovely enough, but have drifted a bit towards more generic middle of the road adult contemporary.

My favorites are Promise and Love Deluxe, though I have a soft spot for several of the tracks on Diamond Life, too.

'Is It A Crime?' is a pure masterclass in how to vocally deliver a song with melodrama. Every facet of the voice is used. The dynamic changes to build tension throughout, the pregnant pauses and gentle coo-ing, the drawn-out slinking, and the huge climax at the end where she belts the main refrain. Flawless.

My favourite album might actually be Lovers Rock. It feels so sonically full and fat and organic. Lots of live instruments combined with modern drum sounds. Their production was never better and the songs haven't dated like some of their earlier ones have. She also never used background harmonies as frequently or as well as she did on that record.

But this song will always represent Cool Britannia to me. The youthful energy and hunger, the effortless groove, and the style in the video. My favourite of their hits.

R46 One of my favorites too!

And very much of a set with some of the other stuff I love from that era - Everything But The Girl, Style Council, et al.

What I love about Sade's music is that it doesn't sound dated.

R11, like I said, she goes by the name Sade and the band is named after her. It may not be her legal first name, but that's the name she goes by.

R46 AAAAh, I haven't thought of that song or seen that video in ages, so good, perfectly evocative of the time. The best parts are where she just sings looking into the camera. She's always been so stylish and lovely.

R47, This song does bring Style Council to mind!

Love Deluxe is my favorite Sade album. I saw them on their last tour. Great show.

Every day is Christmas ... and every night is New Year's Eve ...

I love big stadium pop extravaganzas as much as the next gay. But, one thing (of the many) I love about Sade is how they understand that less is more. Of course, the musicianship was excellent on their most recent tour, but it wasn't just that. The stage and lighting design was, bold and dramatic, but never fussy, never getting in the way... assuring that she was still at the center. Honestly, if Grace Jones were more successful and had a budget, she'd be touring with type of theatrical design.

I was so pleasantly surprised to hear how well her voice was holding up in the most recent tour, too. Certainly, showing some signs of age, but still incredible.

R46 LOVER’S ROCK was so pure.

‘If someone has to lose/then I don’t want to play/no I can’t go there again..’

She's worth $70 million, poor compared to say Madonna who has had single years where she made more than $70 million annually, but very wealthy non the less

[quote] very wealthy non the less

Oh, dear.

[quote] thus loads of Americans still call her "SHARRRRR-Day"

How dare they!

Madonna does not have to be brought up on every single thread.

Most people say it correctly now, but it definitely was a bit of confusion at the time they came on the scene.

The UK suits hadn't thought through the fact that the R would be pronounced differently in the US versus the UK.

like Adele all her songs are the same tempo and are boring - never liked her

Lol... Madonna may make $70 million in some years compared to Sade's $70m overall (by the way i'd estimate it's a fair bit higher)... but that thirsty grandma has actually WORKED every single year since the mid 80s. Non-stop. Relentlessly. I know whose life i'd rather have.

Sade goes away for 8-10 years at a time, in hibernation. Living her quiet, peaceful life in London, enjoying her privacy and family and friends. She also never sold out to endorsements, corporate gigs, special appearance fees, etc. like Madge has. In fact she's never even done a collaboration with another artist. There are VERY few musicians like her who only make what they want to make, do what they want to do, can disappear for years and years, and are still successful and relevant. D'Angelo, Maxwell, and Lauryn Hill have all tried similar things but she's the blueprint. And all of them still tour a lot more.

Here is another beautiful song from Lover's Rock. The layering on her vocals is so gentle and melancholic, with just the right amount of echo and reverb as the harmony weaves in and out again. Again I think it's their best work from a production standpoint.

R61 Madonna isn't a Grandma yet and she's Take HUGE breaks between albums and touring , that was part of her record breaking $120 million Live Nation contract that she signed in 2007! One of the reasons she left Warner's was because they wanted her to.put out an album every two years and Madonna felt pressured.

She toured for a few months in early 2016 but did nothing Music related for the rest of 2016 and all of 2017, and 2018, for instance

R61 Barbra Streisand puts out a new album almost every year though

I feel like Sade is in a different class to the likes of Madonna and Barbara Streisand. She's a true artist just quietly living her life without worrying what people think about her much less being a diva. It's like night and day.

Oh yeah, Sade, she had that hit song everyone remembers.

R65 doesn't even remember 'that hit song'.

Which would make her even more sad r66, or perhaps r65 just didn't bother to name it because he couldn't care less.

R67, AGAIN, SADE ARE A BAND, NOT A SOLO ARTIST. Secondly, if R65 'couldn't care less' what the fuck is s/he doing wasting time posting on a message board he doesn't give a shit about? I don't hang out on Hootie and the Blowfish message boards and shit on them.

R67 is the same person as R65. So he's basically saying that the fact that he knows donkey dick about a band's 30 year body of work makes him an expert on said band. Makes perfect sense, LOL.

She must have a GREAT record contract, if she (OK they) can only put out new music every ten years or so, most labels make sure there's a timeframe for their artists when they sign long-term mult album contracts, like mentioned up thread with Madonna and Warner's, her contract with them was a new studio album every 2-2 and a half years, because Madonna was still a HUGE seller for them in the 2000s and they wanted to milk it as much as they could

I liked Sade back then.

She reminds me of peers Suzanne Vega and Kate Bush.

All three are artists who made their names on their talent and not media manipulation.

R71 which is why except for possibly Sade, the average person on the street has no idea who the other 2 artists are in 2019...

R71

I think that's how they like it.

Kate Bush has always been a private person.

I've seen Suzanne Vega three times in the last ten years. She plays smallish venues where she can relax and talk about her songs, converse with the crowd, try out material in progress. She doesn't seem to be suffering for cash or attention.

R71 should be R72...

Comparing a classy legend Sade to a bleating sow like Adele is criminal.

You're already in the wrong place if you think artists like Sade or Kate Bush give a shit about being relevant, or 'known' by this hypothetical random person down the street who evidently has heard of Madonna.

They have made their millions, seen the world, enjoy living their lives out of the spotlight, and when they want to they make their art. Without any pressures of commercial or critical success. Whether or not you can name 'that song of theirs'.

Guys, guys. Why must me always compare? I like pointless bitchery as much as the next gay, but -- SHOCK -- some of us like both Madonna AND Sade. It's truly possible.

Is this about the Marquis de Sade. If not, fuck off.

I don't think anyone cares if people like Madonna. What's tiresome is the need for at least one person on DL to discuss her on any music thread. We could have a discussion on who was the best conductor of The Boston Pops, and some idiot would insert Madonna into the conversation.

Is that Shar-Day? Dumb bitch and her fans are the worst. I thought they had put her down some years ago.

[quote]AGAIN, SADE ARE A BAND, NOT A SOLO ARTIST.

Sade is a band named after the singer, Sade, who was born Helen.

Diamond Life and Promise are exceptional, every song on each album is pure gold. I also am a huge fan of Sade's subsequent recordings, but her first two albums are so sublime.

Stronger than Pride is my favorite Sade album. Haunt Me is a masterpiece IMO.

Anyone ever meet her?

Still powerful ten years on:

Pearls:

Sweet:

Helen/Sade is the Anti-Madonna.