No Ordinary Love

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For the song by Jennifer Love Hewitt, see Jennifer Love Hewitt (album).

"No Ordinary Love"
Single by Sade
from the album Love Deluxe
B-side"Paradise" (remix)
Released28 September 1992 (1992-09-28)
StudioThe Hit Factory, New York City
Genre
Length
  • 7:20 (album version)
  • 5:22 (single version)
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Sade
Sade singles chronology
"Haunt Me"
(1989) 		"No Ordinary Love"
(1992) 		"Feel No Pain"
(1992)
Music video
"No Ordinary Love" on
YouTube

"No Ordinary Love" is a song by English band

UK Singles Chart and number 21 in Australia. In the accompanying music video, directed by Sophie Muller, Sade Adu plays a mermaid
who wants to be a bride.

American magazine Rolling Stone included "No Ordinary Love" in their list of "500 Best Songs of All Time" in 2021.[3]

Chart performance

"No Ordinary Love" was a sizeable hit on the charts across several continents. It was most successful in Europe, entering the top 10 in Greece (5) and Italy (4), as well as on the

Hot 100, number 14 on the Adult Contemporary chart, number 29 on the Rhythmic chart and number 9 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
chart. "No Ordinary Love" also peaked at number 21 on the US Cash Box Top 100 and number 11 on the Cash Box Top R&B Singles chart.

The single received a silver record in the UK, after 200 000 units were sold.

Critical reception

The song received positive reviews from music critics. Upon the release, Larry Flick from Billboard stated that it shows Sade and band "in fine form, sounding, as always, cool and sexy." He also said that her "famously smoky voice is the highlight of a spare arrangement, supported by percussive guitar and even a ghostly metal solo."[6] Amy Linden from Entertainment Weekly found that Sade, "the high priestess of understated cool, heats up on the fabulous "No Ordinary Love", which surges with emotion."[7] Dave Sholin of the Gavin Report felt that "her extraordinary songstyling is hotter than ever."[8] Another editor, John Martinucci, said, "At last, the sensual vocals of Sade return with a hypnotic beat underlined by an occasional, crunching guitar."[9]

Caroline Sullivan from

Viagra."[15]

Retrospective response

In an 2017 retrospective review, Justin Chadwick from Albumism described the song as "insistent and intimate", adding that it's "evoking the desperation of trying to secure an elusive love". He also noted that the song begins with "one of the most devastating intros ever".[16] In 2012, Sophie Heawood of The Guardian commented, "The band reached their peak of opulent sound design on the aptly titled album Love Deluxe; its seven-minute epic of a lead single is as bleak as it is sensual, casting heartbreak as the greatest luxury of all."[17] In 2010, the Daily Vault's Mark Millan declared it as "intoxicating". He added that it "is Adu's lament of a one-sided love affair", noting that it "harbors a serious groove, but the underlying anger of love gone bad is represented with a subtle but powerful guitar riff that helps get the job done."[18]

Frank Guan of

Vulture ranked "No Ordinary Love" number two in his list of "All 73 Sade Songs, Ranked From Worst to Best" in 2017. He wrote, "'There's nothing like you and I,' she sings; the emphasis falls on 'nothing' no less than on 'you' or 'I.' Sade songs, at their very best, ignore the distinction between songs about flawless love and love betrayed; the promise of the first and the inevitability of the other are contained in one another. The softly puncturing bass, the deep-sea synths, the chugging, almost accusatory guitar that kicks in during the pre-chorus – even among other perfect songs, this one stands out. It's the longest song on any of her albums; it's also one you wish would last forever, but can't, just like the love in the title."[19]

Music video

A music video produced to promote the single, directed by English music video director Sophie Muller,[20] features Sade as a mermaid and a bride.

At the beginning, Sade sits on the bottom of the ocean as a mermaid. Flashbacks reveal a young sailor, who has fallen into the water, meeting the mermaid in a kiss and embrace. Back in the present, the mermaid browses in an old weekly magazine and sews a white wedding dress. She swims up to shore in the finished dress with human legs, reaching land and throwing rice on herself like a newlywed bride. Obviously looking for the young man, she walks into a bar and drinks water with salt for survival. Devastated at not finding the sailor, she runs through the busy city streets, with a bottle of water, down to the quay. Again there are flashbacks of the mermaid with her sailor on the sea floor. As the video ends, she sits alone on the dock in her wedding dress looking down and waiting for her tail to reappear.[21]

Awards

Sade won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1994.

Same year, "No Ordinary Love" was also awarded one of BMI's Pop Songs Awards, honoring the songwriters, composers, and music publishers of the song.[22]

Impact and legacy

In 2012,

Complex placed "No Ordinary Love" at number 43 in their ranking of "The Best 90s R&B Songs".[23] In 2017, Spin ranked the song at number 15 on their list of "The 30 Best '90s R&B Songs".[24]

In 2021, Rolling Stone included "No Ordinary Love" in their list of the "500 Best Songs of All Time" at No. 459.[3] In 2022, Pitchfork ranked it at number 42 in their list of "The 250 Best Songs of the 1990s".[25]

Track listings

Charts

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "No Ordinary Love"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[49] Silver 200,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release dates and formats for "No Ordinary Love"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United Kingdom 28 September 1992
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 Epic [50]
Japan 21 October 1992 Mini-CD [51]
United Kingdom (re-release) 24 May 1993
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 [52]

In popular culture

Media

Cover versions

  • Serbian rock band Night Shift covered the song on their Undercovers album in 2002.
  • American rock band Deftones covered the song, with backing vocals from guest Jonah Matranga. The cover was initially featured as a track on the 2000 release of the single "Change (In the House of Flies)". It was later included on Deftones' 2005 B-side collection B-Sides & Rarities and their 2011 cover compilation, Covers. Vocalist Chino Moreno often cites Sade as one of his favourite artists.
  • Pinoy rock band Urbandub also did a cover of the song, which was included on the EMI Music Philippines 2005 compilation Full Volume: The Best of Pinoy Alternative.[53]
  • The song was also covered instrumentally by trumpeter Chris Botti on his album When I Fall in Love in 2004.[54][55]
  • Marcia Hines covered the song on her album "Life" in 2007.
  • Vesta Williams covered the song on her album "Distant Lover" in 2007.
  • The Civil Wars covered it live in their album Live at Eddie's Attic, available on their website as a free Internet download.
  • Richard Marx covered the song as "Ordinary Love" on his 2008 album titled Sundown.
  • A cover of "No Ordinary Love" is featured as the tenth and final track of
    Rose Ave.
     in 2014.
  • Joanna Marie covered the song in English and Spanish as "Ordinary Love" and "Amor Ordinario" on her 1999 album "Simply Irresistible", released by Kariang Music.
  • Liam Frost released a solo cover on his EP The Wild Places in 2014.
  • Walden and Havana Brown released a dance version as a single in 2015.[56]
  • Lovi Poe is the second Filipino music artist to revive this song after Urdandub, her own rendition was used as soundtrack of her film The Escort.
  • Rare Essence covered the song for their 2001 live album Doin' It Old School Style.

References

  1. ^ Harvey, Eric (19 May 2012). "The Quiet Storm". Pitchfork. Retrieved 11 October 2022.
  2. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8
    .
  3. ^ a b "500 Best Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. 15 September 2021. Retrieved 18 February 2022.
  4. ^
    OCLC 29800226
    – via World Radio History.
  5. ^
    OCLC 29800226
    – via World Radio History.
  6. ISSN 0006-2510
    .
  7. ^ Linden, Amy (13 November 1992). "Love Deluxe". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 28 February 2020.
  8. ^ Sholin, Dave (6 November 1992). "Gavin Picks: Singles" (PDF). Gavin Report. No. 1930. p. 48 – via World Radio History.
  9. ^ Martinucci, John (9 October 1992). "Urban: New Releases" (PDF). Gavin Report. p. 14.
  10. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (18 November 1994). "Music: Pop - Your essential guide to the new CDs". The Guardian.
  11. ^ Stubbs, David (26 September 1992). "Singles". Melody Maker. p. 32. Retrieved 6 February 2023.
  12. OCLC 29800226
    – via World Radio History.
  13. ISSN 0265-1548
    – via World Radio History.
  14. ^ Silberman, Jeff (6 November 1992). "Top 40: Music Meeting" (PDF). The Network Forty. No. 137. p. 24 – via World Radio History.
  15. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: The Ultimate Love Mix". People. 15 February 2010. Retrieved 9 March 2020.
  16. ^ Chadwick, Justin (24 October 2017). "Sade's 'Love Deluxe' Turns 25: Anniversary Retrospective". Albumism. Retrieved 17 November 2020.
  17. ^ Heawood, Sophie (13 March 2012). "Why Sade is bigger in the US than Adele". The Guardian. Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  18. ^ Millan, Mark (30 December 2010). "Sade - Love Deluxe". The Daily Vault. Retrieved 25 February 2020.
  19. Vulture
    . Retrieved 21 June 2019.
  20. ^ "No Ordinary Love (1992) by Sade". IMVDb. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  21. ^ "Sade - No Ordinary Love (Official Music Video)". YouTube. 12 December 2009. Retrieved 5 March 2020.
  22. ^ "BMI Salutes the PRS Writers and Publishers of BMI's Most Performed Works in the United States of 1993" (PDF). Music & Media. 5 November 1994. p. 2. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
  23. Complex
    . Retrieved 27 July 2020.
  24. ^ Johnston, Maura; Reeves, Mosi (8 August 2017). "The 30 Best '90s R&B Songs". Spin. Retrieved 15 December 2019.
  25. ^ "The 250 Best Songs of the 1990s". Pitchfork. 27 September 2022. Retrieved 30 October 2022.
  26. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  27. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  28. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 1839." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  29. ^ "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 1729." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  30. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5
    .
  31. Les classement single
    . Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  32. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  33. OCLC 29800226
    – via World Radio History.
  34. OCLC 29800226
    – via World Radio History.
  35. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 46, 1992" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  36. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  37. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  38. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  39. ^ "Sade – No Ordinary Love". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 10 September 2018.
  40. ^ "Sade: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  41. ISSN 0265-1548
    – via World Radio History.
  42. ^ "Sade Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  43. ^ "Sade Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  44. ^ "Sade Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  45. ^ "Sade Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved 23 November 2019.
  46. ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Pop Singles – Week ending February 6, 1993". Cash Box. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  47. ^ "Cash Box Top R&B Singles – Week ending February 6, 1993". Cash Box. Retrieved 21 January 2021.
  48. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 1993". Billboard. Archived from the original on 27 December 2019. Retrieved 27 December 2019.
  49. ^ "British single certifications – Sade – No Ordinary Love". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 13 January 2023.
  50. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 26 September 1992. p. 25. Retrieved 20 June 2021.
  51. ^ "ノー・オーディナリー・ラブ | シャーデー" [No Ordinary Love | Sade] (in Japanese). Oricon. Retrieved 16 September 2023.
  52. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. 22 May 1993. p. 21.
  53. ^ "EMI Philippines – Urbandub". EMI Music Philippines. Retrieved 11 January 2008.
  54. ^ "When I Fall in Love overview". AllMusic.
  55. ^ "Chris Botti dating Katie Couric". SmoothVibes.com.
  56. ^ "No Ordinary Love (Walden Vs Havana Brown) – Single". iTunes Store. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
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