Sade seemed to emerge from some unknown world, a mysterious beauty with a sound that seemed to invent itself. In reality, she was born Helen Folsade Adu in Nigeria and raised in England, a young soul fan who fell into playing music while attending St. Martin’s College for fashion design. Beginning with 1984’s stunning Diamond Life, Sade and her eponymously-named band (Stuart Matthewman, guitar; Paul Spencer Denman, bass; Andrew hale, keyboards) released four albums, all of which spawned multiple hit singles. Sade’s albums offered the glossy, modern production beloved by the Eighties, but the songwriting, singing, and subtly intricate performances eschewed the decade’s cheap and goofy gimmicks for something sincere and soulful. In an era dominated by Wham and Wang Chung, Sade embodied the delicate artistry of Seventies soul masters Roberta Flack, Curtis Mayfield, and Bill Withers. All the timeless hits are here — from “Smooth Operator” to “Cherish the Day”— but it’s “Is It A Crime” and her cover of Percy Mayfield’s 1952 “Please Send Me Someone To Love” (recorded for the Philadelphia soundtrack) that reveal this empress of seduction to be a blues singer at heart
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