I was a big fan of English band Sade during their peak of popularity that lasted from 1984 through the early 90s. Named after their front woman and lead vocalist Sade Adu (born Helen Folasade Adu in Ibadan, Nigeria but raised in England from the age of four on), the band also included Paul Anthony Cooke, Stuart Mathewman, and Paul Spencer Denman, all of whom were from Hull, Yorkshire. Their beautiful music is a captivating blend of neo soul, R&B, quiet storm, smooth jazz and sophisti-pop, highlighted by Sade Adu’s velvety smooth sensual vocals. Between 1984 and 2011, they released six well-received and critically-acclaimed studio albums, one live album and two greatest hits compilations, all of which reached the top 10 on the Billboard 200 Album chart. Two of them – Promise in 1985 and Soldier of Love in 2010 – went all the way to #1.

Though my favorite song by Sade is their 1984 hit “Smooth Operator”, my second-favorite is their 1986 single “Never as Good as the First Time“. I remember loving it the first time I heard it (no pun intended), as so many things about it strongly appealed to me. First off, I love the arresting opening male vocal by Leroy Osbourne, accompanied by gorgeous orchestral strings. Then the song expands into a languid and sensual bass-driven groove that sounds like a mix of Latin and Caribbean, highlighted by marvelous edgy percussion and what sounds like a scratchy guitar, accompanied by marimba and saxophone. As always, Sade’s vocals are absolute perfection as she sings of the thrilling bliss of that first kiss with someone we’re hopelessly attracted to.

On the strength of this song as well as “The Sweetest Taboo”, which I also liked a lot, I bought a vinyl copy of Promise. But I was terribly disappointed to discover that the album version of “Never as Good as the First Time” sounded quite different from the song I’d been hearing on the radio. While the song still sounds good and Sade’s vocals are great, the album version seems more subdued and, most importantly, lacks the wonderful male vocal intro I loved so much. It also ran a full minute longer than the single version (which was not necessarily a problem). My guess is that the single version that got radio play was likely recorded after the album was completed. Oh well, at least I can now stream my preferred version to my heart’s content!

The single was much more successful in the U.S., where it reached #8 on the Billboard R&B Singles chart and #20 on the Hot 100, than in the UK, where it peaked at only #89. The music video for the single, shot in black and white, features Sade Adu riding a horse through the towns of El Rocío, Almonte, and Huelva in Andalusia, Spain. (Wikipedia)