This list of songs is inspired by lists published by radio station KEXP-FM from Seattle in 2010, as well as the latest poll taken in 2021 by Rolling Stone Magazine. For the most part I will faithfully countdown from their lists, starting at Song #500 and going until I reach Song #1. When you see the song title listed as something like: Song #XXX (KEXP)….it means that I am working off of the official KEXP list. Song XXX (RS) means the song is coming from the Rolling Stone list. If I post the song title as being: Song #xxx (KTOM), it means I have gone rogue and am inserting a song choice from my own personal list of tunes I really like. In any case, you are going to get to hear a great song and learn the story behind it. Finally, just so everyone is aware, I am not a music critic nor a musician. I am a music fan and an armchair storyteller. Here is the story behind today’s song. Enjoy.
KEXP: The Top 500 Songs in Modern Music History.
Song #197: No Ordinary Love by Sade.
Ladies and Gentlemen! May I present to you, Helen Folasade Adu or, as she is professionally known as, Sade Adu. Sade Adu is the lead singer of a band that bears part of her name, Sade (which is pronounced, “Shah-Day”). So yes, first things first, Sade is the band, Sade Adu is the Nigerian-born lead singer with the silky smooth pipes and jazz persona that has seen her score hits with songs such as “Smooth Operator”, “Our Love Is King”, “The Sweetest Taboo” and, from the original motion picture soundtrack to the Robert Redford/Demi Moore/Woody Harrelson movie, “Indecent Proposal”, we have today’s song, “No Ordinary Love”.
The band, Sade, had sold well over ten million albums worldwide since they began in the mid-1980s. They were riding such a wave of popularity upon the release of their debut album, “Diamond Life” and the success of their song, “Smooth Operator” that they were invited to participate in the very first Live Aid Benefit Concert at Wembley Stadium. Since then, Sade and, specifically, lead singer Sade Adu, have gone on to be recognized as one of the best selling female singers in UK history and, as a result, she was named a “Commander of the British Empire”, which is one of the highest awards a civilian can receive from the British Government.
The song, “No Ordinary Love” is a beautiful sounding song. If you have good speakers then, press play at the end of this post and get ready to have your house fill with glorious sound. Certain singers/bands seem perfectly suited for the genres in which they find themselves and that is certainly the case with Sade Adu and the band, Sade. There is a sense of intimacy to a song like “No Ordinary Love” that invites you in to the world in which the song takes place. In this case, it is a world of extraordinary love and the quest to hang on to it against all odds. I am fairly confident that “No Ordinary Love” has been the soundtrack to many a romantic encounter over the years. Maybe even one that you, yourself, may have enjoyed with your special someone? “No Ordinary Love” by Sade goes to show that songs don’t have to be loud or filled with technological trickery to be epic in nature. “No Ordinary Love” is, essentially, just a beautiful voice against the backdrop of a skilled and gentle backing band. Like a warm bubble bath, allow yourself the pleasure of luxuriating to the exquisitely beautiful sounds of Sade, with “No Ordinary Love”. You’re welcome.
The link to the video for the song, “No Ordinary Love” by Sade, can be found here.
The link to the official website for Sade, can be found here.
Thanks, as always, to KEXP, for helping to inspire the writing of this post. The link to their wonderful website can be found here.