Sweet 7

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Sweet 7
Studio album by Sugababes
Released 15 March 2010
(see release history)
Recorded April 2009 - January 2010;
London, UK
Los Angeles, U.S.
New York City, U.S.
Genre Electro, pop, dance-pop, europop, synthpop
Length 43:48
Label Island, Roc Nation
Producer Fernando Garibay, Jonas Jeberg, Martin K, RedOne, The Smeezingtons, Stargate, Syience
Sugababes chronology
Catfights and Spotlights
(2008)		 Sweet 7
(2010)		 TBA
(2012)
Singles from Sweet 7
  1. "Get Sexy"
    Released: 30 August 2009
  2. "About a Girl"
    Released: 9 November 2009
  3. "Wear My Kiss"
    Released: 22 February 2010

Sweet 7 is the seventh studio album by British girl group the Sugababes, released on 15 March 2010 in the United Kingdom by Island Records. Production for the album began in April 2009 and was completed in January 2010. Sweet 7 is the first release since the controversial departure of Keisha Buchanan, who was replaced by 2009 Eurovision Song Contest entry Jade Ewen in September 2009. As a result of the group line-up change, Sweet 7 was re-recorded to feature the vocals of new member Ewen and for the removal of former member Buchanan's vocals.

The album was produced by and tipped for a United States release with Jay Z's entertainment company Roc Nation, but this was later disputed by the group which claimed that Roc Nation was only signed to serve as A&R, as well as to produce Sweet 7. The involvement of Roc Nation's in-house producers gave the album a strong electro and dance pop sound due to work from US producers and writers, mainly Fernando Garibay, Stargate and The Smeezingtons. Despite the high-profile input, Sweet 7 was negatively received by critics, which was awarded a 39 out of 100 according to aggregated reviews at Metacritic. The negative reviews stemmed to the originality of the image due to the loss of Buchanan, as well as a lack of an identifiable sound and soul from the project.

Sweet 7 peaked at number 14 in the UK and number 35 in Ireland, becoming the group's second lowest charting album to date in those countries. Three top ten singles were generated from the album, including the lead single "Get Sexy", which peaked at number two in the UK, while "About a Girl" and "Wear My Kiss" peaked at number eight and seven, respectively. Promotion for the album ended after the release of the final single so that the group could begin work on a new album.

Contents

[edit] Recording and line-up change

Prior to the album's creation, Sugababes signed a U.S. record deal with Jay-Z's label Roc Nation.[1] The album was recorded by Sugababes mostly in Los Angeles and New York but as a producer liked them so much they did a couple of sessions in London.[2] The group primarily worked with RedOne,[3] Ryan Tedder,[3] Stargate,[2] Fernando Garibay,[4] Jack Lucien[5] (on the songs "About a Girl" and "Wait for You",[6]) up-and-coming production team the Smeezingtons (Phillip Lawrence and Bruno Mars).[7] One of the album's tracks, "No More You", was written by Ne-Yo.[2] Keisha Buchanan compared the song to Rihanna's "Hate That I Love You" and "Take a Bow".[8] The group also collaborated with Sean Kingston.[8] Sugababes also joked that "Rihanna's been like our fourth member, listening to all our songs and saying what she liked and what she didn't like."[7] Buchanan told BBC Radio 1's Newsbeat, the album has "definitely got the British feel throughout the album - we've not gone away and gone 'All American' on our fans."[2] Buchanan continued, "I think it's given us a fresh energy again. I think the one thing we wanted to do was come back with something different."[2] She also admitted the girls had become "complacent" around the time of Catfights and Spotlights but they also said that they are very proud of that album.[3]

After the release of the album's first single "Get Sexy" and just two months before its projected November 2009 release, it was reported by the media that Amelle Berrabah had quit the group.[9][10][11] Buchanan, however, denied any drama within the group and insisted that Berrabah would remain a member "for the moment". On 21 September 2009, it was announced that Buchanan had left the band,[12] although she stated via her Twitter account that it was not her decision to leave.[13] Buchanan was replaced by Jade Ewen, who immediately began recording her vocals over Buchanan's in preparation for the album's release.[14]

[edit] Singles

"Get Sexy", produced by The Smeezingtons,[15] was the first single from Sweet 7. It was released on 31 August 2009 and peaked at number two in the UK, staying in the top-ten for three weeks. In Ireland, "Get Sexy" peaked at number three. This was the last single to feature the only remaining founding member Keisha Buchanan. "About a Girl", produced by RedOne, was released as the second single on 9 November 2009 and is the first single to feature vocals from the most recent member Jade Ewen. The single peaked at number eight in the UK. The song fell out of the top-ten just one week later. In Ireland it peaked at fourteen though it failed to chart elsewhere in Europe. "Wear My Kiss", produced by Fernando Garibay was the third and final single from Sweet 7. It was released on 22 February 2010, three weeks before the album's release. "Wear My Kiss" debuted and peaked at number seven in the UK. It fell out of the top-ten just one week later. In Ireland, it peaked at number nine but failed to chart elsewhere in Europe.

[edit] Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic 2/5 stars[16]
Daily Mirror 2/5 stars[17]
The Daily Telegraph 3/5 stars[18]
Drowned In Sound 3/10 stars[19]
The Guardian 2/5 stars[20]
The Independent 1/5 stars[21]
London Evening Standard 2/5 stars[22]
NME 4/10 stars[23]
The Times 1/5 stars[24]
Virgin Media 2/5 stars[25]

The album has received overwhelmingly negative reviews amongst critics with the recurring critique that the music doesn't fit the group and that they have been overshadowed by their third line-up change. Aggregating website Metacritic gave the album an aggregated review score of 39% based on six critic reviews.[26] Jon O'Brian from Allmusic rated it two stars out of five, saying: "Sweet 7 aims straight for the jugular, ignoring any ambitions of originality in favor of churning out the kind of formulaic electro-R&B that has lately become ubiquitous in the upper reaches of the charts."[16] Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian called the album "disappointing" and criticised the band's inexplicable shift in sound, stating that "most [of the tracks] are in either in thrall to Lady Gaga's robotronic sound or, as with the oozing lust of "Get Sexy", just wrong for this particular band".[20] Alex Denney of NME also agreed that the album was too generic "Sweet 7 leaves us hankering after the good old days. This being the group’s first record since signing with Jay-Z imprint Roc Nation in the States, it shares the Europop/Auto-Tune fixations of the US mainstream du jour: 'Get Sexy' sounds like a lazy, latter-day Timbaland joint, and 'About a Girl' is a slice of future-house from Lady Gaga’s chum RedOne. But time was we could expect more than bland consistency from the Sugababes – shame.[23]

Gavin Martin of Daily Mirror went a step further referring the album as a commercial mess which lacked soul, "Britain's longest-standing girl group franchise are revealed as an all-panting, thrusting enterprise. The songs allow them to play loudmouths at the bar, dancefloor hustlers and video shape throwers, but the lack of soul drags the whole enterprise down."[17] The Independent's Andy Gill agreed stating that the "Sugababes finally slipped from being a band to a brand." He went on to criticise their lack of character, "The problem is that this policy of replenishment has eroded both the trio's character and its appeal ... for all the involvement of new writers and producers such as Red One, Stargate and The Smeezingtons, there's nothing here with anything like the adhesive, infectious quality of 'Push the Button'. Mostly, it's just generic disco stompers..."[21]

Meanwhile Rick Pearson of the London Evening Standard put Sweet 7's shortcoming down to the removal of Keisha Buchanan. He said "the departure of their leader sees the girl-group — Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Jade Ewen, if you're struggling to keep up — grasping for an identity on Sweet 7. "Miss Everything" aims for Rihanna territory with its R&B backing and autotuned vocals, while 'Give It to Me Now' pitches for the powerpop of Girls Aloud. Neither is convincing. The girls carry off the silly electropop of 'Get Sexy' capably enough but Buchanan is sorely missed during more melodic moments — particularly on the piano-led closer, 'Little Miss Perfect'."[22] Dan Cairnes from The Times gave the album its most scathing review citing all of the issues above for its failures, "Heidi Range may have notched up an impressive nine years as a Sugababe, but she has never been a match, vocally, for either Mutya Buena or Buchanan, and she now has to share singing duties with the equally bland Berrabah and Ewen. If only whoever decided to persevere with the Babes brand had shown as much cussedness when it came to choosing the songs here. A trio who once swaggered to No 1 with a Gary Numan mash-up ("Freak Like Me") are now reduced to vamping joylessly through Right Said Fred's 'I'm Too Sexy', on 'Get Sexy', and cosying up to Sean Kingston on the dire 'Miss Everything'. Sugababes in 2010 are a pale, karaoke imitation of the glory days. Regrettably, if miraculously, the latest line-up remained the same as we went to press."[24] Simon Price of The Independent gave a particularly scathing review, stating that the current line-up "can call themselves what they like, but they'll never fill the heels of Keisha, Mutya and Siobhan. It's over."[27]

[edit] Chart performance

Sweet 7 debuted at number 14 in the UK,[28] becoming their lowest-charting album in the country since the group's 2000 debut One Touch.[29] It spent two weeks in the top 100.[30] In Ireland, Sweet 7 peaked at number 35 on the Irish Albums Chart, becoming their second-lowest charting album in that country to date.[31][32] In Switzerland, the album debuted at number 92 on the Swiss Albums Chart, becoming their lowest charting album in that country, excluding Catfights and Spotlights (2008) which failed to chart.[30] In Greece, Sweet 7 debuted at number five on the Greek International Albums Chart, staying the chart for two weeks.[30]

[edit] Track listing

No. Title Writer(s) Producer(s) Length
1. "Get Sexy"   Bruno Mars, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, Richard Fairbrass, Fred Fairbrass, Rob Manzoli The Smeezingtons 3:14
2. "Wear My Kiss"   Fernando Garibay, Mars, Lawrence, Carlos Battey, Steven Battey Fernando Garibay 3:44
3. "About a Girl"   Makeba Riddick, Nadir Khayat RedOne 3:28
4. "Wait for You"   Garibay, Mars, Lawrence Fernando Garibay 3:54
5. "Thank You for the Heartbreak"   Ryan Tedder, Mikkel Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansen, Claude Kelly Stargate 3:40
6. "Miss Everything" (featuring Sean Kingston) Mars, Lawrence, Levine, Brody Brown The Smeezingtons 3:39
7. "She's a Mess"   Mars, Lawrence, Levine The Smeezingtons 3:26
8. "Give It to Me Now"   Crystal Johnson, Reggie Perry Syience 2:50
9. "Crash & Burn"   Jonas Jeberg, Marcus Bryant, Nakisha Smith Jonas Jeberg 3:35
10. "No More You"   Shaffer Smith, Eriksen, Hermansen Stargate 4:15
11. "Sweet & Amazing (Make It the Best)"   Rob Allen, Eriksen, Hermansen, Martin Kleveland, Bernt Stray Stargate, Martin K 3:50
12. "Little Miss Perfect"   Hermansen, Eriksen, Kelly Stargate 3:53

[edit] Personnel

Track listing and credits taken from Sweet 7 Linear Notes.[34]

Management
  • Tim Blacksmith - manager (Stargate, Martin K)
  • Danny D. - manager (StarGate, Martin K)
  • Jay Brown - A&R
  • Crown Music - management
  • Fabienne Leys - A&R
  • Tyran "Ty Ty" Smith - A&R
Visuals
  • StudioBOWDEN - art direction
Vocal and performance credits
Technical
  • Marcus John Bryant - vocal producer, recording
  • Daniel Davidsen - guitar
  • Kevin "KD" Davis - mixer
  • Richard Edgeler - assistant (for additional production/mixing)
  • Matt Foster - recording
  • Fernando Garibay - producer, programming, arrangement
  • Josh Houghkirk - assistant
  • Jonas Jeberg - producer, vocal producer, instrumentation, recording
  • Crystal "Cristyle" Johnson - vocal producer
  • Martin "Martin K" Kleveland - producer, instrumentation
  • Philip Lawrence - vocal producer (additional - "About a Girl")
  • Ari Levine - mixer, instrumentation, recording
  • Damien Lewis - engineer
  • Bruno Mars - musician
  • Mads Nilsson - mixer
  • AJ Nunez - assistant mixer

[edit] Charts

Chart (2010) Peak
position
Greek International Albums Chart[35] 5
Irish Albums Chart[36] 35
Swiss Album Chart[36] 92
UK Albums Chart[36] 14

[edit] Release history

Region Date Label Catalogue
Poland[37] 5 March 2010 Universal Music 060252727295
Switzerland[38]
Austria[39]
Australia[40] 12 March 2010 060252727295
Netherlands[41]
Ireland Island Records
United Kingdom 15 March 2010 00602527272955
Germany[42] 16 March 2010 Universal Music
United States[43] 29 January 2012

[edit] References

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  2. ^ a b c d e Sinead Garvan (2009-07-09). "Sugababes reveal all their gossip". BBC Radio 1 Newsbeat (BBC News). http://news.bbc.co.uk/newsbeat/hi/entertainment/newsid_8140000/8140234.stm. Retrieved 2009-07-23. 
  3. ^ a b c Caroline Sullivan (2009-07-24). "Sugababes: 'We took our eye off the ball'". The Guardian (London: Guardian Media Group). http://www.guardian.co.uk/music/2009/jul/24/sugababes-interview. Retrieved 2009-08-06. 
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  11. ^ [1][dead link]
  12. ^ David Balls (2009-09-21). "Keisha Buchanan leaves Sugababes". Digital Spy. Hachette Filipacchi Médias. http://www.digitalspy.co.uk/music/a178484/keisha-buchanan-leaves-sugababes.html. Retrieved 2009-09-24. 
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  14. ^ Rachael Wheeler (2009-09-24). "Sugababe Heidi Range reveals why Keisha Buchanan was kicked out". Mirror.co.uk. Trinity Mirror. http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/news/2009/09/24/sugababe-heidi-range-reveals-why-keisha-buchanan-was-kicked-out-115875-21697073/. Retrieved 2009-09-24. 
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  21. ^ a b Gill, Andy (2010-03-05). "Album: Sugababes, Sweet 7 (Island) - Reviews, Music". London: The Independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/music/reviews/album-sugababes-sweet-7-island-1916268.html. Retrieved 2010-03-21. 
  22. ^ a b "CDs of the week: Gorillaz, Sugababes and Jimi Hendrix| Music". This is London. http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/music/article-23812711-cds-of-the-week-gorillaz-sugababes-and-jimi-hendrix.do. Retrieved 2010-03-21. 
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  24. ^ a b [2][dead link]
  25. ^ Album Review by Johnny Dee (2010-03-08). "Sugababes: Sweet 7 review - Reviews - Music". Virgin Media. http://www.virginmedia.com/music/reviews/sugababes-sweet7.php. Retrieved 2010-03-21. 
  26. ^ DarrenStevens. "Sweet 7 reviews at". Metacritic.com. http://www.metacritic.com/music/artists/sugababes/sweet7. Retrieved 2011-08-17. 
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  29. ^ "SUGABABES". The Official Charts Company. http://www.theofficialcharts.com/artist/_/sugababes/. Retrieved 2012-01-17. 
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  31. ^ ">> IRMA << Irish Charts - Singles, Albums & Compilations >>". Irma.ie. 2011-08-11. http://www.irma.ie/aucharts.asp. Retrieved 2011-08-17. 
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  34. ^ Roc Nation (2010) Sugababes - Sweet 7, Album Notes. Island Records, (Universal Music Group)
  35. ^ Steffen Hung. "Sugababes - Sweet 7". greekcharts.com. http://greekcharts.com/showitem.asp?interpret=Sugababes&titel=Sweet+7&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-17. 
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  39. ^ Steffen Hung. "Sugababes - Sweet 7". austriancharts.at. http://austriancharts.at/showitem.asp?interpret=Sugababes&titel=Sweet+7&cat=a. Retrieved 2011-08-17. 
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  43. ^ "Sweet 7 - Pop/Rock - Archambault". Archambault.ca. 2010-03-23. http://www.archambault.ca/sweet-7-ACH002587298-en-pr. Retrieved 2011-08-17. 
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