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Red Dress (Sugababes song)

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"Red Dress"
Song
B-side"I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor"

"Red Dress" is a song by English girl group Sugababes from their fourth studio album, Taller in More Ways (2005). It was written by band members Keisha Buchanan, Mutya Buena and Heidi Range, in collaboration with Brian Higgins, Miranda Cooper, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Shawn Lee, Lisa Cowling, and Bob Bradley. Higgins and production team Xenomania produced the song. "Red Dress" is an uptempo pop song that features a prominent girl power theme. It contains a sample from "Landslide", a Northern soul recording by Tony Clarke. The song was released on 6 March 2006 as the third single from the album; it is the first to feature vocals by Amelle Berrabah.

"Red Dress" garnered generally positive reviews from music critics, many of whom praised Xenomania's contribution to the track, in addition to the sample from Clarke's "Landslide". "Red Dress" peaked at number four on the UK Singles Chart, making Taller in More Ways the group's first album to contain three top five hits. It also reached the top ten in the Netherlands, and the top twenty in Ireland, New Zealand and Norway. The accompanying music video for "Red Dress" was directed by Tim Royes in January 2006. It features a catwalk theme and shows the group's members wearing red dresses. The Sugababes have performed "Red Dress" as part of the set lists for their Taller in More Ways, Overloaded: The Singles Collection and Change tours.

Writing and recording

"Red Dress" was written by the Sugababes—Keisha Buchanan, Mutya Buena and Heidi Range—in collaboration with Brian Higgins, Miranda Cooper, Tim Powell, Nick Coler, Shawn Lee, Lisa Cowling, and Bob Bradley, for the group's fourth studio album Taller in More Ways (2005).[1] Higgins and Xenomania produced two tracks from the album, which included "Red Dress" and album track "Ace Reject".[1] The song was mixed by Jeremy Wheatley for 365 Artists at TwentyOne Studio, London, and Powell for Xenomania Records, which was assisted by Richard Edgeler.[1] The accompanying keyboards for the track were provided by Powell, Higgins, Tim "Rolf" Larcombe and Jon Shave. Powell and Higgins completed the song's programming.[1] The bass for "Red Dress" was provided by Bradley, while the guitars were provided by Coler and Lee.[1] The song was recorded by Dario Dendi at Eden Studios, London, with assistance from Chris Poulter and Zoe Smith.[1]

Composition and theme

Sugababes – "Red Dress"
A 20 second sample of the pop chorus of "Red Dress".
Problems playing this file? See media help.

"Red Dress" is an uptempo[2] pop song.[3] Instrumentation consists of keyboards, bass and guitars.[1] The main riff of the song is sampled from "Landslide", a Northern soul recording by Tony Clarke.[2] "Red Dress" features the inclusion of two choruses.[4] Fiona Edwards of Digital Spy described "Red Dress" as an "upbeat, funky track".[2] Talia Kraines of BBC noted that the song has a "foot-tapping" vibe to it.[5] The song features a prominent theme of girl power; its lyrical content is about a woman who uses her sexuality to gain power over men.[2] According to Ross Hoffman of Allmusic, "Red Dress" is reminiscent of Xenomania's "frisky" productions for British girl group, Girls Aloud.[6] Range stated that the song is about "why some girls think they have to really expose their flesh to get noticed".[7]

Release

"Red Dress" is the Sugababes' first single to feature vocals by Amelle Berrabah.

On 21 December 2005, it was announced that group member Mutya Buena had left the Sugababes.[8] Amelle Berrabah was revealed as her replacement one day later.[9] As a result of the line-up change, Taller in More Ways was re-released to feature Berrabah's vocals on three tracks, which included "Red Dress", "Gotta Be You" and "Follow Me Home".[6] "Red Dress" was subsequently chosen as the third single from the album.[10][11] The song was released as a CD single and digital download on 6 March 2006 by Island Records.[12] "Red Dress" is featured on the Sugababes' first greatest hits album, Overloaded: The Singles Collection (2006).[1] It is also included on the soundtrack for the 2006 film, It's a Boy Girl Thing.[13]

In January 2006, the Sugababes revealed that they would cover Arctic Monkeys' debut single "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" as the B-side to "Red Dress", which replaced the group's 2005 single "Push the Button" at number one on the UK Singles Chart.[2] Upon the recording of the B-side, the Sugababes said: "We loved it even though it knocked us off number one! When our bosses asked us to think of covers for the B-side, we knew which song we would all love to do."[14] Jimmy Draper of Time Out was favourable of the cover, writing: "It transforms the punky rave-up into a disco stomper that could make even the staunchiest pop-hater get up and dance".[15] Ben Thompson of The Observer praised Berrabah's "bluesy rasp" as a "novelty".[16]

Critical reception

Critical response for "Red Dress" was generally positive. Stuart McCaighy of This Is Fake DIY described "Red Dress" as "top of the range pop", and considered it as an example that Xenomania "don't keep all their best songs for Girls Aloud."[17] Peter Robinson of The Observer called the track a "thumping tour de force from Xenomania", and noted that it "flirts vivaciously with pop songwriting convention".[4] A journalist from Virgin Media regarded "Red Dress" as an "irresistibly funky effort from the amorphous trio and their producers".[18] The Virgin Media writer, as well as K. Ross Hoffman of Allmusic, praised the bassline sampled from Tony Clarke's "Landslide".[18][6] Nick Southall of Stylus Magazine described the song as an "up-tempo floor-filler" with a "maximalist stomp."[19] The Daily Telegraph's Joe Muggs praised "Red Dress" as a "sure-fire dancefloor smash".[20] Nick Levine and David Balls of Digital Spy regarded "Red Dress" as one of the group's most danceable singles.[21] Fiona Edwards of Digital Spy applauded the song's bass, beats and chorus.[2] A journalist from The Scotsman characterised the track as "mechanically groovy".[22] Alexis Petridis of The Guardian described it as a "brilliant, immaculately written pop song".[3] However, Andrew Mueller of the same publication called it "a lazy and rather too obvious retread" of the group's 2004 single, "In the Middle".[23]

Chart performance

On 18 March 2006, "Red Dress" debuted at number four on the UK Singles Chart with 18,210 copies sold.[24] It was the highest-ranked debut for that week.[24] Taller in More Ways became the first album by the Sugababes to spawn three top five hits in the UK, following "Push the Button" and "Ugly" which peaked at numbers one and three, respectively.[25] "Red Dress" spent ten weeks on the chart and has sold 100,000 copies in the country, which ranks it as the group's fourteenth best-selling single in the UK.[26][27] "Red Dress" debuted at number twelve in Ireland and was the third-highest debut for that week.[28] The single reached number seven in the Netherlands,[29][30] and attained top twenty positions in Denmark and Norway.[31][32] "Red Dress" peaked within the top forty in Belgium (Flanders),[33] Germany,[34] Switzerland,[35] and Hungary's Dance chart.[36] It charted at number 41 in Austria,[37] and number 61 in the Czech Republic.[38] "Red Dress" debuted and peaked at number 22 in Australia, and eventually spent twelve weeks on the chart.[39] The single peaked at number sixteen in New Zealand and was the group's third consecutive top-twenty hit in the country.[40] A writer from the Coventry Evening Telegraph noted that the line-up change did not affect the song's commercial performance.[41]

Music video

Heidi Range, Amelle Berrabah and Keisha Buchanan wearing red dresses in the music video for "Red Dress".

The accompanying music video for "Red Dress" was directed by Tim Royes and filmed in January 2006.[42] Berrabah revealed details about the music video during an interview that was published on the group's official website, saying: "We're shooting the vid this week with director Tim Royce. We're really looking forward to it as there are going to be lots of costume changes. It's going to have a catwalk show theme with lots of mad outfits – very over the top and extravagant – we can't wait!"[42] Royes went on to direct the music video for Sugababes' single "Easy", the lead single from Overloaded: The Singles Collection.[43] Royes died in August 2007 in a car accident; the Sugababes later dedicated the music video for their 2007 single "About You Now" to him.[44] As part of their endorsement with Pretty Polly, Sugababes wore endorsed hosiery in scenes for the video.[45]

The video begins with close-up shots of Berrabah, Buchanan and Range, the first of whom is wearing a black mask; all three singers are seen wearing red dresses. Buchanan drops two large, blue feathers to the floor and begins strutting. Berrabah later removes her mask and is seen lying on a red chair. The next scene shows all three members on a fluffy, white couch in hosiery; Range, Buchanan and Berrabah are wearing blue, pink and white tops, respectively. The trio later begin strutting together in a linear motion, similar to that of a catwalk. Range is shown on a bubble chair, and later on a red floor, resting her leg on a disco ball. Throughout the video, the Sugababes continue to strut in red dresses, corresponding with the song's theme. The video ends with Range, Buchanan and Berrabah posing with their hands on their hips. The music video for "Red Dress" earned the Sugababes a 2006 Music Vision Award nomination.[46]

Live performances

The Sugababes first performed "Red Dress" on 6 March 2006, at the HMV store on Oxford Street, London.[47] "Red Dress" was performed at Newcastle City Hall on 23 March 2006 at part of the Sugababes' tour in support of Taller in More Ways. It was the show's encore in conjunction with "Push the Button"; according to Craig Hope of Chronicle Live, it "came amid a sea of manic applause".[48] "Red Dress" was amongst the songs featured on the set list for the Sugababes' Overloaded: The Singles Tour (2007); it was performed at Dublin Point, Ireland on 27 March 2007 as part of the tour.[49] To promote the release of their single "About You Now", the Sugababes performed "Red Dress" on 14 September 2007 at indig02, a live club for smaller music events.[50] Nick Levine of Digital Spy described the performance as "one of the night's pulsating highlights".[50]

"Red Dress" was also included on the set list for the Sugababes' Change Tour in 2008; on 29 March 2008, they performed it at King George's Hall in Blackburn.[51] On 27 April 2008, the song was mashed with "Two Tribes" by Frankie Goes to Hollywood at their performance at the Edinburgh Playhouse.[52] Corresponding with the title of the song, the Sugababes wore large red dresses for the performance.[52] Berrabah has named the outfit one of her favorites while on tour, saying: "My favourite outfit is during Red Dress when we wear these mad red cellophane dresses".[53] "Red Dress" was performed at the 2008 Oxygen Festival as part of a set list which included numerous of the group's previous singles.[54] In June 2009, the Sugababes performed "Red Dress" at the Cannock Chase Forrest as part of a 75-minute show.[55]

Formats and track listings

Credits and personnel

Recording
  • Recorded by Dario Dendi at Eden Studios, London. Assisted by Chris Poulter and Zoe Smith.
Personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of Overloaded: The Singles Collection.[1]

Charts

References

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i (Media notes). {{cite AV media notes}}: Missing or empty |title= (help); Unknown parameter |Format= ignored (|format= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Publisher= ignored (|publisher= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Type= ignored (|type= suggested) (help); Unknown parameter |Year= ignored (|year= suggested) (help) Cite error: The named reference "liner notes" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  2. ^ a b c d e f Edwards, Fiona (9 March 2006). "Sugababes: 'Red Dress'". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help) Cite error: The named reference "digital spy" was defined multiple times with different content (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Petridis, Alexis (7 October 2005). "CD: Sugababes, Taller in More Ways". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 6 August 2012. Retrieved 6 August 2012.
  4. ^ a b Robinson, Peter (18 October 2005). "The first ten: 2, Sugababes, Taller in More Ways". The Observer. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2012.
  5. ^ "Sugababes Taller in More Ways Review". BBC. 23 September 2005. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
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  7. ^ "Taller In More Ways: Track by track". sugababes.com. 4 October 2005. Archived from the original on 6 February 2007. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
  8. ^ "Mutya leaves pop trio Sugababes". BBC News. BBC. 21 December 2005. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  9. ^ "New Sugababe Amelle is revealed". BBC News. BBC. 22 December 2005. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 11 February 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  10. ^ Williams, Andrew. "60 SECONDS: Amelle Berrabah". Metro. Associated Newspapers Ltd. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
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  19. ^ Southall, Nick (20 October 2005). "Sugababes – Taller In More Ways – Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 6 April 2010.
  20. ^ Muggs, Joe (8 October 2005). "Pop CDs of the week: Sugababes, Sinéad O'Connor, Paul Weller and more..." The Daily Telegraph. Telegraph Media Group. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
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  22. ^ "The time is now, but the songs aren't here". The Scotsman. Johnston Publishing. 7 October 2005. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012.
  23. ^ Mueller, Andrew (4 March 2006). "New singles". The Guardian. Guardian Media Group. Archived from the original on 9 August 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2012.
  24. ^ a b "Gilmour dethrones Bailey Rae". Music Week. Intent Media. 13 March 2006. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
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  28. ^ a b "Chart Track: Week 10, 2006". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 30 March 2012.
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  36. ^ a b "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Dance Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 3 August 2012.
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  45. ^ "A last glimpse of stockings". Irish Independent. Independent News & Media. 19 July 2007. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 28 April 2012.
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  50. ^ a b Levine, Nick (17 September 2007). "Sugababes @ IndigO2, September 14". Digital Spy. Hearst Magazines UK. Archived from the original on 3 October 2012. Retrieved 3 October 2012. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  51. ^ Anson, John (31 March 2008). "Sugababes @ King George's Hall, Blackburn". The Citizen. Newsquest. Archived from the original on 4 August 2012. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
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