No Ordinary Love


"No Ordinary Love" is a song by English band Sade, released as the lead single from their fourth studio album, Love Deluxe. The song was a modest success in Europe and New Zealand, reaching number four in Italy, number 17 in New Zealand, number 19 in the Netherlands and number 26 on the UK Singles Chart. In January 1993, the song peaked at number 15 in Canada and number 28 in the United States. When re-released in June 1993, "No Ordinary Love" reached a new peak of number 14 on the UK Singles Chart and number 21 in Australia. In the accompanying music video, Sade Adu plays a mermaid who wants to be a bride.

Critical reception

from Billboard commented that the song shows Sade and band "in fine form, sounding, as always, cool and sexy." He noted that her "famously smoky voice is the highlight of a spare arrangement, supported by percussive guitar and even a ghostly metal solo." The Daily Vaults Mark Millan wrote that the "intoxicating "No Ordinary Love" is Adu's lament of a one-sided love affair. He added that the song "harbors a serious groove, but the underlying anger of love gone bad is represented with a subtle but powerful guitar riff that helps get the job done." Amy Linden from Entertainment Weekly wrote that Sade "the high priestess of understated cool, heats up on the fabulous "No Ordinary Love", which surges with emotion." Dave Sholin of the Gavin Report stated, "Music has the remarkable ability to stir the senses and transport the listener to any destination imaginable. No artist makes that happen quite like Sade, who returns after a four-year absence. No doubt, her fans can't help but feel the time away was much too long, but she leaves little doubt that her extraordinary songstyling is hotter than ever."
Sophie Heawood of The Guardian commented, "The band reached their peak of opulent sound design on the aptly titled album Love Deluxe; its seven-minute epic of a lead single is as bleak as it is sensual, casting heartbreak as the greatest luxury of all." Music & Media wrote that "the grande dame of sophisticated soul has updated her beats a little bit and added a more wiggly guitar sound." The Network Forty noted the song's "languid beat and the cool, cool melody" People Magazine said that the song is "a baby-making slow jam that comes on like musical Viagra." Frank Guan of Vulture added, "'There's nothing like you and I,' she sings; the emphasis falls on 'nothing' no less than on 'you' or 'I.' Sade songs, at their very best, ignore the distinction between songs about flawless love and love betrayed; the promise of the first and the inevitability of the other are contained in one another. The softly puncturing bass, the deep-sea synths, the chugging, almost accusatory guitar that kicks in during the pre-chorus – even among other perfect songs, this one stands out. It's the longest song on any of her albums; it's also one you wish would last forever, but can't, just like the love in the title."

Awards

Sade won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals in 1994.

Impact and legacy

In 2012, Complex placed "No Ordinary Love" at number 43 in their ranking of "The Best 90s R&B Songs". In 2017, Spin ranked the song at number 15 on their list of "The 30 Best '90s R&B Songs".

Music video

The music video for "No Ordinary Love" was directed by English music video director Sophie Muller. It is filmed in slow motion and features Sade as a mermaid and a bride.
At the beginning of the music video, Sade sits on the bottom of the ocean as a mermaid. Flashbacks reveal a young sailor, who has fallen into the water, meeting the mermaid in a kiss and embrace. Back in the present, the mermaid browses in an old weekly magazine and sews a white wedding dress. She swims up to shore in the finished dress with human legs, reaching land and throwing rice on her herself like a newlywed bride. Obviously looking for the young man, she walks into a bar and drinks water with salt in order to survive. Devastated at not finding the sailor, she runs through the busy city streets, with a bottle of water, down to the quay. Again there are flashbacks of the mermaid with her sailor on the sea floor. As the video ends, she sits alone on the dock in her wedding dress looking down and waiting for her tail to reappear.

Track listings

  1. "No Ordinary Love" – 5:22
  2. "Paradise" – 5:40
  3. "No Ordinary Love" – 7:20
  1. "No Ordinary Love" – 5:21
  2. "Paradise" – 5:40
  1. "No Ordinary Love" – 5:22
  2. "Paradise" – 5:40

    Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

In popular culture

Media