"Cleopatra's Theme" is a song by British
R&B girl group
Cleopatra
Cleopatra VII Philopator ( grc-gre, Κλεοπάτρα Φιλοπάτωρ}, "Cleopatra the father-beloved"; 69 BC10 August 30 BC) was Queen of the Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt from 51 to 30 BC, and its last active ruler.She was also a ...
from their first album, ''
Comin' Atcha!'' (1998). Released by
WEA
The Wea were a Miami-Illinois-speaking Native American tribe originally located in western Indiana. Historically, they were described as either being closely related to the Miami Tribe or a sub-tribe of Miami.
Today, the descendants of the ...
as the group's debut single, it reached number three on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
and number 26 on the US
''Billboard'' Hot 100. It was their only song to reach the top 40 in the United States, where Cleopatra promoted the song by appearing on several children's programming blocks.
Critical reception
Larry Flick
Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...
from ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
'' wrote, "Are ya ready for the female equivalent of
Hanson
Hanson or Hansson may refer to:
People
* Hanson (surname)
* Hansson (surname)
* Hanson (wrestler), ringname of an American professional wrestler
Musical groups
* Hanson (band), an American pop rock band
* Hanson (UK band), an English rock ba ...
? This UK teen trio has already won the ardent approval of kids throughout much of Europe on the strength of a light-
funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the m ...
groove, a candy-sweet
chorus
Chorus may refer to:
Music
* Chorus (song) or refrain, line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse
* Chorus effect, the perception of similar sounds from multiple sources as a single, richer sound
* Chorus form, song in which all verse ...
, and charmingly girlish harmonies. Precocious lead singer
Cleopatra Higgins has the makings of a baby diva, as she vamps with a surprisingly soulful hand." He added further, "Early reaction from
top 40
In the music industry, the Top 40 is the current, 40 most-popular songs in a particular genre. It is the best-selling or most frequently broadcast popular music. Record charts have traditionally consisted of a total of 40 songs. "Top 40" or " con ...
programmers here hints that this adorable sister act's music will be on the lips of mall America within seconds. "Cleopatra's Theme" is just one of numerous tasty treats to be discovered on the forthcoming full-length debut, ''
Comin' Atcha!'' You'll be hearing just about all of 'em soon enough."
Chuck Campbell from ''
Knoxville News Sentinel
The ''Knoxville News Sentinel, also known as Knox News,'' is a daily newspaper in Knoxville, Tennessee, United States, owned by the Gannett Company.
History
The newspaper was formed in 1926 from the merger of two competing newspapers: ''The ...
'' said, "Granted, this song is infectious, especially when the girls' voices sweep together into the light R&B hook." A reviewer from ''
Music Week
''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future.
History
Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...
'' gave "Cleopatra's Theme" four out of five, adding, "Take three currently successful music trends — all-girl groups, teenage exuberance and R&B — combine in one neat package and provide an infectious, radio-friendly debut single for this attractive trio. They can't fail." Ian Hyland from ''
Sunday Mirror
The ''Sunday Mirror'' is the Sunday sister paper of the ''Daily Mirror''. It began life in 1915 as the ''Sunday Pictorial'' and was renamed the ''Sunday Mirror'' in 1963. In 2016 it had an average weekly circulation of 620,861, dropping marke ...
'' gave it nine out of ten, concluding, "This group of hip-hopping
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
teens are some serious soul divas in the making. Keep a look out."
Music video
The music video for the song, directed by Max & Daria consists of the girls singing and dancing in their room, after being told by their mother to turn the television off. It received airplay on U.S. channels, such as
Disney Channel
Disney Channel, sometimes known as simply Disney, is an American pay television channel that serves as the flagship property of Disney Branded Television, a unit of the Disney General Entertainment Content division of The Walt Disney Compan ...
,
Nickelodeon
Nickelodeon (often shortened to Nick) is an American pay television television channel, channel which launched on April 1, 1979, as the first cable channel for children. It is run by Paramount Global through its List of assets owned by Param ...
,
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
, and
BET
Black Entertainment Television (acronym BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting African-American audiences. It is owned by the CBS Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global via BET Networks and has offices in New York City, Los A ...
.
Track listings
* UK, European, Australian, and Japanese CD single
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (radio edit) – 3:51
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (D+A mix) – 4:17
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (Brooklyn Funk R&B mix) – 5:11
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (Brooklyn Funk club mix) – 6:08
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (Booker T's Mass Fusion Lick) – 5:52
* UK cassette single and US CD single
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (radio edit) – 3:51
# "Cleopatra's Theme" (D+A mix) – 4:17
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
References
{{Authority control
1998 debut singles
1998 songs
Maverick Records singles
Warner Music Group singles