"Sometimes" is a song by British

acid jazz Acid jazz (also known as club jazz, psychedelic jazz, or groove jazz) is a music genre that combines elements of funk, soul music, soul, and hip hop music, hip hop, as well as jazz and disco. Acid jazz originated in clubs in London during the 1 ...

group

the Brand New Heavies The Brand New Heavies are an English band formed in 1985, consisting of Simon Bartholomew, Andrew Levy, and Jan Kincaid. After the addition of N'Dea Davenport in 1990, the group experienced mainstream success and pioneered a new genre called a ...

, released in March 1997 as the lead single from their fourth album, ''

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'' (1997). The lead vocal is performed by American singer

Siedah Garrett Deborah Christine "Siedah" Garrett (born June 24, 1960) is an American singer and songwriter who has written songs and performed backing vocals for many recording artists in the music industry, such as Michael Jackson, the Pointer Sisters, Brand ...

, who also co-wrote it. As one of their most successful songs, it charted at number 11 in the UK and number 88 in the US. It also peaked at number 16 in Scotland, number 20 in Iceland, number 57 in Sweden and number 83 in the Netherlands. The single was certified silver in the UK. The accompanying

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

is a spoof of US TV-shows like '' Playboy's Penthouse'' and ''

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'', and shows the band with Garrett performing at one of these TV-shows. It also features some small clips of ''

Playboy ''Playboy'' (stylized in all caps) is an American men's Lifestyle journalism, lifestyle and entertainment magazine, available both online and in print. It was founded in Chicago in 1953 by Hugh Hefner and his associates, funded in part by a $ ...

'' magnate

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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 musi ...

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 advertis ...

'' described "Sometimes" as "a slinky sliver of

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that demands the immediate attention". He complimented Garrett's performance and commented that "besides offering a performance that will give jeep kiddies a swift kick in the pants, she can craft solid hooks that add dimension to the band's acclaimed knack for weaving body-invading funk rhythms." A reviewer from ''

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'' viewed the song as "hooky" and "refreshingly downbeat". British magazine ''

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 We ...

'' gave it four out of five, declaring it as "laid down soul funk from the band that helped create the term

." The reviewer added, "Now with Siedah Garrett on vocals, they sound as if they're back to form." Ezra Gale from ''

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'' felt that it "starts out with a promising bass and drums vamp, ndinstead turns into an overblown sing-along by the time it reaches the first chorus."

Track listing

* 12" single, Italy (1997) #"Sometimes" (Brixton Radio 12" Mix) #"Sometimes" (Brixton Rap Mix) #"Sometimes" (Ditti's French Touch) * CD single, UK & Europe (1997) #"Sometimes" (Radio Edit) – 4:04 #"Sometimes" (MAW Smooth Mix) – 7:28 #"Sometimes" (

Ummah ' (; ) is an Arabic word meaning Muslim identity, nation, religious community, or the concept of a Commonwealth of the Muslim Believers ( '). It is a synonym for ' (, lit. 'the Islamic nation'); it is commonly used to mean the collective com ...

Remix) – 4:31 #"Sometimes" (Nuyoricans Meet The Heavies) – 5:13 * CD single, US (1997) #"Sometimes" (Radio Edit) – 4:15 #"Sometimes" (The Ummah Remix) – 4:30

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Siedah Garrett 1997 songs 1997 singles The Brand New Heavies songs FFRR Records singles London Records singles Songs written by Siedah Garrett