"Sweetness" is a song by British R&B-

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

singer, songwriter, actress and author

Michelle Gayle Michelle Patricia Gayle (born 2 February 1971) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and writer. Gayle had success as a Contemporary R&B, soul and R&B singer in the 1990s, having achieved seven top 40 single (music), singles in the UK Single ...

, released on 12 September 1994, by

RCA RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded in 1919 as the Radio Corporation of America. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westinghou ...

and 1st Avenue Records, as the second

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

from Gayle's eponymous debut album (1994). It is her most successful hit single, reaching number four on the UK Singles Chart and number one on the

UK R&B Singles Chart Official Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart The UK Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart and the UK Hip Hop and R&B Albums Chart (also known as The Official UK Hip Hop and R&B Charts, and previously the Top 40 Hip Hop and RnB Singles and the Top 40 Hip Hop and ...

. It also peaked within the top 40 in New Zealand and several countries across Europe, including Denmark, where it entered the top 10 and peaked at number seven. The accompanying music video was directed by Randee St. Nicholas.

Critical reception

In his weekly UK chart commentary,

James Masterton James Masterton (born 2 September 1973) is a British music critic and columnist, his work focusing on the UK Singles Chart having been an online fixture on various sites since the 1990s. Masterton is also a producer for talkSPORT, and has worke ...

wrote, "The follow-up has been a long time in coming but has been well worth the wait, belying the soap origins of the singer. Radio loves it to death, hence this high entry and I would be very surprised if this does not scrape a Top 10 placing." He added, "Its the kind of single that grows on you with each play". A reviewer from ''

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'' commented, "Like tea-for-one, there's now also new jill swing for individuals. The radio mix is the sweetest, but the West End mix is far more adventurous and memorable." Alan Jones 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 We ...

'' wrote, "Penned by

Narada Michael Walden Narada Michael Walden ( ; Michael Walden; born April 23, 1952) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. He acquired the nickname Narada from Sri Chinmoy. He began his career as a drummer, working primarily in the jazz ...

and

Preston Glass Preston Glass (born January 9, 1960) is an American musician, songwriter and producer. Glass is the winner of six BMI Awards. He has also worked with several famous artists such as Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Kenny G, Natalie ...

, it's quite odd with some ill-advised spoken segments alongside the better sung parts. It never gets into overdrive, but will still be a hit."

Emma Forrest Emma Forrest (born 26 December 1976) is an English film director, screenwriter and novelist. Early life Forrest was born in London, England, to a Jewish family. Her American mother, Judy Raines, was also a writer, mainly for British television, ...

from ''

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'' viewed it as "disconcertingly cheery". Female pop-punk music duo

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reviewed the song for ''

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'', giving it a score of two out of five. Rob Pendry of

Swansea Sound Greatest Hits Radio South Wales (formerly Swansea Sound) is an Independent Local Radio station owned and operated by Bauer Radio as part of the Greatest Hits Radio network. The station broadcasts to Swansea, Neath Port Talbot and South Carmart ...

called it "excellent" and concluded that "Sweetness" set a "great future" for Gayle, proving she could branch out from her acting career. In 2012, the Official UK Chart named "Sweetness" a "pop gem" and a "sparkling piece of sheer pop brilliance".

Music video

The music video for "Sweetness" was directed by American director Randee St. Nicholas and choreographed by

Fatima Robinson Fatima Robinson (born August 29, 1971) is an American dancer, music video director and choreographer. Career Robinson has choreographed dance routines (for live performances and music videos) for several musical and pop artists, notably for Mi ...

. It consists of footage in both black-and-white and colours.

Track listings

* UK, European, and Australian CD single # "Sweetness" (radio mix) # "Sweetness" (West End mix) # "Say What's on Your Mind" # "Looking Up" (radio mix) * UK 7-inch and cassette single # "Sweetness" (radio mix) # "Looking Up" (radio mix) # "Say What's on Your Mind" * UK 12-inch single :A1. "Sweetness" (West End mix) :A2. "Sweetness" (Steve Jervier mix) :B1. "Sweetness" (the Mellow Drum & Bass mix) :B2. "Sweetness" (the All In mix) * French CD single and Japanese mini-CD single # "Sweetness" (radio mix) # "Sweetness" (West End mix)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 1994 songs 1994 singles First Avenue Records singles Michelle Gayle songs Music videos directed by Randee St. Nicholas RCA Records singles Songs written by Narada Michael Walden Songs written by Preston Glass