No Ordinary Love
"No Ordinary Love" is a 1992 song by English band Sade, released as the lead single and opening track from their fourth studio album, "Love Deluxe" (1992). It was a success in Europe and New Zealand, reaching number four in Italy, number 17 in New Zealand, number 19 in Finland and the Netherlands, number 20 in France and number 26 in the UK. In January 1993, the song peaked at number 15 in Canada and number 28 in the US. 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. American magazine "Rolling Stone" included "No Ordinary Love" in their list of "500 Best Songs of All Time" in 2021. Critical reception. The song received positive reviews from music critics. Justin Chadwick from Albumism described it as "insistent and intimate", adding that it is "evoking the desperation of trying to secure an elusive love". He noted that the song begins with "one of the most devastating intros ever". Larry Flick from "Billboard" stated that it  shows Sade and band "in fine form, sounding, as always, cool and sexy." He also said that her "famously smoky voice is the highlight of a spare arrangement, supported by percussive guitar and even a ghostly metal solo." The Daily Vault's Mark Millan deemed it "intoxicating". He added that it "is Adu's lament of a one-sided love affair", noting that it "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 that "her extraordinary songstyling is hotter than ever." Another editor, John Martinucci said, "At last, the sensual vocals of Sade return with a hypnotic beat underlined by an occasional, crunching guitar." 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 ." Pan-European magazine "Music & Media" wrote that "the grande dame of sophisticated soul has updated her beats a little bit and added a more wiggly guitar sound." A reviewer from "Music Week" called it "a stylish, sophisticated, subdued and superior song." The reviewer also added, "It's also extremely subtle". Jeff Silberman from "The Network Forty" noted its "languid beat and the cool, cool melody" A writer for "People Magazine" viewed the song as "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". In 2021, "Rolling Stone" included "No Ordinary Love" in their list of "500 Best Songs of All Time". Music video. A music video produced to promote the single, directed by English music video director Sophie Muller, features Sade  as a mermaid and a bride. At the beginning, 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 herself like a newlywed bride. Obviously looking for the young man, she walks into a bar and drinks water with salt for survival. 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.