Van Helden was born in Boston on February 17, 1970 to a Dutch-Indonesian father and a French-Lebanese mother, but travelled around the world as a child spending time in the Netherlands, Turkey and Italy, as his father was a member of the US Air Force. At the age of thirteen, he bought a drum machine and started DJing two years later.
He returned to Boston in 1988 but also moonlighted as a DJ in Boston clubs. He attended Boston University. He quit his legal review job in 1989 to work as a remixer/producer for Mega-Mixx Productions DJ Remix Service (co-founded by his long time manager, Neil Petricone) where he reworked and re-edited a number of club records for the DJ-only service, including Shawn Christopher's "Another Sleepless Night." He also took up an occupancy at 'The Loft', Boston's leading nightclub.
Mega-Mixx's success was short lived. Mismanagement brought the company to a halt in early 1991. Later that year, he and Petricone, along with founding A&R coordinator, Tony Zeoli, launched X-Mix Productions, a similar DJ Remix service, which still exists today (http://www.xmix.com). Catching the attention of legendary Strictly Rhythm and Nervous Records A&R guru, Glady Pizarro, in 1992 Van Helden released his first official single "Stay On My Mind" under the psuedonym Deep Creed, through Nervous Records.
He released "Move It To the Left" (credited to Sultans of Swing) in 1992 on the Strictly Rhythm label, which became a moderate club hit. His first track to make the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart was "Witch Doktor" which made the top 5 in 1994.
The success of "Witch Doktor" led to opportunities to remix acts such as The Real McCoy ("Another Night", New Order ("Bizarre Love Triangle"), Blondie ("Atomic), Capella ("U Got To Know"), Lightning Seeds ("Jackie Lucky"), Deep Forest ("Marta's Song"), Jimmy Somerville ("Heartbeat"), Deee-Lite ("Dewdrops In The Garden") and Faithless ("Insomnia"). However, it was the "Professional Widow" remix that established him and became a dance hit around the world as well as a number one hit in the UK. Unfortunately, Van Helden did not receive a penny for this mix as he presented it uncommissioned, and thus was not entitled to compensation. However, it led to work remixing The Rolling Stones, Janet Jackson, Britney Spears and Puff Daddy as well as Daft Punk and the Sneaker Pimps, and adding to his reputation as one of the world's top house musicians.
Within dance music circles, Van Helden is widely credited for the introduction of the U.K. bred Speed Garage sound to the U.S. club scene with incredible set of remixes. The sound, identifiable by its deep bass subtones, long melodic breaks, and devestatingly hard hitting beats are exemplified in the following remixes beginning in 1995 with Jimmy Somerville "Heartbeat"; CJ Bolland's "Sugar Is Sweeter"; Faithless "Insomnia"; Tori Amos "Professional Widow"; Apollo 440 "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Dub"; and Sneaker Pimps "Spin, Spin, Sugar."
"Cha Cha" was another top ten dance hit from his first album Old School Junkies released in 1996, along with "The Funk Phenomena". A greatest hits album appeared the next year followed by a breakbeat album later in 1997. "U Don't Know Me," a collaboration with vocalist Duane Harden from the album, "2 Futur 4 U," was a number two hit on the Billboard dance chart, a Number one in the UK and a top 20 single on the pop charts in Australia and Canada.
In 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, Armand Van Helden explained, "You Don't Know Me was a perfect example of putting 2 simple things together, the beats from Jaydee's Plastic Dreams and a disco loop from Carrie Lucas."
Van Helden released the Killing Puritans album in 2000 which contained the dance hit "Koochy". His single "Why Can't You Spend Some Time" made the number 34 in the UK in 2001. His New York: A Mix Odyssey album released in 2004 produced two hits:
* "Hear my Name" reached number 7 on the Billboard dance chart, was top 30 on world and internet charts, made number 34 in the UK, and reached the top 40 in Australia; and
* "My My My" reached number 4 on the world internet charts, number 5 in the Belgian and Dutch charts, number 6 in Australia, number 15 in the UK and top 30 in the world dance charts.
In 2010 Van Helden teamed with A-Trak to form the duo Duck Sauce. They had an international smash hit with "Barbra Streisand," which used an ingenious sample from Boney M.
Sugar
Armand van Helden Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Ooh, ooh
Ooh, ooh
Sugah, sugah, come to me,
I'll give you something you'll believe
Sugah, sugah, come for me
Let this love come from me
I'll give you something you'll believe
Last night an angel came for me
Woke me out of sleep
Said, "Girl, you best get on your feet,
Don't miss the ride"
Last night that angel spoke to me
Said I was going deep
Said I shouldn't fight the love I feel inside
Never mind about when I tried to say
That you were in the way
Forget about those games I used to play,
Don't press rewind
Baby, I can't have another man,
I want you in my life
Honey, you could be the perfect for me
For all time
If I told you, too many times
That you would make me feel alive
I just want to know you, never let you hide
Even all your little white lies
Only gonna be a matter of mind
'Till you believe in love divine
Sugah, sugah, come to me,
I'll give you something you'll believe
Sugah, sugah, come for me
Let this love come from me
Sugah, sugah, come for me
I'll give you something you'll believe
I never thought I'd find myself
Acting like a fool
I'll never calm a buzz like this
The fever's burning through
So the poison's invaded and now I begin
To not know what to do
Just the smell of you got me going back to school
If I told you, too many times
That you would make me feel alive
I just want to know you, never let you hide
Even all your little white lies
Only gonna be a matter of mind
'Till you believe in love divine
Sugah, oh yeah
Sugah, oh yeah
If I told you, too many times
That you would make me feel alive
I just want to know you, never let you hide
Even all your little white lies
Only gonna be a matter of mind
'Till you believe in love divine
Sugah, sugah, come to me,
I'll give you something you'll believe
Sugah, sugah, come for me
Let this love come from me
Sugah, sugah, come for me
I'll give you something you'll believe
Sugah, sugah, come to me,
I'll give you something you'll believe
Sugah, sugah, come for me
Let this love come from me
Sugah, sugah, come for me
I'll give you something you'll believe
The lyrics to Armand van Helden's "Sugar" are about the intense feelings of desire and love between two people. The singer sings to their love interest, calling them "Sugah" and promising to give them something they'll believe in. They talk about an angel visiting them in the night, encouraging them to go after the love they feel inside, and confess that they never thought they would act so foolishly for someone.
The lyrics convey a sense of urgency and passion, with the singer seemingly unable to control their feelings for this person. They are willing to forget about past games and lies and overcome any obstacles to be with them. The repeated refrain of "Sugah, sugah" emphasizes the sweetness and intensity of their desire.
Overall, the lyrics to "Sugar" are about the power of love and the overwhelming feelings that it can create between two people. It's a song that celebrates the joys and challenges of finding that special someone who makes your heart race and your spirit soar.
Line by Line Meaning
Sugah, sugah, come to me,
I'll give you something you'll believe
Addressing the person of interest to come towards the singer, as they promise to provide something convincing
Sugah, sugah, come for me
Let this love come from me
Encouraging the person of interest to pursue a romantic relationship with the singer, while the singer promises to be the source of love
Sugah, sugah, come for me
I'll give you something you'll believe
Reiterating the singer's promise to provide something convincing to the person of interest who decides to pursue a relationship
Last night an angel came for me
Woke me out of sleep
Said, "Girl, you best get on your feet,
Don't miss the ride"
The artist claims to have received a divine intervention from an angel in a dream, urging the artist to pursue a romantic opportunity and not miss out on it
Last night that angel spoke to me
Said I was going deep
Said I shouldn't fight the love I feel inside
Expanding on the previous lines, the artist explains that the angel urged them to take the romantic opportunity seriously and embrace the love they feel inside
Never mind about when I tried to say
That you were in the way
Forget about those games I used to play,
Don't press rewind
The singer acknowledges past mistakes and urges the person of interest to forget them and move on, as the singer prioritizes the new romantic opportunity
Baby, I can't have another man,
I want you in my life
Honey, you could be the perfect for me
For all time
The singer professes their exclusivity and desire for the person of interest, as the singer believes they could be the ideal romantic partner for a long time
If I told you, too many times
That you would make me feel alive
I just want to know you, never let you hide
Even all your little white lies
The artist admits to having expressed their feelings towards the person of interest frequently, hoping to get to know them well and understand even their flaws
Only gonna be a matter of mind
'Till you believe in love divine
The artist suggests that the person of interest might need to embrace love and recognize its divine value before they can reciprocate the artist's feelings
I never thought I'd find myself
Acting like a fool
I'll never calm a buzz like this
The fever's burning through
The artist acknowledges the intensity of their feelings and the fact that they are deeply invested in this romantic opportunity, experiencing an overwhelming rush of emotions
So the poison's invaded and now I begin
To not know what to do
Just the smell of you got me going back to school
The singer describes the effects of being overwhelmed by love, feeling poisoned and out of control, but also being inspired by the person of interest's mere presence
Sugah, oh yeah
Sugah, oh yeah
Repeating the song's main refrain, perhaps as a way of reinforcing the artist's romantic message
Lyrics Β© Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: RUBY AMANFU, TOMMY L. SIMS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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Theo Sanders
When this came out and I played it the first time, the people on the dancefloor left during the break. Only to storm right back when that bassline hit. Ended up playing this 3 times that night. Legendary track in Aruba.
BOiTOBOiTO
They left 1 min into the track? How fast do you mix
Theo Sanders
No I didn't mix that fast. I like to let songs play. Especially when new and really good.
Anyhow... I guess you didn't know there's also a long version of this. About 8 or 9 minutes long I think.
You see, in the long version the break starts at around 2 minutes. The break itself is about a minute long on it's own.
During that one minute people left the dancefloor, but... As I explained previously, they came right back when the bassline hit.
Maybe you understand better now.
dev
@BOiTOBOiTO Sounds like he's actually really fun at parties. The fun lives and dies with him in fact.
Gavin Paisley
@dev he was trying to take the piss out of all this 'when I got the record the minute it came out and i played it in the club before everyone else and i shocked the crowd and they needed me to play it again twice me me me me' anecdote
cheesyquaver
Sugar is Sweeter (Armand Remix) mixed into Professional Widow (Armand Trunked up Remix) and finally into The Dirty Rotten Scoundrels Bootleg of Lisa Stansfield's People Hold on. Didn't matter who was playing or what club you found yourself in, practically every set featured this trio of absolute bangers played back to back end of '96.
majestik101
25+ years later and this is still an amazing tune. I've always loved that break from 2:39-2:54
Chris L
If you are mid 30s to mid 40s you had tunes like this to listen to in the club at release date π
Cainedbutable
Yes