Sade was formed in 1982, when members of Latin soul band Pride — Sade Adu, (real name Helen Folasade Adu - born 16 January 1959 in Ibadan, Nigeria) Stuart Matthewman and Paul Spencer Denman — together with Paul Cook formed a splinter group and began to write their own material. Sade made their debut in December 1982 at Ronnie Scott's Club in London, England, in support of Pride. Later, in 1983, Andrew Hale joined Sade. In 1984 Paul Cook left the band.
Sade Adu, the band's singer, is the daughter of a Nigerian father and an English mother. After her mother returned to England, Sade grew up on the North End of London. Developing a good singing voice in her teens, Sade worked part-time jobs in and outside of the music business. She listened to Ray Charles, Nina Simone, Al Green, Aretha Franklin, and Billie Holliday. Sade studied fashion design at St. Martin’s School of Art in London while also doing some modeling on the side.
Around 1980, Adu started singing harmony with a Latin funk group called Arriva. One of the more popular numbers that the group would perform was a Sade original co-written with bandmember Ray St. John, “Smooth Operator,” that would later become Sade’s first stateside hit. The following year Adu joined the eight-piece funk band Pride as a background singer. The band included future Sade band members guitarist/saxophonist Stuart Matthewman (a key player in ’90s urban soul singer Maxwell’s success) and bassist Paul Denman. The concept of the group was that there could shoot-offs. In essence, a few members within the main group Pride formed mini-groups that would be the opening act. Pride did a lot of shows around London, stirring up record company interest. Initially, the labels wanted to only sign Adu, while the group members wanted a deal for the whole band. After a year, the other band members told Adu, Matthewman, and Denman to go ahead and sign a deal. Adding keyboardist Andrew Hale, the group signed to the U.K. division of Epic Records.
In May 1983, Sade performed at Danceteria Club in New York, NY, United States. It was the first US Sade show. They received more attention from the media and record companies and separated finally. On 18 October 1983 Sade Adu signed with Epic Records. The rest of the band signed in 1984. All Sade albums were released through this label.
Their debut album, Diamond Life (with overall production by Robin Millar), went Top Ten in the U.K. in late 1984. January 1985 saw the album released on CBS’ Portrait label and by spring it went platinum off the strength of the Top Ten singles “Smooth Operator” and “Hang on to Your Love.” The second album, Promise (November 1985), featured “Never As Good As the First Time” and arguably her signature song, “The Sweetest Taboo,” which stayed on the U.S. pop charts for six months. Sade was so popular that some radio stations reinstated the ’70s practice of playing album tracks, adding “Is It a Crime” and “Tar Baby” to their play lists. In 1986, Sade won a Grammy for Best New Artist.
Sade’s third album was 1988’s Stronger Than Pride and featured their first number one soul single “Paradise,” “Nothing Can Come Between Us,” and “Keep Looking.” A new Sade album didn’t appear for four years. 1992’s Love Deluxe continued the unbroken streak of multi-platinum Sade albums, spinning off the hits “No Ordinary Love,” “Feel No Pain,” and “Pearls.” While the album’s producer Mike Pela, Matthewman, Denman, and Hale have gone on to other projects, the new millennium did spark a new scene for Sade. She issued Lovers Rock in fall 2000 and incoporated more mainstream elements than ever before. Debut single “By Your Side” was also a hit among radio and adult-contemporary listerners. The following summer, Sade embarked on their first tour in more than a decade, selling out countless dates across America. In early 2002, Sade celebrated their success of the tour by releasing their first ever live album and DVD, Lovers Live.
Sade made a great contribution to development of modern music. They dismantled many of the old music business ways and quite promptly became a fully functioning autonomous unit with a firm grip on every aspect of the recording process.
Sade is first and foremost a live act. Sade Adu said in one of her interviews: "When we play I know that the people love the music. I can feel it." Throughout their history, Sade have always attracted a diverse, multi-racial audience who are drawn by the band's open-minded approach to music. "And that's the best thing we've achieved."
Soldier of Love, Sade's first official studio album since the multi-platinum release of Lovers Rock in 2000, was released on 8th February, 2010.
Discography:
Studioalbums:
1984 - Diamond Life
1985 - Promise
1988 - Stronger Than Pride
1992 - Love Deluxe
2000 - Lovers Rock
2010 - Soldier of Love
Livealbums:
2002 - Lovers Live
2012 - Bring Me Home - Live 2011
Compilations:
1994 - The Best Of Sade
2011 - The Ultimate Collection
Love Is Stronger Than Pride
Sade Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I won't pretend I'm good at forgiving
But I can't hate you
Though I have tried
Ah
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
Mmm
I won't pretend that I intend to stop living
I won't pretend I'm good at forgiving
But I can't hate you
Although I have tried
Mmm-ah
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
I still really really love you
Mmm
Sitting here wasting my time
Would be like
Waiting for the sun to rise
It's all too clear things come and go
Sitting here waiting for you
Would be like waiting for winter
It's gonna be cold
There may even
Be snow
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
I still really really love you
Love is stronger
I still really love you
Love is stronger than pride
In Sade's "Love Is Stronger Than Pride," the singer addresses a former lover, stating that though they have tried to hate them, they can't help but still love them deeply. They admit that while they may not be good at forgiving, they cannot deny the power of love. The line "Sitting here wasting my time / would be like waiting for the sun to rise" shows the futility of holding onto a past relationship, and the metaphor "waiting for winter" emphasizes the harsh reality that sometimes love fades away. Despite this, the singer still professes their love, understanding that it is a stronger force than any negativity they may feel towards their ex-lover.
Line by Line Meaning
I won't pretend that I intend to stop living
I won't pretend that I'm going to stop living my life
I won't pretend I'm good at forgiving
I won't pretend that I'm skilled in forgiving others
But I can't hate you
However, I am incapable of hating you
Though I have tried
Even though I have attempted to hate you
Ah
Expressing a sigh of frustration and sadness
I still really really love you
Despite everything, I still love you deeply
Love is stronger than pride
Love is more powerful than pride or ego
Mmm
Expressing a sound of agreement or reflection
Sitting here wasting my time
Sitting around without purpose or direction
Would be like
Comparing waiting for something to a pointless activity
Waiting for the sun to rise
Waiting for something that is inevitable
It's all too clear things come and go
It's undeniable that things in life are temporary
Sitting here waiting for you
Wasting my time hoping for you to return
Would be like waiting for winter
Waiting for something that is unpleasant or difficult
It's gonna be cold
The experience will be harsh
There may even be snow
There may be unexpected difficulties
Love is stronger
Love is more powerful
I still really love you
My feelings for you remain strong
Love is stronger than pride
Love transcends ego and pride
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Andrew Hale, Helen Adu, Stuart Matthewman
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@Aja-Christian
This song hits different when you're actually going through what the lyrics are talking about 😢😢😢 Admitting when a relationship has run its course even though you still have love for the person.
I can't hate you.
Although I have tried.
I still really really love you...
Love is stronger than pride~~
It's just TOO accurate.
@ValeriaMartinez-bn1mh
I won't pretend that I intend to stop living
I won't pretend I'm good at forgiving
But I can't hate you
Although I have tried
Mmmmm
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
I still really really love you
Mmmmm
I won't pretend that I intend to stop living
I won't pretend I'm good at forgiving
But I can't hate you
Although I have tried
Mmmmm
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
I still really really love you
Mm mm mm mm mm
Sitting here wasting my time
Would be like
Waiting for the sun to rise
It's all too clear things come and go
Sitting here waiting for you
Would be like waiting for winter
It's gonna be cold
There may even
Be snow
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
I still really really love you
Love is stronger
I still really really love you
Love is stronger than pride
@JoshNpublicgplus
Prince considered this to be "one of the most beautiful songs, ever." I tend to agree.
@anikadiamond007
Really?! I was just thinking about this song and Prince. This is my favorite song, and I wondered what he thought about it.
@REALSOUL4
I agree with 'PRINCE'! Beautiful song!
@tativone
I completely agree with you...this song's melody is mystical, haunting and beautiful... it touches a primal part of your soul...seductive..like two lovers feverishly loving each other after a terrible fight..just how I feel..
@hardren101
2nd that emotion....marsha ambrosius recently covered this...does not compare to sade's vdersion..
@pasrenee
i agree wholeheartedly...from childhood until now..this deeply moves me.
@meghnathmandi734
Just coming from " Atlanta " and this song perfectly fits with the episode. It gave the indie film vibe about moving on or recalling old flames. And the song enhanced it perfectly.
@brandynromero
It was a perfect song to end the episode Danny glover definitely put thought 💭 into it
@Apollo0nline
masterpiece of an episode . wish there were more indie film vibe projects out there for young adults who arent children anymore
@pandemonium0211
donald glovers says in a kimmel interview that's the best thing he wanted to do in his life, short cinematic movies :)