Sweet (referred to as The Sweet before 1974) are a popular 70s-era British … Read Full Bio ↴Sweet (referred to as The Sweet before 1974) are a popular 70s-era British rock band. Although largely known for their glam rock image and hit singles that dominated the charts, Sweet also released several acclaimed hard rock albums. The classic line-up consisted of Brian Connolly (vocals), Steve Priest (bass), Andy Scott (guitar) and Mick Tucker (drums).

The group's initial years were characterized by bubblegum songs that they were only allowed to sing on, with heavier self-penned rock songs as the b-sides. They achieved their first hit in 1970 with the release of Funny Funny. In the following months, Sweet released "Co-Co" and Poppa Joe, both achieving huge success in the charts. In 1971 they released the album "Funny How Sweet Co-Co Can Be", which consisted mostly of songs written by Nicky Chinn and Mike Chapman.

Sweet's success continued with more glam rock and power pop oriented tunes, such as "Little Willy", "Wig Wam Bam", Hellraiser and Ballroom Blitz. By this time Sweet had a world-wide following, clocking up no less than 18 top 20 hit singles, and the guys were most notably popular in Germany and the U.K.

The group's members are perhaps best remembered for their very 'glam' outfits, featuring a lot of glitter, platform boots, chain mail shirts, and plenty of makeup. The group practically defining the camp extreme of the glam rock look, Steve Priest would later say it was very short-lived and only happened by accident, as some sort of ongoing rivalry between them and artists such as David Bowie and T. Rex. Everyone tried to outdo each other’s ridiculousness on Top Of The Pops. Sweet’s glam rock era lasted from 1972 to 1973.

In 1974, Sweet released Teenage Rampage, The Six Teens and Turn It Down, showing their desire to take a more hard rock direction. By this time tensions between the band and the songwriters and producer started to grow. The guys also pushed for more songwriting control, which increased tensions between them, the songwriters and producer.

In 1975, Sweet wrote, recorded and produced the smash hit Fox on the Run on their own, essentially severing ties with Chinn and Chapman. Following the song’s success, they released the acclaimed track Action. Their momentum went on, the band embarking their first U.S. tour.

After their recent success, Sweet released the “Give Us A Wink” album in 1976, which was notably heavy. It contained the single The Lies In Your Eyes, which achieved moderate success. A year later, in 1977, they released the album “Off The Record”, but singles such as Fever Of Love and Lost Angels failed to gain traction, partly due to bad marketing from their label. Despite this, the band continued to distance themselves from their earlier commercial ventures.

Sweet’s career was revitalized with the release of Love Is Like Oxygen in 1978. By this time Connolly had developed a drinking problem and started to be increasingly unreliable during recording sessions. Following a disastrous U.S. tour, he left the band officially in early 1979. The band continued on as a three piece band for three more years, releasing “Cut Above The Rest”, “Waters Edge”, and “Identity Crisis”. Priest took over most of the lead vocals until Sweet’s disbandment in 1981.

In 1985, Andy Scott and Mick Tucker re-formed Sweet with various new vocalists and bass players, the most notable being a 1986 reunion featuring Paul Mario Day (the first singer of Iron Maiden), keyboardist Phil Lanzon, and bass player Malcolm McNulty (who is now lead singer for fellow glam rock band Slade). Steve Priest was asked to join Tucker and Scott for the 1985 Australian tour, but declined at the last moment. Vocalist and bass player Jeff Brown joined in 1988. In 1991, Mick Tucker departed due to ill health, leaving Andy Scott as the only original member. He was replaced by German Bodo Schopf, and subsequently, Bruce Bisland. After Tucker's departure, Andy Scott changed the band's name to 'Andy Scott's Sweet'.

During this time, Brian Connolly, now in bad health, also performed with his version of Sweet. In 1981, he suffered multiple cardiac arrests, which permanently affected his health. He died on 9 February 1997, aged 51. He was cremated after a ceremony at Most Holy Name Roman Catholic Church at Old Mill Lane, Denham, Buckinghamshire and his ashes were scattered over the water by his adult daughters Nicola and Michelle. He also left an ex-wife, Marilyn, and a two-year-old son called Brian Junior (BJ) by his girlfriend Jean.

Michael Thomas (Mick) Tucker died 14 February 2002 in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire from leukemia, aged 54; his funeral took place 25 February 2002. He is buried in an unnamed grave in Chorleywood House cemetery. It is marked by a sleeping angel. A wooden bench with a brass plaque funded by fans as a dedication to Mick is also positioned in the grave's vicinity.[2] He left behind a widow, Jan, and a daughter Ayston from his first marriage to Pauline (†1979). According to Steve Priest: "He was the most underrated drummer that ever came out of England. He was the powerhouse of the band. He was technically marvellous. His timing was impeccable, but he had a lot of soul as well and he really felt what he was playing."

In 1994, Steve Priest published his autobiography “Are You Ready Steve?”, which was a raw expose of his time with Sweet and pre-Sweet. In 2006 he released Priest's Precious Poems, a CD of tracks largely consisting of his more recent material. In 2008, he came out of retirement to form his own version of Sweet, based in the US. A year later this band released a live CD called Live In America. In March 2020, he was admitted to a hospital in L.A. After battling pneumonia for a few months, he died on June 4th 2020 at the age of 72.

Andy Scott currently continues to tour with Sweet. In 2002, Sweet released a new album called Sweetlife. February 2006 saw the release of a new Suzi Quatro album, Back To The Drive, which was produced by Scott. In March 2012, Scott released a covers album called New York Connection. Scott teamed up with Suzi Quatro and Don Powell to release a CD called Quatro, Scott and Powell in 2017. Scott has continued to produce for bands throughout the years, currently being the producer for Novatines.

In recent years, Sweet's popularity has surged again. The song Ballroom Blitz was featured in 2016's Suicide Squad, while Fox on the Run was featured in the trailer for 2017's Guardians of the Galaxy 2.

Honeysuckle Love
Sweet Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

She loved her me flies like a dove
Into the sky to may hidden above
And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love

Her gentle sweetness may me feel so good
Open my heart like no other could
And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love

She's my cagey queen
And here comes still love
I would've given her moon
And the stars above

Her sweet caresses make me lose my mind
Nobody else has treated me so kind
And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love

I saw her move and I felt so fine
I'm in a groove now I know she's mine
And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love

She's my cagey queen
And here comes still love
I would've given her moon
And the stars above

She's my cagey queen
And here comes still love
I would've given her moon
And the stars above

She's my cagey queen
And here comes still love

I would've given her moon
And the stars above

Overall Meaning

The lyrics of "Honeysuckle Love" by Sweet describe the singer's love for his girl, who he says is sweeter than a honeysuckle love. He talks about how she makes him feel good and opens up his heart like no one else ever could. The imagery of a dove flying into the sky to hidden places represents how his girl makes him feel free and takes him to new heights like the bird in the sky. The phrase "cagey queen" could mean that she's mysterious or crafty in some way, but it could also be a term of endearment for a woman he loves and respects.

The lyrics paint a picture of a passionate love affair that he treasures and would do anything to protect. He says he'd give her the moon and the stars above as a sign of his affection. The way he talks about her sweet caresses and how no one else treats him as kindly as she does is a reflection of how much he cares for her. The use of the term "my girl" throughout the song shows the intimacy and tenderness between the two lovers.

Line by Line Meaning

She loved her me flies like a dove
She loved me and took me towards the sky like a dove

Into the sky to may hidden above
Taking me high to a place that's hidden from everyone else

And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love
My girl is so sweet, she's like a love that's as sweet as honeysuckle

Her gentle sweetness made me feel so good
Her sweet and gentle nature made me feel amazing

Open my heart like no other could
She opened my heart in a way that nobody else ever could

And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love
My girl is so sweet, she's like a love that's as sweet as honeysuckle

She's my cagey queen
She's my cunning and clever queen

And here comes still love
And here comes a love that remains constant

I would've given her moon
I would've given her the moon

And the stars above
And all the stars in the sky

Her sweet caresses make me lose my mind
Her sweet touches make me go crazy

Nobody else has treated me so kind
Nobody else has ever treated me so well

And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love
My girl is so sweet, she's like a love that's as sweet as honeysuckle

I saw her move and I felt so fine
I saw her move and it made me feel amazing

I'm in a groove now I know she's mine
Now that I have her, everything feels perfect

And my girl is sweeter than a honeysuckle love
My girl is so sweet, she's like a love that's as sweet as honeysuckle

She's my cagey queen
She's my cunning and clever queen

And here comes still love
And here comes a love that remains constant

I would've given her moon
I would've given her the moon

And the stars above
And all the stars in the sky

She's my cagey queen
She's my cunning and clever queen

And here comes still love
And here comes a love that remains constant

I would've given her moon
I would've given her the moon

And the stars above
And all the stars in the sky

Lyrics © Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: ANDREW SCOTT, BRIAN CONNOLLY, MICHAEL TUCKER, STEPHEN PRIEST

Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind

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