Diamond Life

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Diamond Life
Diamond Life cover
Studio album by Sade
Released 28 July 1984 (UK)
23 February 1985 (U.S.)
Recorded Power Plant Studios
(London)
Genre Soul, R&B, jazz
Length 44:52
Label Epic (UK)
Portrait (U.S.)
Producer Robin Millar
Professional reviews
Sade chronology
Diamond Life
(1984)		 Promise
(1985)
Singles from Diamond Life
  1. "Your Love Is King"
    Released: 25 February 1984
  2. "When Am I Going to Make a Living"
    Released: 26 May 1984
  3. "Smooth Operator"
    Released: 15 September 1984
  4. "Hang on to Your Love"
    Released: 8 December 1984

Diamond Life is the debut album by the English group Sade, released in 1984 (see 1984 in music) in the United Kingdom on Epic Records and 1985 (see 1985 in music) in the United States on Portrait Records.

Although initially not a big seller, the album was catapulted into the spotlight once the track "Your Love Is King" went top ten. The album for many years held the record of best-ever debut by a female solo artist, remaining on the UK Albums Chart for ninety-nine weeks. Diamond Life was also highly successful in Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, where it reached number one for ten weeks, eight weeks, and five weeks, respectively.

Contents

[edit] Track listing

[edit] CD

  1. "Smooth Operator" (Sade Adu, Ray St. John) – 4:57
  2. "Your Love Is King" (Adu, Stuart Matthewman) – 3:41
  3. "Hang on to Your Love" (Adu, Matthewman) – 5:55
  4. "Frankie's First Affair" (Adu, Matthewman) – 4:39
  5. "When Am I Going to Make a Living" (Adu, Matthewman) – 3:27
  6. "Cherry Pie" (Adu, Matthewman, Andrew Hale, Paul S. Denman) – 6:20
  7. "Sally" (Adu, Matthewman) – 5:23
  8. "I Will Be Your Friend" (Adu, Matthewman) – 4:45
  9. "Why Can't We Live Together" (Timmy Thomas) – 5:28

[edit] Cassette

  1. "Smooth Operator"/"Snake Bite" ("Snake Bite": Matthewman, Hale, Denman) – 7:28
  2. "Your Love Is King" – 3:41
  3. "Hang on to Your Love" – 5:55
  4. "Frankie's First Affair" – 4:39
  5. "When Am I Going to Make a Living" – 3:27
  6. "Cherry Pie" – 6:20
  7. "Sally" – 5:23
  8. "I Will Be Your Friend" – 4:45
  9. "Why Can't We Live Together" – 5:28
  10. "Love Affair with Life" (Adu) – 4:35

[edit] Personnel

[edit] Musicians

[edit] Sade

[edit] Additional musicians

  • Terry Bailey – trumpet
  • Martin Ditcham – percussion
  • Dave Early – drums, percussion
  • Gordon Matthewman – trumpet

[edit] Production

[edit] Charts

Chart (1984)[1][2] Peak
position
Austrian Albums Chart 1
German Albums Chart[3] 1
Swiss Albums Chart 1
UK Albums Chart[4] 2
Chart (1985) Peak
position
Norwegian Albums Chart 20
Swedish Albums Chart 18
U.S. Billboard 200 5
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 3
U.S. Billboard Top Jazz Albums 5

[edit] Certifications

  • 4× platinum
Flag of the United Kingdom BPI: 1,200,000[5]
Flag of the United States RIAA: 4,000,000[6]
  • 2× platinum
Flag of Canada CRIA: 200,000[7]
  • Platinum
Flag of the Netherlands NVPI: 60,000[8]
Flag of Germany IFPI: 200,000[9]

[edit] References

  1. ^ Diamond Life > Charts & Awards > Billboard Albums. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
  2. ^ Sade – Diamond Life – swisscharts.com. SwissCharts.com. Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
  3. ^ Charts-Surfer: Music. Charts-Surfer. Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
  4. ^ UK Top 40 Hit Database. everyHit.com. Retrieved on 2008-05-26.
  5. ^ UK Certified Awards. BPI (2 March 1987). Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  6. ^ RIAA – Searchable Database. RIAA (2 February 1995). Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  7. ^ CRIA: Search Certification Database. CRIA (30 April 1986). Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  8. ^ Goud/Platina (Dutch). NVPI. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
  9. ^ Gold/Platin-Datenbank (German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved on 2008-05-31.
Preceded by
Discovery by Mike Oldfield		 Swiss Albums Chart number-one album
30 September 1984 – 18 November 1984		 Succeeded by
Perfect Strangers by Deep Purple
Preceded by
4630 Bochum by Herbert Grönemeyer		 German Albums Chart number-one album
20 October 1984 – 22 December 1984		 Succeeded by
Arena by Duran Duran
Preceded by
Der Sinn des Lebens by Wolfgang Ambros		 Austrian Albums Chart number-one album
1 December 1984 – 1 February 1985		 Succeeded by
Live Is Life by Opus
v • d • e
Sade
Sade Adu · Stuart Matthewman · Paul Spencer Denman · Andrew Hale · Paul Anthony Cook
Albums
Singles
"Your Love Is King" · "When Am I Going to Make a Living" · "Hang on to Your Love" · "Smooth Operator" · "The Sweetest Taboo" · "Never as Good as the First Time" · "Is It a Crime" · "Love Is Stronger Than Pride" · "Paradise" · "Nothing Can Come Between Us" · "Turn My Back on You" · "No Ordinary Love" · "Feel No Pain" · "Kiss of Life" · "Cherish the Day" · "By Your Side" · "King of Sorrow" · "Lovers Rock" · "Somebody Already Broke My Heart" (Live)
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