Sweet About Me

"Sweet About Me" is the second single by Australian singer-songwriter Gabriella Cilmi from her debut album, ''Lessons to Be Learned'' (2008). The song was used in commercials for Sure and Dove Bodywash in Europe, as well as a commercial for Rexona Roll On in Brazil. It additionally was used in a Hair Cuttery commercial in the U.S. for a short period of time. The song appears on the international soundtrack to the Brazilian telenovela '' A Favorita'' and on the soundtrack to the Portuguese telenovela ''Feitiço de Amor''. It was also featured in the "Chapter Ten: Let It Be" episode of the NBC series '' Lipstick Jungle'' and in an episode of the VH1 reality television series '' Rock of Love: Charm School''. The album edit was included on ''Wild Child: The Movie Soundtrack Party Album'', a soundtrack album of the film of the same name, released in the United Kingdom and Australia on 18 August 2008.

There are two versions of the song: the album version and the radio edit. The first verse is cut in half in the radio edit and the song opens up with the lyrics: ''"Oh, watching me hanging by a string this time"'' followed by ''"Oh, easily climax of a perfect lie"''. In the album version, there is a repetition of the first line followed by the line: ''"Don't, easily a smile worth a hundred lies"''; the radio edit omits these two lines before going into the pre-chorus. A 2010 mix of "Sweet About Me" was included on Cilmi's second album, '' Ten'', released in March 2010.

On 21 December 2009, PRS for Music announced that "Sweet About Me" was the most played song in the United Kingdom during 2009. The song also won the Grand Prix during the 46th Sopot International Song Festival in 2009.

Background

Recording of ''Lessons to Be Learned'', the parent album of "Sweet About Me," began in Melbourne, Australia, when Gabriella Cilmi was thirteen years-old. Cilmi then re-located to London, England in 2007 to launch her musical career and complete the recording of "Sweet About Me". The song was co-written by Cilmi in collaboration with its producers Xenomania, who are critically acclaimed for their work with Girls Aloud, Sugababes and Kylie Minogue. "Sweet About Me" was written after Cilmi was pillaging a Parisian record store for inspiration. Cilmi was listening to early psychedelic music around the time when she wrote the song. Lyrically, Cilmi said that the song is saying, "We're all going to make mistakes, so we might as well have fun while we're making them." Cilmi explained "Sweet About Me" to Bob Henderson of ''Gay Times'', " Sweet About Me' is aboutnothing being what it seems. This might sound cheesy as well, but just because I'm young doesn't mean I don't understand what's going on."

Described as a "soulful pop song" by contemporary critics, Cilmi revealed to Pete Lewis of ''Blues & Soul'' that the "fun" inspiration in "Sweet About Me" originated from her mother's love for 1970s British glam-rock bands, Sweet and T. Rex. During the recording of "Sweet About Me", Cilmi thought there was something "amazing" about the song. Speaking to WalesOnline she said, "I thought it was like a nursery rhyme, the way it got stuck in your head." Cilmi, who is influenced by rock bands Led Zeppelin and Kings of Leon, said she had to make a pop-sounding record to appeal to as many people as possible. Speaking to music website, The Digital Fix, Cilmi explained how she worked together with Brian Higgins on "Sweet About Me":

Even though we came from two totally different backgrounds, when we worked together it just gelled. When it came to our differences I guess we both kind of compromised and came to a decision in the middle.

Composition

"Sweet About Me" is a pop and swing jazz song. It utilizes a subtle electro beat, derived from rocksteady grooves interspersed with layered pop production, and "retro-sounding" contemporary themes. The song has received different lyrical interpretations from critics. A writer from Contactmusic.com felt the song refers to making trouble and getting away with it, Nick Levine of Digital Spy noted that the song sounds lyrically bitter, namely in the line. "When you're playing with desire, don't come running to my place when it burns like fire boy'. According to Cilmi the lyrics are representative of having fun while making your mistakes, and learning from them along the way. "Sweet About Me" is written in the time signature of common time, with a beat rate of 132 beats per minute. The song is written in the key of C-sharp major.

Cilmi uses a sweet and coarse vocal delivery which has been deemed as a misleading contrast between her mature sound and young age. Her vocal performance on the song is similar to that of a group act rather than that of a solo artist. She claims that the track's sound was a product of Xenomania's pop music experience and her lyrical ideas. While the song was being crafted she was influenced by rock bands Kings of Leon and Jet, "I wrote with enomaniawho are totally different to me and came from a totally different musical background, they had worked with a lot of pop acts before and at the time I was listening to a lot of Jet and Kings of Leon, so when both our ideas met we came up with something pretty good." Musically, the song has been compared to Amy Winehouse's 2007 single, " Rehab", for their similar composition, soul and swing musical influences.

Critical reception

Nick Levine from Digital Spy positively reviewed "Sweet About Me," giving it four out of five stars. Levine comended Xenomania's production on the track, calling it "authentic" and "fresh". He also praised Gabriella Cilmi's vocals on the song, "Most impressive of all is Cilmi's voice, which manages to be sweet and coarse all at the same time, much like a drizzling of honey on a slice of toast." Jake Taylor of Sputnikmusic deemed "Sweet About Me" as one of the best songs released by an Australian artist on debut. He wrote, "A lot of songs focus on the chorus as the returning point for the listener's attention, but 'Sweet About Me' dumps that for a well rounded mix of brilliant singing and layered pop production on all levels." Contactmusic.com complimented "Sweet About Me" saying it brings a little fun back to pop. The song received a four-out-of-five star rating from Fraser McAlpine of the BBC
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