"Sweet Love" is a song by American R&B singer and songwriter
Anita Baker
Anita Denise Baker (born January 26, 1958) is an American singer-songwriter. She is one of the most popular singers of soulful ballads, especially renowned for her work during the height of the quiet storm period in the 1980s. Starting her career ...
from her second studio album, ''
Rapture
The rapture is an Christian eschatology, eschatological position held by some Christians, particularly those of American evangelicalism, consisting of an Eschatology, end-time event when all Christian believers who are alive, along with resurre ...
'' (1986). It was written by Anita Baker,
Louis A. Johnson, and
Gary Bias
Gary Bias is an American saxophonist, flutist and composer. Bias is a longtime member of the Earth, Wind & Fire Horns.
Overview
He born and raised in Los Angeles, California. Bias began playing the saxophone at the age of 11. He went on to attend ...
, and produced by
Michael J. Powell. It was released in July 1986, as the album's first single.
The song was Baker's first big hit single, peaking at number two on the US ''
Billboard
A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...
''
R&B chart
The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...
, number three on the US ''Billboard''
Adult Contemporary
Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...
chart, and number eight on the US ''Billboard''
Hot 100
The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...
in the fall of 1986. In the UK, it reached number 13 on the
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...
and peaked at number 21 on Canada's
Top Singles chart.
"Sweet Love" won the
Grammy
The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...
Award for
Best R&B Song
The Grammy Award for Best R&B Song (sometimes known as the R&B Songwriter's Award) has been awarded since 1969. From 1969 to 2000, it was known as the Grammy Award for Best Rhythm and Blues Song. Beyoncé has won it a record four times, while Bab ...
at the
29th Annual Grammy Awards
The 29th Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 24, 1987, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles, California. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the previous year.
Paul Simon won Album of the Year for ''Graceland'', and Burt Bacha ...
(1987).
Composition
"Sweet Love" was originally published in the key of
B major
B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and its ...
, and is written in
common time
The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...
with a
tempo
In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...
of 89 beats per minute. Baker's vocals span from E
3 to D
5.
Critical reception
Daryl Easlea of the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC
Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
said that Baker's voice "rings like a bell", and that "Sweet Love" is one of the three most memorable tracks on ''Rapture''. He felt that the lyrics might have sounded trite if sung by a different artist, but that Baker imbued them with "so much passion and wonderment" that they sound like "old love sonnets" brought back to life.
(1987). "Sweet Love" was selected as
, earning her (along with Gary Bias and Louis Johnson) a songwriting award. Also, the album containing this song, ''Rapture'', won in the category
# "Sweet Love" – 4:26
# "Watch Your Step" – 4:56
Limited edition gatefold - 7" single