New Year (song)
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"New Year" is a song by British girl group the
Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...
, released as the second single from their debut studio album '' One Touch'' (2000). The song was written by group members
Siobhán Donaghy Siobhán Emma Donaghy (born 14 June 1984) is an English-Irish singer and songwriter. She is best known as a founding member of the girl group Sugababes. Donaghy left the Sugababes in 2001 and released her debut solo album, '' Revolution in Me'', ...
, Mutya Buena and
Keisha Buchanan Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan (; born 30 September 1984) is an English singer and a founding member of the girl group Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhán Donaghy. With the Sugababes, she had six number one singles and two number ...
in collaboration with Cameron McVey, Jony Lipsey, Felix Howard and Matt Rowe, and produced by McVey, Lipsey and Paul Simm. "New Year" is a pop and R&B
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
with influences of
soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...
and
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
. It features acoustic
instrumentation Instrumentation a collective term for measuring instruments that are used for indicating, measuring and recording physical quantities. The term has its origins in the art and science of scientific instrument-making. Instrumentation can refer to ...
, and the lyrics describe the experience of breaking up on
Christmas Day Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year, ...
. Critics praised the song for its seasonal nature and the group's performance. Upon release, it charted at number twelve in the United Kingdom and number twenty-five in Ireland. To promote the song, a
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
was directed by Alex Hamming and filmed in London. On 31 December 2012 the trio performed "New Year" at a New Year's Eve party in London, under their new group name Mutya Keisha Siobhan.


Background and release

British girl group the
Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...
were formed in 1998 by
Siobhán Donaghy Siobhán Emma Donaghy (born 14 June 1984) is an English-Irish singer and songwriter. She is best known as a founding member of the girl group Sugababes. Donaghy left the Sugababes in 2001 and released her debut solo album, '' Revolution in Me'', ...
, Mutya Buena and
Keisha Buchanan Keisha Kerreece Fayeanne Buchanan (; born 30 September 1984) is an English singer and a founding member of the girl group Sugababes alongside Mutya Buena and Siobhán Donaghy. With the Sugababes, she had six number one singles and two number ...
. Donaghy and Buena first met during an a cappella gig, where they heard each other sing and later performed a duet. The duo decided to work together on a new song, and while they were in the studio, Buchanan came to visit her friend Buena. Donaghy's manager, Ron Tom, concluded that the trio were to join as a band, known as the ''Sugababes''. They later signed to London Records and began writing songs for their debut album '' One Touch''. "New Year" was written by the group's members in collaboration with Cameron McVey, Jony Lipsey, Matt Rowe and Felix Howard. The song was produced by McVey, Lipsey and Paul Simm. It was recorded and engineered by Goetz Botzenhardt at Bear Studios, and mixed by its producers at Metropolis Studios. London Records released "New Year" in the United Kingdom on 18 December 2000 as the second single from ''One Touch''. Two
B-sides The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph records and cassettes; these terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or record company ...
were featured on the first CD single: "Forever" and "Sugababes on the Run". On the second CD, a B-side titled "Little Lady Love" was included. "New Year" was omitted from the group's
greatest hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...
album '' Overloaded: The Singles Collection''.


Composition and lyrics

"New Year" is a
midtempo 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 ...
pop and R&B
ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...
with influences of
soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...
and
alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from mainstream or commerci ...
. It contains acoustic
instrumentation Instrumentation a collective term for measuring instruments that are used for indicating, measuring and recording physical quantities. The term has its origins in the art and science of scientific instrument-making. Instrumentation can refer to ...
in the form of beats, bass, strings, guitar and keys, and features tight production juxtaposed with the group's harmonious vocals. Writers for 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. ...
...
characterised the song as having "a melodic swagger" reminiscent of All Saints' earlier work, and a "classy arrangement ..boosted by an infectiously splashy drumbeat and stabs of acoustic guitar". "New Year" features a seasonal theme, focussing on the holiday of
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people around the world. A feast central to the Christian liturgical year ...
, which is referenced in the song's lyrics. It is about the experience of a breakup on Christmas Day. According to Betty Clarke of ''
The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', "New Year" "tells taleof festive fumblings to Last Christmas", and through lines such as "I'm older than my years, drowning in my tears" the Sugababes are shown singing with insight.


Reception


Critical

The song was raved by critics. A journalist from 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. ...
...
wrote that the single as "lives up to the hype" and praised the inclusion of lyrics about Christmas as "without sounding remotely contrived". The ''
Sunday Herald The ''Sunday Herald'' was a Scottish Sunday newspaper, published between 7 February 1999 and 2 September 2018. Originally a broadsheet, it was published in compact format from 20 November 2005. The paper was known for having combined a centre- ...
''s Samuel McGuire interpreted "New Year" as a "mellow nddewy-eyed" song that will "undoubtedly cement he Sugababes''new All Saints' tag early in 2001". Eva Simpson of the ''
Daily Mirror The ''Daily Mirror'' is a British national daily tabloid. Founded in 1903, it is owned by parent company Reach plc. From 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was simply ''The Mirror''. It had an average daily print c ...
'' gave a positive review, writing: "Taken from outstanding debut album ''One Touch'', this soulful track is head and shoulders above other festive releases. A must for Christmas stockings."
Yahoo Music Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds of ...
's Andy Strickland stated that while "New Year" is not as "wired or skewed" as the group's debut single " Overload", it is a representation of the group members' vocal abilities. ''
Hot Press ''Hot Press'' is a fortnightly music and politics magazine based in Dublin, Ireland, founded in June 1977. The magazine has been edited since its inception by Niall Stokes. History ''Hot Press'' was founded in June 1977 by Niall Stokes, who co ...
'' writer Stephen Robinson praised the song as "a shameless attempt at a January hit", while Peter Robinson called it the group's best ballad. In December 2012 Bernadette McNulty of ''
The Daily Telegraph ''The Daily Telegraph'', known online and elsewhere as ''The Telegraph'', is a national British daily broadsheet newspaper published in London by Telegraph Media Group and distributed across the United Kingdom and internationally. It was f ...
'' picked it out as one of the newspaper's favourite Christmas songs:


Commercial

Because of its release around Christmas time, media outlets considered "New Year" to be a contender for the 2000
Christmas number one In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...
. In the issue dated 30 December 2000 the song debuted and peaked at number twelve 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 ...
, where it charted for nine weeks. By early 2010, it had sold approximately 85,000 copies in the United Kingdom and was the group's eighteenth highest-selling single there. "New Year" reached number twenty-five on the Irish Singles Chart, where it appeared for five weeks.


Promotion


Music video

To promote "New Year", a
music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device ...
was directed by Alex Hamming and filmed in
London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...
,
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. It was included on the song's CD release. The video is mainly
black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...
, but also features shades of pink and blue. During the video, the group's members sing in front of a white background, while computer graphics such as snow, letters and butterflies appear throughout. Other features in the video include a bird cage, stars and a calendar. Donaghy, Buena and Buchanan are shown both individually and collectively in the video; in some clips they are seated on chairs and against walls. ''The Daily Telegraph''s Bernadette McNulty described their appearance in the clips, writing: "The original trio sulk their way through the video in boot-cut jeans and smudged eyeliner".


Live performances

The Sugababes performed "New Year" on 15 December 2000 broadcast of
TFI Friday ''TFI Friday'' is an entertainment show that was broadcast on Channel 4 television in the United Kingdom. It was produced by Ginger Productions, written by Danny Baker, and hosted by Chris Evans, for the first five series. The sixth series ...
. In October 2011, news outlets began to report that the original members of the Sugababes would reform. In July 2012, it was officially confirmed that they had reformed under the name Mutya Keisha Siobhan. The trio played their first gig together in over ten years on 31 December 2012 at a New Year's Eve party held in London. "New Year" was the second song on the
set list A set list, or setlist, is typically a handwritten or printed document created as an ordered list of songs, jokes, stories and other elements an artist intends to present during a specific performance. A setlist can be made of nearly any materi ...
, which also included their songs "Overload" and "
Freak like Me "Freak Like Me" is the debut single of American R&B singer Adina Howard. It was released on January 25, 1995, as the lead single from her debut album, ''Do You Wanna Ride?''. It reached number two on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for two weeks, as ...
", and a
cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...
of Rihanna's single "
Diamonds Diamond is a solid form of the element carbon with its atoms arranged in a crystal structure called diamond cubic. Another solid form of carbon known as graphite is the chemically stable form of carbon at room temperature and pressure, bu ...
".


Cover versions

The song was covered by Welsh indie pop band
The Darling Buds The Darling Buds are an alternative rock band from Newport, South Wales. The band formed in 1986 and were named after the H. E. Bates novel '' The Darling Buds of May'' – a title taken in turn, from the third line of Shakespeare's Sonnet 18 ...
and released as a digital single on Oddbox Records on 15 December 2018.


Track listings

Notes * denotes additional producer(s)


Credits and personnel

Credits are adapted from the liner notes of ''One Touch'', courtesy of London Records. Recording * Recorded by Goetz Botzenhardt at Bear Studios, London, England Personnel *
Songwriting A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...
– Cameron McVey, Jony Lipsey, Matt Rowe, Felix Howard, Sugababes *
Production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...
– Cameron McVey, Jony Rockstar, Paul Simm * Mixing – Cameron McVey, Jony Rockstar, Paul Simm *
Mix engineer A mixing engineer (or simply mix engineer) is responsible for combining ("mixing") different sonic elements of an auditory piece into a complete rendition (also known as "final mix" or "mixdown"), whether in music, film, or any other content of a ...
– Goetz Botzenhardt * Programming – Jony Rockstar * Beats – Jony Rockstar * Bass – Jony Rockstar * Strings – Matt Rowe * Guitar – Jeremy Shaw * Wurlitzer – Paul Simm * Keys – Cameron McVey


Charts


References

{{Authority control 2000 songs 2000s ballads 2000 singles British Christmas songs London Records singles New Year songs Pop ballads Song recordings produced by Cameron McVey Songs written by Cameron McVey Songs written by Matt Rowe (songwriter) Songs written by Jony Rockstar Songs written by Keisha Buchanan Songs written by Mutya Buena Songs written by Paul Simm Sugababes songs