Promise by Sade

Promise, Sade's second album, arrived on Epic in Britain on 4 November 1985 and proved that the cool, candlelit glow of Diamond Life was no fluke. The London band, Sade Adu singing, Paul Denman on bass, Stuart Matthewman on saxophone and guitar and Andrew Hale on keyboards, worked on it from February to August 1985 and co-produced it with the same team as the debut: Robin Millar, Mike Pela and Ben Rogan. It's soul with the lights turned low, sophisti-pop sheen and jazz in the corners, and Adu's voice never hurries.

The title comes from a letter her father wrote about the promise of hope as he tried to recover from cancer. "The Sweetest Taboo" became a hit around the world, and the album went to number one in both Britain and America, the band's first to top both, and won them their first Grammy.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.