"Sexy! No No No..." | ||||
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Single by Girls Aloud | ||||
from the album Tangled Up | ||||
B-side | "Dog Without a Bone" | |||
Released | 31 August 2007 | |||
Recorded | 2007 | |||
Genre | Electropunk | |||
Length | 3:18 | |||
Label | Fascination | |||
Songwriter(s) |
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Producer(s) |
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Girls Aloud singles chronology | ||||
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Music video | ||||
"Sexy! No No No…" on YouTube |
"Sexy! No No No..." is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud from their fourth studio album, Tangled Up (2007). In April 2007, the group announced that they would release a new album, due in November of that year. In July 2007, it was announced that "Sexy! No No No...", due to be released in September, would be as the first single from Tangled Up, with a radio premiere scheduled for 20 July. The track leaked a few hours prior to the premiere. "Sexy! No No No..." was written by Girls Aloud and Xenomania, and is an electropunk song that incorporates a sample of Nazareth's 1975 song "Hair of the Dog", for which they received a writing credit. Composed of three songs welded together, the song avoids the verse-chorus form present in most contemporary pop music, similar to their previous single "Biology" (2005).
"Sexy! No No No..." received generally favourable reviews from music critics, and peaked at number 5 on the UK Singles Chart, continuing the band's string of hits by becoming their fifteenth consecutive single to chart within the top ten. The song also peaked at number 11 on the Irish Singles Chart. The accompanying music video was directed by Trudy Bellinger, and features the group singing and dancing through pins and wires in black latex catsuits and red dresses. To promote the song, Girls Aloud performed "Sexy! No No No..." at Dance X , ITV1 special Saturday Night Divas and T4 on the Beach. The track was also included in three of the group's concert tours, 2008's Tangled Up Tour, 2009's Out of Control Tour and 2013's Ten: The Hits Tour.
In April 2007, the group announced that they would release a new album in November of that year. [1] The production and songwriting began with producer Brian Higgins meeting each member of the group individually, and discussing their life since the release of Chemistry (2005). [2] Higgins took inspiration from these discussions in his songwriting, with bandmate Nicola Roberts explaining that "it's important he's up to date with where we are. Our songs have to reflect us so that's why we do it." [2] "Sexy! No No No..." was then written by Girls Aloud with production team Xenomania. [3] Roberts, Cheryl Cole, Sarah Harding and Kimberley Walsh recorded vocals for the song in London, England, while Nadine Coyle recorded her vocals in Los Angeles, California. [4]
In July 2007, Girls Aloud announced that they would release "Sexy! No No No...", as the first single from Tangled Up , in September 2007. [5] The radio premiere of the song was scheduled for the morning of 20 July 2007 on BBC Radio 1, [6] however, it leaked in full online earlier the same day at 02:21 GMT. [7] "Sexy! No No No..." was released for digital download on 31 August 2007, [8] while it was also made available on two different CD single formats on 3 September 2007. [9] The first disc included a live version of "Something Kinda Ooooh" (2006), recorded at the Bournemouth International Centre. [10] The second CD format featured Tony Lamezma's "Yes Yes Yes" Mix of "Sexy! No No No..." and also a new track as a b-side, entitled "Dog Without a Bone". [11] The b-side was originally written in 2006 in an attempt to come up with a lead single for the group's first compilation album, The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits , however, "Something Kinda Ooooh" was released instead. [12] "Dog Without a Bone" was Popjustice's song of the day on 20 August 2007. [13]
"Sexy! No No No..." is an electropunk song, [14] which consists of three songs welded together, according to journalist Peter Robinson: one with a samba rhythm, one with a sped-up sample and a breakbeat, and an intro from elsewhere. [16] The track opens with Cole singing over "spooky" instrumentation. [6] Her vocals have been vocodered and she sings "Cause I've been sitting back, no chance of falling / Hoping that nothing ever blows, no no / Boy, did you ever think that loving would be / Nothing more than walking me home, no no". [17] [18] As the chorus begins, the song incorporates a sample from Scottish rock band Nazareth's 1975 track "Hair of the Dog", [15] and the group starts singing, "Did you tell him? No no no / Give him kisses? No no no / Whisper honey? No no no / You're delicious? Hell no". [18] John Murphy of musicOMH noted that "Sexy! No No No.." is not "structured like a proper pop song - there's no verse-chorus-verse". [19] The instrumentation of "Sexy! No No No..." is composed of multi-layered guitar riffs and "euphoric woo woo-oo harmonies", [17] while the song's structure follows as introduction, chorus, chorus, verse, bridge, chorus, middle eight, verse. [6] A Newsround reviewer described the lyrical content, saying that Girls Aloud are "trying a different approach to getting the guy", in that "instead of being 'sexy', they've backed off." [20]
"Sexy! No No No..." received positive reviews from music critics. John Lucas of Allmusic described the "pounding electro-punk number" as "one of the most daring songs they've yet released," [14] while a reviewer for Newsround deemed it "yet another sample of their perfect pop: bold, sassy, slightly loopy and unbelievably catchy." [20] Fraser McAlpine of BBC thought that "Sexy! No No No..." is "kinda dumb, kinda sassy, kinda pumping and kinda 'what on EARTH is THAT?', just like all the best Aloud anthems are", [21] while Nick Levine of Digital Spy rated it four out of five stars, noting that Xenomania sacrificed the "conventional song structure in the name of keeping those hooks coming thick and fast - and quite right too." [17] Levine also praised Girls Aloud for restyling themselves "as teasing minxes, claiming that they've 'dropped their d-d-dirty style'". [17] Lauren Murphy of Entertainment.ie said that "Sexy! No No No..." was a "stellar single", describing it as an "'80s-flavoured radio hit", [22] while Matt O'Leary of Virgin Media stated that the song "slam[s] home the power-pop message we're used to [from Girls Aloud]." [23]
Because it was available to download one week prior to the release of the CD single, "Sexy! No No No..." debuted at number 64 on the UK Singles Chart, based solely on digital downloads. [24] The following week, the single reached a new peak at number five, continuing Girls Aloud's string of hits by becoming their fifteenth consecutive single to chart within the top ten. [25] It spent a total of ten weeks on the top 40, [25] and is among fifteen best-selling singles by the group. [26] On the week ending 22 September 2007, "Sexy! No No No..." debuted at number 11 on the Euro Digital Chart compiled by Billboard . [24] The track peaked at the same position on the Irish Singles Chart. [27]
The music video was directed by Trudy Bellinger, [16] and premiered on 13 August 2007. [28] It opens with Cheryl singing the introduction, as she and the group are seen wearing latex catsuits while standing in front of shiny red material. [29] The material is being used by a seamstress who is starting work on a dress. As the chorus begins, the camera zooms out to show the girls wearing giant inflatable red dresses. The seamstress starts putting large pins into her dress, poking their way around the girls, until the pins start tearing into their dresses. The pins tear the dresses off and the girls are back in their catsuits, surrounded by the threads of their dresses. Journalist Peter Robinson deemed the video "iconic" and "stylish". [16]
Girls Aloud first performed "Sexy! No No No..." at the T4 on the Beach special on 22 July 2007. The group also performed it at Dance X on 18 August 2007, [30] at ITV1 special Saturday Night Divas on 3 November 2007, [31] and at the V Festival in 2008. [32] The same year, "Sexy! No No No..." served as the introduction for the Tangled Up Tour. [33] During the first part of the performance, the girls were suspended on wires as they hovered in the air in black cloaks. [33] As the song's chorus began, Girls Aloud removed their cloaks to reveal stage outfits designed by Julien Macdonald. [34] For 2009's Out of Control Tour, "Sexy! No No No..." was remixed with parts of "Disturbia" by Barbadian recording artist Rihanna. [35] In 2013, the song was performed during the second act of the . [36]
| The Singles Boxset [16]
Digital EP [37]
|
Credits are adapted from the liner notes of Tangled Up. [3]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [43] | Silver | 200,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
Region | Date | Format(s) | Label(s) | Ref. |
---|---|---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 31 August 2007 | Digital download | Polydor | [44] |
3 September 2007 | CD single | Fascination Records | [9] | |
United States | 9 October 2007 | Digital download | Polydor Records | [45] |
Girls Aloud are a British-Irish pop girl group that was created through the ITV talent show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. The line up consisted of members Cheryl, Nadine Coyle, Sarah Harding, Nicola Roberts and Kimberley Walsh. In 2012, the group was named as the United Kingdom's biggest selling girl group of the 21st century so far, with over 4.3 million singles sales and 4 million albums sold in the UK. The group achieved a string of twenty top-ten singles on the UK singles chart, including four number ones. They also achieved seven BPI certified albums, two of which debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. They have been nominated for five Brit Awards, winning Best Single in 2009 for "The Promise".
Xenomania is an English songwriting and production team founded by Brian Higgins and based in Kent. Formed by Higgins with his Creative Director Miranda Cooper and Business Director Sarah Stennett of First Access Entertainment, Xenomania has written and produced for artists such as Cher, Kylie Minogue, Dannii Minogue, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Pet Shop Boys, The Saturdays and Sugababes. In particular, all but one of Girls Aloud's studio albums have been entirely written and produced by Xenomania. Sugababes' "Round Round" and Girls Aloud's "Sound of the Underground" have been credited with reshaping British pop music for the 2000s. Gabriella Cilmi's "Sweet About Me" and Girls Aloud's "The Promise" were named Best Single at the ARIA Music Awards of 2008 and the 2009 BRIT Awards, respectively.
Chemistry is the third studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It was released in the United Kingdom on 5 December 2005 by Polydor Records. After the success of What Will the Neighbours Say?, the album was again entirely produced by Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania. Chemistry is a loose concept album which details celebrity lifestyle and "what it's like to be a twentysomething girl in London." A number of the songs avert the verse-chorus form typical of pop music.
"Red Dress" is a song by British girl group Sugababes from their fourth studio album, Taller in More Ways (2005). The group's members wrote the song in collaboration with its producers, the British songwriting and production team Xenomania, based on the perception that women must expose their body to be noticed. "Red Dress" was released in the United Kingdom on 6 March 2006 as the album's third single, and is the first to feature vocals by Amelle Berrabah, following the departure of Mutya Buena in December 2005. The Sugababes performed a cover of the Arctic Monkeys' song "I Bet You Look Good on the Dancefloor" as the single's B-side.
"No Good Advice" is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album, Sound of the Underground (2003). The song was written by Aqua's Lene Nystrøm Rasted, Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. The song has themes of rebellion, reflecting Higgins' general mood of failure after a business partnership fell through.
"Wake Me Up" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud from their second studio album, What Will the Neighbours Say? (2004). It was released by Polydor Records on 21 February 2005, as the fourth and final single from the album. The song had been initially considered as the lead single, however, it was deemed to sound too harsh and the record company did not want to take the risk. The track was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Shawn Lee, Lisa Cowling, Paul Woods and Yusra Maru'e. "Wake Me Up" is a pop rock song composed of a "garage rock guitar riff". It received mixed reviews from music critics. While some described it as predictable, others wrote that it appeared to be an attempt to recapture the sound of some of their previous release. Alex Kapranos, the lead singer of indie rock band Franz Ferdinand, said "Wake Me Up" inspired the band to work with producer Brian Higgins.
"Biology" is a song performed by English-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their third studio album Chemistry (2005). The progressive pop song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and Higgins' production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Composed of distinct sections, it avoids the verse-chorus form present in most contemporary pop music. "Biology" was released as a single in November 2005, ahead of the album's release. Following the disappointment of "Long Hot Summer", "Biology" returned Girls Aloud to the top five of the UK Singles Chart and became their tenth top ten hit.
"Whole Lotta History" is a song by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their third studio album Chemistry (2005). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Described as "a lush ballad", "Whole Lotta History" was slightly remixed and released as a single in March 2006. It continued Girls Aloud's string of hits by becoming their twelfth consecutive single to chart within the top ten on the UK Singles Chart.
The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits is the first greatest hits album of British girl group Girls Aloud. It was first released in the United Kingdom through a limited edition on 23 October 2006, while the standard version was released on 30 October 2006. The Sound of Girls Aloud features twelve of the group's singles, two of which reached number one in the UK. The album features three new tracks, with "Something Kinda Ooooh" and "I Think We're Alone Now" being released as singles and peaking inside the top five on the UK singles chart.
"Something Kinda Ooooh" is a song by British-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their first greatest hits collection The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits (2006). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Inspired by 1980s pop and George Michael, "Something Kinda Ooooh" was released as a single in October 2006. It returned Girls Aloud to the top three of the UK Singles Chart for the first time in two years. It also made Girls Aloud the first British act to debut in the top five on the chart based on legal download sales alone.
"Call the Shots" is a song by British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud from their fourth studio album, Tangled Up (2007). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, with inspiration from an article about the advance of women in business, and Brian Higgins, Tim Powell, Lisa Cowling, and Giselle Somerville also received songwriting credits. Polydor Records originally intended to release it the lead single for The Sound of Girls Aloud: The Greatest Hits (2006); however, "Something Kinda Ooooh" was selected instead. In September 2007, "Call the Shots" leaked online, and on 26 November of the same year, it was released as the second single from Tangled Up through Fascination Records, a week after the album's release.
Tangled Up is the fourth studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud. It was released through Fascination Records and Polydor Records on 16 November 2007, and was distributed in two physical formats and made available for digital consumption. The album is a pop record that incorporates elements of dance-pop, synth-pop, and various EDM sub-genres produced by long time-collaborators Brian Higgins and production team Xenomania. Marking a more mature approach according to group member Cheryl, the album lyrically delves into themes of love, relationships and femininity, and it was the group's first experimentation with tools such as autotune and vocoder. Production and development began with each member meeting with Higgins to discuss their personal and professional experiences since the release of their third album Chemistry (2005). It was recorded separately from April to October 2007, with the band members earning songwriting credits for two tracks off the album.
"Can't Speak French" is a song performed by British-Irish all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their fourth studio album and serving as the third and final single from the album Tangled Up (2007). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Described as "a swirling, slower cut with great jazzy guitar changes," Higgins said it was "the easiest Girls Aloud single they made." Upon its release in March 2008, "Can't Speak French" charted within the top ten on the UK Singles Chart, continuing their five-year streak of top ten hits.
"Here We Go" is a pop song written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins, and Matt Gray, originally recorded by Cooper under the alias Moonbaby. The song was initially released as Moonbaby's first single in 2000, later being covered by Lene Nystrøm in 2003 and Girls Aloud in 2004. A version with rewritten lyrics appears as the theme music of the French/Canadian animated television series Totally Spies!.
Out of Control is the fifth and final studio album by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, released on 31 October 2008 in Ireland and on 3 November 2008 in the UK by Fascination Records. Like their previous albums, it was crafted by the production team of Brian Higgins and Xenomania. Out of Control builds on the sound of Girls Aloud's previous albums and represents a move into the mainstream for the group.
"The Loving Kind" is a song by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their fifth studio album Out of Control (2008). The song was written by Pet Shop Boys, Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Described as a "synth-pop ballad", "The Loving Kind" was originally written for inclusion on Pet Shop Boys' Yes (2009) before being given to Girls Aloud. Upon its release in January 2009, "The Loving Kind" peaked at number ten on the UK Singles Chart, thereby continuing their six-year streak of top-ten hits.
The discography of British-Irish girl group Girls Aloud consists of five studio albums, two compilation albums, twenty-three singles, one promotional single, two live albums, one remix album, two box sets, eleven video albums and twenty-four music videos.
"Untouchable" is a song performed by British all-female pop group Girls Aloud, taken from their fifth studio album Out of Control (2008). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Influenced by trance music and Balearic beat, the album version of "Untouchable" is almost seven minutes long.
"Something New" is a song recorded by British girl group Girls Aloud from their second compilation album, Ten (2012). It was released by Polydor Records on 16 November 2012, as the first single from the album and the official single for Children in Need 2012. In February 2009, the group signed a new record deal with Fascination Records that would see the group release another three studio albums; however, they announced that they were taking a hiatus to pursue solo projects. In April 2012, bandmate Cheryl revealed the girls had been in talks to regroup for the group's tenth anniversary later that year. In October 2012, a countdown was activated on Girls Aloud's official website, which would last until 19 October 2012, when "Something New" would be premiered on radio. However the date was brought forward to 16 October 2012 following an early online leak of the track.
Ten is the second greatest hits and final album released by English-Irish girl group Girls Aloud, released in commemoration of the group's tenth anniversary. It was released in the United Kingdom on 26 November 2012 through Polydor Records. The album consists of fourteen of Girls Aloud's singles, including the number-one singles "Sound of the Underground", "I'll Stand by You" and "The Promise", and four new tracks.
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