Released: 17th December 2007
Writers: Lars Halvor Jensen / Martin Michael Larsson / Niara Scarlett / Heidi Range / Keisha Buchanan / Amelle Berrabah
Peak position: #13
Chart run: 36-26-26-13-17-16-22-32-36-41-55
Change was released as the second single from the Sugababes’ fifth studio album of the same name and allowed the group to showcase how their trademark balladry had evolved with a new line-up.
Although Amelle Berrebah had been a member of the Sugababes for almost two years when they released their aptly titled fifth album, Change, it was a pivotal moment, nonetheless. Her first two singles with the group – Red Dress and Follow Me Home – were re-recorded to replace Mutya Buena’s vocals as Amelle stepped in to see the Taller In More Ways album campaign through. Then, a somewhat awkwardly timed greatest hits compilation was accompanied by Easy, from which it was difficult to draw any conclusions about the new lineup’s intended direction. It’s certainly not the case that Amelle had been a passenger, but Change was the first full album of Sugababes material created with her involvement. Thus, it did feel like a soft reboot and one that got off to an impressive start. The lead single, About You Now, swiftly sidestepped any cynicism about the fact that only one original member (Keisha Buchanan) now remained and became the group’s biggest hit – a million-seller, in fact – simultaneously topping the chart alongside the Change album.
It’s probably fair to say that fans have differing opinions on what should have been the follow-up. Even so, the title track was an obvious choice in terms of the fact that it maintained an established pattern of the Sugababes releasing ballads or mid-tempos around the festive season (New Year, Stronger, Too Lost In You, Ugly). However, sticking to that strategy also highlighted what Change wasn’t when compared to some of the group’s earlier material because it is a song that seems driven by radio trends at the time. That’s not a bad thing, but at a point where the Sugababes were re-asserting their identity (not always intentionally; for some reason, all the single artwork for the Change era splits the group’s name over two lines and thus reads as Sugababbabes), there were arguably other tracks on the album – like Never Gonna Dance Again – that would’ve done so a little more decisively.
However, putting that aside, there is much to like and appreciate about Change as a pop song. Quirkily, the instrumental that runs throughout is a track – titled Time Lapse – from the royalty-free catalogue of music included with Apple’s now-defunct iLife software, which came pre-installed on Mac computers in the early ‘00s and housed its ‘digital lifestyle applications’ (iPhoto, iMovie, iDVD and iTunes). Change isn’t the only commercial use of Time Lapse; it was also adapted to become a Nokia ringtone on certain phone models. Thus, as a source of inspiration for one of the biggest girl groups in the UK, it’s certainly unorthodox and not necessarily in a way that comes across as being self-aware. Nonetheless, the music is pleasantly dreamy, and that quality works well as a hazy backdrop for the song.
For all that the Change album itself marked the first full and proper era of the Sugababes’ new line-up, the single shows how deftly the group had adapted to looking forward. Thematically, the track could easily have been perceived as relating to Mutya’s departure. And perhaps, had it been released earlier, parallels would’ve been drawn from lyrics such as: “But sometimes, I just can’t, I just don’t understand, why you had to go (why you had to go), I guess I’ll never know”. However, About You Now provided such definitive closure that the group could convincingly deliver a song which relates directly to the narrative around their own circumstances: “You don’t see it coming, change, when the future comes knocking, it changed, it can make you and break you too, you just have to make it through (you just have to make it through)” and somehow not make it about themselves.
While Change contains trademark Sugababes harmonies, they’re less immediately audible than on earlier ballads like Too Lost In You due to the prominence of the production. The vocals are, nonetheless, reliably impressive and the final minute or so belongs to Keisha. A key change accompanies her middle eight and then, atop the soaring chorus: “Ain’t it funny how you think you’re gonna be okay, ’til you remember things ain’t ever gonna be the same again (same again), and ain’t it crazy how you think you’ve got your whole life planned, just to find out it was never ever in your hands (in your hands), change” she delivers a terrific run of ad-libs and riffs using her higher and lower register. Change still thrives on the strength of its collective performance; both Heidi and Amelle make their presence felt during the second verse and pre-choruses. But the way the track builds to a soaring crescendo pushes Keisha to the fore and seizing the opportunity, she resoundingly delivers.
The music video for Change takes the theme of the song and presents it in an artistically abstract way. Where the concept feels most coherent with the lyrics is a series of sequences with each member of the Sugababes portraying a season: Keisha is spring, Amelle is summer, Heidi is autumn, and Amelle (again) is winter. The styling is filled with avante-garde flair; Keisha has petals as eyelashes, two huge flower blooms sit on Amelle’s hair, and Heidi has brown leaves embossed across her face and neck. It’s a striking visual that emphasises this line-up of the Sugababes as one that felt more fashion focused.
Interwoven between is a group shot against a grey background and another where they’re filmed in a darkened environment while covered in glitter. There’s nothing inherently wrong with these parts; the video is perfectly functional. Still, the overall execution does come across as one part a clear, well-realised idea in the seasonal theme – with the potential to do something interesting by bringing those elements together – and the other existing as a bit of an afterthought.
Change was the first time Sugababes had released an album in the digital era where any track could chart, with or without a physical counterpart. Thus, while Island had some control over About You Now as the lead single, the campaign entered new territory with the follow-up. There were promising signs initially when Change debuted at #36 while the group were still in the early stages of promoting it. However, upward momentum from that point was modest, and the track peaked at #13 after four weeks following a digital and physical release (though it did reach #3 on the airplay chart). Change was the 191st highest-seller of 2007 (41,775 copies) and the 228th highest-seller of 2008 (44,000 copies), making it the group’s 16th biggest single, which seems fair in terms of how the song is generally regarded. Even so, coming off the back of the Sugababes’ biggest hit, that probably was a tad disappointing.
To a certain extent, the same was true of Change‘s impact on the parent album. Since debuting at #1, it had descended steadily to sit outside the top 20 when promotion began for the single. And, though Change plateaued for a month or so, interest never quite reignited enough for it to feel that the single did anything more than slow a decline that subsequently continued into the new year. Though it by no means left the Sugababes in a position where the campaign had gone disastrously awry – particularly as they adjusted to navigating the digital era – there is scope to ponder whether a different second single might have had a more significant impact.
Nonetheless, Change is a likeable, well-produced and impressively performed pop song. Though its sentiment was profoundly pertinent to the Sugababes’ recent(ish) journey to this point, there was never a sense that they intended to look back.
