Sandwich and a Soda

"Sandwich and a Soda"
Single by Tamia
from the album Love Life
Released February 24, 2015 (2015-02-24)
Format Digital download
Genre
Length 3:13
Label
Writer(s)
  • Warren Felder
  • Tamia Hill
  • Stephen Mostyn
  • Andrew Wansel
  • Autoro Whitfield
  • Alicia Renee Williams
Producer(s)
Tamia singles chronology
"Give Me You"
(2012)		 "Sandwich and a Soda"
(2015)		 "Stuck with Me"
(2015)

"Sandwich and a Soda" is a song by Canadian recording artist Tamia, recorded for her sixth studio album Love Life (2015). Released as the album's lead single in the United States, it reached number 20 on the US Billboard Adult R&B Songs chart.

Background

"Sandwich and a Soda" is a "smoky, jazz-kissed" mid-tempo R&B song written by Tamia along with Stephen Mostyn, Autoro Whitfield, Alicia Renee Williams, Warren Felder, and Andrew Wansel, with production helmed by the latter two under the production company moniker Pop & Oak.[1][2] Development of the song was initiated by Felder and Wansel, who came up with a "rough idea" of what the song would sound like.[3] Upon hearing a demo of it, Tamia liked the modern but classic instrumental track and decided to join the writing process.[3] Commenting on her first collaboration with Felder and Wansel, she later elaborated: "Pop and Oak are amazing. They have a way of making music that is authentically musical but still very current. It's also about the melody as well. I could literally sing that song with a stand-up bass and it could sound really good."[3]

Built upon word plays, Tamia described "Sandwich and a Soda" as a "fun feel-good song" but remarked that it was "not super literal" however, stating that "it’s not really about a sandwich and a soda. It’s just about taking care of each other. The good, the bad, and the ugly. It’s just about being there [...] about having a good time, driving with the windows down, holding hands".[3][4] Commenting on what motivated her to release the song as the album's lead single, she elaborated that she chose it "because I thought it was just fun and just a great – it had a great beat and great vibe. And I wanted my first song back after three years from Beautiful Surprise to just show life and have life."[5]

Release and reception

In his New York Times review, writer Ben Ratliff found that the song was the "attention-getter" on the album: "For its first 30 seconds, she whispers over the intertwining patterns of two electric basses, played by real fingers with real hesitations and stickiness; one has the tone of an undergreased hinge. They sound close-up and untreated, punctuated by short chord stabs from an organ, which seems far away and softened by reverb. The song makes you think about distances." He added that "with the microphone at close range, [Tamia] underperforms. And that’s mildly interesting, but there’s so much else going on — layers of keyboards and vocals, buried loops of cries and shouts, the couplet “If you wanna ride these curves/ hop in your Chevy Nova.”[6]

Similarly, Los Angeles Times reporter Gerrick D. Kennedy called "Sandwich and a Soda" one "of the album’s stronger offerings, it’s the closest she gets to painting outside her traditional color palate with its heavy electric bass and slight organ hits. But the message is the same: She’s about pleasing the man who pleases her, both in and outside the bedroom".[7] Andy Kellman of Allmusic found the track to be one of "most relaxed songs" on Love Life. He remarked that it "generates steam, and Tamia sounds fully invested in [it] without doing any overselling."[8] Allan Raible from ABC News called "Sandwich and a Soda" a "smooth, bass-heavy ode to eating after a session of lovemaking." He praised the song for its "earthy funkiness, while writing that "it has a great groove and it is bound to be a hit."[9]

Music video

The music video for "Sandwich and a Soda" was filmed by Canadian director Ryan Pallotta in California.[10]

Format and track listing

  1. "Sandwich and a Soda" – 3:13

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2015) Peak
position
US Adult R&B Songs (Billboard)[12] 20

References

  1. ↑ Campbell, Chuck (2015-06-16). "‘Tuned In' review: Tamia simply lives for love". Knoxville News Sentinel. Journal Media Group. Retrieved 2015-06-18.
  2. ↑ Love Life (Media notes). Tamia. Def Jam Recordings. 2015.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Leight, Elias (June 23, 2015). "Tamia: 'R&B Doesn't Get as Much Support as Other Genres Now'". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  4. ↑ Chen, Dalson (June 17, 2015). "Shimmy shimmy flower: Tamia’s Love Life". Windsor Star. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  5. ↑ "Tamia loves life with a ‘Sandwich and a Soda’". Euronews.com. June 10, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2015.
  6. ↑ Ratliff, Ben (2015-06-08). "Review: In ‘Love Life,’ Tamia Enacts Seduction and Conservatism". New York Times. Retrieved 2015-06-13.
  7. ↑ Kennedy, Gerrick D. (2015-06-11). "Tamia's 'Love Life' is grown-up, worn-in R&B at its finest". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2015-06-13.
  8. ↑ Kellman, Andy. "Love Life – Tamia". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Review. Retrieved 2012-10-14.
  9. ↑ Raible, Allan (June 13, 2015). "Tamia’s “Love Life”". ABC News. Retrieved June 28, 2015.
  10. ↑ "Tamia Interview at The Breakfast Club Power 105.1 (5/7/2015)". YouTube.com. May 7, 2015. Retrieved July 4, 2015.
  11. ↑ "Sandwich and a Soda - Single". ITunes.Apple.com. Retrieved 2015-05-11.
  12. ↑ "Tamia – Chart history" Billboard Adult R&B Songs for Tamia. Retrieved 2015-05-07.

External links

This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Sunday, December 13, 2015. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.