46 - "Overload" - Sugababes
Written by Paul Simm, Felix Howard, Siobhán Donaghy, Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan, Jonathan Lipsey, Booga Bear
Part of 1000 Coolest, fifty of the greatest and most popular songs in history.
At a time when "pop" was the solid primary colours of a Mondrian, the Sugababes were a welcome pastel shade.
The trio - Keisha, Siobhan, and Mutya - were formed (or spotted) by All Saints manager Ron Tom, and worked here with Morgan McVey [and we'll hear from him again]. Not that London Records told anyone these facts when "Overload" was first promoted - no names, no pictures, just the song.
It's a shuffling beat, not a gazillion miles away from Soul II Soul and so many dance tunes of a decade earlier. It's a repetitive bassline, slippery and disconcerting. The lyric goes on about "a one way ticket to a madman's destination", as though that's where we are all headed. And - oh! - those harmonies!
Only later did we get to see the trio. They weren't perky and smiling like holiday reps. No, these were kids just like us, a bit moody and a bit sullen and more than a bit honest.
In retrospect, we needed "Overload". We needed pop music with some depth, with a bit of grit. We needed pop made by folk who would go out after dark and not dress up like they were at Maplins' holiday camp. The original lineup split in 2001, and by the time the Sugababes disbanded a decade later not a single original member was left.
And yes, I still think the vocal lift on "About you now" is one of pop's most thrilling moments, and the video is cool as anything. Sometimes, I've got to play the seedings: other voters chose "Overload" and "Freak like me", and it would be criminal not to put the Sugababes somewhere.
