Suddenly I See
Encyclopedia
"Suddenly I See" is a song by British singer-songwriter KT Tunstall
and is featured on her debut album, Eye to the Telescope
. It was released on 29 August 2005 as the third single (second single in United States
) from the album, charting at #12 in the UK Singles Chart
(see 2005 in British music
). The single was a hit in Australia
where it charted at #6 on the ARIA Singles Chart. It was also certified gold by ARIA for sales of 35,000 copies.
The song was Tunstall's highest charting in the United Kingdom
, and spent 26 weeks in the Top 75 Singles. "Suddenly I See" won her an Ivor Novello Award
in 2006 in the category of Best Song Musically and Lyrically. It is inspired by New York singer and poet Patti Smith
, whose album cover for Horses
also inspired Tunstall's album cover for Eye to the Telescope.
to "female power", inspired by and about American musician
/songwriter
Patti Smith
. Smith inspired Tunstall to a career in music as described in the lyrics through Tunstall looking at a picture of a woman's face, "the photograph of Patti Smith on the cover of Horses
", and, admiring her strength and accomplishments, suddenly realising what she wants to do with her life. Commenting on the song's later use in Devil Wears Prada, Tunstall said, "I didn't realize the lyrics could perfectly fit a chick flick
, and it could sound like I was singing about wanting to be a fucking model!"
The music has been described as featuring a "chugging rhythm" with a "guitar-bass focused beat", as "compelling", and with "urgency", and having a "shiny production". Although the real focus might be on her "clear vocals", "it's in the growls...that Tunstall truly commands attention". Stylistically, it has been described as a "blues-country-pop hybrid". It also has a Blue-eyed soul
sound.
after being featured prominently at the beginning of the movie The Devil Wears Prada
. The song also features at the end of the film Blind Dating
, which was released in the same year, starring Chris Pine
. It was also the farewell music for female contestants eliminated from the television show So You Think You Can Dance, featured on the season finale of the MTV show The Hills, at the end of a Ghost Whisperer
season two episode, and the series premiere of Ugly Betty
. Jennie Garth
and Derek Hough
performed a quickstep
to a cover of the song for their performance in week 2 of season 5 of Dancing with the Stars
. Tunstall also performed the song live on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The song was one of the candidates for Hillary Clinton's campaign song
for her 2008 presidential campaign
. It features in the Torchwood
episode "Greeks Bearing Gifts
". The song is featured on the soundtrack of the game Thrillville
in the park radio stations.
The song came to be satirised in an episode of Best Week Ever
, which mocked the concept of how films and television shows frequently played it during uplifting, feminist scenes, and went on to play the song while contrastingly depicting degrading images of women working in sweatshops and strip clubs.
It also appears as an on-disk track in the game Lego Rock Band
, in the PlayStation 2 version of Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA 2
, as well as in Brazilian soap opera Belíssima (2006), and the Nintendo DS
version of Band Hero
. It was also on the game Imagine Fashion Deisigner New York
"
s, one for Britain, one for the USA, and one animated.
The British version, directed by Big TV!, is a simple performance video in which Tunstall and her band play across from another set of Tunstall and her band.
The American version, directed by Patrick Daughters
features Tunstall in different situations involving a circus in Romania
. Filmed in Bucharest
the video was produced by Black Dog Films and serviced by local production company Domino Productions with producer Catalin Neagu. This version aired for a short time in the US and has seemingly been replaced in rotations by the animated version.
The animated version, directed by Honey (i.e., the husband-and-wife directorial team of Laura Kelly and Nicholas Brooks), features Tunstall walking around an animated pop-up fantasy world, and engages in activities such as walking up giant guitars, riding miniature trains, and drifting off into space.
KT Tunstall
Kate Victoria "KT" Tunstall is a Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist from St Andrews, Scotland. She broke into the public eye with a 2004 live solo performance of her song "Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" on Later... with Jools Holland...
and is featured on her debut album, Eye to the Telescope
Eye to the Telescope
Reviews for Eye to the Telescope were positive. Mark A. Price of PopMatters gave the album a score of 7 out of 10, noting that it manages to sound "both new and familiar", mixing influences from artists like Melissa Etheridge and Fiona Apple while adding some originality of her own...
. It was released on 29 August 2005 as the third single (second single in United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
) from the album, charting at #12 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
(see 2005 in British music
2005 in British music
This is a summary of 2005 in music in the United Kingdom, including the official charts. Average sales for a number one were 80,437 per week.-Summary:...
). The single was a hit in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
where it charted at #6 on the ARIA Singles Chart. It was also certified gold by ARIA for sales of 35,000 copies.
The song was Tunstall's highest charting in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and spent 26 weeks in the Top 75 Singles. "Suddenly I See" won her an Ivor Novello Award
Ivor Novello Awards
The Ivor Novello Awards, named after the Cardiff born entertainer Ivor Novello, are awards for songwriting and composing. They are presented annually in London by the British Academy of Songwriters, Composers and Authors and were first introduced in 1955.Nicknamed The Ivors, the awards take place...
in 2006 in the category of Best Song Musically and Lyrically. It is inspired by New York singer and poet Patti Smith
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
, whose album cover for Horses
Horses (album)
"Horses" is often cited as one of the greatest albums in music history. In 2003, the album was ranked number 44 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. NME named the album number 1 in its list "20 Near-as-Damn-It Perfect Initial Efforts"...
also inspired Tunstall's album cover for Eye to the Telescope.
Music and lyrics
The song itself is a tributeTribute
A tribute is wealth, often in kind, that one party gives to another as a sign of respect or, as was often the case in historical contexts, of submission or allegiance. Various ancient states, which could be called suzerains, exacted tribute from areas they had conquered or threatened to conquer...
to "female power", inspired by and about American musician
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
/songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
Patti Smith
Patti Smith
Patricia Lee "Patti" Smith is an American singer-songwriter, poet and visual artist, who became a highly influential component of the New York City punk rock movement with her 1975 debut album Horses....
. Smith inspired Tunstall to a career in music as described in the lyrics through Tunstall looking at a picture of a woman's face, "the photograph of Patti Smith on the cover of Horses
Horses (album)
"Horses" is often cited as one of the greatest albums in music history. In 2003, the album was ranked number 44 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. NME named the album number 1 in its list "20 Near-as-Damn-It Perfect Initial Efforts"...
", and, admiring her strength and accomplishments, suddenly realising what she wants to do with her life. Commenting on the song's later use in Devil Wears Prada, Tunstall said, "I didn't realize the lyrics could perfectly fit a chick flick
Chick flick
Chick flick is a slang term for a film mainly dealing with love and romance designed to appeal to a female target audience. Although many types of films may be directed toward the female gender, "chick flick" is typically used only in reference to films that are heavy with emotion or contain themes...
, and it could sound like I was singing about wanting to be a fucking model!"
The music has been described as featuring a "chugging rhythm" with a "guitar-bass focused beat", as "compelling", and with "urgency", and having a "shiny production". Although the real focus might be on her "clear vocals", "it's in the growls...that Tunstall truly commands attention". Stylistically, it has been described as a "blues-country-pop hybrid". It also has a Blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul
Blue-eyed soul is a media term that was used to describe rhythm and blues and soul music performed by white artists, with a strong pop music influence. The term was first used in the mid-1960s to describe white artists who performed soul and R&B that was similar to the music of the Motown and...
sound.
Media use
In the summer of 2006, "Suddenly I See" became popular in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
after being featured prominently at the beginning of the movie The Devil Wears Prada
The Devil Wears Prada (film)
The Devil Wears Prada is a 2006 comedy-drama film, a loose screen adaptation of Lauren Weisberger's 2003 novel of the same name. It stars Anne Hathaway as Andrea Sachs, a recent college graduate who goes to New York City and gets a job as a co-assistant to powerful and demanding fashion magazine...
. The song also features at the end of the film Blind Dating
Blind Dating
Blind Dating is a 2006 romantic comedy film directed by James Keach and starring Chris Pine, Eddie Kaye Thomas, Anjali Jay, Jane Seymour, and Jayma Mays. The movie is produced by David Shanks and James Keach and is distributed by Samuel Goldwyn Films LLC.During its release, the film received...
, which was released in the same year, starring Chris Pine
Chris Pine
Christopher Whitelaw "Chris" Pine is an American actor. He has appeared in the romantic comedies The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement and Just My Luck , as well as the action films Smokin' Aces and Unstoppable . In 2009, he portrayed James T...
. It was also the farewell music for female contestants eliminated from the television show So You Think You Can Dance, featured on the season finale of the MTV show The Hills, at the end of a Ghost Whisperer
Ghost Whisperer
Ghost Whisperer is an American television supernatural drama, which ran on CBS from September 23, 2005 to May 21, 2010.The series follows the life of Melinda Gordon , who has the ability to see and communicate with ghosts...
season two episode, and the series premiere of Ugly Betty
Ugly Betty
Ugly Betty is an American comedy-drama television series developed by Silvio Horta, which premiered on ABC on September 28, 2006, and ended on April 14, 2010. The series revolves around the character Betty Suarez and is based on Fernando Gaitán's Colombian telenovela soap opera Yo soy Betty, la fea...
. Jennie Garth
Jennie Garth
Jennifer Eve "Jennie" Garth is an American actress and director, best known for starring in the prominent role of Kelly Taylor throughout the Beverly Hills, 90210 franchise...
and Derek Hough
Derek Hough
Derek Hough is an American dancer, choreographer, musician and actor. A world champion in Latin American Dance, Hough has appeared since September 2007 on the hit U.S...
performed a quickstep
Quickstep
The quickstep is a light-hearted member of the standard ballroom dances. The movement of the dance is fast and powerfully flowing and sprinkled with syncopations. The upbeat melodies that quickstep is danced to make it suitable for both formal and informal events...
to a cover of the song for their performance in week 2 of season 5 of Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
. Tunstall also performed the song live on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno. The song was one of the candidates for Hillary Clinton's campaign song
Campaign song
Campaign songs are partisan ditties used in American political canvasses and more especially in presidential contests. The words were commonly set to established melodies like "Yankee Doodle," "Hail, Columbia," "Rosin the Bow," "Hail to the Chief" "John Brown's Body," "Dixie" and "O Tannenbaum" ;...
for her 2008 presidential campaign
Hillary Clinton presidential campaign, 2008
New York junior Senator and former First Lady Hillary Rodham Clinton had expressed interest in the 2008 United States presidential election since at least October 2002, drawing media speculation on whether she would become a candidate. No woman has ever won the nomination of a major party in the...
. It features in the Torchwood
Torchwood
Torchwood is a British science fiction television programme created by Russell T Davies. The series is a spin-off from Davies's 2005 revival of the long-running science fiction programme Doctor Who. The show has shifted its broadcast channel each series to reflect its growing audience, moving from...
episode "Greeks Bearing Gifts
Greeks Bearing Gifts (Torchwood)
"Greeks Bearing Gifts" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Torchwood. It is the seventh episode of the first series, which was broadcast on 26 November 2006.-Synopsis:...
". The song is featured on the soundtrack of the game Thrillville
Thrillville
Thrillville is a simulation and strategy video game that depicts theme park management, very similar to RollerCoaster Tycoon 3, which Frontier Developments also created. Thrillville is currently available for PlayStation 2, PSP and Xbox.-Plot:...
in the park radio stations.
The song came to be satirised in an episode of Best Week Ever
Best Week Ever
Best Week Ever is a weekly television program on the United States cable/satellite network VH1. It started airing in 2004 and was put on hiatus in the summer of 2009...
, which mocked the concept of how films and television shows frequently played it during uplifting, feminist scenes, and went on to play the song while contrastingly depicting degrading images of women working in sweatshops and strip clubs.
It also appears as an on-disk track in the game Lego Rock Band
Lego Rock Band
Lego Rock Band is a music video game and part of the Rock Band series developed by Harmonix Music Systems, but also incorporates elements from other Lego video games as developed by Traveller's Tales. The game is published by Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment and MTV Games...
, in the PlayStation 2 version of Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA 2
Dance Dance Revolution SuperNova 2
Dance Dance Revolution SuperNOVA 2 is an arcade game in the Dance Dance Revolution series of music video games. It was produced by Konami and released through Betson Enterprises. The game was released in Japan in August, 2007, while the North American version was released several months later. The...
, as well as in Brazilian soap opera Belíssima (2006), and the Nintendo DS
Nintendo DS
The is a portable game console produced by Nintendo, first released on November 21, 2004. A distinctive feature of the system is the presence of two separate LCD screens, the lower of which is a touchscreen, encompassed within a clamshell design, similar to the Game Boy Advance SP...
version of Band Hero
Band Hero
Band Hero is a spinoff video game as part of the Guitar Hero series of music video games, released by Activision on November 3, 2009, for the PlayStation 2, PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, Wii and Nintendo DS consoles...
. It was also on the game Imagine Fashion Deisigner New York
"
Music video
There are three different music videoMusic video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
s, one for Britain, one for the USA, and one animated.
The British version, directed by Big TV!, is a simple performance video in which Tunstall and her band play across from another set of Tunstall and her band.
The American version, directed by Patrick Daughters
Patrick Daughters
Patrick Daughters is an American music video and commercial director currently signed to The Directors Bureau, after departing Black Dog Films in late 2006....
features Tunstall in different situations involving a circus in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. Filmed in Bucharest
Bucharest
Bucharest is the capital municipality, cultural, industrial, and financial centre of Romania. It is the largest city in Romania, located in the southeast of the country, at , and lies on the banks of the Dâmbovița River....
the video was produced by Black Dog Films and serviced by local production company Domino Productions with producer Catalin Neagu. This version aired for a short time in the US and has seemingly been replaced in rotations by the animated version.
The animated version, directed by Honey (i.e., the husband-and-wife directorial team of Laura Kelly and Nicholas Brooks), features Tunstall walking around an animated pop-up fantasy world, and engages in activities such as walking up giant guitars, riding miniature trains, and drifting off into space.
Track listings
In the UK, the song was released on three formats for the single release. In the US, it was released only to radio.- 7" REL21
- "Suddenly I See" (single version)
- "Moment of Madness" (live)
- CD RELCD21
- "Suddenly I See" (single version)
- "Girl & the Ghost"
- DVD RELDVD21
- "Suddenly I See" (video)
- "Miniature Disasters" (live at GlastonburyGlastonbury FestivalThe Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts, commonly abbreviated to Glastonbury or even Glasto, is a performing arts festival that takes place near Pilton, Somerset, England, best known for its contemporary music, but also for dance, comedy, theatre, circus, cabaret and other arts.The...
video) - "Get Ur Freak OnGet Ur Freak On"Get Ur Freak On" is a hip hop song written by American rapper/singer Missy Elliott and her producer Tim "Timbaland" Mosley for Elliott's third studio album Miss E... So Addictive. Released as the album's first single in 2001, the track reached #7 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, becoming Missy...
" (BBC Radio 1 Live LoungeLive LoungeThe Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio station BBC Radio 1. Originally hosted by Jo Whiley on her mid-morning radio show and now hosted by Fearne Cotton, it exhibits well-known artists usually performing one song of their own and one by another artist, in an acoustic format...
)- Europe CD
- "Suddenly I See" (single version)
- "Girl & the Ghost"
- "Moment of Madness"
- "Get Ur Freak On" (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)
- Australia CD
- "Suddenly I See" (single version)
- "Other Side of the World" (single version)
- "Black Horse and the Cherry TreeBlack Horse and the Cherry Tree"Black Horse and the Cherry Tree" is a song by Scottish singer-songwriter KT Tunstall and is featured on her debut album, Eye to the Telescope. It was released on 21 February 2005 as the lead single from the album, charting at #28 in the UK Singles Chart...
" (single version) - "Get Ur Freak On" (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)
- iTunes Single
- "Suddenly I See" (single version)
- "Suddenly I See" (live at Webster Hall)
- Promo CD
- "Suddenly I See" (radio version) 3:11
- "Suddenly I See" (instrumental) 3:11
Chart performance
| Chart (2005/2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... Singles Chart |
6 |
| Canadian BDS Charts | 33 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
25 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 36 |
| New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart | 5 |
| Spain Los 40 principales | 16 |
| UK Airplay Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
12 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
21 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 Pop 100 The Pop 100 was a songs chart that debuted in February 2005 and was released weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States until its discontinuation in 2009... |
21 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 10 |
External links
- Video at Virgin Media