Tough Love (Jessie Ware album)

Tough Love is the second studio album by English singer Jessie Ware.[1] It was released on 13 October 2014 in the United Kingdom and 24 October 2014 in the United States.[2] The album was supported by the singles "Tough Love", "Say You Love Me", "You & I (Forever)", and "Champagne Kisses".

Tough Love
Studio album by Jessie Ware
Released	13 October 2014 (2014-10-13)
Genre	Pop R&B electronica
Length	40:21
Label	PMR Island Interscope
Producer	BenZel James Ford Dave Okumu Emile Haynie Julio Bashmore Nineteen85
Jessie Ware chronology
If You're Never Gonna Move (2013) Tough Love (2014) Glasshouse (2017)
Jessie Ware studio album chronology
Devotion (2012) Tough Love (2014) Glasshouse (2017)
Singles from Tough Love
"Tough Love" Released: 23 June 2014 "Say You Love Me" Released: 28 September 2014 "You & I (Forever)" Released: 12 January 2015 "Champagne Kisses" Released: 20 April 2015

Background

At the beginning of 2014, Ware returned to the studio to write her second album. Ed Sheeran confirmed in an interview with Daily Star that they had written a song together for the new album.[3] (The song, "Say You Love Me", was released on 13 August 2014.)[4] "Tough Love" is the first single to be taken from the new album, airing for the first time on BBC Radio 1 as "Hottest Record" during the Zane Lowe's show and slated for a UK release on 3 August 2014. "Tough Love" was compared to "Prince at his minimalist '80s best" by Pitchfork, who interviewed Ware prior to the release.[5] "Tough Love" is produced together with BenZel, the production duo composed of London post-bass producer Two Inch Punch and mega-producer Benny Blanco who Ware previously worked with on the single "If You Love Me"; Benzel are also executive producers of her new album. It has been confirmed that Kid Harpoon, Dave Okumu, Julio Bashmore, Miguel, James Ford, Nineteen85, Sam Smith and Ed Sheeran have also worked on the new album.[5]

Singles

"Tough Love", produced by BenZel, was released as the lead single from the album on 23 June 2014. The song peaked to number 34 on the UK Singles Chart, making it her first top 40 single in the UK.[6]

"Say You Love Me" was released as the second single from the album on 28 September 2014 and became her second top 40 hit, charting at number 22.[6]

"You & I (Forever)" was released as the third single from the album. The video for the song was released on 2 December 2014 and was directed by Adam Powell.[7] London-born producer Shift K3Y and Kidnap Kid remixed the track.[8]

On 17 January 2015, Ware confirmed on her Twitter account that the fourth single to be released from the album would be "Champagne Kisses".[9] Chris Sweeney directed the video, which was published on Ware's YouTube account on 11 February 2015.[10]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	74/100[11]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[12]
The A.V. Club	A–[13]
Consequence of Sound	C[14]
Fact	[15]
The Guardian	[16]
NME	7/10[17]
Pitchfork	7.3/10[18]
PopMatters	8/10[19]
Rolling Stone	[20]
Slant Magazine	[21]

Upon its release, Tough Love received generally positive reviews from music critics. According to Metacritic, which assigns a weighted average score out of 100 to ratings and reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average of 74, indicating "generally favorable reviews", based on 26 critics.[11] At AllMusic, Andy Kellman rated the album three stars out of five, claiming that Tough Love has the same "high level of sophistication" as Ware's debut album Devotion, but with "less stimulating results".[12] David Brusie of The A.V. Club graded the album an A–, describing it as a "more than worthy" follow-up to Devotion, while highlighting Ware's strengths as a singer and songwriter. At The Guardian, Caroline Sullivan gave a positive review of the album, calling it "sensual and intriguing", while describing the album's content as a "boneless elegance" with "premium product".[16]

At PopMatters, Colin Fitzgerald rated Tough Love eight discs out of ten, noting that Ware has "gone the correct route", while highlighting the album's pop and R&B sounds of "Kind Of... Sometimes... Maybe" and the minimistical ballad "Keep on Lying".[19]

Track listing

Tough Love — Standard edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Tough Love"	Jessie Ware Benny Blanco Ben Ash	BenZel	3:26
2.	"You & I (Forever)"	Ware Blanco Ash Miguel Pimentel	BenZel	3:58
3.	"Cruel"	Ware James Ford Dave Okumu	Okumu Ford	3:52
4.	"Say You Love Me"	Ware Blanco Ash Ed Sheeran	BenZel	4:17
5.	"Sweetest Song"	Ware Okumu Sam Dew	Okumu	3:27
6.	"Kind Of...Sometimes...Maybe"	Ware Blanco Ash Pimentel	BenZel	3:34
7.	"Want Your Feeling"	Ware Dev Hynes	Ford	4:21
8.	"Pieces"	Ware James Napier William Phillips	Emile Haynie Hwang	3:25
9.	"Keep on Lying"	Ware Dew Matthew Walker	Julio Bashmore	3:28
10.	"Champagne Kisses"	Ware Blanco Ash	BenZel	3:22
11.	"Desire"	Ware Paul Jefferies Tom Hull Daniel Daley Mitchum Chin	Nineteen85	3:11

Tough Love — Deluxe version (bonus tracks)[22]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
12.	"All on You"	Ware Okumu Dew	Okumu	5:13
13.	"Share It All"	Ware Romy Madley-Croft	Julio Bashmore	4:18
14.	"The Way We Are"	Ware Napier Ford	Ford	3:29
15.	"Midnight Caller"	Ware Ford	Ford	4:38

Personnel

Credits for Tough Love adapted from AllMusic.[23]

Benjamin Ash – background vocals Julio Bashmore – production BenZel – instrumentation, production, programming Daniel Butman – violin Jonny Byers – cello Gillon Cameron – violin Mitchum Chin – guitar Alex Cowper – design Calina de la Mare – violin Sam Dew – background vocals Alison Dods – violin Mikky Ekko – background vocals Blake Espy – violin Glenn Fischbach – cello James Ford – engineering, keyboards, percussion, production, synthesizer, background vocals Larry Gold – string arrangements Vincent Greene – viola Brendon Harding – engineering, vocal engineering Emile Haynie – production Sally Herbert – violin Lewis Hopkin – mastering, mastering engineer Devonté Hynes – additional production, guitar Paul Jefferies – bass, drums, guitar Jonathan Kim – viola Rick Koster – violin Emma Kummrow – violin Oliver Langford – viola Jennifer Lee – violin

Andrew Levin – background vocals Jeremy Levin – background vocals Lexxx – mixing Vicky Matthews – cello Luigi Mazzocchi – violin Laura Melhuish – violin Miguel – guitar, background vocals Nineteen85 – production Dave Okumu – bass, drum programming, guitar, keyboards, production, programming, synthesizer, background vocals Phillip A. Peterson – cello, string arrangements Tom Pigott-Smith – violin Kate Robinson – violin Sampha – background vocals Chris Sclafani – engineering, bass guitar, background vocals Ed Sheeran – background vocals Julia Singleton – violin Bradford H. Smith – assistant engineering Robert Spriggs – viola Mark "Spike" Stent – mixing Geoff Swan – assembly, assistance Leo Taylor – drums Annemarieke Van Drimmelen – photography Matthew Walker – composition Jessie Ware – composition, vocals Lucy Wilkins – violin Aryn Wüthrich – background vocals

Charts

Chart (2014–15)	Peak position
Australian Albums (ARIA)[24]	36
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[25]	29
Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[26]	61
French Albums (SNEP)[27]	172
German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[28]	71
Irish Albums (IRMA)[29]	14
New Zealand Albums (RMNZ)[30]	32
Polish Albums (ZPAV)[31]	6
Scottish Albums (OCC)[32]	11
Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[33]	40
UK Albums (OCC)[34]	9
US Billboard 200[35]	50

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Poland (ZPAV)[36]	2× Platinum	40,000^*
United Kingdom (BPI)[37]	Silver	60,000^*
United States	None	6,000[38]
^*sales figures based on certification alone

Release history

Region	Date	Label	Format(s)	Edition
United Kingdom	13 October 2014	PMR Island	CD LP digital download	Standard deluxe
United States	24 October 2014	Cherrytree Interscope

References

1. "Jessie Ware Announces Album Title, Tough Love, Shares Art". Pitchfork. Retrieved 15 September 2014.
2. "Jessie Ware teams up with award-winning directors for 'Say You Love Me' video". NME.com.
3. "Ed Sheeran working with Jessie Ware on her new album". digitalspy.co.uk/. Retrieved 26 May 2014.
4. "Jessie Ware - Say You Love Me (Official audio)". YouTube. Retrieved 18 October 2014.
5. "Update: Jessie Ware". Pitchfork. Retrieved 16 June 2014.
6. "Jessie Ware - The Official Charts artist archive". Official Charts Company. 1 November 2014. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
7. "Jessie Ware: You & I (Forever) - COS". Consequence of Sound. 2 December 2014. Retrieved 2 December 2014.
8. "Kidnap Kid remixes 'You and I (Forever)'". Kidnap Kid, Soundcloud. Retrieved 19 November 2014.
9. ""Champagne Kisses" to be released as fourth single, video on the way". Retrieved 17 January 2015.
10. ""Champagne Kisses" official video". Retrieved 11 February 2015.
11. "Tough Love – Jessie Ware". Metacritic. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
12. Kellman, Andy. "Tough Love – Jessie Ware". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 October 2014.
13. Brusie, David (21 October 2014). "With her dreamy sophomore effort, Jessie Ware continues to impress". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
14. Josephs, Brian (20 October 2014). "Jessie Ware – Tough Love". Consequence of Sound. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
15. Hall, Josh (14 October 2014). "Jessie Ware - Tough Love". Fact. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
16. Sullivan, Caroline (16 October 2014). "Jessie Ware: Tough Love review – sensual and intriguing". The Guardian. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
17. Renshaw, David (13 October 2014). "Jessie Ware – 'Tough Love'". NME. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
18. Mapes, Jillian (20 October 2014). "Jessie Ware: Tough Love". Pitchfork. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
19. Fitzgerald, Colin (22 October 2014). "Jessie Ware: Tough Love". PopMatters. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
20. Mejia, Paula (21 October 2014). "U.K. R&B singer makes an album that's as real as it is romantic". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 1 November 2014.
21. Cataldo, Jesse (4 October 2014). "Jessie Ware: Tough Love". Slant Magazine.
22. "iTunes - Music - Tough Love (Deluxe Edition) by Jessie Ware". iTunes Store (United States). Retrieved 2 April 2015.
23. "Tough Love (Credits)". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 April 2015.
24. "Australiancharts.com – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 July 2015.
25. "Ultratop.be – Jessie Ware – Tough Love" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
26. "Ultratop.be – Jessie Ware – Tough Love" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
27. "Lescharts.com – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
28. "Officialcharts.de – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
29. "GFK Chart-Track Albums: Week 42, 2014". Chart-Track. IRMA. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
30. "Charts.nz – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". Hung Medien. Retrieved 8 May 2015.
31. "Oficjalna lista sprzedaży :: OLiS - Official Retail Sales Chart". OLiS. Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 25 October 2014.
32. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
33. "Swisscharts.com – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
34. "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
35. "Jessie Ware Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 6 November 2014.
36. "Polish album certifications – Jessie Ware – Tough Love" (in Polish). Polish Society of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 14 September 2017.
37. "British album certifications – Jessie Ware – Tough Love". British Phonographic Industry. Select albums in the Format field. Select Silver in the Certification field. Type Tough Love in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
38. "Upcoming Releases | Hits Daily Double". Hits Daily Double. Archived from the original on 24 September 2017. Retrieved 24 September 2017.