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We Almost Got It Together

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"We Almost Got It Together"
Single by Tanita Tikaram
from the album The Sweet Keeper
B-side"Love Story"
Released2 January 1990[1]
RecordedOctober 1988
GenreFolk rock
LabelEast West Records
Songwriter(s)Tanita Tikaram
Producer(s)Peter van Hooke
Rod Argent
Tanita Tikaram singles chronology
"World Outside Your Window"
(1989) 		"We Almost Got It Together"
(1990) 		"Little Sister Leaving Town"
(1990)

"We Almost Got It Together" is a song by British singer-songwriter Tanita Tikaram, released in 1990 as the lead single from her second studio album, The Sweet Keeper (1990). It was written by Tikaram, and produced by Peter van Hooke and Rod Argent. The song was a top 30 hit in Finland, Ireland and Italy, while peaking within the top 40 in Belgium and the Netherlands.

Critical reception

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Upon its release, Adam Sweeting of The Guardian commented: "The single suggests that for the time being, the Basingstoke Balladress is sticking to the tried and true. It's pleasantly uptempo and has a saxophone on it to offset Tanita's brown, sombre voice, though it's unlikely to gain admission to anybody's list of all-time classics."[2] Simon Frith of The Observer noted: "Tikaram hasn't been changed at all by success - she's still gloomy in an overblown, wordy, sweeping sort of way."[3]

Music & Media wrote: "A jolly song with an uptempo feel and catchy guitar riff. Radio friendly and very pleasant."[4] Tim Southwell of Record Mirror praised the song for being more similar to the "majestic" "Good Tradition" rather than Tikaram's following singles which Southwell felt contained lyrics "that made most of the country want to hide in their sleeping bags". He described "We Almost Got It Together" as "an important step back in the right direction of pure pop rather than crass self-indulgence".[5]

In a review of The Sweet Keeper, Jasmine Hightower of The Daily Tar Heel described the song as a "charming, happy-go-lucky song with an even beat that glides through the air and gently purrs into the ear."[6] David Okamoto of the Tampa Bay Times noted the song's "chugging guitars" and "soulful saxophone solo". He added: "[It's] the album's most engaging track and joins her previous LP's "Good Tradition" and "World Outside Your Window" as convincing proof of her remarkably keen pop sense."[7] Brent Ainsworth of the Santa Cruz Sentinel considered the song a "lame, unsexy love song with a pitifully sophomoric melody."[8]

Track listing

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  • 7" and cassette single
  1. "We Almost Got It Together" - 3:59
  2. "Love Story" - 3:16
  • 12" and CD single
  1. "We Almost Got It Together" - 3:59
  2. "Love Story" - 3:16
  3. "Over You All" (Studio Version) - 3:17
  • CD single
  1. "We Almost Got It Together" - 3:59
  2. "Love Story" - 3:16
  3. "Over You All" (Studio Version) - 3:17
  4. "Rose on Wood" - 4:30
  • CD single (US promo)
  1. "We Almost Got It Together" (LP Version) - 3:59

Personnel

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Production

  • Peter van Hooke, Rod Argent - producers, mixing
  • Simon Hurrell - engineer, mixing

Other

  • T & CP Associates - design, illustration
  • Deborah Feingold - photography

Charts

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Chart (1990) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[9] 116
Belgium (Ultratop Flanders)[10] 40
Canada Top Singles (RPM) 89
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[11] 24
Ireland (IRMA)[12] 28
Italy (Musica e dischi)[13] 22
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[14] 34
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[15] 38
UK Singles (OCC)[16] 52
West Germany (GfK Entertainment Charts)[17] 50
European Airplay (European Hit Radio)[18] 3

References

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  1. ^ Lloyd, Simon (29 December 1989). "Grand time for Otis and his band". Reading Evening Post.
  2. ^ Sweeting, Adam (11 January 1990). "D'Arby winner". The Guardian.
  3. ^ Frith, Simon (7 January 1990). "Records". The Observer.
  4. ^ "Previews: Singles". Music & Media. 13 January 1990.
  5. ^ Southwell, Tim (6 January 1990). "Singles". Record Mirror. p. 14.
  6. ^ Hightower, Jasmine (15 February 1990). "European folk lulls you to sleep". The Daily Tar Heel.
  7. ^ Okamoto, David (16 February 1990). "Tikaram's the keeper of her musical faith". The Tampa Bay Times.
  8. ^ Ainsworth, Brent (9 March 1990). "They should save the hype for someone who can sing". The Santa Cruz Sentinel.
  9. ^ "Response from ARIA re: Tanita Tikaram ARIA singles chart history, received 19 September 2017". Imgur.com. Retrieved 19 September 2017. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the single's peak on the national chart.
  10. ^ "Ultratop Vlaanderen > Zoeken naar: Tanita Tikaram (songs)" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  11. ^ Pennanen, Timo (2021). "Tanita Tikaram". Sisältää hitin - 2. laitos Levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla 1.1.1960–30.6.2021 (PDF) (in Finnish). Helsinki: Kustannusosakeyhtiö Otava. p. 259. Retrieved 8 July 2022.
  12. ^ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know > Search results for Tanita Tikaram (from irishcharts.ie)". Imgur.com (original source published by Fireball Media). Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  13. ^ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved 8 June 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Tanita Tikaram".
  14. ^ "top40.nl > Tanita Tikaram in Dutch Top 40" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 June 2022.
  15. ^ "dutchcharts.nl > Tanita Tikaram in Dutch Charts" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  16. ^ "Official Charts > Tanita Tikaram". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  17. ^ "Tanita Tikaram – We Almost Got It Together (single)" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 19 September 2017.
  18. ^ "European Airplay Top 50" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 7, no. 6. September 24, 1988. p. 17. Retrieved July 9, 2024.
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