"Ain't No Love" is a song by British dance act Sub Sub. It was released as a single in March 1993 and features Temper Temper's Melanie Williams on vocals. In the music video, Jimi Goodwin plays bass, Jez Williams plays keyboards and percussion, and Andy Williams plays keytar. This song was the act's biggest single, reaching number 3 in the UK Singles Chart and becoming one of many dance singles in 1993 to cross over into mainstream popularity in the UK. "Ain't No Love " also peaked at number 11 in Australia, number 13 in Ireland, number 18 in the Netherlands and number 23 in Israel. On the Eurochart Hot 100, it reached number 11. After struggling to repeat the success of the single, and after a fire destroyed the band's Ancoats studio in 1996, the group eventually reformed with a radically different sound as Doves in 1998.
Background and release
Twin brothers Andy and Jez used to go to a fair when they were kids. One day Andy won a record there. They brought it home and played it, but didn't like it. The record was put away. In 1991, after Sub Sub had a hit with "Space Face" they wanted to make a follow-up to it. They spent time searching for the right sample they could use in the new song. Then Jez put the forgotten record from the fair on. It was "Good Morning Starshine" by Revelation. Jimi learned to play the bassline on a Roland Juno-106 keyboard, and the whole track came together quickly. There is also another well-known sample on there, but it has never been officially known what it is, only that it is a sound, rather than a song. The band had only done instrumental and wanted to find someone to sing lyrics to their melody. Jimi's bestfriend, Joe Roberts were dating singer Melanie Williams from the soul band Temper Temper at that time. They contacted her and she thought it was perfect. Williams also wrote the third verse for the song. The track was then recorded at Revolution Studios in Manchester. Sub Sub's manager Dave Rofe, Rob's Records' Pete Robinson and North South's promoter Karen Hampton were targeting BBC Radio 1 and tastemaking DJ Pete Tong to give the song a listen. He got right behind it and it spread like wildfire through Radio 1. The band and Williams also performed the song on the British music chart television programmeTop of the Pops after they was the highest new entry at number 10 on the UK Singles Chart. The single sold in 700,000 copies and peaked at number 3 in April 1993.
Critical reception
Tom Ewing from Freaky Trigger described "Ain't No Love " as a "excellent" and "tune-heavy, hands-high dance-pop". Katrine Ring from Gaffa said "it is almost like hearing Deelite. Grooovey!" Australian music channelMax placed the song at number 604 in their list of 1000 Greatest Songs of All Time in 2012. Music & Media wrote that "the arrangements are smoothly funky and combined with a voice that soothes like honey and rings like a bell, you can feel that real party enthusiasm which is so reminiscent of late '70s disco."
