| Chocolate | ||
|---|---|---|
| ||
| Single by Kylie Minogue | ||
| From the album Body Language | ||
| B-side | "City Games" · "Love at First Sight" (Live) | |
| Released | 28 June 2004 | |
| Length | 5:00 (Album version) 4:02 (Single version) | |
| Label | Parlophone | |
| Writer(s) | Karen Poole · Johnny Douglas | |
| Producer(s) | Johnny Douglas | |
| Kylie Minogue singles chronology | ||
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| Body Language track listing | ||
| "Red Blooded Woman" (6) |
"Chocolate" (7) |
"Obsession" (8) |
| Music Video | ||
| ||
"Chocolate" is a song by Kylie Minogue, taken from her ninth studio album Body Language (2003). It was written by its producer Johnny Douglas and Karen Poole. The song is a ballad which uses a chocolate simile to describe Kylie's obsession with love. It contains elements of disco and funk and employs breathy and whispery vocals. It was released as the third and final single from the album on 28 June 2004 by Parlophone.
Critical reception towards "Chocolate" varied from favourable to mixed; some critics favoured its commercial appeal and Kylie's vocals, while some criticised it for being dated. In Australia, the song failed to reach the top ten and peaked at number 14. It found more success in the United Kingdom, where it became her 27th top-ten hit after it debuted at number six on the UK Singles Chart. The single also charted inside the top twenty in Hungary and Italy.
A music video for "Chocolate" was directed by Dawn Shadforth and was envisioned as a tribute to Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer musicals. It chiefly features Minogue and numerous backup dancers, in a hall, performing a dance routine choreographed by Michael Rooney. The song was performed live by Minogue at the one-off concert show Money Can't Buy and TV show Top of the Pops. "Chocolate" was included on the set list of the singer's Showgirl and Homecoming tours.
Background and composition[]
Following the global success of her eighth studio album Fever, Kylie began working on her ninth studio album Body Language. Aiming to create a dance-pop album inspired by electronic music from the 1980s, Kylie enlisted collaborators such as Johnny Douglas (who had previously worked with her on Light Years) and Karen Poole. The duo wrote "Chocolate" together, while Douglas also handled the production of the song. According to Kylie's official website, "Chocolate" was one of her favourites from the album.
"Chocolate" is a ballad that borrows influences from numerous genres including disco and funk music. Kylie's vocals are synthesised and are delivered in a breathy and whispery manner. According to music magazine Spin, the song describes Kylie's "addiction to love" through a chocolate simile. PopMatters critic Adrien Begrand called its lyrics "steamy," citing the line "Hold me and control me and then/ Melt me slowly down" as an example. Helen Pidd from The Guardian found the lyrics to be "packed with saccharine innuendo."
Release[]
Appearing as the seventh track on Body Language, "Chocolate" was released as the album's third and final single in June 2004; the single was released as in CD, maxi single, 12" vinyl and digital download formats, with various remixes appearing alongside it. "City Games", one of the first tracks written for Body Language, appeared as one of the single's main B-sides, alongside the Money Can't Buy live performance of "Love at First Sight".
The song was initially selected as a potential lead single for the album, but was held back once "Slow" was recorded. It also featured a verse by rapper Ludacris, which came after the bridge of the song; Kylie allegedly wasn't happy with the rap and how it sounded on the track, so it was discarded; Ludacris used this verse for his feature on "Rockin' That Shit (Remix)" in 2009.
Reception[]
Critical response[]
Kylie performing "Chocolate" during Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour (2006).
The A.V. Club critic Andy Battaglia felt the ballad was successful in terms of execution and described it as "a breeze of finger-snap funk." Adrien Begrand from PopMatters singled it out as a highlight from the second half of Body Language, commenting that it "keeps the last half of the album from being a complete waste of time." Favouring Kylie's vocal performance, Eric Seguy from Stylus Magazine wrote: "Kylie proves herself to be a consummate entertainer, breezing through the chill muzak of "Promises" and "Chocolate"'s wild disco jam with equal ease." Slant Magazine editor Sal Cinquemani likened Kylie's vocals to that of British electronic music duo Mono and felt the tone of the song resembled the "gauzy melancholy" of Madonna's 1994 album Bedtime Stories. A mixed review came from The Guardian critic Helen Pidd, who acknowledged the song's commercial appeal but felt it "sounds too dated to pack any punch in the age of Beyoncé and Missy Elliott." Spin magazine criticised the vocals for being over-processed and the lyrics for lacking substance. The magazine also felt that the theme of the song had already been covered by "minor artists" like American singer–songwriter Mandy Moore.
Commercial performance[]
In Australia, "Chocolate" debuted and peaked at number 14 on the ARIA Singles Chart, becoming her first single since "Your Disco Needs You" (2001) to miss the top ten. Its chart run was brief and lasted for four weeks. Similarly, it entered the top 20 of the Italian Singles Chart at number 14 and dropped out the next week. The single was more successful in the United Kingdom, entering and peaking at number six on the UK Singles Chart and spending a total of seven weeks inside the top 100. It became Kylie's 27th top ten hit in the country
Music video[]
The music video for "Chocolate" was directed by Dawn Shadforth, while the dance sequences were choreographed by Michael Rooney. Shadforth and Rooney had previously worked with Kylie on the video of her 2001 single "Can't Get You Out of My Head". The video was conceptualised as a tribute to old musicals produced by American media company Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. It featured a 40-second long ballet routine for which Kylie was coached by Rooney for four days. She admitted that the practise sessions were exhausting, but felt the final product became "classy" as a result. The singer felt "lucky" to be able to incorporate a ballet routine in the video and opined that it was "a lot different" from the rest of her repertoire. Julie Aspinall, author of the book Kylie: Queen of the World, wrote that Kylie adopted a "Gallic chic style" for the video. Aspinall felt that Kylie "absolutely looked the part" and suggested it was due to her being influenced by then-boyfriend Olivier Martinez, a French actor. At the 10th Annual American Choreography Awards in 2004, Rooney was nominated for the "Outstanding Achievement in Choreography – Music Video" award for "Chocolate".
The video begins with a shot of Kylie posing in a dark room, dressed in a sparkling costume on which rainbow-lighting is projected. She is then shown in front of a wall wearing a flowing maroon dress. As the intro ends and the first verse commences, Kylie appears in a hall and performs various dance routine with numerous female dancers clad in nude bodysuits. The singer's attire consists of a pleated red organza dress designed by Austrian fashion designer Helmut Lang (in 2006, Kylie donated this costume to the Arts Centre Melbourne museum, where it is displayed in the Kylie Minogue Collection). Shots of the dancers in kaleidoscopic arrangements are intercut. A few seconds later, Kylie and a man dance together alone in a hall. Their dance ends with the man slowly laying Kylie down on the floor and leaving. Twelve women in golden and pastel pink dresses are seen dancing on a dark brown floor, which is revealed to be Kylie's hat as the camera pans out. She proceeds to wave to a distant person and then plucks the petals out of a pink rose she is holding. The rest of the video randomly intersperses all of the previous scenes.
Live performances[]
The song's first performance was at a one-off concert show, Money Can't Buy, which was held at entertainment venue Hammersmith Apollo, London, on 15 November 2003 to promote Body Language. "Chocolate" was included on the set list of the concert and was performed during the second act "Bardello". On 25 June 2004, Kylie appeared on British music chart television programme Top of the Pops to perform the song live. She sang "Chocolate" for the second time on the programme on 9 July.
"Chocolate" was included on the set list of Kylie's Showgirl: The Greatest Hits Tour in 2005. Kylie was unable to complete the tour as she was diagnosed with early breast cancer and had to cancel the Australian leg of the tour. After undergoing treatment and recovery, she resumed the concert tour in the form of Showgirl: The Homecoming Tour in 2007, and "Chocolate" was again added to the set list.
Lyrics[]
Fragile seams,
I opened up too quick and all my dreams,
Were woken up
I'd slowly lost my fire,
With every single man a river cried
I had no sensation,
Completely numb, left with no satisfaction,
I thought no one could ever get me high again,
I swear, I was not looking
Oh, waited so long,
I thought the real thing was a fake,
I thought it was a tool to break me down,
You proved me wrong again
If love were liquid it would drown me,
In a placeless place would find me,
In a heart shape come around me and then,
Melt me slowly down,
If love were human it would know me,
In a lost space come and show me,
Hold me and control me and then,
Melt me slowly down
Like chocolate
Tastes so good,
My heart's been mended who'd have thought it would,
An empty bet and still I won the cash,
A man who I love and who,
Loves me back
Oh, waited so long,
For love to heal me so I'd feel it,
Thought it wasn't breathing then you came,
You proved me wrong again
If love were liquid it would drown me,
In a placeless place would find me,
In a heart shape come around me and then,
Melt me slowly down,
If love were human it would know me,
In a lost space come and show me,
Hold me and control me and then,
Melt me slowly down
Like chocolate come here,
Zoom in, catch the smile,
There's no doubt it's from you,
And I'm addicted to it now
[2x]
Just one look boy to melt me down,
Just one heart here to save me now,
Your candy kisses are sweet I know,
Hold me tight baby don't let go,
Just one look boy to melt me down,
Just one heart here to save me now,
Your candy kisses are sweet I know,
Hold me tight baby don't let go
[2x]
If love were liquid it would drown me,
In a placeless place would find me,
In a heart shape come around me and then,
Melt me slowly down,
If love were human it would know me,
In a lost space come and show me,
Hold me and control me and then,
Melt me slowly down
Like chocolate
Now let me take you to a place
Far beyond in a whole 'nother galaxy
Travel in your mind, explore your sexuality
Melt your imagination and mold it into reality
Your hearts my art gallery girl
Can you feel the pictures that I painted?
'Cause all of them are related
Like a mother to a son, but none of them overrated
Ain't no others, you the one, our destiny is to make it
Got to thank you just for sharin' your world (Ooh like chocolate)
It's so real and inspirational, no reason for thinkin' I am incapable
Of takin on the duty, of makin' you interchangeable (Oh)
The thought is sensational, it's perfect bliss
I'm ready to take the Milky Way to your Hershey's Kiss (Oh)
You know my tongue's got batteries in it
The bedroom we lose calories in it, and start families in it
And don't worry cause the situation is under control
Peep this, Ludacris down with Kylie Minogue
