Life Got Cold

"Life Got Cold" is a song by British girl group Girls Aloud, taken from their debut album Sound of the Underground (2003). The song was written by Miranda Cooper, Brian Higgins and his production team Xenomania, and produced by Higgins and Xenomania. Noel Gallagher of Oasis received a writing credit due to similarities with Oasis' "Wonderwall".

"Life Got Cold"
Single by Girls Aloud
from the album Sound of the Underground
B-side
Released18 August 2003
GenrePop
Length3:55
LabelPolydor
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Girls Aloud singles chronology
"No Good Advice"
(2003)		 "Life Got Cold"
(2003)		 "Jump"
(2003)
Audio sample
  • file
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Music video
"Life Got Cold" on YouTube

Released as their third single in August 2003, "Life Got Cold" became Girls Aloud's third consecutive top-three hit on the UK Singles Chart. The song peaked at number two in Ireland and Scotland, and peaked at number 14 in Belgium.

Set in an abandoned city, the music video suggests coldness and darkness with its blue hue. It portrays Girls Aloud moving in stunted movement. "Life Got Cold" was promoted through various live performances and has since been performed on three of Girls Aloud's concert tours. Described as "surprisingly poignant", the melancholic ballad received favourable reviews from contemporary music critics; however, it was criticised for its similarities with Oasis.

Background and composition

"Life Got Cold" is a ballad written in D minor.[1] The chord progressions vary throughout the song but the different chords include B♭, C, Dm, Gm, and Am.[1] Following typical verse-chorus form, the song consists of a verse followed by a bridge and chorus. The verses are "talk-sung", while the bridge and chorus are sung over guitar strumming. The middle 8 is a slower version of the bridge. The song tells the tale of young love that ended "when summer slipped away". "Life Got Cold" was a late addition to Sound of the Underground, completed by Xenomania shortly before the album's release.[2] Producer Brian Higgins did not take the idea of a Girls Aloud version of the song seriously until he heard the group sing it, because a track working "has always got to be based on an artist's performance, not the music itself. But they sang it, and they really nailed the melancholic aspect of it, and it sounded beautiful."[2] The lyrics focus on "the directionlessness of modern life."[2]

The song received attention because of similarities between the guitar riff of "Life Got Cold" and that of the 1995 Oasis hit "Wonderwall".[3][4] A BBC review stated "part of the chorus sounds like it is going to turn into Wonderwall by Oasis."[5] Warner/Chappell Music later credited Oasis songwriter Noel Gallagher.[6] Girls Aloud later made a cameo appearance in Oasis' 2007 rockumentary Lord Don't Slow Me Down.

Release

"Life Got Cold" was not originally the choice for Girls Aloud's third single. Polydor Records had originally chosen "Some Kind of Miracle" to be released, but the plan was dropped after an overwhelming fan response to "Life Got Cold". The single was released on 18 August 2003 in the UK, available as two different CD singles and a cassette single.[7] The first CD featured a cover of the Duran Duran song "Girls on Film" as the B-side, which would later become the title for a Girls Aloud DVD, as well as a remix of "No Good Advice". The disc's enhanced section features the "Life Got Cold" music video and a photo gallery. The second disc included both the radio edit and album version of "Life Got Cold", as well as the 29 Palms Remix Edit and the Stella Browne Edit. It also came with a free fold-out poster. The cassette also featured an exclusive B-side, an original track entitled "Lights, Music, Camera, Action". The photos featured on the single's artwork were reshot at the last minute, following the group's request.[2] In Australia, a CD single was issued on 29 September 2003.[8]

Reception

Critical response

"Life Got Cold" received positive reviews from music critics, although it did receive criticism due to the similarities with the song "Wonderwall" by Oasis, to which the songwriters denied claims of plagiarism.[9] BBC called the song a "charming ballad" that was "a sweet but slightly sad pop song."[5] RTÉ.ie thought "Life Got Cold" was "surprisingly poignant". AllMusic referred to it as "a solid ballad, suggesting a less intellectual Dido."[10]

Chart performance

The song entered the UK Singles Chart at number three, behind Blu Cantrell's "Breathe" and Lemar's "Dance (With U)".[11] It spent a second week in the top ten, slipping to number eight.[12] The song spent a total of nine weeks in the top 75 overall,[12] a far cry from the fourteen weeks "No Good Advice" or the twenty-one weeks that "Sound of the Underground" spent in the chart.[13][14] "Life Got Cold" also debuted at number three on the Irish Singles Chart,[15] but managed to rise to number two the following week.[16] It spent two further weeks in the top ten,[17][18] then two weeks in the top twenty.[19][20] The single barely missed the top ten of the Netherlands Top 40, instead peaking at number eleven. It has since become the group's 16th best selling single domestically.

Music video

The music video for "Life Got Cold" was directed by Phil Griffin, who previously directed the videos for "Sound of the Underground" and "No Good Advice".[21] The band members are seen in stunted movement, wandering around an abandoned city setting. Both group and individual shots are shown in various scenes. Nadine Coyle is seen in front of an abandoned building, while Sarah Harding is next to a car and a phone booth. Nicola Roberts is alone in a kitchen as pouring rain can be seen on the window. Cheryl Cole is shown in an alleyway, while Kimberley Walsh is alone on a street curb. The group are shown together on an abandoned bus, in an alley at night, and sat in front of the abandoned building. The video has a slightly blue hue to it, suggesting coldness and darkness. It also makes use of lens flares.

The video can be found on two of Girls Aloud's official DVD releases, Girls on Film (2005) and Style (2007).

Live performances

"Life Got Cold" was first performed live by Girls Aloud at two summer festivals in 2003, Pop Beach and Live & Loud. The first televised performance occurred on CD:UK on 19 July 2003. The group performed in black-and-white business casual attire, as seen in the music video and on the single's artwork. They performed on CD:UK once more the following month, although Cheryl was absent due to illness. Girls Aloud also appeared on Diggin' It, Popworld, Top of the Pops and Top of the Pops Saturday (twice).

Girls Aloud performed "Life Got Cold" on three of their concert tours. For 2005's What Will the Neighbours Say...? Tour, Girls Aloud were positioned at the top of a staircase as they sang the song in colourful, simple evening gowns. The song was given a reggae reworking for 2007's The Greatest Hits Tour.[22] The song was also included on the band's reunion tour, Ten: The Hits Tour.

Track listings and formats

Personnel

Charts

References
  1. "Life Got Cold chords by Girls Aloud". eChords. Retrieved 15 August 2010.
  2. Robinson, Peter (2009). "Life Got Cold". The Singles Boxset (Booklet). Girls Aloud. London, England: Fascination Records. p. 11.
  3. "Blu secure at number one in midweeks". CBBC Newsround. 20 August 2003. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  4. "Girls Aloud - Life Got Cold". Tourdates.co.uk. 18 August 2003. Archived from the original on 17 April 2009. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  5. Youngs, Ian (23 May 2003). "Girls Aloud trounce pop rivals". BBC News. Retrieved 25 February 2008.
  6. "Life Got Cold". Warner/Chappell Music. Archived from the original on 17 April 2009. Retrieved 2 November 2008.
  7. "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 16 August 2003. p. 27. Retrieved 8 September 2021.
  8. "The ARIA Report: New Releases Singles – Week Commencing 29th September 2003" (PDF). ARIA. 29 September 2003. p. 25. Archived from the original (PDF) on 6 October 2003. Retrieved 15 May 2021.
  9. Anne-Louise Foley (13 June 2003). "Girls Aloud - Sound of the Underground". RTÉ.ie. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  10. Johnny Loftus. "Sound of the Underground". AllMusic. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  11. "Fame Academy's Lemar dances in at two". CBBC Newsround. 24 August 2003. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  12. "Life Got Cold". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2 June 2008.
  13. "No Good Advice". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  14. "Sound of the Underground". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  15. "Top 50 singles, week ending 21 August 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  16. "Top 50 singles, week ending 28 August 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 29 February 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  17. "Top 50 singles, week ending 4 September 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  18. "Top 50 singles, week ending 11 September 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 2 October 2013. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  19. "Top 50 singles, week ending 18 September 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 10 May 2012. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  20. "Top 50 singles, week ending 25 September 2003". Irish Singles Chart. GfK. Archived from the original on 3 December 2011. Retrieved 16 August 2010.
  21. Style (DVD). Fascination Records. 12 November 2007.
  22. Lisa Verrico (16 May 2007). "Girls Aloud". The Times. London. Retrieved 28 February 2009.
  23. Life Got Cold (UK CD1 liner notes). Girls Aloud. Polydor Records. 2003. 9810656.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. Life Got Cold (UK CD2 liner notes). Girls Aloud. Polydor Records. 2003. 9810657.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  25. Life Got Cold (UK cassette single sleeve). Girls Aloud. Polydor Records. 2003. 9810658.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  26. The Singles Boxset (Liner notes). Girls Aloud. Polydor Records. 2009. 9810658.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  27. "Life Got Cold EP". Spotify. Girls Aloud. 11 August 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: others (link)
  28. "Girls Aloud – Life Got Cold" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  29. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles". Billboard. Vol. 115, no. 36. New York. 6 September 2003. p. 51. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  30. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Life Got Cold". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 22 January 2020.
  31. "Arhiva romanian top 100 – Editia 37, saptamina 29.09–05-10, 2003" (in Romanian). Romanian Top 100. Archived from the original on 19 February 2005. Retrieved 14 May 2020.
  32. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  33. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  34. "Top 100 Songs of 2003". Raidió Teilifís Éireann. 2003. Archived from the original on 2 June 2004. Retrieved 16 March 2022.
  35. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2003" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 19 December 2019.
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