This is probably one of my 3 favorite songs of all-time. Seriously. After this song came out, I played it at least once every day for months straight — and still play it regularly 10 years later.
“Breathless” from Corrine Bailey Rae’s self-titled debut album is just one of those songs for me.
The melody. The horns. How it’s complex, yet simple. There are so many things that draw me to this song. Maybe most of all, if I’m only picking one thing, I love the rhythm in which she sings “there’s a chemistry, energy, a synchronicity when we’re alone” during the chorus.
During a live performance, Corrine mentioned that she wrote the song to convey the emotions surrounding “how it feels when you fall in love with a really good friend. All those looks you give each other to know whether they feel the same way you do.”
Interestingly enough, “Breathless” wasn’t one of the four main singles from the album. Those four songs were: “Like A Star”, “Put Your Records On”, “Trouble Sleeping” and “I’d Like To”. “Breathless” was instead released as a promotional single in the U.S. when the record company decided to make an overseas push.
Personal Pensism 