"Romeo" is a song by English electronic music duo Basement Jaxx, released as the first single from their second studio album, Rooty (2001). British R&B singer Kele Le Roc provides the track's lead vocals while Corryne Dwyer sings the background vocals. The song was released on 4 June 2001 as the first single from the studio album.
"Romeo" received acclaim from music critics, with many referring to it as one of the best dancefloor anthems to date. "Romeo" also experienced commercial success, becoming one of Basement Jaxx's biggest international hits, peaking at number six in their native United Kingdom and reaching the top 10 in Canada, New Zealand and Norway. The song has an accompanying music video, which features an Indian background.
Song information
After the success of the group's first album Remedy, the group had decided to record and compose a new studio album. "Romeo" was one of the first songs recorded, composed and produced by the group. The production of the song was held off because the group had just issued their compilation album Jaxx Unreleased (2000). "Romeo" was released on 4 June 2001 as the first single of the duo's second album Rooty (2001). The vocals of the song were sung by British R&B singer Kele Le Roc while Corryne Dwyer performs the background vocals. The song was produced and written by Felix Buxton and Simon Ratcliffe themselves. Romeo is a pop song that includes several disco and house music influences, and it samples "Don't Let the Rainbow Pass Me", a 1981 disco song by Cloud One. The song was first written with Buxton singing the lyrics "I used to be your Romeo".
The song was used in many independent and mainstream soundtracks. The song was also featured on the PlayStation game series SingStar. The song is available as a music video format on iTunes. Before the studio version was recorded and released, there was an acoustic version which was released on the duo's EP Xxtra Cutz (2001), which also featured the B-sides to the single's release.
Another version of "Romeo" was recorded at the BBC Radio 1's Live Lounge. This acoustic version was featured on the group's single "Where's Your Head At", as a bonus remix. The B-side track of the single, "Bongoloid", is a speed garage song featuring voices of two 11-year-old boys from Streatham who pitched up at their record label Atlantic Jaxx after looking them up in Yellow Pages.
In 2018, the House & Garage Orchestra together with Kele Le Roc recorded an orchestral version of the song for the UK garage covers album Garage Classics.
Critical reception
"Romeo" was acclaimed by many music critics. John Bush from AllMusic highlighted the song as an album highlight, as he had said "'Romeo' is groovy and luscious enough to be the next single from Destiny's Child." David Browne from Entertainment Weekly had complimented the track as he agreed liking its "old school disco" music. Lou Thomas from BBC Music said "'Romeo' is still a bittersweet pop classic and will break your heart or make you dance in one frantic twitch." NME gave it a very positive and achievable review, saying "'Romeo' is a fantastic single from a good album, 'Rooty'; a frisky slip of spicy feminine pop perfectly tailored for maximum radio rotation." They also finished "Never complacent and always striving to be inventive, if it feels good, the Jaxx say, do it." Andy Herman from Popmatters referred the song as a "signature Jaxx dancefloor anthem." He also said "complete with a sassy disco-diva vocal, cornball lyrics, and cheesy new wave synths and background vocals that quickly establish the duo's obsession with retro kitsch." MusicOMH also described the song as "terrific" and a "summer hit." Rolling Stone described the song as "synthetic but warm hit."
Malcolm Seymour from Pitchfork was the dissenting critical voice; he gave it a mixed review. He said "the creepily Janet-esque "Romeo" commences the program on a bitter note. Featured diva Kele Le Roc's mindless lyrics spill over the predictable, shallow melodies, bland beats and clichéd basslines." Pitchfork later listed the song at number 50 on their Top 500 Tracks of the 2000s. Stylus Magazine listed the song at number 47 on their Top Singles of the Decade. As an album review, Stylus said "'Romeo' is vindicated in a glorious Bollywood-esque example of pop music." But as a ranking review, they had describe it as "joyful", "bouncy", "cheerful" and "catchy." Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine had listed the song at number 116 on their Rest of the Best of the Aughts Top 500.