Songfacts®:

• "Smooth Operator" was written by lead singer Sade Adu and Ray Saint John, who was a member of Sade's previous band, Pride (Sade is a band fronted by the singer Sade - confusing, we know). The song is about a fashionable man who lives a jet-set lifestyle. He's very popular with the ladies and breaks a lot of hearts in his travels. With the lyrics, "Across the north and south, to Key Largo, love for sale," it's implied that the women he uses also supply his wealth. It's also clear that he does not return the affections of these women, as Sade sings near the end, "His heart is cold."
• Julien Temple directed the video, which finds Sade singing in a nightclub as a shady deal goes down. Most viewers saw the 4:15 version, but an extended version was also made. Running 8:30, that one has dialogue, a chase scene, and a man falling to his death.
• "Smooth Operator" dates back to 1982, when Sade Adu was a backup singer in the English band Pride. There was a section of their stage show when she would come to the front and sing some songs she wrote, including this one. That early arrangement was very different, with more of a rock vibe. Sade, who never intended to be a singer (she studied fashion) gradually built her confidence and formed her own band in 1983, which quickly earned a record deal.
  
  Their debut album, Diamond Life, was issued in the UK in 1984 with "Your Love Is King" and "When Am I Going to Make A Living" (a song about her dire financial straits) the first singles. "Smooth Operator" was next and was also issued in the US in 1985 along with the album. It rose to #5 in America, which had a little trouble pronouncing their name ("shah-day"). The group earned a reputation as an exotic soulful act with a captivating frontwoman. By the time the song was a hit in America, their second album, Promise, was ready to go, along with the hit "The Sweetest Taboo."
  
  Sade became known for intimate love songs, and for being a bit mysterious. Sade Adu make the cover of Time magazine in 1986, but rarely gave interviews. The group slowed their output considerably, releasing their next albums in 1988, 1992, 2000 and 2010.
• Despite the cold-hearted lyric, this song is often used to imply a romantic encounter. It played a big part in the Season 12 Big Bang Theory episode, "The Procreation Calculation," where the lovelorn character Stuart plays it during his seductions after he finally lands a girlfriend.
• "Smooth Operator" was a #1 Adult Contemporary hit for Sade, who topped that chart again with "The Sweetest Taboo." In America the songs benefited from airplay on VH1, the adult-leaning music video channel launched in 1985.
• "Smooth Operator" is one of the saxier hits of the '80s. A key member of the group is saxophone player Stuart Matthewman, who is one of their founders and often writes their songs with Sade Adu.