"
Cool" is a song by American recording artist
Gwen Stefani, from her debut solo album,
Love. Angel. Music. Baby. (2004). Written by
Dallas Austin and Stefani, the song was released to
mainstream radio in the United States in July 2005 as the album's fourth
single. It was written by Austin basing the song on
No Doubt's "
Simple Kind of Life", but he did not finish it. He then asked for help from Stefani, and they finished the song in fifteen minutes. The single's musical style and production were inspired by
pop and
New Wave arrangements from the 1980s, and its lyrics chronicle a relationship in which two lovers have separated, but remain "
cool" with each other as good friends.
The single received generally positive reviews from music critics, being compared to
Cyndi Lauper and
Madonna from the 1980s. The media have drawn parallels between the song's lyrical content and the romantic relationship that Stefani had with
Tony Kanal, a fellow group member of No Doubt. The song was moderately well-received on world charts, reaching the top ten in Australia, the Czech Republic, and New Zealand, as well as the top twenty in Denmark, Ireland, Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States.
The accompanying
music video was filmed by British director
Sophie Muller in
Lake Como, Italy. It features many
flashbacks to when Stefani and her former boyfriend were dating, and currently, both are fine with their friendship. The song was included on the
setlist for...
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