Rhythm Is a Dancer
Encyclopedia
"Rhythm Is a Dancer" is a song recorded by the act Snap!
, released as a single in the second quarter of 1992, from the album The Madman's Return
. It was written by Benito Benitez, John "Virgo" Garrett III (aliases for German producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti), singer Thea Austin and rapper Durron Butler
and produced by Snap! It achieved a huge success in many countries, becoming a top 5 hit in the U.S. and topping the charts in France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom. It has been argued that it was the first Eurodance
single ever released.
.
According to Miz hit. tubes, a book which analyses the French pop charts, "this discotheque song alternates the female singing of the chorus with the fluid rap and set back from the verses. These are tinged with a resonant sonority, with astonishment melancholic relents for a hit dance. That gives to the whole a very particular colouring; almost nostalgia."
It is also contains what is said to be the "worst lyric of all time", with its line "I'm as serious as cancer when I say rhythm is a dancer". That the original album version of the song did not contain the line, which is found on the more widely known 7" single of the song that was later added to the album.
, spending six weeks at the top from August 1992. It is their biggest hit single to date, with 492,175 sales during the original British chart run. A massive hit across the world, it also topped the chart in Germany
, and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100
in the U.S in early 1993. In France
, "Rhythm Is a Dancer" debuted at No. 5 on August 8, 1992, before climbing to No. 1 four weeks later (where it stayed for six weeks). The track thus became the first dance single to hit the number one position on the French Singles Chart. The song is currently the 97th best-selling single of all time in Germany.
Snap!
themselves re-recorded their own song in 1996 and 2003, the latter with CJ Stone (as "Rhythm is a Dancer 2003"). It reached number 17 on the official UK Top 40 in May 2003.
On 25 May 2008, "Rhythm Is a Dancer" re-entered the official UK Top 40 at number 36, climbing as high as number 23 two weeks later. BBC Radio 1
DJs Fearne Cotton
and Reggie Yates
theorized it was based on download performance, due to its inclusion in a television advertisement for Drench
water.
On 4 April 2009, "Rhythm is a Dancer" was chosen on the Belgian Radio MNM as the Best Song of the Nineties in the Nineties Top 100.
music artist Sagi Rei for his 2005 album Emotional Songs, Chic Flowerz feat. Muriel Folwer in 2006, Berk and the Virtual Band for the 2007 album Jazz Chill, Vol. 2, Hermes House Band
on the 2009 album Rhythm of the Nineties, Rod Jones on A Sentimental Education released in 2010, and DJ/producer Kylian Mash under the name "Madinshina - Rhythm is a Dancer 2010". Furthermore, it has been used for the basis of the 2010-track "You and Me" by Danish group Electric Lady Lab. On November 28, 2010, Romania
n dance singer Inna
covered the song live.
De Corpo e Alma, in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210 during its third season in 1993, in a scene of the 2010 comedy movie Cop Out. The song was also featured in TV
adverts, including in the 1995 ad for the Ford Escort on German
television, and in 2008, in a TV commercial in the UK for "Drench
" spring water, which used an edited version of the original "Rhythm Is a Dancer", bringing the song back into the UK singles chart on 9 June 2008, at number 23. The song was used in 1995 on a UK AWP gaming machine Bullseye, by Project Coin, as a sample (on cash gamble), and was referenced in the song "The 80s" from Robbie Williams' Rudebox album, despite the Snap! song being released in the 1990s.
1 "Rhythm Is a Dancer '96"
2 "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003"
Snap!
Snap! is a German Eurodance project formed in 1989 by Frankfurt-based producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti. The act has been through a number of line-up changes over the years, but was most successful when fronted by rapper Turbo B, who performed on the UK number 1 singles "The Power" and...
, released as a single in the second quarter of 1992, from the album The Madman's Return
The Madman's Return
The Madman's Return is Snap!'s second studio album and contains the hit "Rhythm Is a Dancer", which reached #1 in France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom and peaked at #5 in the US...
. It was written by Benito Benitez, John "Virgo" Garrett III (aliases for German producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti), singer Thea Austin and rapper Durron Butler
Turbo B
Turbo B Turbo B Turbo B (born Durron Maurice Butler, April 30, 1967, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is an American musician, rapper and beatboxer, best known for his time fronting the electronic music group, Snap!.-Early years:...
and produced by Snap! It achieved a huge success in many countries, becoming a top 5 hit in the U.S. and topping the charts in France, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Germany and the United Kingdom. It has been argued that it was the first Eurodance
Eurodance
Eurodance is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in the late 1980s or early 1990s primarily in Europe. It combines many elements from House, Techno, Hi-NRG and especially Italo-Disco...
single ever released.
Lyrics and music
The track features lead vocals by Thea Austin and a rap by Turbo BTurbo B
Turbo B Turbo B Turbo B (born Durron Maurice Butler, April 30, 1967, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania is an American musician, rapper and beatboxer, best known for his time fronting the electronic music group, Snap!.-Early years:...
.
According to Miz hit. tubes, a book which analyses the French pop charts, "this discotheque song alternates the female singing of the chorus with the fluid rap and set back from the verses. These are tinged with a resonant sonority, with astonishment melancholic relents for a hit dance. That gives to the whole a very particular colouring; almost nostalgia."
It is also contains what is said to be the "worst lyric of all time", with its line "I'm as serious as cancer when I say rhythm is a dancer". That the original album version of the song did not contain the line, which is found on the more widely known 7" single of the song that was later added to the album.
Music video
The music video for "Rhythm Is a Dancer" was directed by Howard Greenhalgh and shows singer Thea Austin and a backup band at a rocket park filled with smoke. Austin and her group perform the song on elevated platforms while a group of dancers dance on a closed ground platform below them. Interpersed throughout these scenes are animated shots of flickering astronomy/aviation maps and animated figures dancing.Chart performances
"Rhythm Is a Dancer" was the second single by Snap! to reach No. 1 in the United KingdomUnited Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, spending six weeks at the top from August 1992. It is their biggest hit single to date, with 492,175 sales during the original British chart run. A massive hit across the world, it also topped the chart in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, and peaked at No. 5 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
in the U.S in early 1993. In France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, "Rhythm Is a Dancer" debuted at No. 5 on August 8, 1992, before climbing to No. 1 four weeks later (where it stayed for six weeks). The track thus became the first dance single to hit the number one position on the French Singles Chart. The song is currently the 97th best-selling single of all time in Germany.
Snap!
Snap!
Snap! is a German Eurodance project formed in 1989 by Frankfurt-based producers Michael Münzing and Luca Anzilotti. The act has been through a number of line-up changes over the years, but was most successful when fronted by rapper Turbo B, who performed on the UK number 1 singles "The Power" and...
themselves re-recorded their own song in 1996 and 2003, the latter with CJ Stone (as "Rhythm is a Dancer 2003"). It reached number 17 on the official UK Top 40 in May 2003.
On 25 May 2008, "Rhythm Is a Dancer" re-entered the official UK Top 40 at number 36, climbing as high as number 23 two weeks later. BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation which also broadcasts internationally, specialising in current popular music and chart hits throughout the day. Radio 1 provides alternative genres after 7:00pm including electronic dance, hip hop, rock...
DJs Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton
Fearne Cotton is an English television and radio presenter who is known for presenting a number of popular TV programmes such as Top of the Pops and the Red Nose Day telethon. In 2007, she became the first regular female presenter of BBC Radio 1's Chart Show...
and Reggie Yates
Reggie Yates
Reginald "Reggie" Yates is a British actor, television presenter and radio DJ of Ghanaian descent. He went to Central Foundation Boys' School.-Early career:...
theorized it was based on download performance, due to its inclusion in a television advertisement for Drench
Drench
Drench is a brand of bottled spring water owned by Britvic. Drench is one of a range of water brands from Britvic, which includes Pennine Spring and Fruit Shoot H20.-The Water:...
water.
On 4 April 2009, "Rhythm is a Dancer" was chosen on the Belgian Radio MNM as the Best Song of the Nineties in the Nineties Top 100.
Cover versions
"Rhythm Is a Dancer" has been covered by numerous artists including Italian radio host Leone di Lernia who recorded a parody of the song in Italian, Max Deejay who recorded an instrumental cover in 1997, System Drivers in 2002, The Superb, a Brazilian rock & roll act produced by Chilean DJ Sokio) in 2005, Israeli-talian people|Italian) acousticAcoustic guitar
An acoustic guitar is a guitar that uses only an acoustic sound board. The air in this cavity resonates with the vibrational modes of the string and at low frequencies, which depend on the size of the box, the chamber acts like a Helmholtz resonator, increasing or decreasing the volume of the sound...
music artist Sagi Rei for his 2005 album Emotional Songs, Chic Flowerz feat. Muriel Folwer in 2006, Berk and the Virtual Band for the 2007 album Jazz Chill, Vol. 2, Hermes House Band
Hermes House Band
The Hermes House Band is a Dutch pop band, established in 1984 by members of the Hermes fraternity/sorority in Rotterdam, Netherlands. They have released more than twenty five albums and singles.-History:...
on the 2009 album Rhythm of the Nineties, Rod Jones on A Sentimental Education released in 2010, and DJ/producer Kylian Mash under the name "Madinshina - Rhythm is a Dancer 2010". Furthermore, it has been used for the basis of the 2010-track "You and Me" by Danish group Electric Lady Lab. On November 28, 2010, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
n dance singer Inna
Inna
Elena Alexandra Apostoleanu , best known as Inna, is a Romanian dance music singer. On November 12, 2008, she released her debut single "Hot", which was produced by Play & Win, a Romanian dance music trio and one of the leading music producers in Romania...
covered the song live.
Appearances in other media
As sign of popularity, the song was often used in films or series, including the soundtrack for 1992 Brazilian soap operaTelenovela
A telenovela is a limited-run serial dramatic programming popular in Latin American, Portuguese, and Spanish television programming. The word combines tele, short for televisión or televisão , and novela, a Spanish or Portuguese word for "novel"...
De Corpo e Alma, in an episode of Beverly Hills, 90210 during its third season in 1993, in a scene of the 2010 comedy movie Cop Out. The song was also featured in TV
Television
Television is a telecommunication medium for transmitting and receiving moving images that can be monochrome or colored, with accompanying sound...
adverts, including in the 1995 ad for the Ford Escort on German
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
television, and in 2008, in a TV commercial in the UK for "Drench
Drench
Drench is a brand of bottled spring water owned by Britvic. Drench is one of a range of water brands from Britvic, which includes Pennine Spring and Fruit Shoot H20.-The Water:...
" spring water, which used an edited version of the original "Rhythm Is a Dancer", bringing the song back into the UK singles chart on 9 June 2008, at number 23. The song was used in 1995 on a UK AWP gaming machine Bullseye, by Project Coin, as a sample (on cash gamble), and was referenced in the song "The 80s" from Robbie Williams' Rudebox album, despite the Snap! song being released in the 1990s.
Track listings
- 7" single
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (7" edit) — 3:41
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (purple hazed 7" mix) — 4:31
- CD maxi
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (7" edit) — 3:41
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (12" mix) — 5:12
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (purple hazed mix) — 6:49
- CD maxi - Remixes
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (rhyth kid version) — 5:38
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (tee's choice mix) — 6:19
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (instrumental rhythm) — 5:30
- CD single - 2003 remixes
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (radio edit)
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (CJ stone remix)
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" ('92)
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (video)
- CD maxi - 2003 remixes
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (video version) — 3:20
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (CJ stone radio mix) — 3:49
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" ("check this out" remix) — 7:06
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (CJ stone club mix) — 7:45
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" ('92) — 3:42
Official Versions
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (7" Edit) / (Rhythm Is a Dancer '92) - 3:41
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (12" Mix) - 5:12
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (Instrumental Rhythm) - 5:30
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (Purple Hazed 7" Edit) - 4:31
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (Purple Hazed Mix) - 6:49
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (Rhyth Kid Version) - 5:38
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer" (Tee's Choice Mix) - 6:19
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (Radio Edit)
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" ("Check This Out" Remix) - 7:06
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (CJ Stone Radio Mix) / (CJ Stone Remix) - 3:49
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (CJ Stone Club Mix) / (CJ Stone Remix) - 7:45
- "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003" (Video Version) - 3:20
Peak positions
| Chart (1992/93) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australian ARIA ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... Singles Chart |
3 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Danish Singles Chart | 11 |
| Dutch Top 40 Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
1 |
| French SNEP Singles Chart | 1 |
| German Singles Chart | 1 |
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
1 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 1 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 11 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 4 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Rhythmic Top 40 | 9 |
| U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream | 12 |
| Chart (1996/97)1 | Peak position |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 58 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play | 27 |
| Chart (2003)2 | Peak position |
| Australian ARIA Singles Chart | 32 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 10 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 46 |
| Finnish Singles Chart | 13 |
| German Singles Chart | 7 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 35 |
| UK Singles Chart | 17 |
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
| UK Singles Chart | 23 |
| German Singles Chart | 84 |
1 "Rhythm Is a Dancer '96"
2 "Rhythm Is a Dancer 2003"
Year-end charts
| Chart (1992) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 15 |
| Austrian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 1 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 75 |
| Chart (1993) | Position |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 25 |
Certifications
| Country | Certification | Date | Certification-levels |
|---|---|---|---|
| Austria | Gold | July 22, 1992 | 25,000 |
| France | Gold | 1992 | 250,000 |
| Germany | Platinum | 1992 | 500,000 |
| Netherlands | Platinum | 1992 | 75,000 |
| Sweden | Gold | August 7, 1992 | 25,000 |
| UK | Gold | September 1, 1992 | 400,000 |
| U.S. | Gold | November 9, 1992 | 500,000 |