Rock Your Baby
Encyclopedia
"Rock Your Baby" is a popular song by George McCrae
. Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey
and Richard Finch
of KC and the Sunshine Band
, "Rock Your Baby" was one of the landmark recordings of early disco music. A massive international hit, the song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100
singles chart in the United States, spending two weeks at the top in July 1974, number one on the R&B singles chart, and repeating the feat on the UK singles chart
, spending three weeks at the top of the chart in July 1974. It is one of the fewer than thirty all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) copies worldwide.
The backing track for the record had been recorded in 45 minutes as a demo
, and featured guitarist Jerome Smith (June 18, 1953 – July 28, 2000) of KC and the Sunshine Band
. The track was not originally intended for McCrae, but he happened to be in the studio, added a vocal, and the resultant combination of infectious rhythm and falsetto vocals made it a hit.
"Rock Your Baby" inspired the drum part in the ABBA
hit "Dancing Queen
".
The hit song later inspired a reply hit "Rockin' Chair" sung by Gwen McCrae
then-wife of George McCrae released one year later on TK's Cat subsidiary label with similar music and arrangement.
The song has been covered by Italian singer Spagna
on her 2004 album L'arte di arrangiarsi.
George McCrae
George McCrae is an American soul and disco singer, most famous for his 1974 hit "Rock Your Baby".-Early life and career:...
. Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey
Harry Wayne Casey
Harry Wayne "K.C." Casey is an American musician, singer, songwriter, and producer. He is most famous for his group, KC and the Sunshine Band, and as a producer of several hits for other artists.-Early years:...
and Richard Finch
Richard Finch (musician)
Richard Finch , is an American composer, producer, engineer, and song arranger. He is best known as the co-founder, producer and former bass player of KC and the Sunshine Band...
of KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band is an American musical group. Founded in 1973 in Miami, Florida, their style has included funk, R&B, and disco. Their most well known songs include the disco hits "That's the Way ", " Shake Your Booty", "I'm Your Boogie Man", "Keep It Comin' Love", "Get Down Tonight", "Give...
, "Rock Your Baby" was one of the landmark recordings of early disco music. A massive international hit, the song reached number one 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...
singles chart in the United States, spending two weeks at the top in July 1974, number one on the R&B singles chart, and repeating the feat on the 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 ...
, spending three weeks at the top of the chart in July 1974. It is one of the fewer than thirty all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) copies worldwide.
The backing track for the record had been recorded in 45 minutes as a demo
Demo (music)
A demo version or demo of a song is one recorded for reference rather than for release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas on tape or disc, and provide an example of those ideas to record labels, producers or other artists...
, and featured guitarist Jerome Smith (June 18, 1953 – July 28, 2000) of KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band
KC and the Sunshine Band is an American musical group. Founded in 1973 in Miami, Florida, their style has included funk, R&B, and disco. Their most well known songs include the disco hits "That's the Way ", " Shake Your Booty", "I'm Your Boogie Man", "Keep It Comin' Love", "Get Down Tonight", "Give...
. The track was not originally intended for McCrae, but he happened to be in the studio, added a vocal, and the resultant combination of infectious rhythm and falsetto vocals made it a hit.
"Rock Your Baby" inspired the drum part in the ABBA
ABBA
ABBA was a Swedish pop group formed in Stockholm in 1970 which consisted of Anni-Frid Lyngstad, Björn Ulvaeus, Benny Andersson and Agnetha Fältskog...
hit "Dancing Queen
Dancing Queen
"Dancing Queen" is a pop song recorded by Swedish pop group ABBA. It was released in August 1976, but was first performed two months earlier, on 18 June 1976, during a Royal Variety Show in Stockholm the evening before the Swedish royal wedding. It was the follow-up single to the hit "Fernando"...
".
The hit song later inspired a reply hit "Rockin' Chair" sung by Gwen McCrae
Gwen McCrae
Gwen McCrae is an American R&B singer, best known for her March, 1975 hit "Rockin' Chair".-Career:...
then-wife of George McCrae released one year later on TK's Cat subsidiary label with similar music and arrangement.
The song has been covered by Italian singer Spagna
Spagna
Spagna is an Italian singer and songwriter.-Career:She started her career singing in English and in the early 1980s she provided vocals and wrote songs for an Italo Disco duo project called Fun Fun; as well as writing songs for many other dance music projects until 1986, when she embarked on a solo...
on her 2004 album L'arte di arrangiarsi.