"Walking on the Chinese Wall" is a song by Philip Bailey

Philip Bailey

Philip Irvin Bailey is an American R&B, soul, gospel and funk singer, songwriter, percussionist and actor, best known as one of the longtime members of Earth, Wind & Fire. Together with Verdine White, B. David Whitworth, and Ralph Johnson he forms the heart of the current EWF line-up on...

 released as the third single from his album Chinese Wall

Chinese Wall (album)

Chinese Wall is a 1984 album by Philip Bailey which was released on the Columbia Records label. Chinese Wall has been certified gold in the US. The album reached number 22 and number 10 on the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts respectively....

in 1985. The song was written by Roxanne Seeman

Roxanne Seeman

Roxanne Seeman is an American songwriter born in New York City. She is best known for her songs with Billie Hughes, Philip Bailey with Phil Collins, The Jacksons, The Sisters of Mercy, Bette Midler, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Jacky Cheung....

 and Billie Hughes

Billie Hughes

Billie Hughes was an Emmy-nominated, American recording artist, songwriter, musician, and record producer. He is best known for his songs with Philip Bailey with Phil Collins, The Jacksons, The Sisters Of Mercy, Bette Midler, Earth, Wind & Fire, and Lazarus, as well as songs from his solo albums...

. Seeman and Hughes met just after she returned from China and he returned from Japan. Feeling inspired by the East, Hughes asked Seeman to write something "Chinese" for a new piece he had composed. Having walked on the Northern Gate of The Great Wall, outside of Beijing, Seeman wrote these lyrics. Drawing from her studies of Chinese arts and literature, Seeman makes references including the I Ching

I Ching

The I Ching or "Yì Jīng" , also known as the Classic of Changes, Book of Changes and Zhouyi, is one of the oldest of the Chinese classic texts...

 ("Book of Changes") and Dream of the Red Chamber

Dream of the Red Chamber

Dream of the Red Chamber , composed by Cao Xueqin, is one of China's Four Great Classical Novels. It was composed in the middle of the 18th century during the Qing Dynasty. It is considered to be a masterpiece of Chinese vernacular literature and is generally acknowledged to be a pinnacle of...

 (one of the Chinese Four Great Classical Novels).

In 1998, Sony Germany released a Philip Bailey

Philip Bailey

Philip Irvin Bailey is an American R&B, soul, gospel and funk singer, songwriter, percussionist and actor, best known as one of the longtime members of Earth, Wind & Fire. Together with Verdine White, B. David Whitworth, and Ralph Johnson he forms the heart of the current EWF line-up on...

 compilation album entitled "Walking on the Chinese Wall."

Video

The video for this song was directed by Duncan Gibbons. It was filmed in Southern California.

Chart performance

Country	Peak position
Netherlands	25
New Zealand	18
US 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...	46
US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks	56

Televised Live Performances

• American Bandstand
  American Bandstand
  American Bandstand is an American music-performance show that aired in various versions from 1952 to 1989 and was hosted from 1956 until its final season by Dick Clark, who also served as producer...
  
   (1985)
• Black Gold Awards (1986)
• Solid Gold
  Solid Gold (TV series)
  Solid Gold is an American syndicated music television series that debuted on September 13, 1980. Like many other shows of its genre, such as American Bandstand, Solid Gold featured musical performances and various other elements such as music videos...
  
   (1985)
• The Today Show (1985)

A clip from Bailey's live performance in American Bandstand appeared in Dick Clark's American Bandstand's 33-1/3 Celebration.

Television Performances

• Dick Clark's "Summer Rock 'n Roll"
• ESPN Beach Special
• Fantastico Brazil

Other Versions

• The "Young Talent Team" from the Australian television variety program, "Young Talent Time
  Young Talent Time
  Young Talent Time is an Australian television variety program screened on Network Ten, running from 1971 until 1988. The series features a core group of young performers in the vein of The Mickey Mouse Club, and a weekly junior talent quest. The "Young Talent Team" regularly performed popular...
  
  " recorded a cover version on their "Young Talent Team Now and Then 15th Anniversary Album."
• The Italian dance artist Indiana
  Indiana
  Indiana is a US state, admitted to the United States as the 19th on December 11, 1816. It is located in the Midwestern United States and Great Lakes Region. With 6,483,802 residents, the state is ranked 15th in population and 16th in population density. Indiana is ranked 38th in land area and is...
  
   released a Spanish version produced by Christiano Malgioglio in the summer of 1992.
• The Eurodance group Double You
  Double You
  Double You is a Eurodance group founded in 1985, when William Naraine started producing demos with Franco Amato and Andrea de Antoni.In 1992 they've sold more than three million records and the single "Please Don't Go" was a success.- 1990s :...
  
  included a dance version of "Walking On The Chinese Wall" on their hit 1990's album.