We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off
Encyclopedia
"We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" is pop vocalist Jermaine Stewart's
first of three singles from 1986. The song was included on Stewart's second album "Frantic Romantic
". "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" remains Stewart's biggest commercial success in both America and Europe.
The song acquired a great deal of success after being used on hit 1980s television show Miami Vice
, and reached number 2 on the UK and Canadian chart, as well as going to number 5 in the U.S. This was Stewart's biggest hit in these countries.
The single seemed to reflect more modesty when it came to sex in light of the AIDS pandemic
at the time. Jermaine Stewart died of AIDS
-related liver cancer at the age of 39. In 1988, Stewart was interviewed by Donnie Simpson
where Stewart spoke of the lyrical message within the song. "I think it made a lot of peoples' minds open up a little bit. We didn't only want to just talk about clothes, we wanted to extend that. We wanted to use the song as a theme to be able to say you don't have to do all the negative things that society forces on you. You don't have to drink and drive. You don't have to take drugs early. The girls don't have to get pregnant early. So the clothes bit of it was to get people's attention, which it did and I'm glad it was a positive message."
The previous single "I Like It" failed to make much impact as a follow up to Stewart's debut single "The Word Is Out". "I Like It" failed to chart in either the UK or America.
A popular promotional video was created for the single as well as numerous TV performances to promote the single.
"We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" was written by Narada Michael Walden
and Preston Glass. Walden is a well-known American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter.
The b-side for the European single "Brilliance" appeared on Stewart's 1984 debut album "The Word Is Out
" as the final track. "Brilliance" was written by Stewart and Julian Lindsay. Lindsay had previously performed piano on the 1983 Culture Club
album "Colour by Numbers
". The American b-side was "Give Your Love to Me" which was used as the closing track on the album "Frantic Romantic
". It was written by Jakko J. and Jermaine Stewart.
For the single, various remixes of "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" were released. These remixes were created by Lewis A. Martineé
. A special UK/Australian 12" single was released titled "We Don't Have To..." which featured different artwork.
The song appeared in Kevin Smith
's film Zack and Miri Make a Porno
as well as the episode "My Dirty Secret" of the television show Scrubs
.
In 2011 the song was used in a Cadbury
advert in the UK called The Charity Shop. This exposed the song to a new generation who downloaded the track and returned it to the UK Top 40 so far reaching No.29.
The song has been covered a number of times and versions have been released by Clea
and Lil' Chris
, while it also provided the hook
for Gym Class Heroes
' fifth single "Clothes Off!!
" and was sampled by rapper Mase
on his album Welcome Back.
7" Single (Canadian release)
7" Single (European release)
7" Single (UK/Australian release)
12" Single (American/Canadian release)
12" Single (European release)
12" Single (UK release)
and was released as their third single. It was released in the UK in September 2005 and giving them their third Top 40 hit, charting at #35. The song appears on their UK debut album, Trinity.
covered the song and released it as the only single from his second album, What's It All About?, on 19 October 2007. It peaked at #63 on the UK Singles Chart
.
7" Vinyl
Jermaine Stewart
William Jermaine Stewart was an American R&B singer best known for his Billboard hits "The Word Is Out" and "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" .-Early life and career:Born in Columbus, Ohio, to parents Ethel M...
first of three singles from 1986. The song was included on Stewart's second album "Frantic Romantic
Frantic Romantic
Frantic Romantic is a 1986 bestselling album by Jermaine Stewart. The album included Stewart's biggest pop hit, "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off," as well as the minor follow-up hit, "Jody," for whom Stewart's former Soul Train dance-mate Jody Watley was the inspiration...
". "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" remains Stewart's biggest commercial success in both America and Europe.
The song acquired a great deal of success after being used on hit 1980s television show Miami Vice
Miami Vice
Miami Vice is an American television series produced by Michael Mann for NBC. The series starred Don Johnson and Philip Michael Thomas as two Metro-Dade Police Department detectives working undercover in Miami. It ran for five seasons on NBC from 1984–1989...
, and reached number 2 on the UK and Canadian chart, as well as going to number 5 in the U.S. This was Stewart's biggest hit in these countries.
The single seemed to reflect more modesty when it came to sex in light of the AIDS pandemic
AIDS pandemic
The acquired immune deficiency syndrome pandemic is a widespread disease caused by the human immunodeficiency virus .Since AIDS was first recognized in 1981, it has led to the deaths of more than 25 million people, making it one of the most destructive diseases in recorded history.Despite recent...
at the time. Jermaine Stewart died of AIDS
AIDS
Acquired immune deficiency syndrome or acquired immunodeficiency syndrome is a disease of the human immune system caused by the human immunodeficiency virus...
-related liver cancer at the age of 39. In 1988, Stewart was interviewed by Donnie Simpson
Donnie Simpson
Donnie Simpson is a longtime American radio DJ as well as a television and movie personality. He hosted The Donnie Simpson Morning Show on Washington, D.C. radio station WPGC-FM from March 1993 to January 29, 2010. Simpson is the first urban-format radio personality to have an annual salary over...
where Stewart spoke of the lyrical message within the song. "I think it made a lot of peoples' minds open up a little bit. We didn't only want to just talk about clothes, we wanted to extend that. We wanted to use the song as a theme to be able to say you don't have to do all the negative things that society forces on you. You don't have to drink and drive. You don't have to take drugs early. The girls don't have to get pregnant early. So the clothes bit of it was to get people's attention, which it did and I'm glad it was a positive message."
The previous single "I Like It" failed to make much impact as a follow up to Stewart's debut single "The Word Is Out". "I Like It" failed to chart in either the UK or America.
A popular promotional video was created for the single as well as numerous TV performances to promote the single.
"We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" was written by Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden
Narada Michael Walden is an American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter. He was given the name Narada by guru Sri Chinmoy in the early 1970s and his musical career spans three decades, in which he was awarded several gold, platinum and multi-platinum awards...
and Preston Glass. Walden is a well-known American producer, drummer, singer, and songwriter.
The b-side for the European single "Brilliance" appeared on Stewart's 1984 debut album "The Word Is Out
The Word Is Out
The Word Is Out is the 1984 debut album by Jermaine Stewart. It yielded the single "The Word Is Out," his first major single and first to chart.-Track listing:# "The Word Is Out" # "I Like It" The Word Is Out is the 1984 debut album by Jermaine Stewart. It yielded the single "The Word Is Out,"...
" as the final track. "Brilliance" was written by Stewart and Julian Lindsay. Lindsay had previously performed piano on the 1983 Culture Club
Culture Club
Culture Club are a British rock band who were part of the 1980s New Romantic movement. The original band consisted of Boy George , Mikey Craig , Roy Hay and Jon Moss...
album "Colour by Numbers
Colour by Numbers
Colour by Numbers is the second album by New Wave band Culture Club, released in 1983.-Overview:The album features several international hits such as "Church of the Poison Mind" and the worldwide hit "Karma Chameleon" which had sales of over one million in the United Kingdom alone...
". The American b-side was "Give Your Love to Me" which was used as the closing track on the album "Frantic Romantic
Frantic Romantic
Frantic Romantic is a 1986 bestselling album by Jermaine Stewart. The album included Stewart's biggest pop hit, "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off," as well as the minor follow-up hit, "Jody," for whom Stewart's former Soul Train dance-mate Jody Watley was the inspiration...
". It was written by Jakko J. and Jermaine Stewart.
For the single, various remixes of "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" were released. These remixes were created by Lewis A. Martineé
Lewis Martineé
Lewis Antonio Martineé is a freestyle music producer and former DJ based in Miami, Florida. In addition to founding the girl group Exposé in 1984, he also wrote and produced all of the songs on its first two albums, Exposure and What You Don't Know . He also contributed to the group's third...
. A special UK/Australian 12" single was released titled "We Don't Have To..." which featured different artwork.
The song appeared in Kevin Smith
Kevin Smith
Kevin Patrick Smith is an American screenwriter, actor, film producer, and director, as well as a popular comic book writer, author, comedian/raconteur, and internet radio personality best recognized by viewers as Silent Bob...
's film Zack and Miri Make a Porno
Zack and Miri Make a Porno
Zack and Miri Make a Porno is a 2008 romantic comedy film written and directed by Kevin Smith, distributed by The Weinstein Company, and starring Seth Rogen and Elizabeth Banks. It is Smith's second film not to be set within the View Askewniverse and the first not set in New Jersey. It was...
as well as the episode "My Dirty Secret" of the television show Scrubs
Scrubs (TV series)
Scrubs is an American medical comedy-drama television series created in 2001 by Bill Lawrence and produced by ABC Studios. The show follows the lives of several employees of the fictional Sacred Heart, a teaching hospital. It features fast-paced screenplay, slapstick, and surreal vignettes...
.
In 2011 the song was used in a Cadbury
Cadbury
-Businesses:*Cadbury Adams, the company's North American subsidiary*Cadbury Ireland, the company's Irish subsidiary*Cadbury UK, the company's UK subsidiary*Cadbury India, the company's Indian subsidiary*Cadbury New Zealand, the company's New Zealand subsidiary...
advert in the UK called The Charity Shop. This exposed the song to a new generation who downloaded the track and returned it to the UK Top 40 so far reaching No.29.
The song has been covered a number of times and versions have been released by Clea
Clea (band)
Clea was an English girl group whose members met on the television show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. Chloe Morgan , Lynsey Brown, Emma Beard, and Aimee Kearsley, decided to form a band after they were voted off the series...
and Lil' Chris
Lil' Chris
Christopher James Hardman , more commonly known by his stage name Lil' Chris, is an English singer-songwriter, DJ and television personality.-Rock School:...
, while it also provided the hook
Hook (music)
A hook is a musical idea, often a short riff, passage, or phrase, that is used in popular music to make a song appealing and to "catch the ear of the listener". The term generally applies to popular music, especially rock music, hip hop, dance music, and pop. In these genres, the hook is often...
for Gym Class Heroes
Gym Class Heroes
Gym Class Heroes is an American hip hop rock band from Geneva, New York. They have collaborated with Fall Out Boy's Patrick Stump on numerous occasions, notably for providing backing vocals on the song "Cupid's Chokehold." Stump also produced the majority of their album The Quilt.The group formed...
' fifth single "Clothes Off!!
Clothes Off!!
"Clothes Off!!" is the fifth single from Gym Class Heroes' third album, As Cruel as School Children. It features vocalist Patrick Stump of Fall Out Boy...
" and was sampled by rapper Mase
Mase
Mason Durell Betha , better known by stage name Mase who was previously known as Murda Ma$e, is an American rapper, songwriter, actor and inspirational speaker...
on his album Welcome Back.
Formats
7" Single (American release)- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" - 3:57
- "Give Your Love to Me" - 4:20
7" Single (Canadian release)
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Short Version)" - 4:05
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Dub Mix)" - 6:40
7" Single (European release)
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" - 4:05
- "Brilliance" - 4:43
7" Single (UK/Australian release)
- "We Don't Have To..." - 4:05
- "Brilliance" - 4:43
12" Single (American/Canadian release)
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Dance Remix)" - 5:45
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Dub)" - 6:40
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Short Version)" - 4:05
12" Single (European release)
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Extended)" - 5:45
- "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" - 4:05
- "Brilliance" - 4:43
12" Single (UK release)
- "We Don't Have To... (Extended Version)" - 5:45
- "We Don't Have To..." - 4:05
- "Brilliance" - 4:43
Original release
| Chart (1986) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Dutch Singles Chart | 13 |
| French Singles Chart | 91 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 4 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 27 |
| UK Singles Chart | 2 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| U.S. Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart | 64 |
| U.S. Billboard Dance/Club Play Songs Chart | 41 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales Chart | 35 |
2011 reissue
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart | 30 |
| UK Singles Chart | 29 |
| UK R&B Singles Chart | 7 |
Personnel
- Art Direction – Donn Davenport
- Design – Rebecca Tachna
- Stylist – Jane Hoffman
- Photography – Steve Prezant
- Guitar on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" – Chris Amigo
- Keyboards on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" – Fro Sossa
- Mix Engineer – Mike Couzzi
- Mixer on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" – Lewis A. Martineé
- Producer, Arranger on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" – Narada Michael Walden
- Remixer on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Short Version)" – Lewis A. Martineé
- Remixer on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Dub Mix)" – Lewis A. Martineé
- Remixer on "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off (Dance Remix)" - Lewis A. Martineé
- Producer on "Brilliance" - Peter Collins
- Producer on "Give Your Love to Me" - Narada Michael Walden
- Writers of "We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off" - Narada Michael Walden, Preston Glass
- Writers of "Brilliance" - Jermaine Stewart, Julian Lindsay
- Writers of "Give Your Love to Me" - Jakko J., Jermaine Stewart
Clea version
The song was covered by CleaClea (band)
Clea was an English girl group whose members met on the television show Popstars: The Rivals in 2002. Chloe Morgan , Lynsey Brown, Emma Beard, and Aimee Kearsley, decided to form a band after they were voted off the series...
and was released as their third single. It was released in the UK in September 2005 and giving them their third Top 40 hit, charting at #35. The song appears on their UK debut album, Trinity.
Charts
| Chart (2005) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| 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 ... |
35 |
Lil' Chris version
Pop singer Lil' ChrisLil' Chris
Christopher James Hardman , more commonly known by his stage name Lil' Chris, is an English singer-songwriter, DJ and television personality.-Rock School:...
covered the song and released it as the only single from his second album, What's It All About?, on 19 October 2007. It peaked at #63 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 ...
.
Tracklisting
CD Single- "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off" - 3:04
- "Taste Me" [Live In Manchester]
- "I Never Noticed" [Live In London]
7" Vinyl
- "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off" - 3:04
- "We Don't Have To Take Our Clothes Off" [Media Virus Remix] - 5:53
Charts
| Chart (2007) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| 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 ... |
63 |