Get Up Offa That Thing

Last updated
"Get Up Offa That Thing"
GetUpOffaThatThing.jpg
Single by James Brown
from the album Get Up Offa That Thing
B-side "Release the Pressure"
ReleasedMay 1976 (1976-05)
RecordedApril 1976
Studio Criteria Studios, Miami, Florida
Genre
Length
  • 4:11(Get Up Offa That Thing)
  • 5:27(Release the Pressure)
Label Polydor
14326
Songwriter(s)
  • Deanna Brown
  • Deidre Brown
  • Yamma Brown
Producer(s) James Brown
James Brown chartingsingles chronology
"(I Love You) For Sentimental Reasons"
(1976)		"Get Up Offa That Thing"
(1976)		"I Refuse to Lose"
(1976)
Audio video
"Get Up Offa That Thing (Release The Pressure)" on YouTube

"Get Up Offa That Thing" is a song written and performed by James Brown. It was released in 1976 as a two-part single (the B-side, titled "Release the Pressure", is a continuation of the same song). It reached #4 on the R&B chart, briefly returning Brown to the Top Ten after a year's absence, and #45 on the Billboard Hot 100. [2] [3] Thanks to its chart success, the song became Brown's biggest hit of the late 1970s. The song's lyrics urge listeners to "Get up offa that thing / and dance 'til you feel better." Due to his troubles with the IRS for failure to pay back taxes, Brown credited authorship of the song to his wife Deidre and their daughters, Deanna and Yamma Brown.

Contents

Background

According to Brown, the inspiration for "Get Up Offa That Thing" came to him during a club performance in Fort Lauderdale:

The audience was sitting down, trying to do a sophisticated thing, listening to funk. One of the tightest bands they'd ever heard in their lives, and they were sitting. I had worked hard and dehydrated myself and was feeling depressed. I looked out at all those people sitting there, and because I was depressed they looked depressed. I yelled, "Get up offa that thing and dance til you feel better!" I probably meant until I felt better. [4]

Unlike most popular music of the time, which made sophisticated use of multitrack recording and other techniques, "Get Up Offa That Thing" was recorded live in the studio in only two takes. [5]

Brown re-recorded "Get Up Offa That Thing" for the Doctor Detroit soundtrack album. He also performs the song during his guest appearance in the film. Other performances of the song appear on the albums Hot on the One , Live in New York , Live at Chastain Park , and Live at the Apollo 1995 .

Credits and personnel

with The J.B.'s:

Chart performance

Chart (1976)Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 45
U.S. Billboard National Disco Top 40 [7] 19
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles 4

Appearances in other media

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References

  1. ↑ Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "Boogie Down: The Dawn of Disco". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 183. ISBN   031214704X.
  2. ↑ White, Cliff (1991). "Discography". In Star Time (pp. 54–59) [CD booklet]. New York: PolyGram Records.
  3. ↑ Leeds, Alan, and Harry Weinger (1991). "Star Time: Song by Song". In Star Time (pp. 46–53) [CD booklet]. New York: PolyGram Records.
  4. ↑ Brown, James, and Bruce Tucker (1986). James Brown: The Godfather of Soul, 245. New York: Thunder's Mouth Press.
  5. ↑ Smith, R.J. (2012). The One: The Life and Music of James Brown, 310. New York: Gotham Books.
  6. ↑ Johnson, Kevin (8 August 2013). "Stories Behind the Songs: Will Lee". No Treble. Retrieved 8 August 2013.
  7. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974–2003. Record Research. p. 44.
  8. ↑ "ROBOTS (The Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)". amazon.com.
  9. ↑ "Mallory Hagan, Miss New York, Wins Miss America 2013 Title (PHOTOS)". The Huffington Post . 2013-01-12. Retrieved 2013-01-13.
  10. ↑ "BBC Two – Hunt vs Lauda: F1's Greatest Racing Rivals". Bbc.co.uk. 2015-07-04. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
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