I Can Smell That Funky Music

Last updated
"I Can Smell That Funky Music"
Single by Eric Mercury
from the album Funky Sounds Nurtured in the Fertile Soil of Memphis That Smell of Rock
B-side "Listen With Your Eyes"
Released1971
Genre soul
Length
  • 3:00
Label Enterprise ENA-9041
Songwriter(s) Rice, Floyd, Cropper
Producer(s) Steve Cropper
Eric Mercury singles chronology
"Everybody Has The Right To Love"
(1970)
"I Can Smell That Funky Music"
(1971)
"What's Usual Seems Natr'l"
(1972)

"I Can Smell That Funky Music" was a hit in 1972 for soul singer Eric Mercury. This was the first time he had a single of his own in the charts. Recorded and produced in the United States, the success of the single was in Canada where Mercury was originally from.

Contents

Background

The song was written by Steve Cropper, Mack Rice and Eddie Floyd. [1] The opening song for one of two albums produced by Steve Cropper for Stax Records at his new TMI studio, [2] it was a song that fused elements of roots and soul. [3] It was one of Canada's biggest hits of 1972. [4]

The single was released in Canada on Enterprise ENA 9041 around the time that Allan Katz, the national promotional director of Polydor had taken Mercury on a cross-country tour, visiting stations from Toronto to Vancouver to promote his new album, Funky Sounds Nurtured in the Fertile Soil of Memphis That Smell of Rock. [5] [6]

Chart performance

By December 18, Cashbox were calling it a national breakout. Roy Hennessy of CKLG had chart action predictions for the song. Mercury's album was also getting heavy airplay on some FM stations. [7] By December 25, 1971, the song was predicted to reach the top 60 of the Billboard Hot Hundred Chart. [8] It was already at #40 on the RPM100 singles chart. [9] By the end of the year, the single was at #12 on the CKVN 1410 Top 40 chart. [10] It eventually peaked at number 30 in Canada on January 15, 1972. [11]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wilson Pickett</span> American singer

Wilson Pickett was an American singer and songwriter.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crazy Little Thing Called Love</span> 1979 single by Queen

"Crazy Little Thing Called Love" is a song by the British rock band Queen. Written by Freddie Mercury in 1979, the track is included on their 1980 album The Game, and also appears on the band's compilation album Greatest Hits in 1981. The song peaked at number two in the UK Singles Chart in 1979, becoming the group's first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 in the US in 1980, remaining there for four consecutive weeks. It topped the Australian ARIA Charts for seven weeks. It was the band's final single release of the 1970s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Funkytown</span> 1980 single by Lipps Inc.

"Funkytown" is a song by the American disco/funk band Lipps Inc., released in 1980 as the second single from their 1979 debut album, Mouth to Mouth. It was successful globally, reaching top spots in places such as the United States, West Germany, Canada, Austria, Switzerland, Norway, the Netherlands, and Australia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Good Vibrations (Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch song)</span> 1991 single by Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch

"Good Vibrations" is a song by American group Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch featuring Loleatta Holloway. It was released in July 1991 as the lead single from their debut album, Music for the People (1991). The song became a number-one hit in the United States, Denmark, Sweden and Switzerland. It spent twenty weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, its last week rising 40 positions to number 27, but dropped out the following week.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Proud Mary</span> 1969 single by Creedence Clearwater Revival

"Proud Mary" is a song by American rock band Creedence Clearwater Revival written by John Fogerty. It was released as a single in January 1969 by Fantasy Records and on the band's second studio album, Bayou Country. The song became a major hit in the United States, peaking at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 in March 1969, the first of five singles to peak at No. 2 for the group.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Knock on Wood (Eddie Floyd song)</span> 1966 single by Eddie Floyd

"Knock on Wood" is a 1966 hit song written by Eddie Floyd and Steve Cropper and originally performed by Floyd. The song has become covered by later artists, most notably Amii Stewart in 1979. Stewart's disco version was the most successful on weekly music charts.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mr. Big Stuff</span> 1971 single by Jean Knight

"Mr. Big Stuff" is a song by American singer Jean Knight. The song was released in 1971 as a single from Knight's debut album of the same title, and became a big hit, reaching No. 2 on Billboard Hot 100. The song was certified double platinum and was the No. 1 Soul Single of the year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I've Been Thinking About You</span> 1990 single by Londonbeat

"I've Been Thinking About You" is a song by British-American band Londonbeat, released as the lead single from their second studio album, In the Blood (1990). The song was produced by Martyn Phillips, and written by band members Jimmy Chambers, George Chandler, Jimmy Helms, and William Henshall. It became a major worldwide hit, reaching the number-one spot in more than 10 countries—including Australia, Canada, Germany and the United States—and peaking at number two on the UK Singles Chart.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Play That Funky Music</span> 1976 single by Wild Cherry

"Play That Funky Music" is a song written by Rob Parissi and recorded by the band Wild Cherry. The single was the first released by the Cleveland-based Sweet City record label in April 1976 and distributed by Epic Records. The performers on the recording included lead singer Parissi, electric guitarist Bryan Bassett, bassist Allen Wentz, and drummer Ron Beitle, with session players Chuck Berginc, Jack Brndiar (trumpets), and Joe Eckert and Rick Singer (saxes) on the horn riff that runs throughout the song's verses. The single hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 18, 1976; it was also No. 1 on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart. The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of over 2 million records and eventually sold 2.5 million in the United States alone.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fly Like an Eagle (song)</span> 1976 single by Steve Miller Band

"Fly Like an Eagle" is a song written by American musician Steve Miller for the album of the same name. The song was released in the United Kingdom in August 1976 and in the United States in December 1976. It went to number two on the US Billboard Hot 100 for the week of March 12, 1977. The single edit can be found on Greatest Hits (1974–1978). The song has an unusually mellow and dreamy feel. It is usually played in tandem with "Space Intro", but the song also segues into "Wild Mountain Honey".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Breakout (Swing Out Sister song)</span> 1986 single by Swing Out Sister

"Breakout" is a song by British band Swing Out Sister. It was released in 1986 as the second single from their debut album It's Better to Travel.

Gwendolyn Dianne Brooks, was a soul, r&b and jazz singer from New Jersey. With the Three Playmates, Brooks recorded several songs in 1957. She moved to Toronto shortly thereafter. Her part in Canadian soul music history began when the group Diane Brooks, Eric Mercury and the Soul Searchers was formed. As a solo singer, she recorded two albums and several singles of her own. Her biggest solo hit was "Walkin' on My Mind" in 1969. She was also a prolific session singer. As a vocalist, she provided backing vocals on albums by a multitude of artists that include Anne Murray, Gino Vannelli and Richie Havens. She was also a song-writer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Soul Man (song)</span> 1967 hit single

"Soul Man" is a 1967 song written and composed by Isaac Hayes and David Porter, first successful as a number 2 hit single by Atlantic Records soul duo Sam & Dave, which consisted of Samuel "Sam" Moore and David "Dave" Prater. In 2019, "Soul Man" was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry as "culturally, historically, and aesthetically significant" by the Library of Congress. It was No. 463 in "Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" by Rolling Stone Magazine in 2010 and No. 458 in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wild Night</span> 1971 single by Van Morrison

"Wild Night" is a song written by Northern Irish singer-songwriter Van Morrison and is the opening track on his fifth studio album Tupelo Honey. It was released as a single in 1971 and reached number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2022, the song peaked at #1 on the radio airplay chart in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Green Onions</span> 1962 instrumental composition by Booker T. & the M.G.s

"Green Onions" is an instrumental composition recorded in 1962 by Booker T. & the M.G.'s. Described as "one of the most popular instrumental rock and soul songs ever" and as one of "the most popular R&B instrumentals of its era", the tune is a twelve-bar blues with a rippling Hammond M3 organ line by Booker T. Jones that he wrote when he was 17, although the actual recording was largely improvised in the studio.

Motherlode was a Canadian pop rock group formed in 1969 in London, Ontario. The group scored some success in the US with their single, "When I Die", which hit #1 in Canada and #18 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1969. The group didn't have a bass guitarist. William Smith would play the bass notes on his keyboard. They did however use bass players on their studio recordings.

Eric Alexander Mercury was a Canadian singer who was a member of thesoul group The Soul Searchers during the 1960s. He later made waves in 1969 with his Electric Black Man album. He had two hits, the first on the Canadian charts in 1972 with "I Can Smell That Funky Music", and the second in the United States in 1983, singing a duet with Roberta Flack with "Our Love Will Stop the World". He also co-wrote the song "Down the Backstairs of My Life".

"Daddy's Home" is a famous song by American doo-wop group Shep and the Limelites. The song was written by the three members of the band, James "Shep" Sheppard (1935–1970), Clarence Bassett (1936–2005) and Charles Baskerville. The group recorded the original version of "Daddy's Home" on February 1, 1961, and it was released on Hull Records in March 1961 with the B-side being "This I Know".

<i>Workin Together</i> 1970 studio album by Ike & Tina Turner

Workin' Together is a studio album released by Ike & Tina Turner on Liberty Records in November 1970. This was their second album with Liberty and their most successful studio album. The album contains their Grammy Award-winning single "Proud Mary."

The Soul Searchers were an important part of Canadian soul music history. The group contained notable artists such as Diane Brooks, Eric Mercury, William "Smitty" Smith, Steve Kennedy and Eric "Mouse" Johnson. At times they are also referred to Diane Brooks, Eric Mercury and The Soul Searchers or Eric Mercury and the Soul Searchers.

References

  1. Ultratop - Eric Mercury – I Can Smell That Funky Music
  2. Knock! Knock! Knock! On Wood: My Life in Soul, By Eddie Floyd, Tony Fletcher - Steve, Mack, and I also worked together ...
  3. Toronto Star , March 16, 2022 - Eric Mercury, Canada’s ‘Electric Black Man,’ singer for ‘Be Like Mike’ campaign, dies By David FriendThe Canadian Press
  4. Canadian Music Blog, March 15, 2011 - 1972’s Biggest Canadian Hits
  5. 45Cat - Canada, I Can Smell That Funky Music
  6. Billboard, December 11, 1971 - Page 53 International News Reports, Eric Mercury on LP Promo Tour
  7. Cash Box, 18, 12, 1971 - Page 10 MERCURY'S "FUNKY MUSIC" A NATIONAL BREAKOUT
  8. Billboard, December 25, 1971 - Page 51 Spotlight Singles, TOP 60 POP SPOTLIGHT
  9. RPM Weekly Volume 60 No. 19 December 25, 1971 - Page 13 RPM100 SINGLES
  10. VANCOUVER TOP 40 RADIO - CKVN 1410Top 40, Collector's Issue No. 90 WEST COAST MUSIC SURVEY DECEMBER 31, 1971
  11. "RPM Top 100 Singles - January 15, 1972" (PDF).