"Move On Up" | ||||
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Single by Curtis Mayfield | ||||
from the album Curtis | ||||
B-side |
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Released | June 25, 1971 | |||
Studio | RCA Studios, Chicago | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
| |||
Label | Curtom | |||
Songwriter(s) | Curtis Mayfield | |||
Producer(s) | Curtis Mayfield | |||
Curtis Mayfield singles chronology | ||||
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Official audio | ||||
"Move On Up" on YouTube |
"Move On Up" is a song by Curtis Mayfield from his 1970 debut album, Curtis . Nearly nine minutes long on the album version, it was released as a single in the United States, but failed to chart. An edited version of the song spent 10 weeks in the top 50 of the UK Singles Chart in 1971, peaking at number 12, and it has become a soul classic over the years. [3] [4] In 2021, it was listed at No. 474 on Rolling Stone 's "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". [5]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [6] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
In 1979, disco trio Destination recorded a medley, incorporating "Keep On Pushing", a 1964 hit by the Impressions, also written by Mayfield. Along with the tracks "Up Up Up" and "Destination's Theme", "Move On Up" hit number one on the disco chart for four weeks. [7] It peaked at number sixty-eight on the soul singles chart. [8]
The Jam, an English rock band active in the late 1970s to the early 1980s led by Paul Weller, released a version of the song on an extended play record in 1982, [9] as did Weller's The Style Council in 1985.
Kentucky-based jam-band My Morning Jacket frequently covers the song in their live shows. [10]
Just Blaze heavily sampled the song for Kanye West's 2006 single "Touch the Sky", using a slowed-down version of the horns. [11] [12]
The song was also used in the credits for the 2024 film Lift . [13]
English football club Arsenal adopted the song as a popular post-game anthem at their Emirates Stadium. [14]
The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2002 British film Bend It Like Beckham . [15]
The song can also be heard on the radio in the 2014 video game Watch Dogs . [16]
The song was used by Joe Biden following the end of his speeches during his 2020 presidential campaign. [17]
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. Dubbed the "Gentle Genius", he first achieved success and recognition with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted group the Impressions during the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and the 1960s, and later worked as a solo artist.
Gene Chandler is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, "the Duke." He is best known for his most successful songs, "Duke of Earl" and "Groovy Situation", and his association with the Dukays, the Impressions, and Curtis Mayfield.
"Rebel Rebel" is a song by the English singer-songwriter David Bowie. It was released in the UK on 15 February 1974 by RCA Records as the lead single from the album Diamond Dogs. Written and produced by Bowie, the song is based around a distinctive guitar riff reminiscent of the Rolling Stones. Cited as his most-covered track, "Rebel Rebel" has been described as Bowie's farewell to the glam rock movement that he had helped initiate, as well as being a proto-punk track. Two versions of the song were recorded: the well-known UK single release and the shorter US single release, which featured added background vocals, extra percussion and a new arrangement.
Curtis is the debut studio album by American soul musician Curtis Mayfield, released in September 1970. Produced by Mayfield, it was released on his own label Curtom Records. The musical styles of Curtis moved further away from the pop-soul sounds of Mayfield's previous group The Impressions and featured more of a funk and psychedelic-influenced sound. The album's subject matter incorporates political and social concerns of the time.
"Last Kiss" is a song written by Wayne Cochran and first recorded by Cochran in 1961 for the Gala label. Cochran's version failed to do well on the charts. Cochran re-recorded his song for the King label in 1963. It was revived by J. Frank Wilson and the Cavaliers, who took it to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 charts. Wednesday, Pearl Jam, and several international artists also covered the song, with varying degrees of success.
"Touch the Sky" is a song recorded by American hip hop artist Kanye West for his second studio album, Late Registration (2005). The song features Lupe Fiasco on his career debut. It was produced by Just Blaze, standing as the album's only track to not include production from West. The song was released in the United Kingdom as a digital EP through Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam on January 1, 2006. On February 14, the aforementioned labels serviced the song to US mainstream radio stations as the album's fourth single. The next month, it was released in various countries for digital download by Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam and as a CD single through Universal Music, respectively.
"More, More, More" is a song written by Gregg Diamond and recorded by American artist Andrea True. It was released in February 1976 as the first single from her debut album by same name (1976), becoming her signature track and one of the most popular songs of the disco era. In the US, it reached number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and spent three weeks at number three on the Cash Box Top 100 in July of that year. In Canada it was a number one hit, and reached number five in the UK.
"Beat Surrender" was the Jam's final single, and was released on 22 November 1982. It became the band's fourth and last No. 1 hit in the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in December 1982.
"Walk On By" is a song written by Burt Bacharach and Hal David for singer Dionne Warwick in 1963. Warwick's recording of the song peaked at number 6 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 1 on the Cash Box Rhythm and Blues Chart In June 1964 and was nominated for a 1965 Grammy Award for the Best Rhythm and Blues Recording.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Horace Ott and Sol Marcus for American singer-songwriter and pianist Nina Simone, who recorded the first version in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been covered by many artists. Two of the covers were transatlantic hits, the first in 1965 by the Animals, which was a blues rock version; and in 1977 by the disco group Santa Esmeralda, which was a four-on-the-floor rearrangement. A 1986 cover by new wave musician Elvis Costello found success in Britain and Ireland.
"Life During Wartime" is a song by the American new wave band Talking Heads, released as the first single from their 1979 album Fear of Music. It entered the US Billboard Pop Singles Chart on November 3, 1979, and peaked at number 80, spending a total of five weeks on the chart.
Major Lance was an American R&B singer. After a number of US hits in the 1960s, including "The Monkey Time" and "Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um", he became an iconic figure in Britain in the 1970s among followers of Northern Soul. Although he stopped making records in 1982, Major Lance continued to perform at concerts and on tours until his death in 1994. His daughter, Keisha Lance Bottoms, was the 60th mayor of Atlanta.
"Slow Jamz" is a song by American rapper Twista together with the American rapper and producer Kanye West and American singer Jamie Foxx. Produced by West, it was released in November 2003 through Atlantic and Roc-A-Fella Records, as the lead single from Twista's fourth studio album Kamikaze (2004), and the second single from West's debut studio album The College Dropout (2004). The song was written by Twista and West, with additional writing credits going to Burt Bacharach and Hal David for the sampling of Luther Vandross' cover of Dionne Warwick's 1964 song "A House Is Not a Home". Containing genres of hip hop, pop rap, R&B, and soul, the song's lyrics reference slow jam artists and describes the role of lovermen.
"On the Radio" is a song by American singer-songwriter Donna Summer, produced by Italian musician Giorgio Moroder, and released in late 1979 on the Casablanca record label. It was written for the soundtrack to the film Foxes and included on Summer's first international compilation album On the Radio: Greatest Hits Volumes I & II.
"Got to Have Your Love" is a song by American hip hop and electro funk group Mantronix, featuring vocals from American recording artist Wondress. It was released by Capitol Records in December 1989 as the lead single from Mantronix's fourth studio album, This Should Move Ya (1990). The song is written by band members Bryce Wilson and Kurtis Mantronik along with Johnny D. Rodriguez, and produced by Mantronix. It reached number four in the UK, number seven in Finland and number eight in Ireland. It is recognized as the group's signature song.
Linda Clifford is an American R&B, disco and house music singer who scored hits from the 1970s to the 1980s, most notably "If My Friends Could See Me Now", "Bridge over Troubled Water", "Runaway Love" and "Red Light".
"Superfly" is a song by Curtis Mayfield, the title track from his 1972 soundtrack album for the film of the same name. It was the second single released from the album, following "Freddie's Dead ", and reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on the Best Selling Soul Singles chart. The lyrics celebrate the craftiness and determination of the film's main character. The song plays over the film's closing credits.
"It's All Right" is a 1963 song recorded by The Impressions and written by the group's lead singer, Curtis Mayfield. The single was the most successful chart entry of the group's career. "It's All Right" was one of two top-ten singles for the group on the Billboard Hot 100, and the first of six number ones on the Billboard R&B chart. It also reached No.1 on the Cash Box R&B chart.
"Amen" is a traditional gospel song that was popularized by The Impressions with their 1964 version.
"Astounded" is a song by Canadian musical collective Bran Van 3000 featuring vocals from American artist Curtis Mayfield. The song contains interpolations from Mayfield's song "Move On Up" and also contains a sample and an interpolated melody of The Doobie Brothers' "Rockin' Down the Highway". The song was first released for download on Bran Van 3000's website in January 2001. It was then officially released on May 7 of the same year as the lead single from their second studio album, Discosis (2001).
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