Composition
The song is noted for its innovative use of the Synare electronic drum, playing a decaying high-pitched tom tone on the first beat of every bar. It also uses chimes. The lyrics concern a woman encouraging her partner to relax with her after a hard day at work. [11]
The lyric "You can ring my bell" was seen as sexually suggestive according to 1984 book The Slanguage of Sex, "'You can ring my bell any time you want to' would be regarded as a 'come-on' phrase in the US if used by a female," and "Songs like 'Ring My Bell' by Anita Ward caused scarcely a raised eyebrow in the '70s." [12] Songwriter Frederick Knight, however, said that he deliberately avoided any overly suggestive lyrics, wanting to project a clean-cut image for Ward. [13]
Legacy
In October 2000, VH1 ranked "Ring My Bell" No. 53 in their list of "100 Greatest Dance Songs". [14] In 2010, Billboard magazine included it in their list of "The 50 Sexiest Songs of All Time". [11] In 2020, Slant Magazine ranked "Ring My Bell" No. 80 in their "The 100 Best Dance Songs of All Time" list. [15] The significance of the song to the history of disco music is discussed in Episode 3 of the 2024 PBS series Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution. [16] Same year, Forbes ranked it No. 12 in their list of "The 30 Greatest Disco Songs of All Time". [17]
In March 2025, Billboard ranked it No. 33 in their list of "The 100 Best Dance Songs of All Time", writing, "Anita Ward was working as a substitute teacher in Memphis when she recorded "Ring My Bell", a disco song that became her only major hit.
The track was written by Frederick Knight, who had minor success in the early 1970s with the famed soul outfit Stax Records. Knight initially penned "Ring My Bell" for the young singer Stacy Lattisaw, envisioning a song about teenagers chatting on the phone. This origin story is often disputed, as the opening lyric was often interpreted as an entendre: You can ring my bell, anytime, anywhere. The instrumentation is pleasingly plush, with a "whoop"-ing sound accenting the first beat, guitars pawing around the edges of the drums, and a chiming motif that pairs perfectly with Ward's flirty hook." [18]
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