Rock Your Baby

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"Rock Your Baby"
Rock your baby george mccrae Australian single side-A.png
Side A of the Australian single
Single by George McCrae
from the album Rock Your Baby
B-side "Rock Your Baby (Part 2)"
ReleasedMay 1974 [1] [2]
Recorded1973
Genre
Length
  • 3:14 (7" version)
  • 6:24 (album version)
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Harry Wayne Casey
  • Richard Finch
George McCrae singles chronology
"Rock Your Baby"
(1974)		"I Can't Leave You Alone"
(1974)
Music video
"Rock Your Baby" (TopPop) on YouTube

"Rock Your Baby" is the debut single by American singer George McCrae. Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch of KC and the Sunshine Band, "Rock Your Baby" became an early landmark recording of disco. It was the only international hit for McCrae. The song spent two weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in July 1974, and three weeks at number one on the UK Singles Chart that same month. [5] [6] The song also topped the Billboard R&B chart. [7] The single has sold over 11 million copies, making it one of fewer than forty singles to have sold 10 million physical copies worldwide. [8] [9]

Contents

The backing track was recorded in 45 minutes as a demo, with Casey on keyboards, Finch on bass guitar and drums, and their fellow Sunshine Band member Jerome Smith on electric guitar. [10] The song became one of the first pop hits to use a drum machine. [11] [12] The track was not originally intended for McCrae, but he happened to be in the studio at the time and added his distinct falsetto vocals. Music critic Robert Christgau has described the result as "irresistibly Memphis-cum-disco-with-a-hook." [13]

"Rock Your Baby" influenced John Lennon's "Whatever Gets You thru the Night", released a few months later; in a 1975 interview, Lennon said of "Rock Your Baby" that "I'd give my eyetooth to have written that." [14] [15] Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus have also cited the song as an inspiration for ABBA's 1976 song "Dancing Queen".

"Rock Your Baby" was covered by English indie rock band the House of Love for the 1992 compilation album Ruby Trax . [16] British dance group KWS's cover of "Rock Your Baby" reached number eight in the UK the same year.[ citation needed ]

The 2024 PBS series Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution explores the influence of "Rock Your Baby" within the genre. [17]

Chart performance

Certifications

Certifications and sales for "Rock Your Baby"
RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Germany (BVMI) [42] Gold500,000^
United Kingdom (BPI) [43] Gold500,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Answer song

Gwen McCrae, George McCrae's wife, recorded an answer song to "Rock Your Baby" with George on backing vocals, released less than a year later. "Rockin' Chair" reached number one on the Billboard R&B chart and number nine on the Hot 100 in mid-1975.

Rock Your Baby (Frankfurt Mix)

"Rock Your Baby (Frankfurt Mix)"
Single by George McCrae
from the album I Feel Love for You
ReleasedJanuary 1, 1987
Recorded1986
Genre Disco, dance, synth-pop
Length5:25
Label Ariola Records
Songwriter(s) Harry Wayne Casey, Richard Finch
Producer(s) Siegfried Ipach, Mane Bock
George McCrae singles chronology
"Let's Dance / Never Forgot Your Eyes"
(1985)		"Rock Your Baby (Frankfurt Mix)"
(1987)		"That's Love"
(1987)

In 1987, a remix version was released, with mixing by Paul Hardcastle. It was adapted to suit the decade.[ citation needed ] This version is also included in the compilation Super Power Hit Sensation.

Track listing

12" Maxi

  1. Rock Your Baby [Frankfurt Mix] - 5:25
  2. Ooh Baby - 3:57

Charts

Chart (1987)Peak
position
UK Singles Chart92
German Singles Chart [44] 42

KWS version

"Rock Your Baby"
Single by KWS
from the album KWS
ReleasedAugust 10, 1992 (1992-08-10) [45]
Length5:14
Label Network
Songwriter(s) Harry Wayne Casey, Richard Finch
Producer(s) Chris King, Winnie Williams, Mark Gamble
KWS singles chronology
"Please Don't Go"
(1992)		"Rock Your Baby"
(1992)		"Hold Back the Night"
(1992)

In August 1992, British dance music act KWS released their take on the song. It appeared on the album KWS. Their version charted within the top 10 in Ireland and the United Kingdom, peaking at number six and eight, respectively. In Australia and New Zealand, the single entered the top 40.

Track listing

CD maxi

  1. "Rock Your Baby" (Boogaloo Investigator mix) – 3:29
  2. "Rock Your Baby" (Thumb A Ride mix) – 5:19
  3. "A Different Man" (Bubblegum Breakthrough mix) – 3:42
  4. "Game Boy" (Rhythmatic remix) – 5:37

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1992)Peak
position
Australia (ARIA) [46] 38
Europe (Eurochart Hot 100) [47] 22
Ireland (IRMA) [48] 6
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ) [49] 32
UK Singles (OCC) [50] 8

Year-end charts

Chart (1992)Position
UK Singles (OCC) [51] 100

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References

  1. ↑ Morsch, Mike (April 16, 2024). The Vinyl Dialogues: Stories Behind Memorable Albums of the 1970s as Told by the Artists. The Educational Publisher / Biblio. ISBN   978-1-62249-207-7.
  2. ↑ Bronson, Fred (April 16, 2024). The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. Billboard Books. ISBN   978-0-8230-7677-2.
  3. ↑ Breihan, Tom (November 15, 2022). "George McCrae - "Rock Your Baby". The Number Ones: Twenty Chart-Topping Hits That Reveal the History of Pop Music. New York: Hachette Book Group. pp. 103–104.
  4. ↑ "Rock Your Baby". 45cat.com. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  5. 1 2 Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 303. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  6. 1 2 "George McCrae - UK Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  7. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 389.
  8. ↑ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2, illustrated ed.). Barrie & Jenkins. ISBN   0-214-20480-4. Biggest selling singles discs.
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  10. ↑ "Billboard". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. August 10, 1974. p. 20 – via Google Books.
  11. ↑ Martin Russ (2012), Sound Synthesis and Sampling, page 83, CRC Press
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  14. ↑ Blaney, John (June 2005). John Lennon: Listen to This Book - John Blaney - Google Books. John Blaney. p. 138. ISBN   9780954452810 . Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  15. ↑ Schoenberger, Francis (October 9, 2019). "He Said, She Said: An Interview With John Lennon". Spin .
  16. ↑ Carlson, Dean. "Ruby Trax: The NME's Roaring 40". AllMusic . Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  17. ↑ "Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution | Rock the Boat | Episode 1 | PBS". PBS .
  18. 1 2 "National Top 100 Singles for 1974". Kent Music Report. December 30, 1974. Retrieved January 15, 2022– via Imgur.
  19. ↑ "George McCrae - Austrian chart". Austriancharts.at. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  20. ↑ "George McCrae - Belgian Chart". Ultratop.be. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  21. ↑ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. August 17, 1974. Retrieved December 7, 2019.
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  40. ↑ "Top Pop Singles" Billboard December 28, 1974: Talent in Action-8
  41. ↑ "Cash Box YE Pop Singles - 1974". Tropicalglen.com.
  42. ↑ Ehnert, Günter (2000). Hit Bilanz: Deutsche Chart Singles 1956 – 1980 (in German) (1 ed.). Norderstedt: Verlag Populärer Musik-Literatur. p. 445. ISBN   3-922542-24-7.
  43. ↑ "British single certifications – George McCrae – Rock Your Baby". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved January 4, 2022.
  44. ↑ Hung, Steffen. "Caught In The Act - Babe". Hitparade.ch.
  45. ↑ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week . August 8, 1992. p. 19.
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  47. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media . Vol. 9, no. 37. September 12, 1992. p. 15.
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