Something About You (Level 42 song)

Last updated
"Something About You"
Something About You cover.jpg
Single by Level 42
from the album World Machine
B-side "Coup d'état" (version)
Released13 September 1985 [1]
Genre
Length
  • 4:27 (album version)
  • 3:44 (7"/video version)
  • 7:40 (12" Sisa mix)
Label Polydor
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Wally Badarou
  • Level 42
Level 42 singles chronology
"The Chant Has Begun"
(1984)
"Something About You"
(1985)
"Leaving Me Now"
(1985)
Music video
"Something About You" on YouTube

"Something About You" is a single released by English jazz-funk band Level 42 in 1985, in advance of its inclusion on the album World Machine the same year. The song was written by Mark King, Mike Lindup, Phil Gould, Boon Gould, and Wally Badarou. Hugh Thompson (Hedge End) sung backing vocals on the 12" remix.

Contents

Background

"Something About You" was released in several countries outside the United Kingdom, including the United States, Germany, Italy, Canada, in addition to many countries in South America and Asia. It is the only Level 42 song to have been a top 10 hit in the United States, where it peaked at no. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 the weeks of May 31 and June 7, 1986, [4] [5] and it was their second top 10 hit in the United Kingdom, reaching no. 6 on the UK Singles Chart. The single was certified gold in Canada in 1986.

"Something About You" appears in many Level 42 collections, including Level Best , The Very Best of Level 42 , and The Definitive Collection .

"Something About You" also appears on the PC version of the video game Grand Theft Auto IV on the Vice City FM radio station.

Music video

The music video for "Something About You", which uses the shorter single version, is directed by Stuart Orme, who also directed videos for the Level 42 songs "Lessons in Love" and "Running in the Family" (appearing in their video album Family of Five released in 1987), as well as Phil Collins and Genesis.

Mark King appears as a dark clown magician, representing the negative aspects in the relationships of Mike Lindup, Phil and Boon Gould with their girlfriends, all played by actress Cherie Lunghi. [6]

Charts

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Level 42</span> English jazz-funk band

Level 42 are an English jazz-funk band formed on the Isle of Wight in 1979. They had a number of UK and worldwide hits during the 1980s and 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">You Can't Hurry Love</span> 1966 single by the Supremes

"You Can't Hurry Love" is a 1966 song originally recorded by the Supremes on the Motown label. It was released on July 25, 1966 as the second single from their studio album The Supremes A' Go-Go (1966).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Phil Gould (musician)</span> British musician

Philip Gabriel Gould is a British drummer, songwriter and singer from the Isle of Wight in southern England. He founded the band Level 42 with Mark King.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">1999 (Prince song)</span> 1982 single by Prince

"1999" is a song by American musician Prince, the title track from his 1982 album of the same name. Originally peaking at number 44 on the Billboard Hot 100, a mid-1983 re-release later reached number 12 in the US, while a January 1985 rerelease, a double A-side with "Little Red Corvette", later peaked at number 2 in the UK.

<i>Running in the Family</i> 1987 studio album by Level 42

Running in the Family is the seventh studio album by British band Level 42, released in 1987. It features the UK hit singles: "Lessons in Love", "Running in the Family", "To Be with You Again", "It's Over" and "Children Say". All five singles peaked in the Top 10 in the Netherlands. "Lessons in Love" peaked at No. 1 in Germany, South Africa, Switzerland and Denmark. This was the last Level 42 album of the 1980s to feature brothers Phil (drums) and Rowland 'Boon' Gould (guitar) who had cited dissatisfaction with the musical direction of the band and exhaustion as departure reasons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Easy Lover</span> 1984 single by Philip Bailey and Phil Collins

"Easy Lover" is a song performed by Philip Bailey of the band Earth, Wind & Fire and Phil Collins of the band Genesis, jointly written and composed by Bailey, Collins, and Nathan East. The song appears on Bailey's solo album, Chinese Wall. Collins has performed the song in his live concerts, and it appears on both his 1990 album, Serious Hits... Live!, and his 1998 compilation album, ...Hits. It is Bailey's only US Top 40 hit as a solo artist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Typical Male</span> 1986 single by Tina Turner

"Typical Male" is a song recorded by American singer Tina Turner. It was written by Terry Britten and Graham Lyle and produced by the former for Turner's studio album Break Every Rule (1986).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">How Am I Supposed to Live Without You</span> 1982 song written by Doug James and Michael Bolton

"How Am I Supposed to Live Without You" is a song co-written in 1982 by Doug James and Michael Bolton. The track was originally recorded by Laura Branigan in 1983, charting at number one in both the US and Canadian Adult Contemporary charts. Bolton later recorded his own version of the song that topped the US Billboard Hot 100 and became a worldwide hit.

<i>World Machine</i> 1985 studio album by Level 42

World Machine is the sixth studio album by British pop group Level 42, released in 1985. It was the band's breakthrough album internationally and features one of their most successful singles, "Something About You".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Human (The Human League song)</span> 1986 single by the Human League

"Human" is a song by English synth-pop band the Human League, released as the lead single from their fifth studio album, Crash (1986). The track, which deals with the subject of infidelity, was written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. The song topped the charts of the United States, becoming the band's second single to top the Billboard Hot 100 after their 1981 single "Don't You Want Me". It also went to number one in Canada while reaching number five in Germany and number eight in the band's native United Kingdom.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mad About You (Belinda Carlisle song)</span> 1986 single by Belinda Carlisle

"Mad About You" is the debut solo single by American singer Belinda Carlisle. It was written by Paula Jean Brown, James Whelan and Mitchel Young Evans, and produced by Michael Lloyd for Carlisle's debut solo album Belinda. The single was released in 1986 as a CD single, 7-inch single and a 12-inch single. It was her first hit after leaving the Go-Go's, peaking at number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and at number one on the Canadian Singles Chart.

<i>Standing in the Light</i> 1983 studio album by Level 42

Standing in the Light is the fourth studio album released in 1983 by English jazz-funk band Level 42 on Polydor Records. The album peaked at No. 9, being the group's first top 10 showing in the UK Pop Albums Chart. Standing in the Light has also been certified Gold in the UK by the British Phonographic Industry

<i>True Colours</i> (Level 42 album) 1984 studio album by Level 42

True Colours is the fifth studio album by the English jazz-funk band Level 42, released on 5 October 1984 by Polydor Records. Beyond the band's native United Kingdom, the album was released in 10-plus other countries, including Japan, Germany and the United States of America. The album peaked at #14 in the UK Albums Chart.

<i>Staring at the Sun</i> (Level 42 album) 1988 studio album by Level 42

Staring at the Sun is the eighth studio album by British jazz/funk band Level 42, released in 1988. The album includes the singles "Heaven in My Hands", "Take a Look" and "Tracie".

"Leaving Me Now" is a single released in 1985 by English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was the second single from their sixth studio album World Machine. The song was written by Mark King, Phil Gould and Wally Badarou. A slow, emotive ballad written about the end of a relationship, it contains a piano solo by Mike Lindup in the middle and at the end, though this is edited down for the single edit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Running in the Family (song)</span> 1987 single by Level 42

"Running in the Family" is a single released in 1987 by English jazz-funk band Level 42, from the album Running in the Family. It was then popped up for the release of the single which had significant success, reaching #6 on the UK Singles Chart and #9 in New Zealand, but only reaching #83 in the United States. It was part of a series of single successes by the group and brought Level 42 fame in countries where they were previously little-known, such as the United States, Germany and Norway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hot Water (song)</span> 1984 single by Level 42

"Hot Water" is a single released in 1984 by the English jazz-funk band Level 42. It was released a couple of weeks before the band's studio album True Colours (1984). The single reached #18 on the UK Singles Chart and was a top ten hit in the Netherlands and Norway. The song was produced by Ken Scott.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Heaven in My Hands</span> 1988 single by Level 42

"Heaven in My Hands" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42, released in August 1988 as the first single from their eighth studio album, Staring at the Sun (1988). It reached number 12 on the UK Singles Chart. It was the first Level 42 single not to feature the Gould brothers, Boon and Phil, following their departure from the band the previous year. However, Boon did write the song's lyrics.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">To Be with You Again</span> 1987 single by Level 42

"To Be with You Again" is a single released in 1987 by English jazz-funk band Level 42, from their album Running in the Family. The song was written by Mark King and Boon Gould, and was released as a single in other countries such as Australia, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands and others by the record label Polydor.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Children Say</span> 1987 single by Level 42

"Children Say" is a song by English jazz-funk band Level 42. Written by Mark King, Mike Lindup and Phil Gould, it was the final single to be issued from their album, Running in the Family (1987). The song made the top 30 in the UK, and the top 10 in the Netherlands, and followed a series of successes with the hits "Lessons in Love", "Running in the Family", "To Be with You Again" and "It's Over".

References

  1. "Music Week" (PDF). p. 20.
  2. Jisi, Chris (1 August 2010). "Royal Return: Mark King Leads Level 42 On Its 30th Anniversary Comeback". Archived from the original on 3 February 2014.. Guitar Player .
  3. Hermann, Andy (25 January 2017). "10 Underrated '80s Bands You Need to Hear Now". L.A. Weekly.
  4. Billboard Hot 100, Week of May 31, 1986 Billboard.com. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  5. Billboard Hot 100, Week of June 7, 1986 Billboard.com. Retrieved July 5, 2024.
  6. "Lunghi plays love interest in music video".
  7. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. 2014-07-22. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  8. "LEVEL 42 – SOMETHING ABOUT YOU" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  9. "LEVEL 42 – SOMETHING ABOUT YOU". Top 40 Singles.
  10. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  11. "LEVEL 42 Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  12. "LEVEL 42 Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard.
  13. Whitburn, Joel (1993). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993. Record Research. p. 139.
  14. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending June 7, 1986". Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 2018-08-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Cash Box magazine.
  15. "Top 100 1985 - UK Music Charts". Uk-charts.top-source.info. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  16. "Top 100 Hits of 1986/Top 100 Songs of 1986". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2019-05-26.
  17. "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1986". Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 2018-08-24.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Cash Box magazine.