"He's a Pretender" is a 1983 song written by Gary Goetzman (BMI) and Mike Piccirillo (BMI). It was originally recorded by R&B female group High Inergy. This was the lead single of their last album Groove Patrol, before disbanding in 1984, and it peaked at #82 in the Billboard Hot 100, #62 on the Black Singles charts. On the US, Dance/Disco Top 80 chart, "He's a Pretender" went to #25.
"Lies" is a song from American R&B/pop group En Vogue. It is the second single from their debut hit album Born to Sing. Written and produced by Thomas McElroy and Denzil Foster, it became the group's second single to top the Billboard R&B singles chart. The single peaked at number thirty-eight, it was also their second US Billboard Hot 100 top 40 hit.
Slow Dance is a number-one R&B single by R. Kelly with Public Announcement, from the album Born into the 90's. The song spent one week at number-one on the US R&B chart and became a minor pop hit on the US Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number forty-three. This was the second #1 R&B hit for Kelly; the previous being "Honey Love" from the same album.
"Rub You the Right Way" is a song by Johnny Gill. Taken as the first single from the artist's debut album under the Motown label. The single was written and produced by James Harris III & Terry Lewis. A remixed version of the song exists with a rap verse from CL Smooth.
"I Want Her" is a song by American R&B singer Keith Sweat. As the first single from his debut album, Make It Last Forever, it reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks chart for three weeks. and became the most successful number one single of 1988 on the Billboard Hot R&B chart. This was one of the earliest new jack swing songs to reach No. 1 on the R&B charts and since then it has become one of the genre's templates, having its sparse lyric delivery inspired Guy, Abstrac and Whistle all in that order. "I Want Her" also peaked at number 38 on the dance chart. The song topped the R&B Billboard Year-End chart for 1988. It was ranked number 6 on complex.com's list of 25 best new jack swing songs of all time.
"Head to Toe" is a song recorded by Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam that appeared on their 1987 album Spanish Fly. The song hit number one on three charts: Billboard Hot 100 on June 20, 1987, the Hot Black Singles charts on May 30 of that year, and the dance charts. In Canada, the song topped the RPM 100 national singles chart on July 25 of the same year. The song sports a retro Motown flavor mixed with the Freestyle sound for which they were known.
"Forever Came Today" is a 1967 song written and produced by the Motown collective of Holland–Dozier–Holland, and was first made into a hit as a single for Diana Ross & the Supremes in early 1968. A disco version of the song was released as a single seven years later by Motown group The Jackson 5.
"Lovely One" is a funk single released by American family group the Jacksons on September 27, 1980.
"Rebels Are We" is a song by American R&B band Chic. It was the first single from their fourth studio album, 1980's Real People. The song, featuring a solo lead vocal by Luci Martin, marked a change of direction for the band; incorporating harder rock/new wave elements into their trademark funk sound. The song peaked at number 8 on Billboard's "Hot Soul/Black Singles" chart and number 61 on Billboard's "Hot 100" chart). The song has been included in many compilation albums such as The Best of Chic, Volume 2 and The Very Best of Chic.
"Give It to Me Baby" is a song written by American singer Rick James. Taken from his album Street Songs, the song charted on the Billboard Hot 100, spending two weeks at No. 40 and spent five weeks at No. 1 on the R&B chart. Two other tracks from Street Songs, "Super Freak" and "Ghetto Life", topped the American dance chart for three weeks in the summer of 1981. The song proved to be even more successful with R&B and dance club audiences. Part of the background vocals were sung by former Temptations member Melvin Franklin.
"Skeletons" is a number-one R&B single performed by American recording artist Stevie Wonder from his 1987 Characters album.
"Funkin' for Jamaica (N.Y.)" is a 1980 single by jazz trumpeter Tom Browne. The single—a memoir of the Jamaica neighborhood in the New York City borough of Queens where Browne was born and raised—is from his second solo album, Love Approach. Browne got the idea for the song while he was at his parents' home. The vocals for the single were performed by Toni Smith, who also helped compose the song. The song hit number one on the US Billboard R&B chart for a month. "Funkin' for Jamaica" peaked at number nine on the dance chart and made the Top 10 on the UK Singles Chart, but it never charted on the Billboard Hot 100. It later became one of the most interpolated melodies in R&B with the chorus' chord sequence used by artists such as Johnny Kemp.
"So Fine" is a 1982 soul/dance single by Howard Johnson, former lead singer of Niteflyte. The single made it to number one on the dance charts for one week. "So Fine" peaked at number six on the soul singles chart, but failed to make the Hot 100. Fonzi Thornton provided vocals on the single. A music video for the single featured dancers that also appeared on Soul Train and Solid Gold.
"That's the Way Love Is" is a 1989 dance and soul single by Chicago-based dance trio Ten City. The single reached number eight in the UK and number eighteen in Germany and was the group's highest charting single on both the R&B and dance charts in the U.S. "That's the Way Love Is" reached number twelve on the U.S R&B Singles chart, and number one on the Dance Club Play chart. The single featured two main versions - on most releases, an acid house mix by Steve "Silk" Hurley was the A-side, while a string-led mix by Timmy Regisford, named the "Underground Mix", appeared on the B-side. Both mixes also had corresponding radio edits and dub versions
"The Right Kinda Lover" is a song recorded by American singer Patti LaBelle. It was written by Ann Bennett-Nesby, James Harris III, Terry Lewis, and James "Big Jim" Wright, while production was helmed by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, with Wright as co-producing. The song was released as a single from her 1994 album, Gems, and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Beverly Hills Cop III (1994).
"When You Talk About Love" is a song recorded by Patti LaBelle. It was written by Ann Nesby, James Harris III, Terry Lewis, and James "Big Jim" Wright for her 1997 studio album Flame. Production was helmed by Harris and Lewis, with Wright credited as co-producer. Released as the album's lead single, "When You Talk About Love" became one of the LaBelle's most popular hit singles in the 1990s, reaching number 56 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 12 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. A dance remix of the song helped to bring the song to number-one on the Hot Dance Club Songs chart, making it the fourth number-one dance single in LaBelle's career. The video featured LaBelle playing a teacher giving a "class" about love.
"Here We Go " is a song by American dance artist C+C Music Factory. It was released in 1991 as the second single from the album Gonna Make You Sweat. The song was a success in the US, reaching number 3 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 7 on the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. "Here We Go " also went to number one on the dance chart, for three weeks. It also reached number 20 on the UK Singles Chart. The song was certified gold by the RIAA for sales of over 500,000 copies.
"Think About You" is a song by American singer Luther Vandross. It was written by Vandross and James Porte for his fourteenth studio album, Dance with My Father (2003), with production helmed by the former. "Think About You" was minor hit after its single release, and would later peak at number 30 on the US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, also reaching the top of the Adult R&B Songs.
"Heaven Knows" is a song by American R&B/soul recording artist Luther Vandross. Released in 1993, the single is from his album Never Let Me Go. "Heaven Knows" peaked in the top 30 on both Billboard's Hot R&B Singles and the Hot Dance Club Play, also at thirty-three on the Hot Adult Contemporary Singles chart.
"Breakdance" is a song written by Giorgio Moroder, Bunny Hull, and the song's performer, Irene Cara. Moroder's obsession with the dance hit "Rockit" by Herbie Hancock fueled his composition of the music, and Cara was inspired by the street performers she saw growing up in the South Bronx to write lyrics about what was then called breakdancing. Released in March 1984, it was the third single that originated on her What a Feelin' LP and her first to make the top ten in the US since the album's title track went to number one almost a year earlier. "Breakdance" also charted in several other countries and had a dance remix that was also well received.
