We Are Family (song)

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"We Are Family"
We are family (song) by sister sledge US single side-A.png
Side A of US 7-inch single
Single by Sister Sledge
from the album We Are Family
B-side "Easier to Love"
ReleasedApril 1979
Studio Power Station, New York City, New York, US
Genre
Length
  • 8:19 (12-inch/album version)
  • 3:36 (single)
Label Cotillion
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Nile Rodgers
  • Bernard Edwards
Sister Sledge singles chronology
"He's the Greatest Dancer"
(1979)		"We Are Family"
(1979)		"Lost in Music"
(1979)
Music video
"We Are Family" on YouTube

"We Are Family" is a song recorded by American vocal group Sister Sledge. Composed by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers, they both offered the song to Atlantic Records; although the record label initially declined, the track was released in April 1979 as a single from the album of the same name (1979) [1] and began to gain club and radio play, eventually becoming the group's signature song. [2]

Contents

"We Are Family" went gold, becoming the number one R&B and number two pop song on the American charts in 1979 (behind "Hot Stuff" by Donna Summer). [3] Along with the tracks "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "Lost in Music", "We Are Family" reached number one on the Billboard Dance Club Songs. [4] It has been re-released two times in new remixes; in 1984 and 1993. In 2017, the song was selected for preservation in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress as being "culturally, historically, or artistically significant." [5] Billboard magazine named the song number 20 on their list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time" same year. [6] In 2023, the magazine included it in their "Best Pop Songs of All Time". [7]

Origins and meaning

"We Are Family" was the first song that Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards wrote for any act other than their own band Chic. After their first hit, "Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)", Atlantic Records President Jerry L. Greenberg wanted the pair to write and produce for other acts on the label; Rodgers and Edwards did not feel confident enough to work with big, established recording artists and performers, e.g.: The Rolling Stones, Bette Midler, etc. [8] They also felt that if they worked as Greenberg had suggested, credit for a hit would just go to those established people, and Rodgers/Edwards would not gain proper notice as songwriter/producers. [8] So the pair suggested that they write and produce a song for the label's least established act; if they got a hit record, then they could take the challenge of writing for someone bigger. [8]

According to Rodgers, the verses were mostly verbatim based on how Greenberg described Sister Sledge to them when first commissioning the work. [8] Rodgers/Edwards then simply walked immediately to the studio, rearranged their notes from the meeting into lyrics, and wrote a song melody underneath them. [8] The chorus (and therefore the title) makes reference to the fact that the group are the four sisters of a family. [8]

The song has since gone on to be used more generally as an expression of solidarity in various contexts, notably as the anthem of the We Are Family Foundation, which is named after it. The lead vocals to "We Are Family" were recorded in a single take by then-19-year-old Kathy Sledge.[ citation needed ]

Critical reception

Original version

American magazine Billboard wrote that "We Are Family" has "an upbeat, catchy melody" and "heavy bass, funky guitar and pulsating percussion." [9] Cash Box said that the song has "caressing, exuberant lead vocals backed by Sister Sledge's infectious harmony vocals." [10] Richard Smith from Melody Maker commented, "Everybody from the women's movement to troupes of cheerleaders claimed the mighty "We Are Family" as their own anthem, but it's always has a special place in the hearts of gay men. Appropriation or intention? Chic were quite canny - it was New York's gay clubs that had broken them and songs like this were a way of paying back the debt." [11]

1993 remix

In his weekly UK chart commentary, James Masterton wrote, "Your eyes do not deceive you. At a time when the 1970s are suddenly hip again, one of the best soul disco records ever made return in a new set of mixes for 1993." [12] Paul Lester from Melody Maker felt it's "perfunctorily remixed", adding, "It remains the last word in identikit-robot-girls-sing-gospel-tinged-melodies-over-machine-beats pop and proves that rock crits have always had guilty consciences about the records they (claim to) like." [13] Alan Jones from Music Week stated that the song "gets a new treatment from the Sure Is Pure dream team. The result, while less distinctive than the original with much of Chic's sterling instrumental work suppressed, is a hot and contemporary garage track." [14] Another editor, Andy Beevers, named it Pick of the Week in the category of Dance, adding, "This most enduring and endearing of club classics should make the Top 40 for the third time thanks to a wonderful and suitably reverential remix by Sure Is Pure." [15]

Music video

A music video was filmed in 1979 to promote the single, featuring the group wearing red outfits and dancing to the song in a street-like setting. It was later made available on YouTube in 2013 and had generated more than 6.4 million views as of January 2023. [16]

Impact and legacy

The 1979 World Series Champion Pittsburgh Pirates used "We Are Family" as their official theme song. It was chosen by Willie Stargell as the team waited out a rain delay on June 1, prior to a game in which they would mount a ninth-inning comeback to win. [17] [18] After the team adopted the song, it rose to second on the charts, whereas previously it had not gone above fourth. [19]

Billboard magazine ranked "We Are Family" number 18 in their list of "The 35 Best Disco Songs Ever" in 2016 [20] and number 20 in their list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time" in 2017. [21] Rolling Stone ranked it number 34 in their list of "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" in 2022. [22] In 2023, Billboard ranked "We Are Family" number 444 in their "Best Pop Songs of All Time". [7]

Charts

Certifications and sales

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
Greece—3,500 [51]
United Kingdom (BPI) [52] Platinum600,000‡
United States (RIAA) [53] Gold1,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Cover versions

Many artists have covered the song. Among the more notable versions is one by Babes in Toyland, which was a dance club hit in the U.S. It peaked at number 22 on the Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart in 1995. In addition, Nile Rodgers organized a re-recording of the song in 2001 as a benefit record for the September 11 attacks. This in turn led to his co-creation of the We Are Family Foundation, a global charity named for the song and designed to inspire and educate young people to find solutions to problems such as hunger and illiteracy that impede world peace.

Rodgers also produced a version featuring characters from popular television shows from PBS Kids, Nickelodeon and Disney such as Sesame Street , Between the Lions , Bear in the Big Blue House , Barney & Friends , etc. This version aired on Disney Channel, Playhouse Disney, Nickelodeon, Nick Jr. Channel and PBS Kids on March 11, 2002, and subsequently was commercially released on DVD in 2005 as a public service announcement to promote diversity and tolerance, but it was attacked by an evangelical group which felt that SpongeBob SquarePants promoted homosexuality. [54] In December 2007, the song was announced as one of the 2008 inductees to the Grammy Hall of Fame.

Australian singer Samantha Jade recorded a cover version of the song, which was played in the 2020 Robert Zemeckis film The Witches .

The song appears in 2021's Coming 2 America film, played by the fictional band Sexual Chocolate and sung by Eddie Murphy as Randy Watson.

The song appears repeatedly, from the opening to the closing, of the 1996 hit feel-good comedy movie The Birdcage , set in South Florida's South Beach Art Deco District, with the main characters (played by Robin Williams, Gene Hackman, Dianne Wiest, Calista Flockhart, Nathan Lane, Hank Azaria, Dan Futterman, Tom McGowan, and Christine Baranski), and the entire Birdcage cast and audience, some in drag, singing and dancing to the number.

The song was played in ′′Trolls Band Together′′ as part of the medley track Let's Get Married It would be sung by Justin Timberlake, Anna Kendrick, Zooey Deschanel, and other voice actors as their characters.

Related Research Articles

Sister Sledge is an American musical vocal group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Formed in 1971, the group consisted of sisters Debbie, Joni, Kim, and Kathy Sledge. The siblings achieved international success at the height of the disco era. In 1979, they released their breakthrough album We Are Family, which peaked at number three on the Billboard 200 and included the 1979 US top-10 singles "He's the Greatest Dancer" and "We Are Family". "We Are Family" earned a Grammy Award nomination for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nile Rodgers</span> American record producer and musician

Nile Gregory Rodgers Jr. is an American record producer, guitarist, composer, and philanthropist. The co-founder of Chic, he has written, produced, and performed on records that have sold more than 500 million albums and 75 million singles worldwide.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Good Times (Chic song)</span> 1979 single by Chic

"Good Times" is a disco soul song by American R&B band Chic from their third album Risqué (1979). It ranks 68th on Rolling Stone's list of the "500 Greatest Songs of All Time", and has become one of the most sampled songs in music history, most notably in hip hop music. Originally released with "A Warm Summer Night" on the B-side, it was reissued in 2004 with "I Want Your Love" on the B-side, a version which was certified Silver in the UK.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Upside Down (Diana Ross song)</span> 1980 single by Diana Ross

"Upside Down" is a song written and produced by Chic members Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. It was recorded by American singer Diana Ross and issued on June 18, 1980 from Motown as the lead single from her eleventh studio album, Diana (1980). The song hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on September 6, 1980 and stayed there for four weeks. It also hit number one on the Billboard Disco and Soul charts. The single was released a full four weeks after the album was released.

<i>We Are Family</i> (album) 1979 studio album by Sister Sledge

We Are Family is the third studio album by the American R&B vocal group Sister Sledge, released on January 22, 1979, in the United States and on April 30, 1979, in the United Kingdom by Cotillion Records. The album was written and produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards of the band Chic, and includes four hit singles: the title track, "He's the Greatest Dancer", "Lost in Music" and "Thinking of You", all of which have been sampled, remixed, and reissued in the decades after the album's release. The album reached number one on the Top R&B Albums chart and peaked at number three on the Billboard 200, making it the band's most commercially successful album. In 2013, NME named it among the 500 greatest albums of all time.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frankie (Sister Sledge song)</span> 1985 single by Sister Sledge

"Frankie" is a song by American vocal group Sister Sledge, released as a single in 1985. It is taken from their eighth studio album, When the Boys Meet the Girls (1985).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">He's the Greatest Dancer</span> 1979 single by Sister Sledge

"He's the Greatest Dancer" is a 1979 song by the American vocal group Sister Sledge. Released on February 3, 1979, the song was written and composed by Bernard Edwards and Nile Rodgers, and recorded for the group's successful 1979 album We Are Family. Billboard named the song No. 66 on its list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time."

<i>Cest Chic</i> 1978 studio album by Chic

C'est Chic is the second studio album by American band Chic, released on Atlantic Records in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chic (band)</span> American funk band

Chic, currently called Nile Rodgers & Chic, is an American disco band that was formed in 1972 by guitarist Nile Rodgers and bassist Bernard Edwards. It recorded many commercially successful disco songs, including "Dance, Dance, Dance " (1977), "Everybody Dance" (1977), "Le Freak" (1978), "I Want Your Love" (1978), "Good Times" (1979), and "My Forbidden Lover" (1979). The group regarded themselves as a rock band for the disco movement "that made good on hippie peace, love and freedom". In 2017, Chic was nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for the eleventh time.

American disco group Chic released a number of albums in the period 1977 to 1983. After 1983's Believer the group did not record a studio album until 1992's Chic-Ism. The band has since continued to tour and release live and compilation albums. The group's first studio album in 26 years, titled It's About Time was released in September 2018. Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards produced for a series of artists in the years 1978 to 1982. They sometimes produced under the name 'The Chic Organization'.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lost in Music</span> 1979 single by Sister Sledge

"Lost in Music" is a song by American vocal group Sister Sledge, released in July 1979 as the third single from their third studio album, We Are Family (1979), an album entirely written, produced, and arranged by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards. The "intoxicating" song was a no. 35 hit on the American R&B charts. In 1984 and 1993, "Lost in Music" was re-released in new remixes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">I Want Your Love (Chic song)</span> 1979 single by Chic

"I Want Your Love" is a song by American band Chic from their second studio album C'est Chic (1978). Featuring a solo lead vocal by Alfa Anderson, the song became a very successful follow-up to their hit single "Le Freak".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)</span> 1977 single by Chic

"Dance, Dance, Dance " is a song by American R&B band Chic. It was the group's first single, a hit in the United States, as well as in the United Kingdom and Canada. In addition, along with the tracks "You Can Get By" and "Everybody Dance", the single reached number one on the disco chart. Luther Vandross provided backup vocals. He was working as a session vocalist at the time.

<i>Chic</i> (album) 1977 studio album by Chic

Chic is the debut album by Chic, released on Atlantic Records in 1977. The cover art featured two models, Valentine Monnier (left) and Alva Chinn (right), uncredited in a photograph taken by Frank Laffitte.

<i>A Night in Amsterdam</i> 2006 live album by Chic

A Night in Amsterdam is a CD/DVD live album by American R&B band Chic, released in 2006.
The album was recorded at Amsterdam's Paradiso on July 17, 2005 and features Nile Rodgers and the current formation of the band performing Chic's best known songs as well as tracks from the albums written and produced for Sister Sledge and Diana Ross. The album was re-released as Greatest Hits Live in Concert in 2006.

<i>The Very Best of Chic & Sister Sledge</i> 1999 greatest hits album by Chic

The Very Best of Chic & Sister Sledge is a compilation album of recordings by American R&B bands Chic and Sister Sledge, released by Rhino Records/Warner Music in 1999. An expanded two-disc edition of the compilation was released by Warner Music in 2005, under the title Good Times: The Very Best of the Hits & the Remixes.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thinking of You (Sister Sledge song)</span> 1984 single by Sister Sledge

"Thinking of You" is a song released as a single by American musical vocal group Sister Sledge in 1984 that became a hit in the UK. It was originally recorded for their third album, We Are Family (1979), and was included as the B-side to their UK top 20 single "Lost in Music". "Thinking of You" was written and produced by Nile Rodgers and Bernard Edwards, and, like many Sister Sledge hits, was built on the rhythmic foundations of their famous guitar and bass line arrangements.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Everybody Dance (Chic song)</span> 1977 single by Chic

"Everybody Dance" is a song by American band Chic. The disco song, which features Norma Jean Wright on lead vocals and Luther Vandross, Diva Gray, Robin Clark and David Lasley on background vocals, was released as the second single from the band's self-titled debut album Chic (1977). According to guitarist Nile Rodgers, it was the first song specifically written for Chic, and, due to its historical status and popularity, is usually played as the opening song of the band's live set. It was later heavily sampled by British group Steps on their song "Stomp" and echoed by the Manic Street Preachers on their single "(It's Not War) Just the End of Love".

<i>Up All Night</i> (The Chic Organization album) 2013 compilation album by Nile Rodgers presents The Chic Organization

Up All Night is a compilation album by Nile Rodgers and The Chic Organization, released in 2013. It contains recordings written, played and produced by Rodgers and Bernard Edwards for various artists including Sister Sledge, Diana Ross, Sheila & B. Devotion, Deborah Harry, Norma Jean Wright, Carly Simon, Johnny Mathis and their own group Chic. In its original form, the album included every UK Top 40 hit single produced by Chic, excepting remixes. The Johnny Mathis track was widely publicised as being previously unreleased, though it had in fact appeared on Mathis' own Ultimate Collection CD in 2011.

<i>The Very Best of Sister Sledge 1973–93</i> 1993 greatest hits album by Sister Sledge

The Very Best of Sister Sledge 1973–93 is a greatest hits album by American vocal group Sister Sledge, released in 1993. Featuring the biggest hit singles of Sister Sledge, the album also includes two new Sure Is Pure remixes of "We Are Family" and "Lost in Music", both released as singles in 1993 and reaching number 5 and 14 in the UK Singles Chart respectively.

References

  1. ↑ Irvin, Jim; McLear, Colin (2000). The Mojo Collection. Edinburgh, Scotland: Canongate Books, Ltd. p. 421. ISBN   978-1-84195-973-3.
  2. ↑ "Joni Sledge, member of the group Sister Sledge, dies aged 60". The Guardian . Associated Press. March 11, 2017. Retrieved April 2, 2018.
  3. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 530.
  4. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974–2003. Record Research. p. 236.
  5. ↑ "National Recording Registry Picks Are "Over the Rainbow"". Library of Congress. March 29, 2016. Retrieved March 29, 2016.
  6. ↑ "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard. Retrieved July 11, 2017.
  7. 1 2 "The 500 Best Pop Songs: Staff List". Billboard . October 19, 2023. Retrieved October 20, 2023.
  8. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Nile Roidgers in conversation, Music Matters interview, 2007, Hong Kong
  9. ↑ "Top Single Picks" (PDF). Billboard . April 28, 1979. p. 81. Retrieved February 11, 2023.
  10. ↑ "CashBox Singles Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box . April 28, 1979. p. 17. Retrieved January 1, 2022.
  11. ↑ Smith, Richard (January 30, 1993). "Albums". Melody Maker . p. 35. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  12. ↑ Masterton, James (January 17, 1993). "Week Ending January 23rd 1993". Chart Watch UK. Retrieved September 10, 2021.
  13. ↑ Lester, Paul (January 9, 1993). "Singles". Melody Maker . p. 25. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  14. ↑ Jones, Alan (January 16, 1993). "Market Preview: Mainstream - Singles" (PDF). Music Week . p. 6. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  15. ↑ Beevers, Andy (January 9, 1993). "Market Preview: Dance - Pick of the Week" (PDF). Music Week . p. 17. Retrieved July 11, 2021.
  16. ↑ "Sister Sledge - We Are Family (Official Music Video)". YouTube. December 13, 2013. Retrieved January 1, 2023.
  17. ↑ Robinson, Eric. "June 1, 1979: A comeback victory and beginning of 'We Are Family' Pirates". Society of American Baseball Research. Archived from the original on December 3, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  18. ↑ Guggenheimer, Paul (October 17, 2019). "Remembering the 'We Are Family' 1979 Pirates". TribLive.com . Archived from the original on October 8, 2022. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  19. ↑ Clair, Michael (February 18, 2022). "How the Pirates chose 'We Are Family' in '79". MLB.com . Archived from the original on June 30, 2023. Retrieved June 30, 2023.
  20. ↑ "The 35 Best Disco Songs Ever". Billboard . July 20, 2016. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  21. ↑ "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard . Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  22. ↑ Dolan, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa; Matos, Michaelangelo; Shaffer, Claire (July 22, 2022). "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone . Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  23. ↑ Danyel Smith, ed. (1979). "Billboard 15 June 1979". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. ISSN   0006-2510 . Retrieved July 21, 2013.
  24. ↑ "We Are Family – Sister Sledge". VRT (in Dutch). Top30-2.radio2.be. Archived from the original on April 9, 2012. Retrieved July 25, 2013. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 1
  25. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 42, No. 22, August 10, 1979". Library and Archives Canada. Archived from the original on November 29, 2014. Retrieved June 1, 2013.
  26. ↑ "Sister Sledge – We Are Family" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 21 July 2013.
  27. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 14, 1979". Irish Singles Chart.
  28. ↑ "Classifiche". Musica e dischi (in Italian). Retrieved June 7, 2022. Set "Tipo" on "Singoli". Then, in the "Artista" field, search "Sister Sledge".
  29. 1 2 "Nederlandse Top 40 – Sister Sledge" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  30. ↑ "Sister Sledge – We Are Family" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  31. ↑ "Sister Sledge – We Are Family". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 21 July 2013.
  32. ↑ "Sister Sledge – We Are Family". Swiss Singles Chart.
  33. ↑ "Sister Sledge: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  34. ↑ "Sister Sledge Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  35. ↑ "Sister Sledge Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard.
  36. ↑ "Sister Sledge Chart History (Dance Club Songs)". Billboard.
  37. ↑ Cash Box Top 100 Singles.
  38. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Sister Sledge – We Are Family" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
  39. ↑ "Sister Sledge – We Are Family - 1984 Mix By Bernard Edwards" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  40. ↑ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media . February 6, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  41. ↑ "European Dance Radio Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media . February 27, 1993. p. 10. Retrieved November 3, 2021.
  42. ↑ "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media . March 6, 1993. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  43. ↑ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – We Are Family". Irish Singles Chart.
  44. ↑ "Top 60 Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week . January 23, 1993. p. 22. Retrieved April 8, 2021.
  45. ↑ "The RM Club Chart" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental insert). January 30, 1993. p. 4. Retrieved October 30, 2021.
  46. ↑ Bac-lac.gc.ca
  47. ↑ "Top Selling Singles of 1979 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. December 31, 1979. Retrieved October 15, 2016.
  48. ↑ Top 100 Hits of 1979/Top 100 Songs of 1979.
  49. ↑ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1979". Archived from the original on July 13, 2014. Retrieved December 25, 2016.
  50. ↑ "The RM Club Chart 93" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental insert). December 25, 1993. p. 4. Retrieved February 3, 2023.
  51. ↑ John Carr (February 9, 1980). "Greeks Grind To Foreign Product" (PDF). Billboard . p. 32. Retrieved September 19, 2021– via World Radio History.
  52. ↑ "British single certifications – Sister Sledge – We Are Family". British Phonographic Industry . Retrieved March 1, 2024.
  53. ↑ "American single certifications – Sister Sledge – We Are Family". Recording Industry Association of America . Retrieved January 25, 2019.
  54. ↑ "US right attacks SpongeBob video". BBC News. January 20, 2005. Retrieved December 27, 2013.
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