"Move On Up" | ||||
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Single by Curtis Mayfield | ||||
from the album Curtis | ||||
B-side |
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Released | June 25, 1971 | |||
Studio | RCA Studios, Chicago | |||
Genre | ||||
Length |
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Label | Curtom | |||
Songwriter(s) | Curtis Mayfield | |||
Producer(s) | Curtis Mayfield | |||
Curtis Mayfield singles chronology | ||||
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Official audio | ||||
"Move On Up" on YouTube |
"Move On Up" is a song by Curtis Mayfield from his 1970 debut album, Curtis . Nearly nine minutes long on the album version, it was released as a single in the United States, but failed to chart. An edited version of the song spent 10 weeks in the top 50 of the UK Singles Chart in 1971, peaking at number 12, and it has become a soul classic over the years. [3] [4] In 2021, it was listed at No. 474 on Rolling Stone 's "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". [5]
Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom (BPI) [6] | Platinum | 600,000‡ |
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. |
In 1979, disco trio Destination recorded a medley, incorporating "Keep On Pushing", a 1964 hit by the Impressions, also written by Mayfield. Along with the tracks "Up Up Up" and "Destination's Theme", "Move On Up" hit number one on the disco chart for four weeks. [7] It peaked at number sixty-eight on the soul singles chart. [8]
The Jam, an English rock band active in the late 1970s to the early 1980s led by Paul Weller, released a version of the song on an extended play record in 1982, [9] as did Weller's The Style Council in 1985.
Kentucky-based jam-band My Morning Jacket frequently covers the song in their live shows. [10]
Just Blaze heavily sampled the song for Kanye West's 2006 single "Touch the Sky", using a slowed-down version of the horns. [11] [12]
The song was also used in the credits for the movie 'Lift' starring Kevin Hart in 2024. [13]
English football club Arsenal adopted the song as a popular post-game anthem at their Emirates Stadium. [14]
The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2002 British film Bend It Like Beckham . [15]
It is also featured in on the fourth season of the HBO series The Wire , specifically in the sixth episode "Margin Of Error", when Dennis "Cutty" Wise is seen on a morning jog where residents are handing out election flyers.[ citation needed ]
The song was used by Joe Biden following the end of his speeches during his 2020 presidential campaign. [16]
Curtis Lee Mayfield was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and record producer, and one of the most influential musicians behind soul and politically conscious African-American music. Dubbed the "Gentle Genius", he first achieved success and recognition with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted group the Impressions during the civil rights movement of the late 1950s and the 1960s, and later worked as a solo artist.
Gene Chandler is an American singer, songwriter, music producer, and record-label executive. Chandler is nicknamed "the Duke of Earl" or, simply, "the Duke." He is best known for his most successful songs, "Duke of Earl" and "Groovy Situation", and his association with the Dukays, the Impressions, and Curtis Mayfield.
"Gimme Some Lovin'" is a song first recorded by the Spencer Davis Group. Released as a single in 1966, it reached the Top 10 of the record charts in several countries. Later, Rolling Stone included the song on its list of the 500 Greatest Songs.
The Impressions were an American music group originally formed in 1958. Their repertoire includes gospel, R&B, doo-wop, and soul.
Curtis is the debut studio album by American soul musician Curtis Mayfield, released in September 1970. Produced by Mayfield, it was released on his own label Curtom Records. The musical styles of Curtis moved further away from the pop-soul sounds of Mayfield's previous group The Impressions and featured more of a funk and psychedelic-influenced sound. The album's subject matter incorporates political and social concerns of the time.
"Through the Wire" is the debut solo single by American rapper and producer Kanye West, who wrote and recorded the song with his jaw wired shut after a car crash on October 23rd, 2002. The song samples Chaka Khan's 1985 single "Through the Fire" and was released on the last day of September 2003 as the lead single from his debut album The College Dropout (2004).
"Touch the Sky" is a song recorded by American hip hop artist Kanye West for his second studio album, Late Registration (2005). The song features Lupe Fiasco on his career debut. It was produced by Just Blaze, standing as the album's only track to not include production from West. The song was released in the United Kingdom as a digital EP through Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam on January 1, 2006. On February 14, the aforementioned labels serviced the song to US mainstream radio stations as the album's fourth single. The next month, it was released in various countries for digital download by Roc-A-Fella and Def Jam and as a CD single through Universal Music, respectively.
Curtis Stigers is an American jazz singer. He achieved a number of hits in the early 1990s, most notably the international hit "I Wonder Why" (1991), which reached No. 5 in the UK and No. 9 in the US.
"Beat Surrender" was the Jam's final single, and was released on 22 November 1982. It became the band's fourth and last No. 1 hit in the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in December 1982.
"Ribbon in the Sky" is a song by American singer Stevie Wonder. The ballad was first featured on the 1982 greatest hits album, Stevie Wonder's Original Musiquarium I, and charted at No. 54 pop, No. 21 Adult Contemporary, and No. 10 R&B in the US when it was released. The song also charted in the United Kingdom, reaching #45.
"Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" is a song written by Bennie Benjamin, Horace Ott and Sol Marcus for American singer-songwriter and pianist Nina Simone, who recorded the first version in 1964. "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" has been covered by many artists. Two of the covers were transatlantic hits, the first in 1965 by the Animals, which was a blues rock version; and in 1977 by the disco group Santa Esmeralda, which was a four-on-the-floor rearrangement. A 1986 cover by new wave musician Elvis Costello found success in Britain and Ireland.
Major Lance was an American R&B singer. After a number of US hits in the 1960s, including "The Monkey Time" and "Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um", he became an iconic figure in Britain in the 1970s among followers of Northern Soul. Although he stopped making records in 1982, Major Lance continued to perform at concerts and on tours until his death in 1994. His daughter, Keisha Lance Bottoms, was the 60th mayor of Atlanta.
Linda Clifford is an American R&B, disco and house music singer who scored hits from the 1970s to the 1980s, most notably "If My Friends Could See Me Now", "Bridge over Troubled Water", "Runaway Love" and "Red Light".
"Superfly" is a song by Curtis Mayfield, the title track from his 1972 soundtrack album for the film of the same name. It was the second single released from the album, following "Freddie's Dead ", and reached #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #5 on the Best Selling Soul Singles chart. The lyrics celebrate the craftiness and determination of the film's main character. The song plays over the film's closing credits.
"Young Hearts Run Free" is a disco song written by David Crawford and originally recorded by American soul singer Candi Staton in 1976. In 1996, it was covered by American house music singer Kym Mazelle for the triple-platinum selling soundtrack of Romeo + Juliet. Rolling Stone ranked "Young Hearts Run Free" number 150 their list of "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time" in 2022, while Billboard ranked it among the "500 Best Pop Songs of All Time" in 2023.
"Be Thankful for What You Got" is a soul song written and first performed by William DeVaughn. The record sold nearly two million copies on its release in spring of 1974, reaching #1 on the U.S. R&B charts and #4 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. In 2021, it was listed at No. 374 on Rolling Stone's "Top 500 Greatest Songs of All Time".
"It's All Right" is a 1963 song recorded by The Impressions and written by the group's lead singer, Curtis Mayfield. The single was the most successful chart entry of the group's career. "It's All Right" was one of two top-ten singles for the group on the Billboard Hot 100, and the first of six number ones on the Billboard R&B chart. It also reached No.1 on the Cash Box R&B chart.
"Amen" is a traditional gospel song that was popularized by The Impressions with their 1964 version.
This is the discography of musician Curtis Mayfield.
"Gypsy Woman" is a 1961 rhythm and blues song written by Curtis Mayfield and recorded by his group the Impressions. The group's first single following the departure of lead singer Jerry Butler, it reached No. 2 on the US Billboard R&B chart, No. 20 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 17 on the Cash Box chart. It also appeared on the group's 1963 eponymous debut album. Joe Bataan (1967), Brian Hyland (1970), Bobby Womack (1985), Steve Marriott (1989), and Santana (1990) covered this song.
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