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Play That Funky Music
Wild Cherry
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- Album
- Wild Cherry
- Released
- 1976
- Genres
- funk rock
- Length
- 5:00
- Tempo
- 109 BPM
- Label
- Epic
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About this song
The song was Wild Cherry's first and only international top 10 hit and became their signature song. It topped the US Pop Chart in September 1976, and in 2018 Billboard named it one of the greatest songs of all time. Parissi wrote it in a style modeled on Top 40 hits he picked out each week, and its bass line and rhythm guitar were inspired by Ohio Players' "Fire". It was first planned as a B-side, but the owners of Sweet City Records asked for it to become the A-side after hearing it.
What it's about
The main lyric grew out of an audience member shouting for some funky music at a disco club where the band was playing a hard rock set. Vanilla Ice and White Boys are among the artists who have sampled it.
Fun facts
- Sampled in 15 other songs, like “This Is Why We Do It by LK CORVUS”.
- Covered 12 times, including “Play That Funky Music by George Michael”.
- Written and produced by Rob Parissi.