Give the People What They Want (The O'Jays song)
| "Give the People What They Want" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The O'Jays | ||||
| from the album Survival | ||||
| B-side | "What Am I Waiting For" | |||
| Released | 1975 | |||
| Genre | R&B, Philly soul | |||
| Length | 4:11 | |||
| Label | Philadelphia International | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff | |||
| Producer(s) | Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff | |||
| The O'Jays singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Give the People What They Want" is a 1975 song written by Kenny Gamble & Leon Huff and performed R&B vocal group The O'Jays. Gamble & Huff also produced the track and was a release from the O"Jays album Survival.
Chart History[edit]
"Give the People What They Want" spent one week at number one on the R&B singles chart in the summer of 1975. It peaked at number 45 on the Billboard Hot 100.[1]
Charts[edit]
| Charts | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 45 |
| US Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 1 |
Use in media[edit]
- The song was used in the King of the Hill Season 12 episode "Trans-Fascism" over a montage of the Sugarfoot's Express truck competing with Rooster's Roost and evading the news crew.
- The song is currently being used by NBC's WCAU-TV-10 to promote the station's news and other programming.[2] The chorus plays with no other voice-over, along with clips of action in the streets, and station on-air staff with slogans promoting programming. The campaign debuted on 12 February 2010, including a clip of Jay Leno at 11:35, after The Tonight Show with Conan O'Brien was off the air.
- The song is used as the intro theme music for former NBA player Jalen Rose's, and ESPN Employee David Jacoby podcast Jalen & Jacoby, for ESPN. The phrase has become Rose's unofficial catchphrase.
- The song was also used in a Samsung smartphone TV commercial in February 2017,[3] and then an American Express commercial the following year.[4]
- The song appears in the video game Grand Theft Auto IV in the fictional radio station International Funk 99.
- In 2022, Liam Gallagher finished his stadium concerts by playing the song over the PA speakers as he left the stage.
Sampling[edit]
- This song is heavily sampled in EPMD's song "Give the People" from their 1990 album Business as Usual.
Use in Political Campaigns[edit]
It was used as part of the regular playlist at campaign events for Barack Obama's 2008 presidential candidacy.[5]
References[edit]
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 438.
- ^ "Got to Give the People..." WCAU. Retrieved 2018-11-11.
- ^ Hall, Gary J. (30 March 2017). "Samsung is Right: Markets Give the People What They Want". Liberty Today. Retrieved 24 March 2019.
- ^ "American Express - Amex Gold Rewards". TV Ad Music. 22 October 2018. Retrieved 6 May 2019.
- ^ Hewitt, Gavin (2008-10-29). "The songs – and the candidate – remain the same". BBC News. Retrieved 2008-10-29.
External links[edit]
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