Kung Fu Fighting
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| "Kung Fu Fighting" | ||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||||||||||
| Single by Carl Douglas | ||||||||||||
| Released | 1974 | |||||||||||
| Genre | Disco | |||||||||||
| Length | 03:13 | |||||||||||
| Label | 20th Century Records | |||||||||||
| Producer | Biddu Appaiah | |||||||||||
| Carl Douglas singles chronology | ||||||||||||
|
||||||||||||
"Kung Fu Fighting" is a song written and performed by Carl Douglas and Vivian Hawke. It was released as a single in 1974, at the cusp of a chopsocky film craze, and quickly rose to the top of British and American charts. The song also is famous for its use of the quintessential Oriental Riff, a short musical phrase that is used to signify Chinese culture.
It originally was meant to be a B-side to I Want to Give You My Everything by Brooklyn songwriter Larry Weiss, and was recorded in the last ten minutes of his studio time.[1][2] This song has been featured prominently in pop culture including Mott's Clamato advertisements.
Douglas states that his inspiration to write the song was affected by three factors: he had seen a kung fu movie, later visited a jazz concert by Oscar Peterson, and was suffering from side-effects of pain killers (Douglas had injured his foot playing football).[3]Another account gives his inspiration simply as seeing two kids in London doing kung fu moves.[1]
Kung Fu Fighting was rated #100 in VH1's "100 Greatest one-hit wonders, and number 1 in the UK Channel 4's Top 10 One Hit Wonders list in 2000, the same channel's 50 Greatest One Hit Wonders poll in 2006 and Bring Back ... the one-hit Wonders, for which Carl Douglas performed the song in a live concert.
Contents |
[edit] Cover versions
British dance act Bus Stop reached #8 on the U.K. charts with their 1998 remix single of "Kung Fu Fighting", which sampled the original vocals by Carl Douglas and added rap verses. Iconic DJ Fatboy Slim is sometimes mistakenly credited for this remix.
The song was very popular in Jamaica, and there were several cover versions by reggae artists including Lloyd Parks, The Maroons, The Cimarons, and Pluto Shervington.[4]
Jerry Lo (DJ Jerry, Taiwan) also produced a remake of the song [2].
[edit] Use in film, television, & video games
The song was used as the title song in the german version of the TV series Kung Fu. It has been used in several movies since 1990 where there is a light-hearted spirit to the martial arts, including Mighty Morphin Power Rangers: The Movie, Shaolin Soccer, Little Manhattan, Epic Movie, City of God, Beverly Hills Ninja, Sin noticias de Dios, Scrubs, Bowfinger, Kung Fu Panda, and Rush Hour 3, in which Chris Tucker sings the song after successfully defeating a group of Triads in martial combat. It also has been used in trailers for the films Kung Fu Panda, Disney's Wendy Wu: Homecoming Warrior, & Kung Fu Hustle, and a cover by Cee-Lo Green and Jack Black is used over the end credits of Kung Fu Panda. This version has partially rewritten lyrics more in keeping with the film's themes. This song has also been confirmed for use in the upcoming game Lego Rock Band.
The Bus Stop version has appeared in the video game Dance Dance Revolution, and the original version appeared in Dancing Stage MAX.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Kung Fu Fighting, SongFacts.com
- ^ Bronson, Fred. The Billboard Book of Number One Hits. 4th ed. New York: Billboard Books, 1997. 385.
- ^ [1]
- ^ Search for "kung fighting", Roots-Archives.com
[edit] External links
| Preceded by "I Can Help" by Billy Swan |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single December 7, 1974 |
Succeeded by "Cat's in the Cradle" by Harry Chapin |
| Preceded by "Boogie On Reggae Woman" by Stevie Wonder |
Billboard's Hot Soul Singles number one single January 11, 1975 |
Succeeded by "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" by Barry White |
| Preceded by "Love Me for a Reason" by The Osmonds |
UK Singles Chart number one single September 21, 1974 for three weeks |
Succeeded by "Annie's Song" by John Denver |
