Joanna (Kool & the Gang song)
"Joanna" | |
---|---|
Song | |
B-side | "Place For Us" |
"Joanna" is an R&B/Pop song by Kool & the Gang from their 1983 album, In the Heart. Released as a single on December 17, 1983, the song was an immediate hit peaking at #2 in the US for one week, behind "Karma Chameleon" by Culture Club.[1] Additionally, the track reached #2 in the UK as well as #1 on the US R&B chart.[2]
A romantic ballad similar to many of Kool & The Gang's later releases, the song features as its main subject the eponymous girl named "Joanna". In the group's music video, "Joanna" is portrayed as the current owner of a small, roadside café named "Joanna's Diner" (Filmed at the Colonial Diner in Lyndhurst, N.J. The Colonial sign can be seen briefly outside in the opening seconds of the video). Throughout the video, she serves the band members as both cook and waitress as they serenade her with the video occasionally flashing back to her younger days as a dancer at Harlem's famous Cotton Club in New York City and in love with the character portrayed by the group's lead singer, James "J.T." Taylor. The artist Glue70 sampled "Joanna" in his song "Casin".
Chart performance
Weekly singles charts
Chart (1983-84) | Peak position |
---|---|
Australia | 45 |
Canada RPM | 15 |
UK | 2 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 2 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 2 |
U.S. Billboard R&B | 1 |
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 | 3 |
Year-end charts
Chart (1984) | Rank |
---|---|
UK [3] | 23 |
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [4] | 24 |
See also
References
- ^ "Billboard Hot 100". 1984-02-11. Retrieved 2014-07-04.
- ^ Dean, Maury (2003). Rock N' Roll Gold Rush. Algora. p. 287. ISBN 0-87586-207-1.
{{cite book}}
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(help) - ^ http://www.uk-charts.top-source.info/top-100-1984.shtml
- ^ http://www.musicoutfitters.com/topsongs/1984.htm
- 1983 singles
- Kool & the Gang songs
- Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles
- 1983 songs
- Pop ballads
- Rhythm and blues ballads
- Songs written by James "J.T." Taylor
- Polydor Records singles
- Songs written by Claydes Charles Smith
- Songs written by Ronald Bell (musician)
- Songs written by Robert "Kool" Bell
- 1980s pop song stubs
- 1980s rhythm and blues song stubs