Popcorn (instrumental)

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For other topics, see Popcorn (disambiguation). For the James Brown instrumental, see The Popcorn.

"Popcorn"
Cover of 1973 release of Music to Moog By
Song by Gershon Kingsley
from the album Music to Moog By
Released1969
GenreSynth-pop[1][2]
Length2:24
LabelAudio Fidelity
Songwriter(s)Gershon Kingsley

"Popcorn" (first version "Pop Corn") is an instrumental composed by Gershon Kingsley in 1969 for the album Music to Moog By on the Audio Fidelity label. The name is a combination of pop for pop music and corn for kitsch.[3] The Moog synthesizer instrumental became a worldwide hit in 1972, when a version by Hot Butter was released.[4] Since then, multiple versions of the piece have been produced and released, including those by Vyacheslav Mescherin,[5] Anarchic System, Popcorn Makers, the Boomtang Boys, M & H Band, Crazy Frog, and the Muppets.

Hot Butter version[edit]

"Popcorn"
Single by Hot Butter
from the album Popcorn
B-side"At the Movies"
ReleasedJuly 1972 (U.S.)[6]
Genre
Length2:30
Label
  • Interfusion (AUS)
  • Musicor (US and Canada)
Songwriter(s)Gershon Kingsley[9]
Producer(s)
  • Bill Jerome
  • Steve Jerome
Hot Butter singles chronology
"Popcorn"
(1972) 		"Skokiaan"
(1973)
Audio sample

In 1972, a rearranged version of the instrumental was recorded by Kingsley's First Moog Quartet. This was intended for the namesake album (First Moog Quartet) which had otherwise been a re-release of the 1970 First Moog Quartet album with the same name. The 1972 version of the instrumental had the now current title "Popcorn".[10] In that same year, Stan Free, a fellow member of the First Moog Quartet, re-recorded another instrumental, based on the 1972 version, with his own band Hot Butter.[11] This was released as a single and became a hit in mainland Europe, spending several weeks at No. 1 in numerous countries on the continent, including France (4 weeks at the top) and Switzerland (10 weeks), ultimately becoming the biggest-selling single of 1972 in both countries. "Popcorn" was also a No. 1 hit in Germany (3 weeks), the Netherlands (7 weeks) and Norway (9 weeks).

Record World said that the "catchy tune played out in intricate synthesizer counterpoint expands on a musical idea first brought out in the popular percolater commercials on TV."[12]

Track listing[edit]

7" single

  1. "Popcorn" – 2:30
  2. "At the Movies" – 2:31

Charts[edit]

Sales[edit]

Sales for "Popcorn"
Region Sales
France 1,400,000[38]
Europe 2,500,000[38]

Crazy Frog version[edit]

"Popcorn"
Single by Crazy Frog
from the album Crazy Frog Presents Crazy Hits
B-side"Who Let the Frog Out?"
Released22 August 2005
GenreEurodance[39]
Length
  • 3:12 (album version)
  • 2:46 (radio edit)
LabelMinistry of Sound
Songwriter(s)Gershon Kingsley[9]
Producer(s)Erik Wernquist
Crazy Frog singles chronology
"Axel F"
(2005) 		"Popcorn"
(2005) 		"Jingle Bells/U Can't Touch This"
(2005)
Music video
"Popcorn" on YouTube

In 2005, Crazy Frog released a cover of "Popcorn", the remix of which was arranged by Jamba!, and also marketed as a ringtone. The song differs from Crazy Frog's debut release "Axel F" in that it does not contain the trademark "Crazy Frog sound" by Daniel Malmedahl.

The single was a hit in various countries, particularly in France, where it enjoyed its greatest success. Replacing Crazy Frog's own song "Axel F" at No. 1 on 24 September 2005, the track remained at the top spot for seven weeks, with its best weekly sales of 71,777 copies in its second week.[40] Certified diamond status just three months after its release by the SNEP, as of August 2014, this version of "Popcorn" is the 40th best-selling single of the 21st century in France, with 458,000 copies sold.[41] The track also topped the charts in Belgium, New Zealand and Spain.[42]

The music video, CGI-animated, was produced by Kaktus Film and Erik Wernquist of TurboForce3D and features Crazy Frog causing chaos at the undersea labs of the drones. A significantly shortened version of this video was also used for the Frog's version of "U Can't Touch This".

Track listings[edit]

UK

  1. "Popcorn" (radio mix)
  2. "Popcorn" (radio mix instrumental)
  3. "Popcorn" (potatoheadz mix)
  4. "Popcorn" (radikal mix)
  5. "Popcorn" (resource mix)
  6. "Popcorn" (video)

Australia

  1. "Popcorn" (radio mix)
  2. "Popcorn" (potatoheadz mix)
  3. "Popcorn" (resource mix)
  4. "Who Let the Frog Out?"

Charts[edit]

Certifications[edit]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[76] Gold 35,000^
France (SNEP)[77] Diamond 471,816[71]
New Zealand (RMNZ)[78] Platinum 10,000*

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Legacy and influence[edit]

French electronic composer and musician Jean-Michel Jarre recorded a 1972 version under the pseudonyms Pop Corn Orchestra and Jammie Jefferson. Later he was inspired by this song to compose his 1976 biggest hit Oxygène (Part IV).[79][80] In early 2019, when Kingsley died, the experimental composer Blanck Mass chose "Popcorn" as one of the 10 most influential compositions of his career.[81]

Other versions[edit]

The 1972 cover by the Popcorn Makers reached No. 7 on the German charts and No. 1 on the Dutch Charts.[82][83] The version with vocals by French band Anarchic System was released in 1972 and reached at No. 13 on the German charts, No. 10 on the Dutch charts and No. 1 on the Ultratop 50.[84][85][86]

In 1987, the French M & H Band (sole member Mark Haliday), released a version of "Popcorn" which peaked at No. 8 on the Norwegian charts and at No. 20 on the Swedish charts.[87][88] This single's release was accompanied by the first purpose-produced music video.[89] Canadian group the Boomtang Boys covered "Popcorn" in 1999, their version peaked at No. 26 on the Billboard Dance Club Songs chart, where it stayed for 9 weeks.[90][91] It also reached No. 10 on RPM's Canadian dance chart.[92] Richárd Moldován known as Richi M released in the 2000 year a cover version which reached at No. 9 on the Swedish charts.[93]

In popular culture[edit]

In a comical reference, a version of the song was included in the 2010 skit by The Muppets called "Pöpcørn: Recipes with The Swedish Chef."[94] In 2022, Swedish singer Tove Lo sampled the Hot Butter version in her single "2 Die 4".[95]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ Kelman, John (26 June 2011). "Jokleba: Jokleba! / Nu Jok?". All About Jazz. Retrieved 26 April 2014. Jørgensen skews a familiar bit of Gershon Kingsley's 1969 synthpop hit, "Popcorn"
  2. ^ McQuillen, James (7 May 2011). "'Sordid Lives' opera review: an irreverent (and fun) arrow straight into the heart of good taste". The Oregonian. Retrieved 26 April 2014. Hot Butter's cover of the synthpop hit "Popcorn"
  3. ^ "Gershon Kingsley - Popcorn | The Story Behind The Song".
  4. ^ Pinch, Trevor; Trocco, Frank (2002). Analog Days: The Invention and Impact of the Moog Synthesizer. Boston, Massachusetts, USA: Harvard University Press. p. 200. ISBN 0-674-00889-8.
  5. ^ "Советская электронная музыка | Музыка". Мир фантастики и фэнтези (in Russian). 18 February 2013. Retrieved 13 August 2022.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1991). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-1990. Record Research. ISBN 0-89820-089-X. [page needed]
  7. ^ "Hot Butter: "Popcorn"". Keyboard. Vol. 21. 1995. p. 30. ISSN 0730-0158.
  8. ^ Eddy, Chuck (22 March 1997). "Intermission (Time for Popcorn)". The Accidental Evolution of Rock 'n' Roll: A Misguided Tour Through Popular Music. Da Capo Press. p. 18. ISBN 0-306-80741-6.
  9. ^ a b "ACE Repertory: Gershon Kingsley". American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers. Retrieved 31 January 2017.
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  11. ^ Pareles, Jon (15 December 2019). "Gershon Kingsley, Master of Electronic Sounds, Dies at 97". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
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