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Rock Your Baby

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"Rock Your Baby"
Song
B-side"Rock Your Baby (Part 2)"

"Rock Your Baby" is a popular song recorded by George McCrae. Written and produced by Harry Wayne Casey and Richard Finch of KC and the Sunshine Band, "Rock Your Baby" was one of the landmark recordings of early disco music. A massive international hit, the song reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart in the United States, spending two weeks at the top in July 1974, number one on the R&B singles chart,[2] and repeating the feat on the UK Singles Chart, spending three weeks at the top of the chart in July 1974.[3][4] Having sold 11 million copies, it is one of the fewer than forty all-time singles to have sold 10 million (or more) physical copies worldwide.[5][6]

The backing track for the record had been recorded in 45 minutes as a demo, and featured guitarist Jerome Smith of KC and the Sunshine Band, with Casey on keyboards and Finch on bass and drums.[7] The track was not originally intended for McCrae, but he happened to be in the studio, added a vocal, and the resultant combination of infectious rhythm and falsetto vocals made it a hit.

The chord progression of John Lennon's number one single "Whatever Gets You thru the Night", released a few months later, bears a great resemblance to the one found in "Rock Your Baby". Lennon later admitted to using the song as an inspiration.[8] ABBA's Benny Andersson and Björn Ulvaeus have also cited the song as an inspiration for the backing track of their 1976 smash hit "Dancing Queen". The song was covered by indie rock band The House of Love for the 1992 compilation album Ruby Trax.[9]

Chart performance

See also

References

  1. ^ "Rock Your Baby". 45cat.com. Retrieved September 29, 2012.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 389.
  3. ^ a b Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 303. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  4. ^ a b "George McCrae - UK Chart". The Official Charts Company. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  5. ^ Murrells, Joseph (1978). The Book of Golden Discs (2, illustrated ed.). Barrie & Jenkins. ISBN 0-214-20480-4.
  6. ^ Moore-Gilbert, Bart (March 11, 2002). The Arts in the 1970s: Cultural Closure. Routledge. Retrieved May 30, 2012.
  7. ^ Jim Melanson, Sara Lane, "Weird Mix Jells For No.1 Single", Billboard, August 10, 1974, p.20
  8. ^ John Lennon: Listen to This Book - John Blaney - Google Books. Books.google.com. Retrieved March 27, 2014.
  9. ^ Carlson, Dean. "Ruby Trax: The NME's Roaring 40". AllMusic. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
  10. ^ "George McCrae - Austrian chart". austriancharts.at. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  11. ^ "George McCrae - Belgian Chart". ultratop.be. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  12. ^ "George McCrae - Dutch chart". dutchcharts.nl. February 8, 2015.
  13. ^ "George McCrae - German Chart". officialcharts.de. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  14. ^ "George McCrae - New Zealand Chart". charts.org.nz. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  15. ^ "George McCrae - Norwegian chart". norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  16. ^ "George McCrae - Swedish chart". swedishcharts.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  17. ^ "George McCrae - Swiss chart". hitparade.ch. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  18. ^ "George McCrae - US Hot 100". billboard.com. Retrieved February 8, 2015.
  19. ^ "George McCrae | Awards". AllMusic. October 19, 1944. Retrieved August 27, 2015.
  20. ^ "Top 100 1974". top-source.info.
  21. ^ "Top Pop Singles" Billboard December 28, 1974: Talent in Action-8
Preceded by Billboard Hot Soul Singles number-one single
July 6, 1974 - July 13, 1974 (two weeks) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Billboard Hot 100 number-one single
July 13, 1974 - July 20, 1974 (two weeks) 		Succeeded by
Preceded by UK Singles Chart number-one single
July 27, 1974 (3 weeks) 		Succeeded by
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