Right On Time

Album: Right On Time (1977)
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Songfacts®:

  • "Right On Time" is the title track to the second Brothers Johnson album. The song is all about dancing and having a good time; most of the lyric is the line, "In a minute, you'll be right on time" repeated.

    Like many Brothers Johnson songs, the lyric is in service to the groove. They were one of the top R&B/funk acts of the late '70s, with their first four albums going Platinum.
  • Quincy Jones produced the Right On Time album and co-wrote this song with George and Louis Johnson of the Brothers Johnson.
  • Quincy Jones brought in the Tower of Power horn section, who have played on many hit records by artists like Huey Lewis, Bonnie Raitt, Santana, Elton John and Aaron Neville, to play on this track. Emilio Castillo told Songfacts about working with Jones:

    "There was a real kinship there musically. He knew us from before because we had traveled with him on the road. It was a Quincy Jones and Tower of Power tour. He also was the one who gave me my first gold record. He was talking to us after the session with The Brothers Johnson and he said, 'You guys must have tons of Gold records,' and we told him, 'No we don't even have one.' He was amazed. He said, 'You guys don't have a Gold record? I can't believe that. This record is going to go Gold and when it does you're getting one.' He was true to his word, he sent me one."

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