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The band got the idea for this song when they played a show at a military base. It was a tough crowd, and the audience was not responding to their songs. Lead singer Hazel Payne admonished them from the stage: "If you're thinking that you're too cool to boogie, we've got news for you. Everyone here tonight must boogie and you are no exception to the rule." Afterwards in her hotel room, bass player Janice Marie Johnson wrote down the line, thinking that it would be a good song lyric. The single went on to sell over 2 million copies.
A Taste of Honey were a US R &B group formed in Los Angeles in 1972 by Janice Marie Johnson (bass/vocals), Hazel Payne (vocals/guitar), Perry Kibble (keyboards) and Donald Johnson (drums). They won the 1978 Grammy Award for Best New Artist, beating out Elvis Costello and The Cars. A Taste Of Honey had one other hit: their cover of Kyu Sakamoto's "
Sukiyaki" went to #3 in the US.
Johnson came up with the famous bass intro when she was warming up before the recording session, unaware that she was being recorded.
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That was a very touching comment/story about your dad. Thanks for sharing.
Well, first of all, I must tell you my dad died September 9, 1987, age 77 years and 77 days exactly - eight and a half years after April 27, 1979, and "Boogie Oogie Oogie" is one of two songs I will always remember him by - the other one - from "Over the Top", with Sylvester Stallone - "Meet Me Halfway"? I think that's the name of the song.
Okay. My dad lived on Vieques Island, Puerto Rico (the island of the Navy controversey), from 1978 to his death in 1987. From 1976 to 1978, he lived on the island of Tortola, British Virgin Islands. I need to say this before I go on re "Boogie Oogie Oogie".
April 27, 1979 was my second trip down to visit my dad in the Islands. We met in San Juan, PR at the main airport there, then flew in an old DC-3 prop to St. Thomas, Virgin Islands. (My dad wanted to take me to Tortola the next day for me to see where he lived, meet an old drinking pal friend - Harry, etc. We then went to the Pineapple Beach area at the northeast end of St. Thomas, where my cousin had a condo the two of us could stay at. We had a few Heinekens, tunafish sandwiches, got rather drunk!
We took a walk down to the beach, sat out in beachchairs along the Caribbean, the waves lapping the shoreline, keels in evidence in the waters. I turned on my cassette tape recorder, recording our conversation. I was glad I did that, as I still play it today, over and over. It's really rather funny, both of us being drunk, carrying on conversation, laughing, etc., remembering old times, people.
Suddenly in the background, coming from a restaurant with an outdoor section, dance floor (no one on the dance floor yet - perhaps two couples, later), etc., was the sound of music, played by a combo, an organist, etc. It was very 'island' like - of the Caribbean. Maybe we heard three or four numbers, but when they played, "Boogie Oogie Oogie" the way they did, one of the longest versions of it I'd ever heard, it just went so well with everything - the 'scene' - the coming night, temperatures just right, I dressed in shorts, a sleeveless shirt - my dad more or less the same, minus the sleeveless shirt. It was so good, it is still good today!
This is why I love this song so much - "Boogie Oogie Oogie".
As for "Meet Me Halfway"? In 1987, after I'd visited my dad for the last time in April (he died September 9th, as I told you), I went to see the movie "Over The Top" at a San Juan, PR movie theater. I was thinking about my dad, the lovely visit I had with him, our staring at one another for the longest time, as the boat pulled away from the Vieques dock (I decided to take the boat back to Fajardo, then from there a publico and bus to the airport). Did we somehow know it was the last visit? "Meet Me Halfway", above all the other numbers in "Over The Top", stayed with me, my associating it with that last visit with my dad. It was a kind of halfway visit, since I'd not returned to the Caribbean since.
Sorry this was a LONG comment! Hope it's accepted!