Theme From S'Express

by

S'Express

Album: Original Soundtrack     Released: 1989

US Chart: 91      UK Chart: 1

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This song took the bass and brass sections from Rose Royce's 1979 hit "Is It Love You're After" and "Rose Royce Express" and mixed it with the brass stabs from Crystal Grass' 1975 funk anthem, "Crystal World." It also samples controversial performance artist Karen Finley's "Tales of Taboo." Another unusual sample - a hairspray aerosol can was used for the hi-hat sound.

The diminutive singer Michelle, who had a hit single with "No More Lies," was brought in to provide the vocals. Chilo Harlo provided the "Enjoy this trip, enjoy this trip and it is a trip" intro.

Apart from the samples, this song cost just £250 to make.

The video showed Britain for the first time the dancing and fashion of the Acid House club scene that became popular in the late 1980s. It was also one of the first hit records to capitalize on the sampling craze.

The man behind S-Express is a DJ, producer and remixer known as Mark Moore.. He said in 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh, "I wanted the song to be a Disco record with '70s influences but with an '80s feel."

A 1996 remix by Tony De Vit and Simon Parkes returned this song to #14 in the charts in the UK. (thanks, Edward Pearce - Ashford, Kent, England, for all above)

Mark Moore explained to the Observer Music magazine how this song only began to be played by BBC Radio 1 once it became successful. "I wrote the song about six months previously. I just thought they'd play it at (London clubs) Shoom and Future and it would be a cult record. We sent out promos but couldn't get it on the radio; Radio 1 refused to play it. Then the first week it came out it went to number 27 or 28, then the next week it went to three and Radio 1 went 'Uh-oh, we're going to look really stupid if this goes to No. 1,' so they started playing it. And it went to No. 1."

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