Shake, Shake, Shake

Album: Shake! Shake! Shake! (2011)
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Songfacts®:

  • When it came time to record Shake! Shake! Shake!, producer Chad Copelin and the band retreated to the dirt roads and country atmosphere of Copelin's abode in Norman, Oklahoma where Blackwatch Studios makes its home. Deemed an "inviting and artistic space fostering creativity, innovation and inspiration," lead singer Chris Henderson gave a nod towards the locals of Norman and the good ol' type of sound the area lent the band's music-making experience. "Most of the instruments played on this record were lent to us from the community," says Henderson.
  • Perhaps the underlying desire here is to reinvigorate a generation of people who seem to have forgotten how to dance – or at least don't embrace it like generations past. "There's always this moment near the beginning of a set where everybody is standing around. It just takes one outgoing dude, or a tipsy couple, and they just start moving. You can see two or three more people going, and then as the set progresses, more and more people start to move." Henderson himself even admits, "I will almost never be the first person to dance in a crowd, but I always admire the people who have the courage to start before anyone else does."

    The song seems to genuinely spread a be-satisfied-with-living quality which, in conjunction with the right setting, gets people moving. (Here's our full Chris Henderson interview.)
  • In terms of a song becoming a hit, the old saying, "save the best for last," seems to ring true for BRR's track "Shake, Shake, Shake." "During the several weeks we spent in Oklahoma recording the album, we kept circling around this song. We would try a guitar line or a key's texture and nothing was sitting right. Everything sounded unnatural. When we started nearing the end of our time in the studio, we noticed that we still had a lot of work to do in order to finish the song "Shake! Shake! Shake!," Henderson told us. "After a few long, late night sessions of really focusing on the tune, we came up with something we all liked on the last day. It ended up being the title track of the record."
  • Lead singer Chris Henderson holds strong that the band is not selling out by licensing their tunes for commercial opportunities. In reference to the Nissan Leaf commercial where this song was featured, he stated, "We were excited to be a part of the campaign. Our band doesn't have the mindset of selling out; we look at using your stuff for commercials as an opportunity to get our music out there and get new fans."

    Songs on Shake! Shake! Shake! have been licensed by American Eagle, Hollister, Anthony Bourdain's Travel Channel Show The Layover, HBO's 24/7 Flyers/Rangers Road to the NHL Winter Classic, CW's Heart of Dixie, American Idol, and Polo Ralph Lauren.

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