The Jock Jam

Album: Jock Jams Volume 3 (1997)
Charted: 31
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Songfacts®:

  • "The Jock Jam" is a mashup of high-energy tracks that appeared on the Jock Jams compilation CDs. The songs in the mashup are:

    "Everybody Everybody" by Black Box
    "This Is Your Night" by Amber
    "I Like to Move It" by Reel 2 Real
    "Give It Up" by The Goodmen
    "The Bomb! (These Sounds Fall Into My Mind)" by The Bucketheads
    "Boom Boom Boom" by The Outhere Brothers
    "Get Ready For This" by 2 Unlimited
    "Whoomp! There It Is" by Tag Team
    "Strike It Up" by Black Box
    "Tootsee Roll" by 69 Boyz
    "It Takes Two" by Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock
    "Gonna Make You Sweat (Everybody Dance Now)" by C+C Music Factory
    "Pump Up The Jam" by Technotronic
    "Y.M.C.A." by The Village People
    "Twilight Zone" by 2 Unlimited
    "Rock And Roll Part 2" by Gary Glitter

    Getting the rights to use all these songs certainly took a great deal of legal dexterity.
  • The first Jock Jams CD was released in 1995 as a partnership between ESPN and Tommy Boy Records. Most of the songs were of the techno or hip-hop variety, with "Rock And Roll Part 2" and "Y.M.C.A." included as oldies. Many of these songs were getting play at sporting events to pump up the crowd, but for the most part, venues relied on familiar favorites like "Mony Mony" and "We Will Rock You." With Jock Jams, the contemporary club-bangers became much more welcome in stadiums.

    That first CD sold over 2 million copies and popularized the term "jock jam" as an arena-ready anthem. "The Jock Jam," also known as "The Jock Jam Mega Mix," was included on Volume 3 in 1997. It was also released as a single, which is very unusual for a compilation album comprised of previously released tracks. The single charted at #31 in the US and went Gold, selling over 500,000 copies. The artist was listed as "ESPN Presents."
  • Along with the songs, there are also chants, cheers and whistles in the mix to give the feel of being at the event. It starts with boxing announcer Michael Buffer and his famous "Let's get ready to rumble!" call. Buffer's call also kicks off the first Jock Jams compilation; he appeared in a "This Is SportsCenter" promo for ESPN around this time where he introduces anchors as they come into the lobby as if they were entering the ring.
  • Because "The Jock Jam" incorporates 16 different songs, there are 32 credited writers. Most are names of producers for the techno tracks, but a few you'll recognize - Victor Willis is the lead singer of The Village People and co-wrote "Y.M.C.A."; Freedom Williams was the rapper in C+C Music Factory.

    Fans of the band Chicago might notice their original drummer, Danny Seraphine, on the list. He wrote a Chicago song called "Street Player" that was sampled to make the Bucketheads track "The Bomb."

    Here's the full list of credited writers:

    Rob Base
    Henri Belolo
    Christian Berman
    Frank Berman
    Albert Bryant
    Robert Clivilles
    Marie Cremers
    Daniele Davoli
    Jean Paul DeCoster
    Thomas DeQuincey
    Steve Gibson
    Cecil Glenn
    Gary Glitter
    Kenny Gonzalez
    Rene Horst
    Manuella Kamosi
    Mike Leander
    Mirko Limoni
    Lamar Mahone
    Carlos Meire
    Jacques Morali
    Erick Morillo
    Mark Quashie
    Junny Rollocks
    Valerio Semplici
    Danny Seraphine
    Ray Slijngaard
    Gaston Steenkist
    Phil Wilde
    Freedom Williams
    Victor Willis
    David Wolinski
  • Compilation CDs usually don't show the artists in the artwork because of rights issues, so Jock Jams used generic cheerleaders as the visuals. They're also the stars of the music video along with Michael Buffer.
  • "The Jock Jam" was produced by DJ Riddler, who worked at Tommy Boy Records, along with the Chicago-based DJ Bobby D.

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