Songoftheday 8/5/12 - Don't worry bout it, it's all over town, work is done....

Kool & The Gang - "Big Fun"

from the album As One (1982)

Billboard Hot 100 peak: #21 (two weeks)

Weeks in the Top-40: 7

Today's Song of the Day is by the long-running pop/funk group Kool & The Gang, who come from Jersey City and led by Robert "Kool" Bell. In their original incarnation a mostly instrumental funk outfit, in 1969 they released their first self-titled album, with their titlular "Kool & The Gang" song becoming their first hit, making the top-20 on the R&B chart, and a minor pop hit as well.

The band really broke through with their 1973 Wild & Peaceful album, their fourth studio set, which gave them back-to-back pop top-10 singles with "Jungle Boogie" and "Hollywood Swinging", the latter their first #1 R&B hit. They continued plugging on with their brand of funk until 1979, when singer J.T. Taylor joined, and the Gang veered right into disco, which culminated in their 1980 #1 wedding-reception classic, "Celebration".

The group started off 1982 with another top-10 pop/R&B hit "Get Down On It", and by the fall the group released their 14th studio set, As One. The first single from the record was the party record "Big Fun", produced by Eumir Deodato, the Brazilian musician and producer most famous for his funky version of the 2001 theme song..

The track just missed the pop top-20, but was a bigger hit on R&B radio, scoring Kool & The Gang another top-10 hit. The song also made the top-20 singles chart in both Great Britain and Ireland as well. The As One record also made the top-40 on the album chart (and #5 on the R&B exclusive list).

Up tomorrow: Grammy-winners play pretend.