Songoftheday 12/5/16 - With music by our side to break the color lines, let's work together to improve our way of life...
from the album Rhythm Nation 1814 (1989)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #2 (two weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 12
Today's song of the day is by Janet Jackson, who had followed up her breakthrough album Control with the funky #1 jam "Miss You Much". That track introduced us to her next album, Rhythm Nation, and the title track came to radio shortly thereafter. The second single from the new record was the title track, a military-style call to dance, is new jack swing had an army. Written by Janet with producers James Harris and Terry Lewis, the centerpiece of the album was meant to unify the younger generation's members that felt left out from the Reagan Years...
"Rhythm Nation" became the second top-10 hit from the album in January of 1989. The song climbed all the way to #1 on Billboard's R&B chart for a week, while the 12" remix spent three weeks atop their Dance Club Play list. Internationally, the single made the top ten in Canada (#6) and the Netherlands (#9), and peaked at #23 in the UK. The long form video including the song as well as named for it won her a Grammy for best Long Form Music Video at the 1990 awards.
(Click below to see the rest of the post)
Here's the 12" "House Nation" mix that topped the dance charts going from 1989 to 1990...
Janet took a cue from her brother at the Royal Variety Performance for Queen Elizabeth II by just lipsynching and relying on that dancing body (though she reportedly ripped her pants during this)...
Back to her live in concert on her janet. tour in the early 90s...
...and again from the Velvet Rope show in 1998/99...
Up tomorrow: Triple-threat entertainer heads out West. Wild, Wild West.
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