Songoftheday 1/29/15 - Yo pretty ladies around the world, got a weird thing to show you so tell all the boys and girls...

"Word Up" - Cameo
from the album Word Up (1986)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #6 (three weeks)
Weeks in the Top-40: 14

Today's Song of the Day comes from the funk band Cameo, who started out in the 70s as the New York City Players, before changing their name and releasing their debut album in 1977. Their first hit from the set, "Rigor Mortis", reached the top-40 on the R&B chart, sounding like a late entry in the jam-funk streak set from the Ohio Players and B.T. Express. A year later, their third top-40 soul single "It's Serious" crossed over to the clubs and hit #29 on the dance chart. In 1979, the band hit their stride as they scored their first big R&B single with "I Just Want To Be", one of two top-10 hits from their Secret Omen album. Having consistent success on those charts, they got their first taste of success on the pop side of things as their first #1 R&B hit "She's Strange" crossed over to the Hot 100, nearly missing the top-40.

After two years and seeing their lineup pared down to a core of three led by singer/multi-instrumentalist Larry Blackmon, the act released their twelfth studio album Word Up! in 1986. With a tight seven songs in the set, it was louder, brasher, and more "thumpier" (is that a word?) than they've ever been. The title track, written by Blackmon with backup singer/member Tomi Jenkins, brought the (synth?) brass to the front, and a slinking bass that would not let your mind go...

"Word Up!" climbed all the way into the top-10 on the American pop chart in November of 1986. The record also ended up topping the R&B (three weeks) and Dance (one week) charts in Billboard magazine as well. Internationally, the record was a huge success, one of the biggest American funk records in Europe, reaching the top-10 in the UK, Germany, Italy, Ireland, even down in Australia. 

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Here's the remix of the song that topped the dance chart for a week...

In 1989, talk show host Arsenio Hall did a send-up of the band in the form of character Chunky A, parodying "Word Up!" as "Owww!"...

Scottish rockers Gun covered the track in 1994, and went to #8 on the British chart and had success all over Europe...

Former Spice Girl Mel B (aka "Scary Spice") also recorded "Word Up!" for the Austin Powers: The Spy That Shagged Me soundtrack, and landed at #14 in the UK and top-40 in Italy in 1999...

Alt-country singer Willis did an interesting cover of the song as well that was featured in an episode of CSI in 2003...

A year later, nu-metal kings Korn released "Word Up!" as a single, and made it to the top-20 on both the Mainstream and Alternative Rock charts in Billboard...

German country-punk faves BossHoss also took on "Word Up!" for their debut album in 2005...

And just last year, British female vocal group Little Mix, who won X Factor in the UK, climbed to #6 on the British singles chart with their version of the song...

Lastly, here's the trio live on their friend Arsenio's show with "Word Up!"...

Up tomorrow: the material one's got some honest color.