Songoftheday 8/13/19 - Wrapped in your arms is where I wanna be, wrapped in your arms that's my high...
from the album A Low Down Dirty Shame (Original Soundtrack) (1994)
Billboard Hot 100 peak: #28 (one week)
Weeks in the Top-40: 5
Today's song of the day comes from the alternative soul duo from Philadelphia, Zhané, whose debut album Pronounced Jah-Nay had score five top-40 hits on Billboard magazine's R&B chart, with three of them becoming big pop hits as well with "Sending My Love", "Groove Thang", and the top ten "Hey Mr. DJ". The duo followed up that success with a track they contributed to the movie A Low Down Dirty Shame starring Keenan Ivory Wayans and Jada Pinkett. It was a cover of a disco classic that was transformed into a jazz-soul nugget by Renee Neufville and Jean Norris-Baylor with producers Mike Chapman and Trent Thomas. "Shame", originally recorded by Evelyn "Champagne" King, was a masterpiece of the genre that reached the top ten on the American pop chart in 1978 (surprisingly, it only made it to #8 on the "disco" chart in Billboard)...
While Zhané's version kept the lyrics and vibe of the chorus intact, the flow and chord structure had you really pay attention to figure it's a remake...
Zhané's "Shame" became their fourth top-40 pop hit in America in December of 1994. The song also climbed to #12 on Billboard's R&B chart, while popping on to their Dance Club Play list at #46. Internationally, the cover was a minor hit in New Zealand (#50), the UK (#66), and Canada (#79).
For a film most forget, the soundtrack was one of the more hit-packed collections at that time, with "Shame" being the fourth official single released from the set. The lead track, the Soul II Soul-sampling "Down 4 Whateva" by the new jack swing trio Nuttin' Nyce, hit #43 on the R&B chart and #92 on the pop Hot 100. Next, the hip-hop group Souls of Mischief slipped on to the Rap Singles chart at #50 with "Get The Girl, Grab The Money and Run". R&B group Silk, one of the big names on the record, included their own album track "I Can Go Deep" on the soundtrack, which went to #22 on the R&B chart and #71 on the pop Hot 100. Finally, singer Raja-Nee climbed to #31 R&B and bubbled under the Hot 100 at #114 with "Turn It Up". Besides those singles promoted from the album, the soundtrack also included hits like Changing Faces' "Stroke You Up".
(Click below to see the rest of the post)
Besides Zhane', British pop singer Kim Wilde also covered the song (albeit with almost cocaine-induced tempo) in 1996, making it to #79 on the British singles chart...
Up tomorrow: A group definitely not named for its lead singer needs some PDA.
Comments