Love T.K.O.

"Love T.K.O."
Side A of the US single
Single by Teddy Pendergrass
from the album TP
B-side"I Just Called to Say"
ReleasedNovember 1980
Recorded1980
GenreSoul
Length4:58
3:39 (single version)
LabelPhiladelphia International Records
Songwriter(s)Cecil Womack
Gip Noble, Jr.
Producer(s)Dexter Wansel, Cecil Womack, Cynthia Biggs
Teddy Pendergrass singles chronology
"Can't We Try"
(1980) 		"Love T.K.O."
(1980) 		"Two Hearts"
(1981)
"Love T.K.O."
Single by David Oliver
from the album Here's To You
A-side"My Lady"
Released1980
Recorded1980
GenreSoul
Length4:36
LabelMercury (45-76067)
Songwriter(s)Cecil Womack
Gip Noble, Jr.
Producer(s)Wayne Henderson
David Oliver singles chronology
"Summer Love"
(1979) 		"Love T.K.O."
(1980)

"Love T.K.O." is a song written by Cecil Womack and Gip Noble, Jr.[1] Standing for technical knockout, it was written for soul singer David Oliver,[2] and appeared first on his album Here's to You in 1980. Cecil and Linda Womack recorded the song themselves as Womack & Womack and it appeared simply as "T.K.O." on their debut album Love Wars in 1983.[3]

Teddy Pendergrass recording

"Love T.K.O." is mainly associated with R&B and soul artist Teddy Pendergrass, who recorded the song for his 1980 album TP, releasing it as a single the same year. Arranged by Dexter Wansel, it reached No. 2 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 44 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4]

Charts

Teddy Pendergrass version

Chart (1980) Peak
position
US Billboard R&B 2
US Billboard Hot 100[5] 44

Regina Belle version

Regina Belle recorded and released her version in 1995 and included on her Reachin' Back LP.

Chart (1995) Peak
position
US Billboard R&B[6] 29

Other recordings

"Love TKO" has been covered by several artists, including:

Samples

  • In 2006, Pendergrass' version of the song was featured in the popular video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories on fictional radio station VCFL.
  • It was used in 2005 video game Fahrenheit (a.k.a. Indigo Prophecy).
  • DJ Spooky referenced the song in his essay titled "Groove Theory" in URB.
  • Artist Ahmad Lewis used the melody for a remix of his 1994 song "Back in the Day" from his self-titled album Ahmad.

References

  1. ^ "secondhandsongs.com". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
  2. ^ "www.discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
  3. ^ https://www.allmusic.com/album/r22182
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 455.
  5. ^ US Charts. MusicVF.com. Retrieved March 3, 2020
  6. ^ "Regina Belle US chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
  7. ^ "Google Search". Archived from the original on 2002-08-13. Retrieved 2008-11-25.