Summer Madness (instrumental)

"Summer Madness"
Side two of US single "Spirit of the Boogie"
Single by Kool & The Gang
from the album Light of Worlds
A-side"Spirit of the Boogie" (Nor. Am.)
ReleasedSeptember 1974
Recorded1974
Genre
Length4:16
LabelDe-Lite
Songwriter(s)Kool & the Gang, Alton Taylor
Kool & The Gang singles chronology
"Spirit of the Boogie"
(1975) 		"Summer Madness"
(1974) 		"Caribbean Festival"
(1975)

"Summer Madness" is a song by American by R&B band Kool & the Gang, released on their 1974 album Light of Worlds. It reached number 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 36 on the Hot Soul Singles charts.[3] It has subsequently become one of the most sampled R&B compositions of all time, and was re-released and reissued as a CD and cassette single by Epic Records in 1996.[4][5] As of 2018, over 145 recordings had sampled it.[5]

Composition

The song's most recognizable aural signature is the 4-octave ascent from F♯3 to F♯7 on an ARP 2600 played by Ronald Bell.[6]

"Summer Madness" has been used in various media, and has been prominently used as a sample in many pieces of hip-hop music since the 1980s.[2] Notable uses of the song in media include:

Charts

Chart (1975) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[13] 35
US Cashbox Top 100[14] 27
US Record World Singles Chart[15] 34

References

  1. ^ Gorton, TJ (July 30, 2018). "BeatCaffeine's 100 Best Jazz-Funk Songs". BeatCaffeine. Archived from the original on August 25, 2018. Retrieved September 19, 2021.
  2. ^ a b Patrin, Nate (September 17, 2018). "Breaks With Tradition: "Summer Madness"". Stereogum. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  3. ^ "Breaks With Tradition: Kool & The Gang's "Summer Madness"". September 17, 2018.
  4. ^ "Summer Madness by Kool & the Gang – Songfacts". www.songfacts.com.
  5. ^ a b "Five Hip Hop Tracks That Sampled Kool & The Gang's Summer Madness". future-classic-music.
  6. ^ Cox, Arnie. Music and Embodied Cognition: Listening, Moving, Feeling, and Thinking. United States, Indiana University Press, 2016. 55.
  7. ^ "Kool and the Gang – History". Kool and the Gang Official Site. Red Light Management. Archived from the original on December 9, 2015. Retrieved December 9, 2015.
  8. ^ "The 25 Best Aaliyah Songs". Complex. August 27, 2021. Retrieved July 19, 2022.
  9. ^ Schroeder, Audra (June 25, 2021). "Audio clip from a 2006 LeBron James Nike commercial has TikTok thinking". The Daily Dot. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  10. ^ "Nike - The LeBrons Poolside". SplendAd. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  11. ^ Hough, Quinn (March 11, 2021). "Every Song In Last Chance U: Basketball Season 1". Screen Rant. Retrieved November 21, 2024.
  12. ^ Kreps, Daniel (October 28, 2020). "Hear Khruangbin Cover Kool and the Gang's 'Summer Madness' for 'Late Night Tales' Mix". Rolling Stone. Retrieved November 1, 2020.
  13. ^ "Kool & the Gang: Hot 100". Billboard.
  14. ^ "Cash Box Chart Entries 1970-1979" (PDF). popmusichistory. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  15. ^ "Record World Singles Chart: July 5, 1975" (PDF). Archived (PDF) from the original on September 22, 2023. Retrieved October 5, 2023.