Let It Whip

"Let It Whip"
Side A of U.S. 7-inch vinyl
Single by Dazz Band
from the album Keep It Live
B-side"Everyday Love"
ReleasedFebruary 12, 1982
RecordedJuly 1981
Genre
Length4:42 (album version)
3:58 (7" single version)
6:22 (12" single version)
7:00 (instrumental)
LabelMotown
Songwriter(s)Reggie Andrews, Leon "Ndugu" Chancler
Producer(s)Reggie Andrews
Dazz Band singles chronology
"Knock Knock"
(1981) 		"Let It Whip"
(1982) 		"Keep It Live (On the K.I.L.)"
(1982)

"Let It Whip" is a 1982 single by Dazz Band and their biggest hit, peaking at number one on the R&B chart for five non-consecutive weeks.[2] The single also reached number two on the Dance chart[3] and number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.[4] The song won the 1982 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.

Song

Co-written by producers Reggie Andrews and Leon "Ndugu" Chancler, performed by Dazz Band, "Let It Whip" features a percolating drum machine rhythm underneath live drums, and a Minimoog bassline, underneath an electric bass guitar.

Chart history

Weekly charts

Chart (1982) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[5] 97
Canada RPM Top Singles[6] 42
US Billboard Hot 100 5
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 2
US Billboard Hot Soul/Black Singles 1
US Cash Box Top 100[7] 13

Year-end charts

Chart (1982) Rank
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[8] 24
U.S. Cash Box Top 100[9] 79

CDB version

"Let It Whip"
Single by CDB
from the album Lifted
B-side"remixes"
ReleasedApril 1998
RecordedSydney, Australia
GenrePop
Length4:59
LabelSony Music Australia
Songwriter(s)Reggie Andrews, Leon "Ndugu" Chancler
Producer(s)The Rockmelons
CDB singles chronology
"Back Then"
(1997) 		"Let It Whip"
(1998) 		"After the Love Has Gone"
(1998)

Australian boy band CDB released a version in April 1998 as the third single from their second studio album, Lifted (1997). The song peaked at number 51 on the ARIA Charts.

Track listing

CD single (665254 2)

  1. "Let It Whip"
  2. "Back Then" (Dance Remix)
  3. "Good Times" (MI:II Remix)
  4. "Let It Whip" (Instrumental)

Charts

Chart (1998) Position
Australian ARIA Charts 51

Other covers/sampling

"Let It Whip" is featured the skateboard film DVS Skate More and in the films Grosse Pointe Blank (1997), Next Friday (2000), Adventures of Power (2008), Almost Christmas (2016) and The First Purge (2018).

The song also plays during the “Aww Snap!” round of the NBC game show Ellen’s Game of Games.

The song appears on the radio station Bounce FM in 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas.

Matt Bianco covered the song on their 1991 album Samba In Your Casa. Their version features a slower tempo and a short rap at the end of the song.

It has been covered by Boyz II Men, SR-71 on the soundtrack to The New Guy, and George Lam (titled as the Cantonese song "愛到發燒"). The song was also covered by the fictional a cappella group The Treblemakers in the 2012 film Pitch Perfect and is featured on the film's soundtrack.

Hip hop group The Treacherous Three sampled the song in their version called "Whip It", also released in 1982.

Christian hip hop artist Lecrae sampled the song in his song "Let It Whip" (featuring Paul Wall) on his 2013 mixtape Church Clothes 2.

Justin Timberlake sampled the song in a remix version of his 2003 hit "Cry Me a River".

In 2012, the song was sampled by Purple Disco Machine in his song "Let It Whip".

In 2015, the song was sampled by LunchMoney Lewis in his song "Whip It!".[10]

In 2023, the song was sampled by BigXthaPlug in his song "Whip It".

References

  1. ^ Sheffield, Rob (27 September 2022). "100 Best Songs of 1982". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 9 September 2023. But "Let It Whip" is rock-steady Midwest electro-funk...
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 149.
  3. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 72.
  4. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications)
  5. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 84. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  6. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 17 July 1982. Retrieved 24 October 2021.
  7. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending JULY 10, 1982". Archived from the original on 20 September 2012. Retrieved 28 November 2013.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link). Cash Box magazine.
  8. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1982/Top 100 Songs of 1982". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 23 October 2016.
  9. ^ "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1982". Cashbox Magazine. Archived from the original on 21 September 2012. Retrieved 8 July 2015.
  10. ^ "INTERVIEW : LunchMoney Lewis". auspOp. 2 November 2015. Retrieved 10 January 2016.


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