Play That Funky Music

"Play That Funky Music" is a song written by Rob Parissi and recorded by the band Wild Cherry. The single was the first released by the Cleveland-based Sweet City record label in April 1976 and distributed by Epic Records.[2] The performers on the recording included lead singer Parissi, electric guitarist Bryan Bassett, bassist Allen Wentz, and drummer Ron Beitle, with session players Chuck Berginc, Jack Brndiar (trumpets), and Joe Eckert and Rick Singer (saxes) on the horn riff that runs throughout the song's verses. The single hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 18, 1976; it was also number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart.[3] The single was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America for shipments of over 2 million records and eventually sold 2.5 million in the United States alone.[4]

"Play That Funky Music"
Side A of the 1976 US single
Single by Wild Cherry
from the album Wild Cherry
B-side"The Lady Wants Your Money"
ReleasedApril 1976
Format7-inch single
GenreFunk rock[1]
Length
  • 5:00 (album version)
  • 3:12 (single version)
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)Rob Parissi
Producer(s)Rob Parissi
Wild Cherry singles chronology
"Get Down"
(1973)		 "Play That Funky Music"
(1976)		 "Baby Don't You Know"
(1977)

The song was listed at No. 93 on Billboard magazine's "All-Time Top 100 Songs" in 2018.[5] It was also the group's only US Top 40 song.

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[25] Gold 75,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] Gold 400,000
United States (RIAA) (Digital)[27] Gold 500,000^
United States (RIAA) (Physical)[27] Platinum 2,500,000[4]

^shipments figures based on certification alone

Vanilla Ice version
"Play That Funky Music"
Single by Vanilla Ice
from the album To the Extreme
B-side"Ice Ice Baby"
ReleasedNovember 19, 1990[28]
FormatCD single
GenreHip hop
Length4:45
LabelSBK
Songwriter(s)Rob Parissi
Producer(s)Vanilla Ice
Vanilla Ice singles chronology
"Play That Funky Music"
(1990)		 "Ice Ice Baby"
(1990)

American rapper Vanilla Ice later released a song featuring an interpretation of "Play That Funky Music". Based on this single, the independent record label Ichiban Records signed Vanilla Ice to a record deal, releasing the album Hooked in January 1989, containing "Play That Funky Music" and its B-side, "Ice Ice Baby".[29]

Songwriter Robert Parissi was not credited. Parissi was later awarded $500,000 in a copyright infringement lawsuit.

Although it did not initially catch on, its B-side, "Ice Ice Baby", gained more success when a disc jockey played that track instead of the single's A-side.[30]

Following the success of "Ice Ice Baby", "Play That Funky Music" was reissued as its own single (with new lyrics), and peaked at no. 4 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and no. 10 in the UK.[31]

Weekly charts
Chart (1990–1991) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[32] 13
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[33] 19
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[34] 16
Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[35] 4
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[36] 13
Denmark (IFPI)[37] 10
Finland (Suomen virallinen lista)[38] 3
Germany (Official German Charts)[39] 19
Ireland (IRMA)[40] 4
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[41] 14
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[42] 12
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[43] 7
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[44] 14
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[31] 10
US Billboard Hot 100[45] 4
US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales[45] 42
US Billboard Hot R&B Singles[45] 22
US Billboard Hot Rap Singles[45] 7
US Cash Box[46] 4

Year-end charts
Chart (1991) Position
Canada Dance/Urban (RPM)[47] 44
US Billboard Hot 100[48] 57

Other cover versions

Usage in other media

The song appears on the open show Ces Gars-Là, a French-Canadian show on V Télé featuring the stand-up comic Sugar Sammy and Simon-Olivier Fecteau.[50]

See also

References
  1. Prato, Greg. "Wild Cherry – Artist Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved July 12, 2014. the group was accosted nightly between sets by fans who wanted them to "Play that funky music." It wasn't long before Parissi took heed and penned a song under the same title, an infectious ditty that merged funk and rock together.
  2. Scott, Jane (April 30, 1976). "Discotakes". The Plain Dealer. Cleveland, Ohio.
  3. "National Disco Action Top 30 / Billboard Hot Soul Singles" (PDF). Billboard. September 4, 1976. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  4. "Platinum Singles Top '76–'77 Years". Billboard. Vol. 90 no. 34. August 26, 1978. p. 114. ISSN 0006-2510.
  5. "Greatest of All Time – Hot 100 Songs". Billboard. Retrieved August 5, 2018.
  6. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Chart Positions Pre 1989 Part 4". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  7. "Ultratop.be – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  8. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 4356a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  9. "Offiziellecharts.de – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  10. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  11. "Dutchcharts.nl – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  12. "Charts.nz – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  13. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  14. "The Hot 100". Billboard. September 18, 1976. Retrieved January 2, 2017.
  15. "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending SEPTEMBER 11, 1976". Cash Box. Archived from the original on September 2, 2012.
  16. "The Singles Chart" (PDF). Record World. September 11, 1976. p. 29. ISSN 0034-1622. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
  17. "Jaaroverzichten 1976" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  18. "Top 200 Singles of '76". RPM. Vol. 26 no. 14 & 15. Library and Archives Canada. January 8, 1977. Retrieved March 26, 2018.
  19. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1976" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  20. "Jaaroverzichten – Single 19" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  21. "Top 100 Hits for 1976". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  22. "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1976". Archived from the original on August 25, 2012.. Cash Box.
  23. "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1970s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved July 1, 2014.
  24. "Hot 100 60th Anniversary". Billboard. Retrieved February 22, 2020.
  25. "Canadian single certifications – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music". Music Canada.
  26. "British single certifications – Wild Cherry – Play That Funky Music". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved January 31, 2020.
  27. "RIAA – Gold & Platinum Searchable Database – Play That Funky Music". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  28. "Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved November 16, 2019.
  29. Behind The Music: Vanilla Ice. Moment occurs at 10:45
  30. Westfahl, Gary (2000). "Legends of the Fall: Behind the Music". Science Fiction, Children's Literature, and Popular Culture. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 100. ISBN 0-313-30847-0.
  31. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  32. "Australian-charts.com – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  33. "Austriancharts.at – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  34. "Ultratop.be – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  35. "RPM 10 Dance". RPM. Vol. 53 no. 13. Library and Archives Canada. March 2, 1991. Archived from the original on June 10, 2015. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  36. "RPM 100 Hit Tracks & where to find them". RPM. Vol. 53 no. 13. Library and Archives Canada. March 2, 1991. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  37. "Top 10 Sales in Europe" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 8 no. 9. March 2, 1991. p. 25. Retrieved December 16, 2018.
  38. Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin – levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 978-951-1-21053-5.
  39. "Offiziellecharts.de – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music". GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved January 14, 2019.
  40. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Play That Funky Music". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  41. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  42. "Dutchcharts.nl – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  43. "Charts.nz – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  44. "Swisscharts.com – Vanilla Ice – Play That Funky Music". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  45. "To the Extreme – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  46. "CASH BOX Top 100 Pop Singles – Week ending FEBRUARY 9, 1991". Archived from the original on September 17, 2012.. Cash Box.
  47. "RPM Dance Tracks of 1991". RPM. Vol. 55 no. 3. Library and Archives Canada. December 21, 1991. Archived from the original on February 24, 2014. Retrieved July 12, 2014.
  48. "Top 100 Hits for 1991". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved July 29, 2013.
  49. "The Hot 100". Billboard. April 9, 1988. Retrieved March 25, 2017.
  50. Roy, Marie-Josée (April 18, 2014). ""Ces gars-là" : Simon-Olivier Fecteau et Sugar Sammy, nouveau duo terrible de V (VIDÉO)". Le Huffington Post. Retrieved May 2, 2015.
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