Everybody (song)
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"Everybody" is a pop—dance music song written by American singer Madonna as her first single, it later appeared on her debut album, Madonna (1983). It was produced by Mark Kamins, and received a mixed reception from music critics. The song was released as a single in the fall of 1982 (see 1982 in music) and was a top five dance music hit in the United States, reaching number three on the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play Chart.
Song history
The song is Madonna's very first commercially available single. It originally appeared on a four-track demo tape Madonna used in clubs to make a name of her own and ended up being one of the tracks that got her a record contract with Warner's Sire label. "Everybody" was written by Madonna and produced by New York DJ Mark Kamins.Before landing a recording contract, Madonna used to go to a nightclub in New York City called Danceteria. Mark Kamins was one of the clubs best DJs at the time and was beginning to produce songs. Madonna brought him some of the demos she had recorded with Stephen Bray and Kamis decided to play them at the club. "Everybody" was one of the demos played and it received a great response from the crowd. Kamins, seeing the song's potential, decided to produce it.
The song was released in October 1982, a time when disco was dying out and 80s new wave synth pop was beginning to appear on the music scene. "Everybody" is a simple call to get everyone on the dancefloor: "Everybody, come on, dance and sing. Everybody, get up, do your thing." The song introduced classic Madonna themes like individuality, dancing, and singing as forms of self-expression, as well as the optimism that dominated the first five years of her career. She has performed "Everybody" during The Virgin Tour, The Girlie Show Tour and the promotional tour for the album Confession on a Dance Floor. The line, "Dance and sing, get up and do your thing" was sampled during the opening bars of "Express Yourself" for The Blond Ambition Tour.
The cover of the single features a colourful collage of the Lower East Side/East Village of New York City drawn by Lou Beach. Since Madonna did not appear on the cover, many believed that she was a black disco singer. In the UK the single artwork was radically different from the US. The UK 12" and 7" vinyl releases featured black and white artwork. The UK releases are very rare and have become must have items for Madonna record collectors.
Music video
The music video, directed by Ed Steinberg, shows Madonna and a few dancers at Danceteria, the New York club where Madonna used to dance and where the song's demo was first played. Her brother Christopher did the choreography for the video and is featured as a dancer along with Madonna's friend Erica Bell. The budget for the video was only $1500. The video, however, did help to clear up any misunderstanding of what Madonna looked like; the covers for the "Everybody" single led many to assume that she was actually black, since she was not pictured.Chart performance
"Everybody" failed to break into the Billboard Hot 100 in the USA but did peak at number 7 on the Bubbling Under the Hot 100 Chart which keeps track of singles that are close to breaking into the Top 100. The song spent 8 weeks on the Bubbling Under chart. "Everybody" was Madonna's first single to chart on the Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play Chart, peaking at number 3 and starting her long string of Top 5 hits on the chart. The song remained on the dance charts for 16 weeks. Since its release the single has sold around 250,000 copies. Although it was released in Europe, it failed to break on to any of the charts and only remained a minor dance hit in the US.
| Chart (1983) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Brazil | 8 |
| USA Billboard Bubbling Under Chart | 7 |
| USA Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play Chart | 3 |
Credits
- Written by Madonna
- Produced by Mark Kamins
- Engineered by Butch Jones
- Synthesizers by Dean Gant, Fred Zarr and Ed Walsh
- Electric and acoustic pianos by Dean Gant and Fred Zarr
- Guitars by Reggie Lucas and Ira Siegal
- Drum programming by Reggie Lucas and Leslie Ming
- Tenor saxophone by Bobby Malach
- Background vocals by Gwen Guthrie, Norma Jean Wright, Madonna, Brenda White and Chrissy Faith
- Additional production and remix by Bruce Forest and Frank Heller
- Keyboards by David Cole
Official versions
Original versions
- Album Version 4:55
- LP Edit 3:57
- Instrumental 4:35
- Extended Version 6:02
- 1982 Dub Version 8:58
- Extended Remix [Mixed - YCD] 6:43
- Extended Remix [Unmixed - YCD] 7:07
- Italian Remix/Edit 6:11
- Single Edit of Album Remix [YCD] 4:36
- Spanish 7" Instrumental 4:15
- Spanish Remix/Edit #1 6:22
- UK 7'' Dub 4:31
- UK 7'' Remix 3:16
- UK Dub Version by Rusty Egan 6:03
Included on
References
- "Chart Performance of Madonna Records - A Compiled History" (2004). MLVC.ORG: Charts. Retrieved from http://charts.mlvc.org/CHThist.php on December 9, 2005.
- "Everybody" (2004). Madonna: Single Summaries. Retrieved from http://www.madonnanation.com/charts/ on December 9, 2005.
- "Charts". (20050. Mad-Eyes Discography. Retrieved from http://www.mad-eyes.net/disco/charts.htm on December 18, 2005
- "Everybody" (2005). Enlance Madonna. Retrieved from http://www.enlacemadonna.com/englishversion/index.htm on December 19, 2005.
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