You Sexy Thing

"You Sexy Thing"
Single by Hot Chocolate
from the album Hot Chocolate
B-side "Amazing Skin Song"
Released October 1975
Format 12" vinyl
Recorded 1975
Genre
Length 4:04
3:32 (7" version)
Label RAK Records (UK)
Big Tree Records (Atlantic) (U.S.)
Writer(s)
Producer(s) Mickie Most
Hot Chocolate singles chronology
"A Child's Prayer"
(1975)		 "You Sexy Thing"
(1975)		 "Don't Stop It Now"
(1976)

"You Sexy Thing" is a song recorded by the British group Hot Chocolate. It was written by Hot Chocolate's lead singer Errol Brown, and produced by Mickie Most. It reached number 2 in the UK Singles Chart in 1975, and number 3 in the US Pop charts a year later. Billboard ranked it as the No. 22 song for 1976. The song went on to gain notability by being featured in films, such as 1997's The Full Monty.

Overview

The song was originally a 1975 B-side. Not yet convinced that the song could be a hit, producer Most put it on the flip-side of the Hot Chocolate single "Blue Night". The song was later remixed by Most, who re-released it as an A-side some months later on his RAK label. The song was a hit and ultimately became the group's best-known song. In the UK the song was poised for the no. 1 spot, but was beaten to it by "Bohemian Rhapsody", when on 29 November 1975 the Queen single leaped above it from no. 9.[3]

A 1987 remix by Ben Liebrand hit number 10.,[4] in turn reinvigorating public interest in the band, and prompted the release of the compilation album The Very Best Of Hot Chocolate (featuring the Liebrand remix) which subsequently reached number 1 in the UK Album chart in February 1987. Ten years later, when it was featured in the film, The Full Monty in 1997, it went to number six in the chart.[4] In one of the most memorable scenes in the film, the male lead, Gaz (played by Robert Carlyle) performs a "striptease" to the music of "You Sexy Thing". Another U.S. resurgence in 1999 can be credited to a Burger King television commercial in which the song played while the camera examined a Double Whopper. In addition, it is the only song to enter the UK Top Ten in the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s.[5]

Structure

"You Sexy Thing" has a simple structure, with most of the song alternating between two major chords (F and Bb). It has a chorus-verse form. One of the song's most memorable aspects is its distinctive six note riff which is repeated intermittently throughout, played on a mildly overdriven electric guitar on a high treble setting and with noticeable vibrato. In addition to a traditional rock drum kit, the song uses hand drums, played in a style reminiscent of tabla. A number of violins accompany the rhythm section. Brown's vocals are sung in an energetic soul fashion, accentuated by the occasional high-pitched, Isley Brothers-style scream.

Cover versions

"You Sexy Thing" was covered by Tom Tom Club in 1992 on their album Dark Sneak Love Action. It was also covered by Deee-Lite in 1994. Two more covers were released at almost the same time as the 1997 re-issue of the Hot Chocolate original. Thus, for one week, the UK Singles Chart boasted three versions of the song. One cover was by the pop/dance act Clock. The other version, by pop duo T-shirt, featuring actress Chloé Treend and songwriter Miranda Cooper, went to number 5 in New Zealand and sold triple platinum in Australia, where the single reached #6 and stayed in the ARIA Charts for 32 weeks.[6] Hot Chocolate lead singer Errol Brown appeared in the film clip. Both were re-workings with the original music and lyrics but with new added additional rap/vocal segments. Welsh band Stereophonics also covered the song for the Radio 1: Established 1967 album. Bruce Springsteen has covered the song several times at his live performances, including during his final concert at Giants Stadium on 9 October 2009, during which he took a sign from a fan requesting the song and held it up for the audience to see as he performed it.

Media uses

"You Sexy Thing" has also been heard in other films including Boogie Nights, Reservoir Dogs, Bicentennial Man, Heavyweights, Rat Race, Dude, Where's My Car, Deuce Bigalow: Male Gigolo, About Schmidt and Nick and Norah's Infinite Playlist, Big Mommas: Like Father, Like Son, and Grown Ups. In 2010, the song was featured in television advertisements for the series Hot in Cleveland on TV Land,[7] and for the Swiffer Dusters cleaning product. The song is later heard over the closing credits and is also included in the 2013 play version of The Full Monty. It was featured in a TV commercial for the 2014 Chevrolet Silverado that aired during Fox's coverage of Super Bowl XLVIII on February 2, 2014.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1975–76) Peak
position
Australian ARIA Singles Chart[8] 4
Austrian Singles Chart[9] 12
Netherlands Singles Chart[10] 5
New Zealand Singles Chart[11] 2
Norway Singles Chart[12] 10
Swedish Singles Chart[13] 16
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[14] 2
US Billboard Hot 100[15] 3
US Billboard Hot Soul Singles[16] 6
US Cash Box Top 100[17] 2
Chart (1987) Peak
position
New Zealand Singles Chart[18] 2

Year-end charts

Chart (1975) Rank
UK [19] 41
Chart (1976) Rank
Australia [20] 33
Canada [21] 71
New Zealand [22] 14
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 [23] 22
U.S. Cash Box [24] 48
Chart (1987) Rank
New Zealand [25] 31

References

  1. ↑ "RIP: Hot Chocolate singer Errol Brown, of 'You Sexy Thing' fame, dies aged 71 - Vanyaland". Vanyaland.
  2. ↑ "Errol Brown, 71, Dies; Wrote and Sang Disco Hit 'You Sexy Thing'". The New York Times. Retrieved 2016-10-11.
  3. ↑ "Official Singles Chart Top 75 - Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Hot Chocolate - Full Official Chart History". Official Charts Company. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 20 January 2016.
  5. ↑ Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. pp. 259/260. ISBN 1-904994-10-5.
  6. ↑ "australian-charts.com - T-Shirt - You Sexy Thing". Hung Medien. Retrieved 10 August 2014.
  7. ↑ "The Official Hot in Cleveland Site starring Betty White, Valerie Bertinelli, Jane Leeves and Wendie Malick : Hot In Cleveland". Tvland.com. Retrieved 2012-01-08.
  8. ↑ "Top 100 Singles: Every AMR Top 100 Single in 1976". Top100singles.blogspot.com.au. 2011-11-11. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  9. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing". Austriancharts.at. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  10. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing". Dutchcharts.nl. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  11. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing". Charts.org.nz. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  12. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing". Norwegiancharts.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  13. ↑ Steffen Hung. "Hot Chocolate - You Sexy Thing". Swedishcharts.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  14. ↑ "Hot Chocolate: Artist Chart History" Official Charts Company.
  15. ↑ "Hot Chocolate - Chart history". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  16. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 261.
  17. ↑ "Cash Box Top 100 2/14/76". Tropicalglen.com. 1976-02-14. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  18. ↑ "NZ Top 40 Singles Chart | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1987-05-24. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  19. ↑ "Britain's best selling records of '75". Record Mirror. London: Billboard. January 10, 1976. p. 12. Retrieved August 8, 2016.
  20. ↑ "Australian Chart Book". Austchartbook.com.au. Archived from the original on 2016-03-05. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  21. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, January 08 1977". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 13, 2016.
  22. ↑ "Top Selling Singles of 1976 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1963-12-08. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  23. ↑ "Top 100 Hits of 1976/Top 100 Songs of 1976". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
  24. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2015-04-18. Retrieved 2015-08-27.
  25. ↑ "Top Selling Singles of 1987 | The Official New Zealand Music Chart". Nztop40.co.nz. 1987-12-31. Retrieved 2016-10-10.
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