Keep on Dancing (The Gentrys song)
| "Keep on Dancing" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by The Gentrys | ||||
| from the album Keep on Dancing | ||||
| B-side | "Make Up Your Mind" | |||
| Released | 28 August 1965 (U.S.) | |||
| Format | Vinyl | |||
| Recorded | 1965 | |||
| Genre | Garage rock | |||
| Length | 2:08 | |||
| Label |
MGM MGM 13379 | |||
| Writer(s) | Allen A. Jones, Willie David Young[1] | |||
| The Gentrys singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Keep on Dancing" is a rock song written by Allen A. Jones and Willie David Young, originally performed by the Avantis on Argo Records in 1963, and covered by The Gentrys in 1965.[2] The song was also covered by The Bay City Rollers in 1971.
The Gentrys' version was first released on Youngstown 601 in 1965, but soon nationally distributed by MGM Records.[3] "Keep on Dancing" reached #4 in 1965 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart for two weeks. It reached #5 on Cashbox for two weeks. It stayed on the Hot 100 for 13 weeks and Cashbox for 14 weeks.[3][4] It surpassed a million copies in sales after leaving the charts.[1]
"Keep on Dancing" is notable for the fact that it is actually one short recording repeated in order to stretch the record out to the length of the typical pop single of its day. The second half of the song, after the false fade, beginning with Gentrys drummer Larry Wall's drum fill, is the same as the first.[5] Although the Gentrys usually had Jimmy Hart and Bruce Bowles as singers, the band's guitarist, Larry Raspberry, sang lead vocals on the song.[6]
"Keep on Dancing" is available on the compilations Frat Rock! The Greatest Rock 'n' Roll Party Tunes of All-Time and Classic Rock (Time-Life Music).
The Bay City Rollers covered the song and their version charted at No. 9 in the UK in 1971.[7]
Chart run (The Gentrys version)
Billboard Hot 100[3] (13 weeks, entered September 11, 1965): Reached #4
Cashbox[4] (14 weeks, entered September 4, 1965): 98, 98, 66, 43, 28, 23, 16, 7, 5, 5, 6, 13, 23, 41
References
- 1 2 Murrells, Joseph (1984). Million Selling Records from the 1900s to the 1980s: An Illustrated Directory (2nd ed.). New York: Arco Publishing Inc. p. 207. ISBN 0-668-06459-5.
- ↑ Who Sampled Who.com "Keep on Dancing" (must click on "cover" and enter title)
- 1 2 3 Whitburn, Joel (1997). Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles. Menomonee Falls, WI: Record Research Inc. p. 240. ISBN 0-89820-122-5.
- 1 2 Hoffmann, Frank (1983). The Cash Box Singles Charts, 1950-1981. Metuchen, NJ & London: The Scarecrow Press, Inc. p. 240.
- ↑ "Keep on Dancing". YouTube. 2007-09-12. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
- ↑ "Larry Raspberry". Famousinterview.ca. 2006-10-28. Retrieved 2012-03-31.
- ↑ "Bay City Rollers - Keep On Dancing (Vinyl)". Discogs.com. Retrieved 2016-09-29.