Double Dutch Bus
| "Double Dutch Bus" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Frankie Smith | |
| from the album Children of Tomorrow | |
| B-side | "Double Dutch" |
| Released | February 22, 1981 |
| Format | Vinyl record (7") |
| Genre | Funk, old-school hip hop |
| Label | WMOT |
| Writer(s) | Bill Bloom, Frankie Smith |
| Producer(s) | Bill Bloom, Frankie Smith |
| Certification | Gold (RIAA) |
"Double Dutch Bus" is a hit 1981 funk song by Frankie Smith, made famous for its extensive use of the "izz" infix form of slang.
Original version
The song title represents a combination of two institutions in Smith's Philadelphia, Pennsylvania neighborhood: the double Dutch jump rope game played by neighborhood kids; and the Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority (SEPTA) bus system that was a backbone of the local transportation network (and for which Smith had unsuccessfully applied for a bus driving position; the Transpass referred to in the song is an actual SEPTA monthly fare pass).[1]
Smith and co-writer Bill Bloom persuaded contacts at WMOT Records to finance the song, and it was recorded in early 1981, engineered by Gene Leone. The song rocketed to popularity in a matter of weeks and debuted on the US Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart in February, rising to the top spot by July, where it held at number one for four weeks. It also crossed over to the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 30 in the summer of 1981.[2]
The record became only the second in history (following the 1979 Barbra Streisand/Donna Summer duet "No More Tears (Enough Is Enough)"), and remains one of the few, to receive two separate standard-release Gold certifications from the RIAA: first in June 1981 for sales of the 12" single; and a second Gold record in September 1981 for sales of the 7" edit.
In the National Geographic documentary "King of Coke: Living the High Life" Frankie Smith explains how the song was composed. He also states that WMOT Records failed to pay him his royalties, and how he therefore was unable to pay his taxes. An investigation was started which brought to light that WMOT Records was not only badly managed, but in fact laundering money for Larry Lavin, aka Dr. Snow, a dentist who was secretly dealing cocaine. This way, the success of "Double Dutch Bus" indirectly caused the end of a major drugs business.
Chart positions
| Chart (1981) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 30 |
| U.S. Billboard Disco Top 100 [3] | 51 |
Sampling
The song was sampled heavily by Missy Elliott for use in the song "Gossip Folks".[4]
Kylie Minogue sampled the song during her Fever Tour in her performance of "Cowboy Style".
Girl Talk used the song briefly in his album All Day within a track entitled "Get It Get It".
Danny! sampled the call-and-response portion of the song in the bridge of 2012's "Go That-A-Way".
The verse melody was also mimicked by Cameo in their 1986 single "Word Up".
Madonna sampled the song on her Sticky & Sweet Tour performance of "Into the Groove".
The "UK Extended Dis" mix of Beat Dis by Bomb the Bass also sampled the track. [5]
Raven-Symoné version
| "Double Dutch Bus" | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||||||||
| Single by Raven-Symoné | ||||||||||
| from the album Raven-Symoné | ||||||||||
| Released |
February 9, 2008 (Radio Disney) March 4, 2008 (Digital) | |||||||||
| Format | CD single, digital download | |||||||||
| Genre | Funk, R&B | |||||||||
| Length | 3:02 | |||||||||
| Label | Hollywood | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Bill Bloom, Frankie Smith | |||||||||
| Producer(s) |
The Clutch & Bill Jabr (additional production) | |||||||||
| Raven-Symoné singles chronology | ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
| ||||||||||
"Double Dutch Bus" was later covered by Raven-Symoné. The track was released to promote the film College Road Trip and is the first and only single from her fourth studio album, Raven-Symoné. The single was placed on Radio Disney on February 9, 2008.[6] This version has an updated hip hop and R&B sound.
"Double Dutch Bus" was released to the US iTunes Store on March 4, 2008.
Music video
The music video premiered on Disney Channel on February 18, 2008. The music video shows Raven and a bunch of people dancing under a disco ball and having a great time on a party bus (known as the "double dutch bus"). The music video also features images from the film College Road Trip. Donny Osmond makes a cameo appearance in the video, being a cast member of the movie The video was directed by Patrick Hoelck.[7]
Track listing
- "Double Dutch Bus" - 3:02
Radio and release history
| Country | Date | Label | Format |
|---|---|---|---|
| United States | February 9, 2008 | Hollywood Records | Radio Disney |
| March 4, 2008 | CD single, digital download |
Charts
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard) | 2 |
| SLO | 37 |
| Gaon Chart | 103 |
See also
References
- ↑ SEPTA Transpass (Retrieved 2013-08-09)
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 535.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 237.
- ↑ Adam Bradley (2009). Book of Rhymes: The Poetics of Hip Hop. Basic Civitas Books. pp. 146–. ISBN 978-0-465-00347-1. Retrieved 1 August 2014.
- ↑ "Bomb the Bass's Beat Dis (UK Extended Dis) sample of Frankie Smith's Double Dutch Bus". WhoSampled. Retrieved 11 July 2013.
- ↑ "NME Videos". Nme.com. 2016-02-18. Retrieved 2016-10-17.
- ↑ Aim Artists aimartist.com
- ↑ allmusic ((( Double Dutch Bus > Overview ))) Allmusic
- ↑ Double Dutch Bus - Amazon Amazon.com
External links
- Music video of original, Frankie Smith version at YouTube
- Music video of Raven-Symoné version at YouTube
- Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics
| Preceded by "Give It to Me Baby" by Rick James |
Billboard Hot Soul Singles number-one single (Frankie Smith version) July 18, 1981 - August 8, 1981 |
Succeeded by "I'm in Love" by Evelyn King |