Funkytown

"Funkytown" is a song by American disco act Lipps Inc. from their debut album Mouth to Mouth (1979). It was released as the album's lead single in 1980.

For other uses, see Funkytown (disambiguation).

"Funkytown"
Single by Lipps Inc.
from the album Mouth to Mouth
B-side"All Night Dancing"
ReleasedMarch 1980[1]
Genre
Length
  • 4:00 (single version)
  • 7:50 (extended 12" version)
LabelCasablanca
Songwriter(s)Steven Greenberg
Producer(s)Steven Greenberg
Lipps Inc. singles chronology
"Rock It"
(1979)		 "Funkytown"
(1980)		 "Designer Music"
(1980)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help
Music video
"Funkytown" (TopPop, 1982) on YouTube

"Funkytown" reached the top spot in the United States, West Germany, Canada, Austria, Switzerland, Norway, the Netherlands, and Australia, among many others.[4][5][6]

Background and composition

Written by musician, composer, and record producer Steven Greenberg and sung by Cynthia Johnson, the song expresses the singer's pining for a metaphorical place that will "keep me movin', keep me groovin' with some energy". Steven wrote the song while the band was living in Minneapolis with dreams of moving to New York.[7]

Music videos

Two music videos exist for "Funkytown". In one, Cynthia Johnson and some women dance in a pub. In the other, Debbie Jenner, who served as the face of Lipps Inc. in the Netherlands and West Germany, dances while miming Johnson's vocals.[8]

Chart performance

"Funkytown" entered the US Billboard Hot 100 on March 29, 1980 and spent four weeks at number one, from May 31 to June 21, 1980. It also hit the number one spot on the disco chart in 1980.[6] It also reached no. 2 in the United Kingdom,[9] and Sweden, as well as on the U.S. soul chart.[10] The song was Lipps Inc's only American Top 40 hit.[6]

Impact and legacy

VH1 ranked the song at number 36 in their list of the 100 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the 1980s in 2009.[11]

The song was also featured in 2007 Alvin and the Chipmunks.

Time Out listed the song number 44 in their list of The 100 best party songs in 2018, adding:

(…) 'Funkytown' expresses a simple, repetitive yearning for the pulse of a bigger city, goosed by a killer ten-note synth riff. 'Gotta make a move to a town that's right for me,' sings Cynthia Johnson in a robotic, vocoderized voice (a precursor to the Auto-Tune sound) before busting out an unmodified, soulful wail, pleading for a trip to the party destination of her dreams. Released in 1980, 'Funkytown' came late to the disco party, but gave it a jolt of electricity.[12]

ThoughtCo placed the song at number 7 in their list of "25 Best Dance Pop Songs of All Time" in 2018.[13]

Track listings

7" single

  1. "Funkytown" – 4:00
  2. "All Night Dancing" – 3:09

12" single

  1. "Funkytown" – 7:51
  2. "All Night Dancing" – 3:09

Charts and certifications

Pseudo Echo version
"Funkytown"
Single by Pseudo Echo
from the album Love an Adventure
B-side"Lies Are Nothing"
ReleasedNovember 17, 1986[50]
Genre
Length
  • 4:53 (album/video version)
  • 3:40 (single version)
  • 6:36 (Dance Mix)
LabelRCA
Songwriter(s)Steven Greenberg
Producer(s)Brian Canham
Pseudo Echo singles chronology
"Try"
(1986)		 "Funkytown"
(1986)		 "Take On the World"
(1987)
Music video
"Funkytown" on YouTube

In 1986, "Funkytown" was covered by Australian band Pseudo Echo as a rock song, which included a guitar solo in the middle. Pseudo Echo's version reached no. 6 on the US Hot 100 chart and spent seven weeks at no. 1 in Australia. Mirroring Lipps Inc's experience, Pseudo Echo's version was that group's only US Top 40 hit. The version of "Funky Town" by Pseudo Echo was played in the 1987 sequel comedy film Revenge of the Nerds II: Nerds in Paradise.

Track listings

7" single (EMI 1883)

  1. "Funkytown" – 3:40
  2. "Lies Are Nothing" – 3:58

12" / Maxi (ED 237) / (RCA 5217-7)

  • Side A: "Funky Town" (Dance Mix) – 6:32
  • Side B: "Funkytown" – 3:40
  • Side B: "Lies Are Nothing" – 3:58

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (1986–1987) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[14] 1
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[53] 13
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[54] 40
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[55] 1
Ireland (IRMA)[18] 12
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[56] 1
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[57] 2
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[58] 9
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[59] 11
UK Singles (OCC)[60] 8
US Billboard Hot 100[61] 6
US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play[61] 4
US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales[61] 1
US Cash Box[62] 12
West Germany (Official German Charts)[63] 16

Year-end charts

Chart (1986) Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)[32] 93
Chart (1987) Rank
Australia (Kent Music Report)[32] 19
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[64] 17
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[65] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[66] 99
US Top Dance Sales 12-inch Singles[67] 37
Chart (1988) Rank
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[68] 18

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[69] Gold 50,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[70] Gold 10,000*

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

References
  1. Nite, Norm N. (1985). Rock On: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock n' Roll : The Video Revolution, 1978-present. Harper & Row. p. 189. ISBN 978-0-06-181644-4.
  2. Huey, Steve. "Lipps, Inc. – Artist Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved June 26, 2013.
  3. Pickow, Peter; Appleby, Amy (1988). The Billboard Book of Song Writing. Billboard Publications. p. 146.
  4. "Ultratop.be – Lipps, Inc. – Funkytown" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  5. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 7799a." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  6. "Lipps Inc. – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved May 31, 2013.
  7. Swensson, Andrea (September 22, 2011). "50 cool facts about the Minnesota music scene". City Pages. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  8. Breihan, Tom (March 25, 2020). "The Number Ones: Lipps, Inc.'s "Funkytown"". Stereogum. Retrieved September 7, 2020.
  9. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  10. "The Billboard Hot R&B Singles: Week of May 24, 1980". Billboard. Retrieved May 16, 2017.
  11. Ali, Rahsheeda (May 2, 2013). "100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s". VH1. Archived from the original on July 30, 2017. Retrieved October 8, 2018.
  12. "The 100 best party songs". Time Out. March 8, 2018. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  13. Lamb, Bill (May 1, 2018). "25 Best Dance Pop Songs of All Time". ThoughtCo. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  14. "Australia No. 1 hits -- 1980's". World Charts. Archived from the original on May 20, 2011. Retrieved June 9, 2013.
  15. "Austriancharts.at – Lipps, Inc. – Funkytown" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved July 28, 2013.
  16. "MusicSeek.info – UK, Eurochart, Billboard & Cashbox No.1 Hits". Archived from the original on June 14, 2006.. MusicSeek.info.
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  19. "Billboard Hits of the World". Billboard. Vol. 92 no. 28. July 12, 1980. p. 51. ISSN 0006-2510.
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