Let's All Chant

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"Let's All Chant"
Single by the Michael Zager Band
from the album Let's All Chant
B-side "Love Express"
Released December 1977
Recorded Secret Sound Studios, Manhattan
Genre Disco
Length 3:07 (7" version)
7:03 (12" version)
Label Private Stock
Writer(s) Michael Zager, Alvin Fields
Producer(s) Michael Zager
Certification Gold (CRIA)

"Let's All Chant" is a song written by Michael Zager and Alvin Fields and performed by the Michael Zager Band. Recognizable by its classical section, featured in the middle of the song, it was well received by critics, who praised its musical arrangement, and remains a disco classic. It was released as a single in December 1977, with the track "Love Express" as the B-side, and charted worldwide in 1978. The single reached number one on the disco chart for one week and crossed over to the Soul Singles chart, where it peaked at number 15, and to the Billboard Hot 100, where it peaked at number 36. In Europe, the single managed to reach the top 10 in several countries, including in the UK, in Ireland and in France. It eventually sold over five million copies worldwide.

Background and recording

When he was still at A&M Records, Michael Zager met Jerry Love, the former head of A&R for A&M Records.[1] When Love finally left the record label, Zager and Love formed the Michael Zager Moon's Band in 1976.[2] Love was an habitué of Studio 54 and went to clubs every night. One night, Love went to Greenwich Village to visit several clubs[1] and noted that people were continuously singing "Ooh-ah, Ooh-ah"[1] to every song which was played in order to increase their own participation and pleasure.[2] The next day, Love described the scene to Zager and suggested him to write a song incorporating those "Ooh-ah, Ooh-ah" vocals.[1] Zager thought Love was crazy and said to him : « You have to be kidding; that's embarrassing! ». Love pointed out everybody was doing it and that if Zager wrote a song using these chants, dancers would love it.[1]

In parallel, the group's name was changed to the Michael Zager Band and they signed with the label Private Stock Records.[2] For their forthcoming LP, Zager wrote two songs, "Let's All Chant" and "Love Express", together with Alvin Fields.[1] The co-writer shared lead vocals on "Let's All Chant" with session singers Dollette McDonald and Billy Baker.[2] Zager also added a classical section to the track and will later explain his choice :

The reason I added the piccolo-trumpet and classical section in the middle of Let's All Chant' was mainly because I was embarrassed! I thought it was so stupid with that 'Ooh-ah' sound in it that I wanted to add something to lift the track musically. I have a classical background and went to a music conservatory, so I was really feeling embarrassed[1]

"Let's All Chant" and "Love Express" were both recorded at the Secret Sound Studios, in Manhattan.[2] Once the songs were recorded, Zager told Fields : « I'm gonna kill you if this isn't a hit! ».[1]

Commercial performance and sales

"We thought it would be a club hit, but it never entered my mind it would be a global hit. I thought it would be a two-month record and that would be the end of it."

—Michael Zager[1]

"Let's All Chant" was released as a single with "Love Express" as a B-side[2] in December 1977, on Christmas week.[1] Zager thought it was the worst time to release the single because many artists usually released their albums during this period.[1] However, the single became an unexpected smash hit.[2][1] It climbed to number one on the disco chart on February 18, 1978, knocking Cerrone's "Supernature" off the top spot, and remains atop the chart for one week, before being toppled by Bionic Boogie's "Dance Little Dreamer".[3] In the US, "Let's All Chant" also charted at number 15 on the Soul Singles chart,[4] number 25 on the Cash Box Top 100 Singles,[5] number 31 on the Record World[6] and number 36 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4] In Canada, the single peaked at number two on the dance chart (behind "Supernature")[7] and at number 27 on the singles chart.[8]

The single did even better in Europe, reaching the top 10 in several countries. It peaked at number eight on both the UK Singles Chart and the Irish Singles Chart.[9] In France, "Let's All Chant" peaked at number five and became the eleventh best-selling single of 1978 in this country.[10][11] In Belgium, it peaked at number two for three weeks, being kept from the top spot by John Travolta and Olivia Newton-John's "You're the One That I Want",[12] and remains the eight best-selling single of the year.[13]

By July 1979, the single sold over three million copies worldwide[14] and would eventually sold five million copies worldwide,[1][15] selling about 6 to 700,000 copies in the US[1] and about 763,000 copies in France.[16] It was also certified gold by the Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA) for certified sales of 5,000 copies.[17]

Composition and critical reception

"Let's All Chant" features the typical lyrics of a disco song about dancing and working one's body,[18] along with chantlike vocals.[19] The song's tempo is 121 bpm[20] and is very close to the average tempo of a typical disco song (120 bpm).[15] However, "Let's All Chant" can be distinguished from other disco classics by its classical section, composed of French horns, a clarinet and a piccolo trumpet.[19] According to Alex Henderson from Allmusic, the combination of this "European-influenced, oddly baroque" feeling with a "catchy disco/funk beat" grabs the attention of the listener and encourages him to discover the rest of the LP.[18]

Critically, Henderson gives two different aspects of the song. While he views "Let's All Chant" as "quirky", as one of the most "unorthodox disco hits of 1978" and describes its lyrics as "usual disco clichés", he also highlights its "excellence" and finds the song both "infectious" and "interesting".[18] Ying Ying Wu, a writer for Playgirl, says that the song "sets up Zager as a fine arranger".[19] On their book Saturday Night Forever: The Story of Disco, Alan Jones and Jussi Kantonen describe the song as "supremely catchy and melodic, with a quite miraculous classical chamber music-style break in the middle"[2] and consider the song an "anthem", "a key recording that instantly defines the disco era."[2] They also regard "Let's All Chant" as "the high point" in Michael Zager's career.[2]

Track listings

  • 7" Single
  1. "Let's All Chant" — 3:07
  2. "Love Express" — 2:52
  • 12" Single
  1. "Let's All Chant" — 7:03
  2. "Love Express" — 7:01
  • Reissue – 12" Maxi
  1. "Let's All Chant" — 7:05
  2. "Traffic Jam" — 7:09
  3. "Traffic Jam (Dub Mix)" — 4:03

Chart positions

Weekly charts

Chart (1978) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[ 1] 2
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)[21] 2
Canada (RPM 100 Singles)[8] 27
Canada (RPM Top 30 Playlist)[7] 2
France (IFOP)[10] 5
Germany (Media Control AG)[ 1] 14
Ireland (IRMA)[22] 8
Italy (FIMI)[23] 10
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[ 1] 4
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[ 1] 4
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[ 1] 4
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[ 1] 8
US Billboard Hot 100[4] 36
US Billboard Hot Soul Singles[4] 15
US Billboard National Disco Action Top 30[4] 1
US Cash Box[5] 25
US Record World[6] 31

Year-end charts

Chart (1978) Position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[13] 8
France (IFOP)[11] 11
Italy (FIMI)[24] 45
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[25] 28
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)[26] 46
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[27] 25

Appearances

  • The song is used as background in the 1978 movie Eyes of Laura Mars, while Laura Mars is setting up an elaborate shoot juxtaposing murder and high fashion.[28]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 1.5 1.6 1.7 1.8 1.9 1.10 1.11 1.12 1.13 Arena 2013.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 2.7 2.8 2.9 Jones & Kantonen 2000.
  3. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. 
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "Michael Zager – Awards". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending MAY 13, 1978". Cash Box magazine. Archived from the original on October 4, 2012. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  6. ↑ 6.0 6.1 "RECORD WORLD 1978". Geocities.com. Record World. Archived from the original on May 9, 2006. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Dance/Urban – Volume 28, No. 23, March 04 1978". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Top Singles – Volume 29, No. 10, June 03 1978". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  9. ↑
  10. ↑ 10.0 10.1 (French) "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste". Dominic DURAND / InfoDisc. InfoDisc.fr. February 3, 2014. Retrieved February 3, 2014.  Select "Michael Zager Band" from the artist drop-down menu
  11. ↑ 11.0 11.1 (French) "TOP – 1978". Top-france.fr. Fabrice Ferment. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  12. ↑
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Jaaroverzichten 1978" (in Dutch). ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  14. ↑ "Michael Zager invites you to "Life's a Party"". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media) 91 (26): 5. July 7, 1979. ISSN 0006-2510. 
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Zager 2012, p. 247: One such record is “Let's All Chant,” by The Michael Zager Band, with worldwide sales reaching 5 million copies.
  16. ↑ (French) "Les Meilleures Ventes Tout Temps de 45 T. / Singles". Dominic DURAND / InfoDisc. InfoDisc.fr. February 3, 2014. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  17. ↑ "Gold Platinum Database – Displaying Search Results for Let's All Chant". Music Canada. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  18. ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 Henderson, Alex. "Michael Zager – Let's All Chant". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  19. ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 Wu, Ying Ying (August 1978). "The Michael Zager Band". Playgirl (Crescent Publishing Group) 6: 40. ISSN 0273-6918. 
  20. ↑ Brusca, Donald (2004). 's%20all%20chant%22&f=false The BPM List: A Music Reference Guide for Mobile DJs (1st ed.). Sound Sensation. p. 86. ISBN 978-1-4116-1268-6. 
  21. ↑ "Let's All Chant – MICHAEL ZAGER BAND". VRT (in Dutch). Top30-2.radio2.be. Retrieved February 3, 2014. "Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 2" 
  22. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". IRMA. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  23. ↑ (Italian) "HitParadeItalia – Top 10 del 17 Giugno 1978". HitParadeItalia. Creative Commons. Retrieved February 5, 2014. 
  24. ↑ (Italian) "I singoli più venduti del 1978". HitParadeItalia. Creative Commons. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  25. ↑ "Single Top 100 – 1978" (PDF) (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  26. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1978" (in Dutch). Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  27. ↑ (German) "Schweizer Jahreshitparade 1978". Hitparade.ch. Hung Medien. Retrieved February 3, 2014. 
  28. ↑ Wyatt, Justin (2003). High Concept: Movies and Marketing in Hollywood. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-79091-9. 

Bibliography

  • Arena, James (2013). First Ladies of Disco: 32 Stars Discuss the Era and Their Singing Careers. McFarland. ISBN 978-0-7864-7581-0. 
  • Jones, Alan; Kantonen, Jussi (2000). Saturday Night Forever: The Story of Disco. A Cappella Books. ISBN 1-55652-411-0. 
  • Zager, Michael (2012). Music Production: For Producers, Composers, Arrangers, and Students (2nd ed.). Scarecrow Press. ISBN 978-0-8108-8201-0. 
Preceded by
"Supernature" / "Give Me Love" / "Love is Here" by Cerrone		 US National Disco Action Top 30 number-one single with "Love Express"
February 18, 1978 (1 week) 		Succeeded by
"Dance Little Dreamer" / "Risky Changes" by Bionic Boogie
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