Ring My Bell

This article is about the song by Anita Ward. For other uses, see Ring My Bell (disambiguation).
"Ring My Bell"
Single by Anita Ward
from the album Songs of Love
A-side "Ring My Bell"
B-side "If I Could Feel That Old Feeling Again"
"Make Believe Lovers" (alternate B-side)
Released May 17, 1979
Format 7-inch single, 12-inch single
Genre Disco[1]
Length 4:28 (album)
3:30 (7" single)
Label Juana Records
Writer(s) Frederick Knight
Producer(s) Frederick Knight
Certification Gold (BPI)
Platinum (CRIA)
Anita Ward singles chronology
– "Ring My Bell"
(1979)		 "Don't Drop My Love"
(1979)

"Ring My Bell" is a 1979 disco song by Anita Ward. It was originally written for then eleven-year-old Stacy Lattisaw, as a teenybopper song about kids talking on the telephone.[2] When Lattisaw signed with a different label, Ward was asked to sing it instead, and it became her only major hit.[3]

The song hit number one on the disco charts.[4] "Ring My Bell" went to number one on both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Soul Singles chart.[4] It also reached number one on the UK Singles Chart.

"Ring My Bell" has been covered by many artists since its original release, including DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, Ann Lee, Tori Amos, Dynamic Duo, Collette, Saïan Supa Crew, INOJ, Pato Fu, Joey Boy, Sxip Shirey, and Princess X (a modern interpretation under the title "Gimme All (Ring My Bell)"). It has also been remixed many times.

Instrumentation

The song is characterized by the sound of chimes and of the Synare electronic drum playing a decaying high-pitched tom tone.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Chart (1979) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[5] 3
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[6] 3
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[7] 4
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)[8] 5
Canada (CHUM)[9] 5
Canada (RPM 100 Singles)[10] 1
Canada (RPM Adult Oriented Playlist)[11] 1
Canada (RPM Disco Playlist)[12] 1
France (IFOP)[13] 2
Germany (Media Control Charts)[14] 3
Ireland (IRMA)[15] 2
Italy (FIMI)[16] 9
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[17] 2
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[18] 8
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[19] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[20] 1
South Africa (Springbok Radio)[21] 3
Spain (AFE)[22] 1
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[23] 2
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[24] 5
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[25] 1
US Billboard Hot 100[4] 1
US Billboard Hot Disco Singles[4] 1
US Billboard Hot Soul Singles[4] 1
US Cash Box[26] 1
US Record World[27] 1

Year-end charts

Chart (1979) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[28] 31
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[29] 15
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[30] 19
Canada (RPM Top 200 Singles)[31] 17
France (IFOP)[32] 22
Italy (FIMI)[16] 39
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[33] 16
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[34] 95
US Billboard Hot 100[35] 9
US Billboard Hot Soul Singles[36] 2
US Cash Box[37] 6

Sales and certifications

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Canada (Music Canada)[38] Platinum 150,000^
France 354,000[39]
United Kingdom (BPI)[40] Gold 500,000^

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

Uses in other media

The song was included in the films Playgirl (1981), A Thin Line Between Love and Hate (1996), The Waterboy (1998), Mystery Men (1999), Corky Romano (2001), Dahmer (2002), The Possible (2006), Are We Done Yet? (2007), and The Book of Eli (2010). It has been used in advertisements for Burger King (1997), Heinz baked beans (2008), Telus, and as part of a radio-station loop in the video games True Crime: New York City and Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas. The track is also featured as one of the songs in Just Dance (2009).

References

  1. ↑ Prato, Greg. "Anita Ward – Artist Biography". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  2. ↑ ""Ring My Bell" – Anita Ward". Super Seventies. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Ring My Bell by Anita Ward". Songfacts. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 "Songs of Love – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  5. ↑ "Billboard – Hits Of The World". Billboard (Nielsen Business Media) 91 (35): 57. September 1, 1979. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  7. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Ring My Bell – ANITA WARD" (in Dutch). Top 30. Retrieved June 12, 2014. Hoogste notering in de top 30 : 5
  9. ↑ CHART NUMBER 1176 – Saturday, July 28, 1979 at the Wayback Machine (archived February 12, 2006). CHUM. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 31, No. 18, July 28, 1979". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  11. ↑ "Adult Contemporary – Volume 31, No. 20, August 11, 1979". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  12. ↑ "Dance/Urban – Volume 31, No. 18, July 28, 1979". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  13. ↑ "InfoDisc : Tous les Titres par Artiste" (in French). InfoDisc. Select "Anita Ward" from the artist drop-down menu. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  15. ↑ "The Irish Charts – All there is to know". Irishcharts.ie. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  16. ↑ 16.0 16.1 "I singoli più venduti del 1979" (in Italian). Hit Parade Italia. Creative Commons. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  17. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Anita Ward - Ring My Bell search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  19. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  20. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". VG-lista. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  21. ↑ "South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 – 1989 Acts (W)". Rock.co.za. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  22. ↑ Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (in Spanish) (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  23. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". Singles Top 60. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  24. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  25. ↑ "Archive Chart: 1979-06-16" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved June 3, 2013.
  26. ↑ CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending JUNE 30, 1979 at the Wayback Machine (archived February 5, 2011). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  27. ↑ RECORD WORLD 1979 at the Wayback Machine (archived May 11, 2005). Record World. Geocities.com. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  28. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts – 1970s". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  29. ↑ "Jahreshitparade 1979" (in German). Austriancharts.at. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  30. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten 1979" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  31. ↑ "Top Singles – Volume 32, No. 13, December 22, 1979". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  32. ↑ "TOP – 1979" (in French). Top-france.fr. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  33. ↑ "Single Top 100 1979" (PDF) (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  34. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1995" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  35. ↑ "Top 100 Hits for 1979". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  36. ↑ Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – 1979 at the Wayback Machine (archived June 18, 2009). Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  37. ↑ The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1979 at the Wayback Machine (archived August 25, 2012). Cash Box magazine. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  38. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". Music Canada.
  39. ↑ "Les Meilleures Ventes Tout Temps de 45 T. / Singles" (in French). InfoDisc. Retrieved June 12, 2014.
  40. ↑ "British single certifications – Anita Ward – Ring My Bell". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Ring My Bell in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search

External links