Straight Up (Paula Abdul song)
| "Straight Up" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Paula Abdul | ||||||||||
| from the album Forever Your Girl | ||||||||||
| Released | November 22, 1988 | |||||||||
| Format | CD Maxi, 7" Single, 12" Maxi, Cassette | |||||||||
| Recorded | November, 1987-May, 1988 | |||||||||
| Genre | ||||||||||
| Length | 4:11 | |||||||||
| Label | Virgin Records | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | Elliot Wolff | |||||||||
| Producer(s) | Elliot Wolff | |||||||||
| Certification | Platinum (RIAA) | |||||||||
| Paula Abdul singles chronology | ||||||||||
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"Straight Up" is a 1988 Pop single by American singer Paula Abdul, which reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and brought her widespread public attention. It was written and produced by Elliot Wolff.
The song is a mid-tempo dance tune. The synthetic lead trumpet sound comes from the Roland D-50 (preset 1-5) from Tell It To My Heart. Daniel J. Levitin's This Is Your Brain On Music praises the song as "hold[ing] a certain appeal over many, many listenings."
History
"Straight Up" was the third single released from her debut album Forever Your Girl, after "Knocked Out" and "The Way That You Love Me." While the latter was enjoying success on the R&B charts, radio station KMEL in San Francisco started playing "Straight Up" from the album. The label decided to abandon "The Way That You Love Me" and refocus its attention on "Straight Up". The strategy paid off, as "Straight Up" was followed by three more number-one hits from the same album.
One of the 12" versions was remixed by LA "Powermixers" Chris Modig and Boris Granich, known for their special Power mixes at Power 106 during the 1980s.
After debuting at #79 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart the week of December 3, 1988, the single quickly rose up the chart, reaching #13 by January 21, 1989.[1] It ultimately spent three weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart beginning February 11, 1989 and was ranked fourth in the Top 100 hits of 1989. It was certified Platinum by the RIAA with sales of more than one million units.[2] It reached number three in the UK and Germany.
Music video
The song became so popular that it ascended up the charts before a music video had even been shot for the song. The black and white video, directed by David Fincher and choreographed by Paula herself in mid-January 1989, won four 1989 MTV Video Music Awards for Best Female Video, Best Editing, Best Choreography, and the first Best Dance Video. The video features a special appearance by Paula's friend, comedian Arsenio Hall, whose popular talk show had premiered a few weeks prior to the video shoot. Djimon Hounsou also made a special appearance. Released in February 1989, the video at the time went into very heavy rotation on MTV, and it also made Abdul known for her exceptionally creative and distinct videos.
Release history
| Country | Release date |
|---|---|
| United States | November 22, 1988 |
| United Kingdom | March 6, 1989 |
Chart performance
In the US, "Straight Up" reached the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot 100 by February 11, 1989, where it stayed for three consecutive weeks. "Straight Up" was one of the most popular R&B and dance-pop singles of the entire year, remaining in the Top 10 for seven weeks, the Top 20 for nine weeks, and the Top 40 for sixteen weeks. The success of "Straight Up" catapulted the "Forever Your Girl" album into the top 20 on the album chart. Two more number-one hits from the album boost it up further into the top 5 where it lingered before it finally reached #1 in October after a record-setting 64 weeks on the market.
The single was a worldwide smash, reaching the top ten in many music markets all over the world. In addition to topping the charts in the United States, the single also reached the top in Norway and Canada. It reached #3 in the United Kingdom, Switzerland, Germany and The Netherlands. It also reached #8 in Austria, #5 in Belgium, and #2 in Sweden. In France, the single fell short of the top ten, reaching #12. In Oceania, the single received mixed success. The song fell short of the top twenty in Australia, reaching #27. In New Zealand, however, the single did much better, reaching #6.
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
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Track listings and formats
US/UK/Euro 12"; UK 3"/Euro 5" CD singles
- Straight Up - 12" remix 6:53
- Straight Up - Power mix 3:05
- Straight Up - House mix 7:10 on 3", remix fades at 5:13
- Straight Up - Marley Marl mix 6:48 on 3", remix fades at 4:48
NB: the UK 12" and both CD singles feature shorter versions of the latter three mixes, as listed below.
ultimix 7" a straight up-ultimix 6:53 b opposites attract-1990 mix 6:49
Official mixes
- Album version 4:10
- 7" edit / Single Version 3:51 - Elliot Wolff/Keith Cohen; edited album version
- 12" remix 6:54 - Elliot Wolff/Keith Cohen; extended album version
- Power mix 5:36/4:57/3:01 - Boris Granich/Christer Modig; released in several different edits
- House mix 7:10/5:13 – Kevin Saunderson/Ben Grosse; shorter version is faded early
- Marley Marl mix 6:38/4:40 - Marley Marl; shorter version is faded early
- Ultimix 6:55 – Les Massengale/Bradley Hinkle
- Razormaid! remix 8:29 – Dave Bareither
Cover versions
- In 1989, Stacy covered the song on Kids Incorporated - season 6, episode 14: Elementary My Dear Kids.
- In their early days, Limp Bizkit would attract audiences by covering this song.[22]
- "Straight Up" was covered by punk band Halifax for the 2005 compilation Punk Goes 80's.
- Filipino singer Regine Velasquez did a cover of this song for her Covers Vol. 2 album in 2005.
- In 2005, electro-industrial group Dismantled covered the song for their EP Breed to Death.
- A cover of the song by rock band 10 Sugar Charlie was included on their 2007 End of the World album.
- The song was covered by American dream pop indie band Luna for the 2007 compilation Guilt by Association Vol. 1.
- The song was covered in an edited acoustic version by American Idol Season 9 contestant Andrew Garcia. A YouTube clip of Garcia's performance has received over 2.9 million viewings.
- The song was covered by the Gypsy Jazz band The Lost Fingers in their 2008 album Lost in the 80s.
- There was the cover by Denise Post-Van Rijswijk of the Vengaboys in 2009.
- The song was interpolated by rapper J. Cole for his 2011 single "Work Out," she would later sample the same song in return for her new song "Dream Medley."
- In the show 10 Things I Hate About You, the episode (You Gotta) Fight for Your Right (To Party), Lindsey Shaw's character, Kat, sings this song.
- On the show A Different World, Jaleesa performs the song to audition for a telethon.
- Belgian artist Silvy De Bie released her version of the song July 5th, 2013.
- The song was covered by Me First and the Gimme Gimmes on their 2014 album, Are We Not Men? We Are Diva!.
See also
- Hot 100 number-one hits of 1989 (United States)
References
- ↑ http://weeklytop40.wordpress.com/1989/01/21/us-top-40-singles-for-the-week-ending-january-21-1989/
- ↑ RIAA Gold & Platinum Searchable Database - Straight Up, accessed 2009-07-10
- ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Paula Abdul – Straight Up" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Paula Abdul Album & Song Chart History" Canadian Hot 100 for Paula Abdul. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Ultratop.be – Paula Abdul – Straight Up" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Lescharts.com – Paula Abdul – Straight Up" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Chartverfulgong > Abdul,Paula > Straight Up – musicline.de" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 13, 1989" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40 Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". VG-lista. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". Singles Top 60. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Archive Chart: 1989-04-08" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Paula Abdul Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot 100 for Paula Abdul. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Paula Abdul Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs for Paula Abdul. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Paula Abdul Album & Song Chart History" Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs for Paula Abdul. Retrieved 9 November, 2012.
- ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1989". Retrieved 2010-12-27.
- ↑ "Canadian single certifications – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". Music Canada.
- ↑ "British single certifications – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". British Phonographic Industry. Enter Straight Up in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Silver in the field By Award. Click Search
- ↑ "American single certifications – Paula Abdul – Straight Up". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH
- ↑ Devenish, Colin (2000). Limp Bizkit. St. Martin's. p. 27. ISBN 0-312-26349-X.
External links
| Preceded by "When I'm with You" by Sheriff |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single February 11–25, 1989 |
Succeeded by "Lost in Your Eyes" by Debbie Gibson |
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