“Murder She Wrote” and its accompanying Bam Bam riddim has either been sampled or interpolated over 50 times by other artists. It has even gained traction outside of its own genre, with millennial artists breathing new life into the song. “Murder She Wrote” continues to be a beloved tune that finds people rushing to the dancefloor at weddings, backyard BBQs and clubs. 27 on the UK Singles chart.Ĭhart placements, though, don’t do justice to this song’s ceaseless impact. The hit also fared well overseas, peaking at No. International audiences agreed with the new experiment: “Murder She Wrote” reached No. Vegas and Sean Paul’s “Hot Gal Today” are just a few examples. Shabba Ranks and Maxi Priest’s “Housecall,” Shaggy and Rik Rok’s “It Wasn’t Me,” and Mr. This sonic fusion, which was unprecedented at the time, sparked a dancehall trend that paired with streetwise verses with sweet sing-song hooks. Similar to rap/R&B collaborations, the juxtaposition of Demus’ rugged “toasting” (lyrical chanting in the vein of rapping) and Pliers’ melodic vocals on the hook helped the song take flight. Their new, buzzing “Bam Bam” riddim became one of the most popular dancehall riddims of the early ‘90s, with songs by dancehall greats like Cutty Ranks, Admiral Bailey, and Nardo Ranks.Īlong with its sound, “Murder She Wrote” also introduced a new song structure. Rather than relying on instruments like they did during the 70s roots reggae era, they embraced technology to create electronic drums-based riddims. The new production was inspired by the Toots and the Maytals’ 1966 song “Bam Bam.” Sly and Robbie, who were previously known for their more laid-back reggae and dub stylings, were introducing a new digitized sound to dancehall at the time. Originally recorded for Jamaican label Harry J Records in 1987, the duo spent five years perfecting the track’s sound: after recording the original song for various local producers (including Jack Scorpio and Specialist), they tried again with Sly and Robbie in 1992. “Murder She Wrote” – Chaka Demus & Pliers’ signature song – was a testament to perseverance. Listen to Chaka Demus & Pliers on Apple Music and Spotify. Solely produced by iconic Jamaican duo Sly & Robbie, the album spawned six Top 40 UK hits: the flirty “Tease Me,” “She Don’t Let Nobody” (a soulful cover of Curtis Mayfield’s 1981 hit), “Gal Wine,” “Twist and Shout” (a cover of the Isley Brothers’ 1962 classic), the R&B-inspired “I Wanna Be Your Man,” and “Murder She Wrote.” The following year, the pair released Tease Me (known as All She Wrote in the United States).
After releasing a few albums on local Jamaican labels in 1992, Chaka Demus & Pliers signed to Mango Records (a subsidiary distributed by Island Records). Murder She Wrote has been sampled many times and according to Billboard, Omarion and company’s hit “is just one chapter of the history that followed ‘Murder She Wrote,’ which introduced a new style of dancehall.The duo’s prior music business experiences, along with a pop-minded reggae-dancehall fusion sound, helped them gain overseas attention. To date, it has racked up close to 800 million views on YouTube. The song appeared on Omarion’s fourth studio album, Sex Playlist.
13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified 3X Platinum in the US. It also shared that “Chris Brown’s guest verse takes it one step further, tracing back the roots of the Omarion-fronted West Coast anthem to the Caribbean by name-dropping Chaka Demus and Pliers’ redefining dancehall smash: “Murder she wrote/You wanna know how I know what I know?” Lines from the opening verse of the dancehall duo’s internationally renowned hit single, as well as the hook “murder she wrote”, were interpolated in the 2014 song which featured Chris Brown and Jhene Aiko.īillboard in their article noted that “the entire “Post to Be” pre-chorus swipes the melody and rhythm from the classic “Murder She Wrote” “I know this little girl, her name is Maxine…” section. Recently Billboard, in commemorating what it described as “the art of the interpolation at its most successful”, listed in no specific order, its 50 picks for the best examples of the form from the 21 st century, which it said “crossed genres and generations to revive old classics and make new ones”.
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