"I'm Too Sexy" is a 1991 song by British group Right Said Fred, released as their debut single from their first album, '' Up'' (1992). It peaked at number two on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

. Outside the United Kingdom, "I'm Too Sexy" topped the charts in seven countries, including Australia, Canada, Ireland, and the United States.

Composition and recording

The idea for the song came about when the Fairbrass brothers were running a gym in London where, according to Richard, there was "lots of narcissism and posing". One day, he took his shirt off and started singing "I'm too sexy for my shirt" in front of a mirror as a joke. The band originally recorded it as an

indie rock Indie rock is a subgenre of rock music that originated in the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand from the 1970s to the 1980s. Originally used to describe independent record labels, the term became associated with the music they produ ...

song. It was rejected by multiple record companies before they played it to radio plugger Guy Holmes. He was initially unimpressed after playing it on his car stereo, but his passengers latched onto the song's "I'm a model, you know what I mean" hook and Holmes asked the band if they could rework it as a dance track. DJ TommyD, an acquaintance of Richard Fairbrass, programmed electronics around the original vocal, whilst guitarist Rob Manzoli added a riff borrowed from the

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

song "

Third Stone from the Sun "Third Stone from the Sun" (or "3rd Stone from the Sun") is a mostly instrumental composition by American musician Jimi Hendrix. It incorporates several musical approaches, including jazz and psychedelic rock, with brief spoken passages. The ti ...

". In the clubs, many people imitated their "catwalk" dance as seen on the video clip by January 1992.

Release

The single was released on 15 July 1991. It equalled the record for the most weeks at number two on the

without ever topping the chart, staying at number two for six weeks in a row while held back by

Bryan Adams Bryan Guy Adams (born 5 November 1959) is a Canadian musician, singer, songwriter, composer, and photographer. He has been cited as one of the best-selling music artists of all time, and is estimated to have sold between 75 million and mor ...

' "

(Everything I Do) I Do It for You "(Everything I Do) I Do It for You" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams. Written by Adams, Michael Kamen, and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, the power ballad was the lead single for both the soundtrack album from the 1991 film '' Rob ...

" (this equalled the previous record set by Father Abraham's 1978 hit "

The Smurf Song Singles and full albums of original music for ''The Smurfs'' cartoon series (1981–1989) and the Smurfs movies have been released in different countries and languages, sometimes very successfully, with millions of copies sold. Worldwide, more ...

"). In May 1992, the song was nominated for an Ivor Novello Award for Best Selling 'A' Side. "I'm Too Sexy" was the act's first of several hits, particularly in the United Kingdom. They went on to have a number one single on the

with "

Deeply Dippy "Deeply Dippy" is a song by British trio Right Said Fred from their debut album, '' Up'' (1992). Written by Right Said Fred and produced by Tommy D, "Deeply Dippy" was the third single by Right Said Fred. It bested the number-two chart peak of " ...

" in April 1992.

Critical reception

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Music ...

editor Stephen Schnee described the song as a "humorous yet misunderstood swipe at self centered male bodybuilders and models." David Taylor-Wilson from ''

Bay Area Reporter The ''Bay Area Reporter'' is a free weekly newspaper serving the LGBT communities in the San Francisco Bay Area. It is one of the largest-circulation LGBT newspapers in the United States, and the country's oldest continuously published newspaper ...

'' called it "a campy send-up of the fashion world." In November 1991,

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large adverti ...

'' wrote, "Thoroughly fun and goofy ditty recently heated up international dance floors and radio airwaves. Fred cheekily boasts about his physical attributes over a festive

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop!, a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Albums * ''Pop'' ( ...

house A house is a single-unit residential building. It may range in complexity from a rudimentary hut to a complex structure of wood, masonry, concrete or other material, outfitted with plumbing, electrical, and heating, ventilation, and air cond ...

groove, which should have no trouble duplicating its success here." Andy Kastanas from ''

The Charlotte Observer ''The Charlotte Observer'' is an American English-language newspaper serving Charlotte, North Carolina, and its metro area. The Observer was founded in 1886. As of 2020, it has the second-largest circulation of any newspaper in the Carolinas. I ...

'' stated, "This midtempo "

techno Techno is a Music genre, genre of electronic dance music (EDM) which is generally music production, produced for use in a continuous DJ set, with tempo often varying between 120 and 150 beats per minute (bpm). The central Drum beat, rhythm is typ ...

/house" beat has a catchy

hook A hook is a tool consisting of a length of material, typically metal, that contains a portion that is curved or indented, such that it can be used to grab onto, connect, or otherwise attach itself onto another object. In a number of uses, one e ...

and unusual deep male vocals (a la

Elmer Fudd Elmer J.'' Hare Brush'' (1956) Fudd is an animated cartoon character in the Warner Bros. ''Looney Tunes''/'' Merrie Melodies'' series and the archenemy of Bugs Bunny. He has one of the more disputed origins in the Warner Bros. cartoon panthe ...

on steroids) that'll put a meltdown on any ladies in the vicinity. You'll dance whether you like it or not and the lyrics are sure to give you some chucks when you sing along (and you WILL sing along)... "I'm too sexy for my car, too sexy for your party, too sexy for this song, too sexy it hurts" and on and on." British magazine ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' deemed it an "eccentric" and "amusingly muttered 121.7bpm pop rattler". Randy Clark and Bryan Devaney from '' Cashbox'' said, "Here is a fun, tongue-in-cheek dance tune that should get lots of club play." They concluded that the group "have put together a clever dance/club put-down of what could only be the whole fashion-model "poser" attitude that's so much in vogue." A reviewer from ''

People Magazine ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the lar ...

'' described it as a "dopey dance tune mocking fashion models and voguers—but it'll keep you moving."

Impact and legacy

In June 2007, "I'm Too Sexy" was voted No. 80 on VH1's list of ''100 Greatest Songs of the '90s''. In April 2008, the song was rated No. 49 on ''The 50 Worst Songs Ever! Watch, Listen and Cringe!'' by ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender container with a rotating me ...

''. In April 2011, it was voted No. 2 on VH1's ''40 Greatest One-Hit Wonders of the '90s''. In 2017, ''

BuzzFeed BuzzFeed, Inc. is an American Internet media, news and entertainment company with a focus on digital media. Based in New York City, BuzzFeed was founded in 2006 by Jonah Peretti and John S. Johnson III to focus on tracking viral content. Ke ...

'' ranked it No. 90 in their list of ''The 101 Greatest Dance Songs of the '90s'', adding, "Yes, this song is cheesy as hell, but it doesn't ever try to be anything other than what it is: a fun, catchy, campy

dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoire ...

song." In 2019, ''

'' listed the song at No. 210 in their ranking of ''Billboard's Top Songs of the '90s''.

Track listing

*UK 7" (SNOG 1) / cassette (CA SNOG 1) #"I'm Too Sexy" #"I'm Too Sexy" (instrumental) *UK 12" (12 SNOG 1) #"I'm Too Sexy" #"I'm Too Sexy" (7" version) #"I'm Too Sexy" (12" instrumental) *UK CD (CD SNOG 1) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Betty's mix) #"I'm Too Sexy" (7" mix) #"I'm Too Sexy" (12" instrumental) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Italian version) *US single #"I'm Too Sexy" (7" version) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Extended Club Mix) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Betty's Mix) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Instrumental) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Catwalk Mix) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Tushapella) #"I'm Too Sexy" (Spanish version)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications and sales

Covers and adaptations

*In August 2009, English girl group

Sugababes Sugababes are a British girl group composed of Mutya Buena, Keisha Buchanan and Siobhán Donaghy. The lineup changed three times before returning to the original lineup in 2011. Formed in 1998 by All Saints manager Ron Tom, Sugababes releas ...

included an interpolation of the song in their single "

Get Sexy "Get Sexy" is a song by British girl group Sugababes, taken from their seventh studio album, ''Sweet 7'' (2010). It was written by Fred Fairbrass, Richard Fairbrass, Rob Manzoli, Philip Lawrence, Ari Levine, Bruno Mars and produced by the la ...

". *In August 2017, American singer-songwriter

Taylor Swift Taylor Alison Swift (born December 13, 1989) is an American singer-songwriter. Her discography spans multiple genres, and her vivid songwriting—often inspired by her personal life—has received critical praise and wide media coverage. Bo ...

released her single "

Look What You Made Me Do "Look What You Made Me Do" is a song recorded by American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift. It was released on August 24, 2017, by Big Machine Records, as the lead single from her sixth studio album, '' Reputation'' (2017). Swift wrote and produ ...

", and credited Right Said Fred, as the chorus to her track follows the same rhythmic pattern of the line "I'm too sexy for my shirt". *In September 2021, Canadian rapper

Drake Drake may refer to: Animals * A male duck People and fictional characters * Drake (surname), a list of people and fictional characters with the family name * Drake (given name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name ...

released the song " Way 2 Sexy" with American rappers

Future The future is the time after the past and present. Its arrival is considered inevitable due to the existence of time and the laws of physics. Due to the apparent nature of reality and the unavoidability of the future, everything that current ...

and

Young Thug Jeffery Lamar Williams (born August 16, 1991), known professionally as Young Thug, is an American rapper, singer, and songwriter. He is considered to be an influential figure of his generation, with his music impacting the modern sound of hip ...

, which samples and interpolates the track. The song also topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. *In July 2022, American singer

Beyoncé Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to ...

released the song "Alien Superstar" as part of her seventh studio album ''

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...

'', which interpolates the track.

References

{{authority control 1991 songs 1991 debut singles 2007 singles Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Charisma Records singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Narcissism in fiction Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in New Zealand Right Said Fred songs Songs written by Richard Fairbrass Songs written by Fred Fairbrass Songs written by Rob Manzoli