"1-2-3" (sometimes listed as "1, 2, 3") is a 1988 song by American singer and songwriter

Gloria Estefan Gloria María Milagrosa Estefan (; ; born September 1, 1957) is an American singer, actress, and businesswoman. Estefan is an eight-time Grammy Awards, Grammy Award winner, a Presidential Medal of Freedom recipient, and has been named one of t ...

and the

Miami Sound Machine Miami Sound Machine was an American Latin pop band of Latin-influenced music that featured the vocals of Cuban-born recording artist Gloria Estefan (née Fajardo). Established in 1975 by Emilio Estefan, the band was originally known as the Mia ...

. The song was written by the band's drummer and lead songwriter Enrique "Kiki" Garcia along with Estefan and appears on the multi-platinum album '' Let It Loose''. The music video was directed by Jim Yukich and produced by Paul Flattery. Released as the fifth and final single from that album in early summer of 1988, "1-2-3" peaked at #3 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in July 1988, and was the band's 7th and last Top 10 hit. In addition, the song became their fourth #1 hit on the ''Billboard''

adult contemporary chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by stati ...

.Hyatt, Wesley (1999). ''The Billboard Book of #1 Adult Contemporary Hits'' (Billboard Publications) On the ''Billboard''

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by '' Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 ...

, "1-2-3" peaked at 54, and on the UK Singles Chart it peaked at #9. After the success of the re-releases of "Can't Stay Away From You" and "Anything For You", "1-2-3" also saw a re-release outside the US in January 1989. The single release was

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

ed to add more horns, a stronger rhythm track, and a different intro to the song; this version was issued on ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be creat ...

'' and ''

The Essential Gloria Estefan ''The Essential Gloria Estefan'' is the seventh compilation album released by American singer Gloria Estefan, but is the twenty-eighth album overall, released in 2006. It is part of Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American reco ...

''. The lyrics of "1-2-3" detail the singer's desire to have a shy suitor approach her. In 1991, Estefan sang a children's rendition of the song with Big Bird and the Birdketeers on ''

Sesame Street ''Sesame Street'' is an American educational television, educational children's television series that combines live-action, sketch comedy, animation, and puppetry. It is produced by Sesame Workshop (known as the Children's Television Worksh ...

''.

Official versions

Original versions # Album Version — (3:28) Eric Schilling & John Haag remixes # Remix — (3:36) # Remix Instrumental (aka Instrumental Version) — (3:36) # Extended Version — (4:42) # Dub Mix — (4:44) Pete Hammond remixes # The Dancing By Numbers Mix — (6:27)

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Formats and track listings

Release history

References

{{authority control 1987 songs 1988 singles Epic Records singles Gloria Estefan songs Music videos directed by Jim Yukich Songs written by Enrique Garcia (songwriter) Songs written by Gloria Estefan Song recordings produced by Emilio Estefan