"Move On Up" is a song by Curtis Mayfield from his 1970 debut album, '' Curtis''. Nearly nine minutes long on the album version, it was released as a single in the United States, but failed to chart. An edited version of the song spent 10 weeks in the top 50 of the UK Singles Chart in 1971, peaking at number 12, and it has become a soul classic over the years. In 2021, it was listed at No. 474 on ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

''s "The 500 Greatest Songs of All Time". The song was influential on the emerging genre of progressive soul and is notable for its prominent, fast-paced

percussion A percussion instrument is a musical instrument that is sounded by being struck or scraped by a percussion mallet, beater including attached or enclosed beaters or Rattle (percussion beater), rattles struck, scraped or rubbed by hand or ...

, featuring Henry Gibson on congas.

Certifications

Other cover versions and sampling

In 1979,

disco Disco is a music genre, genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the late 1960s from the United States' urban nightclub, nightlife, particularly in African Americans, African-American, Italian-Americans, Italian-American, LGBTQ ...

trio Destination recorded a medley, incorporating " Keep On Pushing", a 1964 hit by the Impressions, also written by Mayfield. Along with the tracks "Up Up Up" and "Destination's Theme", "Move On Up" hit number one on the disco chart for four weeks. It peaked at number sixty-eight on the soul singles chart. The Jam, an English rock band active in the late 1970s to the early 1980s led by

Paul Weller John William Weller (born 25 May 1958), better known as Paul Weller, is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame in the late 1970s as the guitarist and principal singer and songwriter of the rock band the Jam, alongside ...

, released a version of the song on an extended play record in 1982, as did Weller's The Style Council in 1985.

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

-based jam-band

My Morning Jacket My Morning Jacket is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Louisville, Kentucky, in 1998. The band consists of vocalist/guitarist Jim James, bassist Tom Blankenship, drummer Patrick Hallahan, guitarist Carl Broemel, and keyboardist Bo Kos ...

frequently covers the song in their live shows.

Just Blaze Justin Gregory Smith (born January 8, 1978), known professionally as Just Blaze, is an American record producer and DJ. Born in Paterson, New Jersey, Smith attended Rutgers University for three years before dropping out to pursue a career in mus ...

heavily sampled the song for

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...

's 2006 single " Touch the Sky", using a slowed-down version of the horns. The song was also used in the credits for the 2024 film '' Lift''.

In popular culture

English football club Arsenal adopted the song as a popular post-game anthem at their

Emirates Stadium The Emirates Stadium (known as Arsenal Stadium for UEFA competitions) is a association football, football stadium in Holloway, London, England. It has been the home stadium of Arsenal F.C., Arsenal Football Club since its completion in 2006. ...

. The song appears on the soundtrack of the 2002 British film '' Bend It Like Beckham''. The song appears in “ Margin of Error,” Season 4, Episode 6 of ''

The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime fiction, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created and primarily written by the American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered o ...

''. The song can also be heard on the radio in the 2014 video game '' Watch Dogs''. The song was used by

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

following the end of his speeches during his 2020 presidential campaign.

References

{{Authority control 1970 songs 1971 singles 1979 singles Curtis Mayfield songs Song recordings produced by Curtis Mayfield Songs written by Curtis Mayfield Presidential campaign songs