"Silly" is a song written by Fritz Baskett, Clarence McDonald and

Deniece Williams June Deniece Williams (née Chandler; born June 3, 1950) is an American singer. She has been described as "one of the great Soul music, soul voices" by the BBC. She is best known for the songs "Free (Deniece Williams song), Free", "Silly (song ...

and performed by Williams. The

soul The soul is the purported Mind–body dualism, immaterial aspect or essence of a Outline of life forms, living being. It is typically believed to be Immortality, immortal and to exist apart from the material world. The three main theories that ...

ful ballad was released off Williams' '' My Melody'' album in 1981 and became the most successful track off the album reaching as high as number fifty-three on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 becoming an even bigger success on the R&B chart where it peaked at number eleven. It has since gone on to become one of Williams' most requested songs over a career that has spanned over thirty years. The song featured production by Williams and respected

Philly soul Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia (TSOP), is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush string and horn arrangements. The g ...

producer

Thom Bell Thomas Randolph Bell (January 26, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American record producer, arranger, and songwriter known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. Hailed as one of the most prolific R&B songwriters and prod ...

. The song was recorded at Philadelphia's acclaimed Sigma Sound Studios. The song would be later covered by singer Taral Hicks nearly two decades later in 1997 and was released as the second single off Hicks' debut album becoming a hit on the R&B chart. One of Williams' influences,

Patti LaBelle Patricia Louise Holte (born May 24, 1944), known professionally as Patti LaBelle, is an American Rhythm and blues, R&B singer and actress. She has been referred to as the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, Godmother of Soul". LaBelle began ...

, covered the song for her 2005 album, ''

Classic Moments ''Classic Moments'' is a studio album by American singer Patti LaBelle. It was her second full-length release with Island Def Jam's Def Soul Classics imprint and released on June 21, 2005 in the United States. The album features LaBelle's renditio ...

''. R&B girl group Cherish recorded the song for their second album ''

The Truth The Truth may refer to: Film * ''The Truth'' (1920 film) starring Madge Kennedy * ''The Truth'' (1960 film) or ''La Vérité'', a French film by Henri-Georges Clouzot starring Brigitte Bardot * ''The Truth'' (1988 film), a Hong Kong trial cri ...

'' in 2008. Singer Monica sampled the instrumental intro and bridge of the song for her number-one R&B hit, " Everything to Me" and interpolated Williams' ending high notes at the end of the song. Monica and Williams sang "Everything to Me" and "Silly" together at the

BET Black Entertainment Television (BET) is an American basic cable channel targeting Black American audiences. It is the flagship channel of the BET Media Group, a subsidiary of Paramount Global's CBS Entertainment Group. Originally launched ...

Awards in 2010.

The-Dream Terius Adamu Ya Gesteelde-Diamant ('' né'' Youngdell Nash; born September 20, 1977), known professionally as The-Dream, is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is known for having written or co-produced songs for artists in ...

sampled the song for his song "Silly", which featured Casha, on his free mixtape ''1977''.

Charts

References

1981 songs 1981 singles 1997 singles Deniece Williams songs Songs written by Deniece Williams Songs written by Clarence McDonald Song recordings produced by Thom Bell Columbia Records singles Contemporary R&B ballads 1980s ballads {{1980s-R&B-song-stub