"Am I the Same Girl" is a

popular song Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Fun ...

written by

Eugene Record Eugene Booker Record (December 23, 1940 – July 22, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer. He was best known as the lead vocalist of the Chicago-based vocal group The Chi-Lites. He had international hits w ...

and

Sonny Sanders William Nelson "Sonny" Sanders (August 6, 1939 – October 12, 2016) was an American soul music singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer. Born in Chicago, Sanders made his first recording in 1955, on "Tears of Love" / "Roxanna" by Sa ...

. First recorded in 1968 by

Barbara Acklin Barbara Jean Acklin (February 28, 1943 – November 27, 1998) was an American soul singer and songwriter, who was most successful in the 1960s and 1970s. Her biggest hit as a singer was "Love Makes a Woman" (1968). As a songwriter, she is bes ...

, "Am I the Same Girl" charted most successfully in the US as a 1992 release by

Swing Out Sister Swing Out Sister are a British pop band, best known worldwide for the 1986 song " Breakout". Other hits include " Surrender", " You On My Mind", " Twilight World", " Waiting Game", and a remake of the Eugene Record soul composition "Am I the ...

. However, the song had its greatest impact as a 1968–69 instrumental hit single by

Young-Holt Unlimited Young-Holt Unlimited (also known as Young-Holt Trio), were a U.S. soul and jazz instrumental musical ensemble from Chicago, Illinois, United States. Drummer Isaac "Redd" Holt and bassist Eldee Young, formerly members of Ramsey Lewis' jazz trio ...

under the title "Soulful Strut".

Background

Although Barbara Acklin recorded the song first, producer

Carl Davis Carl Davis (October 28, 1936 – August 3, 2023) was an American-born British conductor and composer. He wrote music for more than 100 television programmes, notably the landmark ITV series '' The World at War'' (1973) and BBC's '' Pride and P ...

removed her voice from the track, replaced it with a piano solo by Floyd Morris, and released the resultant track in November 1968 as "Soulful Strut" credited to Young-Holt Unlimited; it became a No. 3 hit in the United States and went to No. 1 in Canada. It became a

gold record Gold is a chemical element; it has chemical symbol Au (from Latin ) and atomic number 79. In its pure form, it is a brightness, bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile metal. Chemically, gold is a transition metal ...

. Neither Eldee Young nor Red Holt is believed to have played on the track, which was the work of

session musician A session musician (also known as studio musician or backing musician) is a musician hired to perform in a recording session or a live performance. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a reco ...

s identified only as the Brunswick Studio Band. Acklin's version was released in February 1969 and reached No. 33 on the R&B chart, crossing over and peaking at No. 79 on the pop listing.

Charts

Dusty Springfield version

British singer

Dusty Springfield Mary Isobel Catherine Bernadette O'Brien (16 April 1939 – 2 March 1999), better known by her stage name Dusty Springfield, was a British singer. With her distinctive mezzo-soprano voice, she was a popular singer of blue-eyed soul, Pop mus ...

, on the recommendation of Douggie Reece, the bassist in her touring band the Echoes, recorded "Am I the Same Girl" at Philips Studios

Marble Arch The Marble Arch is a 19th-century white marble-faced triumphal arch in London, England. The structure was designed by John Nash in 1827 as the state entrance to the cour d'honneur of Buckingham Palace; it stood near the site of what is today th ...

in August 1969; Bill Landis produced the session, which was arranged by

Keith Mansfield Keith Mansfield (born 1940 in Slough, England) is a British composer and arranger known for his creation of prominent television theme tunes, including the ''Grandstand'' theme for the BBC. Career Mansfield's other works include "The Young S ...

. The track marked Springfield's last UK chart appearance of the 1960s, though it was not a major hit, stalling at No. 43. "Am I the Same Girl" also gave Springfield a minor hit in Australia (No. 75).

Swing Out Sister version

The vocal version of "Am I the Same Girl" had its most successful incarnation via a 1992 remake by British pop group

, recorded for their third album, ''

Get in Touch with Yourself ''Get in Touch with Yourself'' is the third studio album by the British pop group Swing Out Sister. The album was released on Fontana Records in 1992 and was produced by Paul Staveley O'Duffy. Lineup and musical style For the recording of ''Get ...

'' (1992). The group's vocalist

Corinne Drewery Corinne Drewery (born 21 September 1959) is an English singer-songwriter and fashion designer, best known for being the lead vocalist of the band Swing Out Sister. Early life Drewery was born in Nottingham. She later moved to the Lincolnshire ...

has acknowledged

as a major influence; however, it was a chance hearing of the original Barbara Acklin version at a Manchester disco specializing in

Northern soul Northern soul is a music and dance movement that emerged in Northern England and the Midlands in the early 1970s. It developed from the British Mod (subculture), mod scene, based on a particular style of African American music, Black American ...

that convinced Drewery and her Swing Out Sister partner

Andy Connell Andrew John Connell (born 26 July 1961) is an English keyboardist and composer. Along with Corinne Drewery, he is part of the duo that makes up Swing Out Sister. Biography Born in Manchester, Connell played in the Manchester post-punk band T ...

to remake "Am I the Same Girl". Released in March 1992 by

Fontana Records Fontana Records is a record label that started in the 1950s as a subsidiary of the Dutch Philips Records. Fontana Distribution, an independent label distributor, takes its name from the label. History Fontana began in the 1950s as a subsidi ...

as the lead single from the album, "Am I the Same Girl" gave Swing Out Sister their highest UK chart ranking since their inaugural chart singles in 1986–87, the Top Ten hits " Breakout" and " Surrender"; peaking at No. 21. The track had more impact in continental Europe, peaking at No. 8 in Germany, and No. 15 in the Netherlands. "Am I the Same Girl" also represented a strong comeback for Swing Out Sister in the US, where it was released in September 1992 and reached No. 45 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 — the track's peak on the '' Cashbox'' Pop 100 was No. 32 — while reaching No. 1 on the

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 ...

. Having recorded two distinct live renditions of "Am I the Same Girl" which appear on, respectively, ''Live at the Jazz Café'' (1993) and ''Live in Tokyo'' (2005), Swing Out Sister recorded a new studio version of the song for their 2012 album ''Private View''.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Other versions

In 1969,

Bill Deal and the Rhondels Bill Deal & the Rhondels were an American pop band, formed in 1959
, retrieved October 29, 2013. in

< ...

included a version of "Soulful Strut" on their ''Vintage Rock'' LP (on Heritage Records, HTS-35,003). Brazilian organist Walter Wanderley recorded a Bossa Nova driven cover of "Soulful Strut" on his 1969 album, ''Moondreams''. German pianist

Horst Jankowski Horst Jankowski (30 January 1936 – 29 June 1998) was a classically trained German pianist, most famous for his internationally successful easy listening music. Biography Born in Berlin, Jankowski studied at the Berlin Music Conservatory an ...

recorded "Soulful Strut" as the opening track of his 1969 album, ''A Walk in the Evergreens''. In 1970,

Salena Jones Salena Jones (born Joan Elizabeth Shaw, January 29, 1938) is an American jazz and cabaret singer. After performing and recording in the US as Joan Shaw from the late 1940s until the early 1960s, in various styles including jazz and R&B, she move ...

recorded "Am I the Same Girl" for her album ''Everybody's Talkin' About Salena Jones''. In 1979

George Benson George Washington Benson (born March 22, 1943) is an American jazz fusion guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He began his professional career at the age of 19 as a jazz guitarist. A former child prodigy, Benson first came to prominence in the ...

recorded a cover of "Soulful Strut" on his album ''

Livin' Inside Your Love ''Livin' Inside Your Love'' is the seventeenth album by jazz guitarist George Benson, released in 1979. In the United States, it was certified Gold by the RIAA. Critical reception The ''Omaha World-Herald'' opined that the music "is not as deep ...

''. In 1996

Grover Washington Jr. Grover Washington Jr. (December 12, 1943 – December 17, 1999) was an American jazz-funk and soul-jazz saxophonist and Grammy Award winner. Along with Wes Montgomery and George Benson, he is considered by many to be one of the founders and le ...

covered the song for his album of the same name. It was also later released as a remix under the title The Top Down version. In 1996

Paul Jackson, Jr. Paul may refer to: People * Paul (given name), a given name, including a list of people * Paul (surname), a list of people * Paul the Apostle, an apostle who wrote many of the books of the New Testament * Ray Hildebrand, half of the singing duo ...

recorded a cover of "Soulful Strut" on his album ''Never Alone: Duets''. In 1999, saxophonist

Kim Waters Kim Waters (born March 20, 1965) is an American jazz artist born in Havre de Grace, Maryland. Early life Waters grew up in Harford County, Maryland. Waters learned how to play the saxophone at a young age. He attended C. Milton Wright High ...

recorded "Am I the Same Girl (Soulful Strut)" for his ''One Special Moment'' album; featuring vocalist

Meli'sa Morgan Joyce Melissa Morgan (usually spelled Meli'sa; born December 6, 1964) is an American R&B/Soul singer–songwriter. Morgan had a string of urban contemporary hits from the mid–1980s to the mid–1990s. Most notable include her cover version of ...

and

Chuck Loeb Charles Samuel "Chuck" Loeb (December 7, 1955 – July 31, 2017) was an American jazz guitarist and a member of the groups Steps Ahead, Metro and Fourplay. Early years and education Loeb was born in Nyack, New York, near New York City. At ...

, the track was a non-charting single release in February 2000. In 2004,

Joss Stone Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''The Soul Sessions'', which made the 2004 Merc ...

used the Young-Holt version as a starting point for her song "

Don't Cha Wanna Ride "Don't Cha Wanna Ride" is a song by English singer and songwriter Joss Stone from her second studio album, '' Mind Body & Soul'' (2004). The track was written by Stone, Desmond Child, Betty Wright, Steve Greenberg, and Michael Mangini and is ba ...

", and credited the composers of "Am I the Same Girl" as co-composers of her song. In September 2005,

Martha Stewart Martha Helen Stewart (, ; born August 3, 1941) is an American retail business woman, writer, and television personality. As the founder of Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia, focusing on home and hospitality, she gained success through a variety ...

began to use the Swing Out Sister version in her promo commercials for her show ''

Martha Martha (Aramaic language, Aramaic: מָרְתָא‎) is a Bible, biblical figure described in the Gospels of Gospel of Luke, Luke and Gospel of John, John. Together with her siblings Lazarus of Bethany, Lazarus and Mary of Bethany, she is descr ...

'' on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...

television in America and then as the opening introduction theme song of the show. Each show starts with the song playing over a montage of images and photos of Martha Stewart growing up.

Dionne Bromfield Dionne Julia Bromfield (born 1 February 1996) is a British soul music singer, television presenter and television personality. Her debut album, '' Introducing Dionne Bromfield'', was released in 2009 by Amy Winehouse's Lioness Records label. S ...

covered the song on her debut album ''

Introducing Dionne Bromfield ''Introducing Dionne Bromfield'' is the debut album by British singer Dionne Bromfield. She recorded it when she was thirteen for Lioness Records, the label of her godmother, Amy Winehouse. The album was released on 12 October 2009 and reache ...

'' (2009).

References

{{authority control 1968 singles 1969 singles 1992 singles Dusty Springfield songs Swing Out Sister songs Songs written by Eugene Record Brunswick Records singles Fontana Records singles Philips Records singles 1968 songs Songs written by Sonny Sanders Barbara Acklin songs