"Stuff Like That" is a hit song with music and lyrics written by
Quincy Jones
Quincy Delight Jones Jr. (March 14, 1933 – November 3, 2024) was an American record producer, composer, arranger, conductor, trumpeter, and bandleader. Over the course of his seven-decade career, he received List of awards and nominations re ...
,
Ashford & Simpson
Ashford & Simpson were an American husband-and-wife songwriting, production and recording duo composed of Nickolas Ashford (May 4, 1941 – August 22, 2011) and Valerie Simpson (born August 26, 1946).
Ashford was born in Fairfield, South Carol ...
,
Steve Gadd
Stephen Kendall Gadd (born April 9, 1945) is an American jazz fusion drummer, percussionist, and session musician. Gadd is one of the best-known and most highly regarded session and studio drummers in the industry, recognized by his induction i ...
,
Eric Gale
Eric Gale (September 20, 1938 – May 25, 1994) was an American jazz and jazz fusion guitarist.
Biography
Eric Gale was born in Bedford–Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York. His grandfather was English, and Gale had relatives in Venezuela and Bar ...
,
Ralph MacDonald
Ralph Anthony MacDonald (March 15, 1944 – December 18, 2011) was an American percussionist, steelpan virtuoso, songwriter, musical arranger, and record producer.
His compositions include " Where Is the Love", a Grammy Award winner for the due ...
and
Richard Tee
Richard Edward Tee (born Richard Edward Ten Ryk; November 24, 1943 – July 21, 1993) was an American jazz fusion pianist, studio musician, singer and arranger, who had several hundred studio credits and played on such notable hits as " I'll B ...
. The song was originally an instrumental rhythm track. Jones worked on the track with Ashford & Simpson,
Chaka Khan
Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...
and studio musicians Gadd, Gale, MacDonald and Tee to turn it into a single. Ashford & Simpson and Khan featured as vocalists while
George Young was playing
alto saxophone
The alto saxophone is a member of the saxophone family of woodwind instruments. Saxophones were invented by Belgians, Belgian instrument designer Adolphe Sax in the 1840s and patented in 1846. The alto saxophone is pitched in the key of E♭ ( ...
. The song was included on Jones' 1978 album ''
Sounds...And Stuff Like That!''. The single spent one week at number one on the R&B singles chart, for the week ending 1 July 1978, and peaked at number 21 on the
''Billboard'' Hot 100 singles chart.
For his 1995 album ''
Q's Jook Joint'' Jones modernized the song. This time vocals were provided by Ashford & Simpson, Khan,
Brandy
Brandy is a liquor produced by distilling wine. Brandy generally contains 35–60% alcohol by volume (70–120 US proof) and is typically consumed as an after-dinner digestif. Some brandies are aged in wooden casks. Others are coloured ...
,
Charlie Wilson and
Ray Charles
Ray Charles Robinson (September 23, 1930 – June 10, 2004) was an American singer, songwriter, and pianist. He is regarded as one of the most iconic and influential musicians in history, and was often referred to by contemporaries as "The Gen ...
while
Greg Phillinganes
Gregory Arthur Phillinganes (born May 12, 1956) is an American keyboardist, vocalist, and arranger. A session musician, Phillinganes has contributed to numerous albums over a broad array of artists and genres. He has toured with artists includin ...
was playing keyboards. In 2002 the song was featured in a
Peter Lindbergh
Peter Lindbergh (born Peter Brodbeck; 23 November 1944 – 3 September 2019) was a German fashion photographer and film director.
He had studied arts in Berlin and Krefeld, and exhibited his works before graduation. In 1971, he turned to phot ...
-directed
Gap TV commercial starring
Will Kemp, this time credited to QJ's Jook Joint and
Brothers Johnson.
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References
{{Chaka Khan
1978 songs
1978 singles
Brandy Norwood songs
Soul songs
Songs written by Nickolas Ashford
Songs written by Valerie Simpson
Songs written by Ralph MacDonald
Songs written by Quincy Jones
Quincy Jones songs
Chaka Khan songs
A&M Records singles