The Evasions was a novelty band that had a UK hit

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

in 1981.

History

In 1980,

The Sugarhill Gang The Sugarhill Gang is an American hip hop group formed in Englewood, New Jersey, in 1979. Their hit " Rapper's Delight", released the same year they were formed, was the first rap single to become a top 40 hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, rea ...

introduced rap music into a mainstream UK audience with the hit single "

Rapper's Delight "Rapper's Delight" is a 1979 rap song that serves as the debut single of American hip-hop trio the Sugarhill Gang, produced by Sylvia Robinson. Although it was shortly preceded by the Fatback Band's " King Tim III (Personality Jock)", "Rapper ...

". Over the next couple of years, a number of British music acts released rap singles, but most were novelties, such as

Kenny Everett Kenny Everett (born Maurice James Christopher Cole; 25 December 1944 – 4 April 1995) was an English radio Disc Jockey, DJ and television entertainer, known for his zany comedic style. After spells on pirate radio and Radio Luxembourg in the m ...

's "Snot Rap",

The Brat ''The Brat'' is a 1931 American pre-Code comedy film directed by John Ford, starring Sally O'Neil, and featuring Virginia Cherrill. The film is based on the 1917 play by Maude Fulton. A previous silent film had been made in 1919 with Al ...

's "Chalk Dust", and Roland Rat Superstar's "Rat Rapping". The Evasions was in similar vein. The act was songwriter Adrian Sear, producer Nigel Martinez, and television music composer Graham de Wilde. For the single, de Wilde performed an impersonation of television presenter and broadcaster

Alan Whicker Donald Alan Whicker (2 August 1921 – 12 July 2013) was a British journalist and television presenter and broadcaster. His career spanned almost 60 years, during which time he presented the documentary television programme '' Whick ...

, purportedly analysing the

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded dance musi ...

scene in Whicker's trademark detached

anthropological Anthropology is the scientific study of humanity, concerned with human behavior, human biology, cultures, societies, and linguistics, in both the present and past, including archaic humans. Social anthropology studies patterns of behaviour, wh ...

style. The backing included samples of "

Good Times ''Good Times'' is an American television sitcom that aired for six seasons on CBS, from February 8, 1974, to August 1, 1979. Created by Eric Monte and Mike Evans (actor), Mike Evans and developed by executive producer Norman Lear, it was televis ...

" by

Chic Chic (; ), meaning "stylish" or "smart", is an element of fashion. It was originally a French word. Etymology '' Chic'' is a French word, established in English since at least the 1870s. Early references in English dictionaries classified ...

and " Funkin' for Jamaica" by Tom Browne. Released on the Groove Productions label, based out of the Groove Records shop in

Soho SoHo, short for "South of Houston Street, Houston Street", is a neighborhood in Lower Manhattan, New York City. Since the 1970s, the neighborhood has been the location of many artists' lofts and art galleries, art installations such as The Wall ...

, under the title " Wikka Wrap" in June 1981, the song became a surprise hit, with The Evasions performing the track on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'' on 25 June; ultimately it peaked at no. 20 in the UK singles charts for the week ending 4 July 1981. The Evasions had one follow-up single - "Jock's Rap", this time being a parody of " The Message" by

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five were an American hip hop music, hip hop group formed in the South Bronx of New York City in 1978. The group's members were Grandmaster Flash, Kidd Creole (not to be confused with Kid Creole), Keef Cowboy, ...

- but it was not a hit. Nor was a 1988 "update" version of the original single (entitled "Wikka Wrap 2 & The Beat Goes On"). The track gained an unexpected afterlife in 1996 when

Coolio Artis Leon Ivey Jr. (August 1, 1963 – September 28, 2022), known by his stage name Coolio, was an American rapper. He was best known for his single "Gangsta's Paradise" (1995), which won a Grammy Award, and was credited for changing the cours ...

sampled it - including de Wilde's vocals - on the single "

1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New) "1, 2, 3, 4 (Sumpin' New)" is a song by American rapper Coolio. It was the third single released from his second studio album, ''Gangsta's Paradise'' (1995), in February 1996. Initially entitled "Sumpin' New", the song uses a sample from " Thigh ...

". As a result de Wilde re-interpreted the single under the title "1, 2, 3, For Real" on the SMP label in 1996. Shortly after "Wikka Wrap" became a hit, Sear and de Wilde worked with Whicker on '' Whicker's World'' (for which de Wilde had written the theme), and found that Whicker "took our parody very well. He was a genuinely charming man."

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Evasions, The Musical groups established in 1981 Musical groups disestablished in 1996 English pop music groups Comedy hip hop musical groups British novelty song performers English hip-hop groups Groove Production artists