“Jungle Boogie” – Single by Kool & the Gang from the album Wild and Peaceful
B-side: “North, South, East, West”
Released: November 24, 1973
Recorded: 1973
Label: Mercury
Songwriters: Robert Earl Bell, Ronald Nathan Bell, Donald Boyce, George Melvin Brown, Robert Spike Mickens, Claydes Charles Smith, Clifford Adams and Dennis Thomas.
Producer: Gene Redd
For an untamed good time, queue up “Jungle Boogie” and play it loud. The song is full of horns and hollers, with no real storyline to speak of, just “jungle boogie” and “get down, get down” repeated over and over. This is typical of funk from this era, which was huge, found in the sounds of James Brown, Parliament, and Sly & the Family Stone. It was the first big hit for Kool & The Gang, going to #4 in the US. They followed it up with another funky number, “Hollywood Swinging,” which went to #6.
The main spoken vocals on “Jungle Boogie” (“Get down with the boogie”… “Shake it around”) were performed by then-roadie, Donal Boyce, who became better known as “The Boogie Man.” Boyce’s vocals on the hit were so popular he was invited to sing back-up and perform “vocal effects” on a number of Kool & The Gang singles, including “Spirit of the Boogie,” “Open Sesame,” and “Slick Superchick.” Boyce performed with the band from 1973 to 1977.
It reached number four as a single, and became very popular in nightclubs. Billboard ranked it as the number 12 single for 1974, despite as many as 36 No. 1 singles that year.
Like all the songs on Kool & The Gang’s 1973 album Wild & Peaceful, “Jungle Boogie,” is credited to the all members of the group, along with their producer, Gene Redd. They kicked around ideas when they developed songs, so they shared the credits.
