Boogie Down (Linda): Blame It on the Boogie

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As I’ve mentioned, I did NOT talk to Linda about what songs she wanted for her half of this monthlong look at songs with “boogie” in the title. I would imagine, though, that this one definitely would have made her top five. The term boogie was been around in music for a long time (as you’ll see), but in the 70s it became synonymous with disco or R&B. So here’s a song you’ll probably enjoy and she’ll probably say “That’s what I’m talking about!!” Blame It on the Boogie - The Jacksons Hey, did you know that Jackson is the 17th most common surname in the US, according to the census? I bring that up because you’re going to need a scorecard for your Jacksons with this song. This was written by a man named Michael Jackson. No, not that one. The writer of this song is (a) British and (b) Caucasian. His birth name is Michael George Jackson-Clarke, and he goes professionally by Mick Jackson. For the sake of everyone’s sanity, he’ll be referred to as either “Mick Jackson” or “the other guy.” Anyway, Mick Jackson wrote and recorded this song, sounding pretty much what you’d expect a white guy’s pop/disco song to sound like in the mid-70s. The Jacksons’ (formerly Jackson Five) manager was in England and heard the Mick Jackson song on the radio. He taped it from the radio (yeah!!! My generation of people!!!) and brought it back to America for Michael (the one you’re normally thinking of when someone says Michael Jackson ) and his brothers to record. Now, the funny thing in all of this is that Mick said that he wrote it with the hopes of getting Stevie Wonder to do it. I absolutely can see the admiration/influence. But, instead, the Jacksons got it first. In true label bickering, the Jacksons’ record label (Epic) released this as a single before Mick Jackson’s version could be released (on a competing record label, of course) in the U.S. As a result, you know the Jackson (Five) version but this is probably the first time you’ve heard of “that other guy.” But you know something? As much money as Mick made as songwriter of this song, I’m sure he wasn’t exactly crying all the way to the bank. Blame It on the Boogie Written by Mick Jackson, Dave Jackson, and Elmar Krohn Recorded by The Jacksons From Destiny, 1978 We spent the night in Frisco: