"You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" is a song by the English singer Leo Sayer, taken from his 1976 album Endless Flight. It reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart,Bronson, Fred (2003). The Billboard Book of #1 Hits, 5th Edition (Billboard Publications) making it his first top single in the United States, and reached number two on the UK singles chart. Billboard ranked it the number 13 song of 1977.
Credited songwriters Sayer and Vini Poncia won a Grammy Award for the song in 1978 for Best R&B Song. Ray Parker Jr, who was a session musician at the time, has stated that he was the original songwriter and that when he gave the tune as a demo, his accreditation as such was missed. "It's not Leo's fault," Parker told Variety. "He tried to cut six or seven more of my songs just because he felt so bad."
Like other Sayer songs from that time, it features extensive use of the singer's falsetto voice, a very popular vocal register in disco-era songs. Sayer performed the song in the thirteenth episode of the second season of "Saturday Night Live" and the second episode of season 3 of The Muppet Show.
Personnel Leo Sayer – vocals John Barnes – electric piano, clavinet Larry Carlton, Ray Parker Jr. – guitar Steve Gadd – drums Jeff Porcaro – drums (verse 3 onwards) Clydie King, Becky Louis, Sherlie Matthews – background vocals Chuck Rainey – bass Gene Page – string arrangements
Chart performance
Weekly charts Chart (1976–1977) PeakpositionAustralia (Kent Music Report)2South Africa (Springbok Radio)3Switzerland (Sonntagsblick Hitparade)Swiss Charts Archive. 15 February 1977.18
Year-end charts Chart (1976)Rank Australia (Kent Music Report)84Canada99 Chart (1977)Rank Australia (Kent Music Report)49Canada30New Zealand27U.S. Billboard Hot 10013
All-time charts Chart (1958–2018) PositionUS Billboard Hot 100594
Cover versions Lee Ritenour brought back drummer Steve Gadd among other session stars to add this cover to his 1979 album, Feel the Night. DTV, in 1984, set the song to The Grasshopper and the Ants. In 2000, American singer-songwriter Carmen Carter and gospel singer Donnie McClurkin covered the song for the soundtrack to the 2000 film An Extremely Goofy Movie. A remixed version of "You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" credited to Groove Generation featuring Leo Sayer charted on the UK Singles Chart in 1998, peaking at No.32. In 2008, the Wiggles sang the song as the title work of their DVD You Make Me Feel Like Dancing, with Leo Sayer guest starring.
References