Everybody Dance (Chic song)

"Everybody Dance"
Single by Chic
from the album Chic
B-side	"You Can Get By"
Released	1978
Format	7" single
Recorded	1977
Genre	Disco
Length	6:43
Label	Atlantic
Writer(s)	Bernard Edwards Nile Rodgers
Producer(s)	Bernard Edwards Nile Rodgers
Chic singles chronology
"Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)" (1977) "Everybody Dance" (1978) "Le Freak" (1978)

"Everybody Dance" is the second single from the first album Chic by the band of the same name. It features Norma Jean Wright on lead vocals. Luther Vandross appears on background vocals.

According to Nile Rodgers, it was the first song specifically written for Chic, and, due to its historical status and popularity, is usually played as the opening song of the band's live set. It was later heavily sampled by the Manic Street Preachers on their single "(It's Not War) Just the End of Love" in 2010.

The song has featured in films such as The Last Days of Disco (1998) and Summer of Sam (1999) and is also featured in the Grand Theft Auto IV expansion pack The Ballad of Gay Tony on the radio station K109.

Unlike most Chic singles, its 12" version was not included on a regular album, nor was it widely available upon original release, with the 12" format being issued only as a promo. The extended 12" version has, however, subsequently been issued on numerous compilations. Also unlike most Chic singles, the b-side "You Can Get By" was edited down from the original album track; almost all future Chic b-sides would be presented in their full-length versions.

Track listings

Atlantic 7" 3469, 1978

• A. "Everybody Dance" (7" Edit) - 3:30
• B. "You Can Get By" (7" Edit) - 3:59

Atlantic promo 12" DSKO 109, 1978

• A. "Everybody Dance" (12" Mix) - 8:25
• B. "You Can Get By" - 5:36

Atlantic 12" DK 4621, 1978 / Atlantic Oldies promo 12" DSKO 179, 1979

• A. "Everybody Dance" (12" Mix) - 8:25
• B. "Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)" - 8:21

Cover versions

1990s

• In 1993, RuPaul recorded a version of the song for his debut album Supermodel of the World.
• In 1993, British dance group Evolution scored a UK Top 20 hit with a house cover of the track, released on Deconstruction Records. The extended version was appropriately titled 'Chic Inspirational Mix'.

2000s

• In 2007, Canadian singer Deborah Cox reinterpreted the track as "Everybody Dance (Clap Your Hands)", incorporating a sample of the original Chic vocals in the mix. The track briefly hit the US Hot Dance Club Songs Chart, peaking at No.17.

Chart history

Chart	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100	38
US Billboard R&B Singles	12
UK Singles Chart	9

External links

• Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics

Preceded by Village People by Village People (all cuts)

Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one single (with "Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)" and "You Can Get By") October 22, 1977 - November 10, 1977

Succeeded by Once Upon a Time by Donna Summer (all cuts)