Dare Me
| "Dare Me" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by The Pointer Sisters | ||||
| from the album Contact | ||||
| B-side | I'll Be There | |||
| Released | June 1985 | |||
| Format | 7" single; 12" single | |||
| Recorded | 1984 | |||
| Genre | Synthpop[1] | |||
| Length | 3:41 | |||
| Label | RCA | |||
| Writer(s) | Sam Lorber, Dave Innis | |||
| Producer(s) | Richard Perry | |||
| The Pointer Sisters singles chronology | ||||
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"Dare Me" is a 1985 song originally recorded by The Pointer Sisters on the RCA label.
The Pointer Sisters version
Background
"Dare Me" was written by Nashville-based songwriters Sam Lorber and Dave Innis in 1984. Innis, who shortly afterwards became a founding member of Restless Heart, was then a staff writer for Warner Bros. music publishing division, and recalls that "Dare Me" was written with the Pointer Sisters in mind, adding: "typically [staff writers] look at who's [recording] now and what kind of material are they looking for, and we would tailor a song for a particular artist and pitch it"..."Sam Lorber and I...did try to put ourselves in the place of what a gal might be thinking...not specifically trying to be a Pointer Sister, but a song written from a female perspective, for sure. There are certain things that are more gender specific and gender appropriate...certain things that a woman can say that a guy's not going to be able to get away with saying." [2]
Featuring a lead vocal by June Pointer, "Dare Me" was issued as the lead single from the Pointer Sisters' platinum-selling album Contact: peaking at#11 on the Hot 100 in Billboard magazine, "Dare Me" did afford the Pointer Sisters a final Top Ten hit on the magazine's R&B chart peaking at #6 [3] and also became the only Pointer Sisters' track to reach #1 on Billboard's Dance Club chart. [4] "Dare Me" afforded the Pointer Sisters their final Top 40 hit in the British Isles with peaks of #7 in Ireland and #17 in the UK: other international chart peaks for "Dare Me" were #10 in Australia, #22 in Austria, #20 in Belgium (the Flemish chart), #26 in Finland, #45 in the Netherlands, #27 in New Zealand, and #11 in Sweden.
| Preceded by "Eight Arms to Hold You" by Goon Squad |
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one single September 21, 1985 |
Succeeded by "Be Near Me" by ABC |
Personnel
- Lead vocal: June Pointer
- Background vocal: Anita Pointer
- Background vocal: Ruth Pointer
Video
"Dare Me" was promoted with a video shot at the Main Street Gym (LA) where scenes for the iconic martial arts film Raging Bull had been filmed: the video introduced the Pointer Sisters in male drag scouting potential boxing talent, then showed the group's members - groomed as photographed for the Contact album - in the boxing ring sparring with Mark Breland. Michael Chapman, the cinematographer for Raging Bull, directed the "Dare Me" video in collaboration with the track's producer Richard Perry: the video also featured Steven Bauer.[5]
The Casey Kasem incident
In September 1985, while the Pointer Sisters' version was on the Billboard Hot 100 music chart, American Top 40 host Casey Kasem became irritated when the show's producers placed a long distance dedication spot about a listener's dog dying immediately after "Dare Me," which was an uptempo dance song. The song in the dedication was Henry Gross' "Shannon". Kasem expressed his dissatisfaction with a profanity-laced tirade which never made the air, but has become a staple on Internet sites.[6]
Junior Jack Version
| "Dare Me (Stupidisco)" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Junior Jack | |
| Released | June 14, 2004 |
| Format | CD Single |
| Recorded | 2003 |
| Genre | House |
Stupidisco is a 2004 single by Italian house producer, Junior Jack. It peaked at #26 (in 2004) and #20 (in 2006 when re-released) on the UK Singles Chart and #46 on the ARIA (Australian Singles) chart in 2004. Vocals were by Shena.[7][8]
Music video
There is a censored version, and an uncensored version of the music video. The video itself features two female wrestlers. In both versions, towards the end, both women make sexual motions. In the uncensored version, they pull off each other's bikinis while wrestling. They fondle each other, and dance naked until the song ends.
The video also features two Pakistani American announcers, one of them is the businessman Mansoor Ijaz. He had a cameo role in the music video as an announcer. His participation in the music video was used to undermine Ijaz during the memogate controversy in Pakistan.[9]
Samples and other covers
Dave Armstrong's song "Make Your Move", samples this track.
The song was covered by The Chipettes in "Quarterback in Curlers," an episode of Alvin and the Chipmunks.
References
- ↑ http://www.allmusic.com/album/contact-mw0000191317
- ↑ "Interview with Dave Innis of Restless Heart". SongFacts.com. Retrieved 12 August 2015.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 465.
- ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 205.
- ↑ Billboard vol 97 #38 (21 September 1985) p. 38
- ↑ Pappademas, Alex (June 17, 2014). "A Goddamn Death Dedication: Casey Kasem, 1932-2014". Grantland.com. Retrieved September 1, 2014.
- ↑ http://www.aria.com.au/pages/aria-charts-end-of-year-charts-club-chart-2004.htm
- ↑ http://www.chartstats.com/songinfo.php?id=32991
- ↑ "Ijaz’s credibility hits new low as issue fizzles out". Daily Times. 14 March 2012. Retrieved 24 March 2012.
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