Got to Be Real

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"Got to Be Real"
Single by Cheryl Lynn
from the album Cheryl Lynn
B-side"Come in from the Rain"
ReleasedAugust 14, 1978[1]
RecordedApril 1978
StudioSunset Sound Studios
(Hollywood, California)
GenreDisco[2][3]
Length5:10 (12" version)
3:43 (7" Version)
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Cheryl Lynn singles chronology
"Got to Be Real"
(1978) 		"Star Love"
(1979)
Alternative cover

"Got to Be Real" is a song by American singer Cheryl Lynn from her 1978 self-titled debut studio album. The song, which was released in August 1978 as Lynn's debut single, was written by Lynn, David Paich and David Foster.

Composition[edit]

Sheet music for "Got to Be Real" gives the key of B♭major. Vocals range from G3 to D5.[4]

Recording[edit]

For the recording, David Shields played bass, David Paich played keyboards, James Gadson played drums and Ray Parker Jr. was the session guitarist.

Chart performance[edit]

In the United States, "Got to Be Real" hit number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and hit number one on the Hot Soul Singles chart in early 1979.[5] Along with the album tracks "Star Love" and "You Saved My Day", "Got to Be Real" peaked at number eleven on the National Disco Action Top 40 chart.[6] In the UK the song did not chart upon its original release - in 2010 it was used for a TV advertising campaign for Marks & Spencer, a department store, and it entered the main charts for the first time at number 78 for the week ending April 4, the next week peaking at number 70.[7][8]

Track listing and formats[edit]

  • US 7-inch vinyl single
  1. "Got to Be Real" – 3:42
  2. "Come in from the Rain" – 3:35
  • US 12-inch vinyl single
  1. "Got to Be Real" – 5:10
  2. "Come in from the Rain" – 3:35

Charts and certifications[edit]

Erik version[edit]

"Got to Be Real"
Single by Erik
Released1993
StudioPWL Studios
Genre
Length4:12
LabelPWL International
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Erik singles chronology
"Looks Like I'm in Love Again"
(1993) 		"Got to Be Real"
(1993) 		"We Got the Love"
(1994)

In 1993, British singer Erik released a cover of "Got to Be Real", produced by Pete Waterman and Dave Ford. To date, it is her most well-known song, resulting in a UK club smash hit[15] and peaking at number 42 on the UK Singles Chart.[16]

Critical reception[edit]

Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "It's the second time around for this pop/dance ditty from the late 70’s. With three mixes to chose from, hit potential is greatly enhanced."[17] Andy Beevers from Music Week gave the song four out of five, writing, "Erik has taken Cheryl Lynn's late Seventies dancefloor anthem and interpreted it in a bang up-to-date disco house style. The result has been solid club support and its abundance of catchy hooks should earn some radio plays."[18]

Track listing[edit]

  • 7", UK (1993)
  1. "Got to Be Real"
  2. "I Can't Take Any More"
  • 12", UK (1993)
  1. "Got to Be Real" (Silver City Mix)
  2. "Got to Be Real" (Hot Tip 12)
  3. "Got to Be Real" (TK Groove)
  4. "Got to Be Real" (J & S Disco Bunny)
  • CD single, UK (1994)
  1. "Got to Be Real" (Hot Tip 7)4:12
  2. "Got to Be Real" (TK Groove)7:24
  3. "Got to Be Real" (J&S Disco Bunny)7:24
  4. "I Can't Take Any More" 3:51

Charts[edit]

Chart (1994) Peak
position
UK Singles (OCC) 42
UK Top 20 Breakers (Music Week)[19] 1
UK Dance (Music Week)[20] 9
UK Club Chart (Music Week)[21] 21

Mary J. Blige and Will Smith version[edit]

"Got to Be Real"
Single by Mary J. Blige featuring Will Smith
from the album Shark Tale: Motion Picture Soundtrack
ReleasedSeptember 21, 2004 (2004-09-21)
Recorded2004
Length3:27
LabelDreamWorks Records
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Andre Harris, Vidal Davis

Shark Tale: Motion Picture Soundtrack was released on September 21, 2004 as the soundtrack of Shark Tale. The soundtrack features newly recorded music by various artists, including Christina Aguilera, Sean Paul, Timbaland, the Pussycat Dolls, Ludacris, Missy Elliott, and Justin Timberlake. As part of the album, "Got to Be Real" was covered by Mary J. Blige and Will Smith.

Legacy[edit]

"Got to Be Real" was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame on September 19, 2005. In 2017, ShortList's Dave Fawbert listed the song as containing "one of the greatest key changes in music history".[22]

Cheryl Lynn's recording of "Got to Be Real" was used on the soundtrack of Paris Is Burning in 1990, and has been noted as reinforcing themes of the documentary film; New York-based DJ Prince Language commented to NPR in 1992 that "The music that animates the movements of the dancers in the film, especially the lyrics, provides a subversive and sometimes even shady commentary on the politics and aesthetics of drag and ball culture. The use of Cheryl Lynn's 'Got To Be Real' is the ultimate example of this, brilliantly touching on drag's invocations of and insistence on 'realness,' and the film shows how balls and dancers ultimately question the very notion of what is 'real' in the context of identity, and how we each create and construct our own 'real' selves."[23]

"Got to Be Real" was sampled in Father MC's 1990 rap hit "I'll Do 4 U".[24]

The song was featured in numerous films, including Carlito’s Way, Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb, The Holiday, The Pink Panther, Undercover Brother, as well as TV shows such as Scandal, Sex and the City, and RuPaul's Drag Race All Stars.[25]

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "Gold & Platinum". RIAA. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  2. ^ Andy Kellman. "Cheryl Lynn - Cheryl Lynn | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved 2017-02-01.
  3. ^ Molanphy, Chris (July 31, 2021). "What a Fool Believes Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved February 22, 2024.
  4. ^ "Cheryl Lynn "Got To Be Real" Sheet Music in Bb Major". musicnotes.com.
  5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 368.
  6. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 162.
  7. ^ "Got to Be Real Official Charts Company history". OfficialCharts.com. Retrieved 2011-29-5.
  8. ^ "Cheryl Lynn Official Charts Companyhistory". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2009-12-12.
  9. ^ Flavour of New Zealand, 15 April 1979
  10. ^ "Top 100 1979-02-10". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2014-11-13.
  11. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  12. ^ "Top 100 Hits of 1979/Top 100 Songs of 1979". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  13. ^ "Top 100 Year End Charts: 1979". Cashbox Magazine. Retrieved 2016-04-12.
  14. ^ "British single certifications – Cheryl Lynn – Got to Be Real". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2020-08-09.
  15. ^ Davies, Chris (September 1998). British and American hit singles: 51 years of transatlantic hits, 1946-1997. BT Batsford. p. 1374. ISBN 9780713482751. Retrieved 8 August 2011.
  16. ^ "ERIK | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Official Charts.
  17. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. 1994-01-15. p. 12. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  18. ^ Beevers, Andy (1993-12-25). "Market Preview: Dance - Pick of the Week" (PDF). Music Week. p. 14. Retrieved 2021-04-05.
  19. ^ "Top 20 Breakers" (PDF). Music Week. 1994-01-29. p. 19. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
  20. ^ "Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 1994-01-29. p. 26. Retrieved 2021-04-13.
  21. ^ "The RM Club Chart" (PDF). Music Week, in Record Mirror (Dance Update Supplemental Insert). 1993-12-18. p. 4. Retrieved 2023-05-13.
  22. ^ "The 19 greatest key changes in music history". ShortList. October 1, 2017. Retrieved January 13, 2018.
  23. ^ Shepherd, Julianne Escobedo (2012-04-30). "The Music And Meaning Of 'Paris Is Burning'". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-08-12.
  24. ^ Ro, Ronin (2001). Bad Boy: The Influence of Sean "Puffy" Combs on the Music Industry. New York: Pocket Books. p. 16. ISBN 074343417X. Retrieved 2022-01-02.
  25. ^ Cheryl Lynn - IMDb, retrieved 2024-02-28

External links[edit]

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