Last week was all dance songs here at the Classic Song of the Day blog, so let’s carry it forward another day with “Dancing in the Moonlight” by King Harvest, an otherwise unremarkable French-American band. Sherman Kelly wrote it back in 1969, recorded it in 1970 with his band Boffalongo, then his brother Wells Kelly rerecorded it with his band King Harvest two years later. They released it in late 1972 and it peaked early the next year at #13 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #10 on the Cashbox Top 100.
I love the way this song starts out:
We get it on most every night
When that moon gets big and bright
It’s a supernatural delight
Everybody was dancin’ in the moonlight
Does it get any groovier than that?
Mr. Kelly recalls how that peppy little song was inspired by a violent assault he and his girlfriend endured when on holiday in St. Croix:
“On a trip to St. Croix in 1969, I was the first victim of a vicious St. Croix gang who eventually murdered 8 American tourists. At that time, I suffered multiple facial fractures and wounds and was left for dead. While I was recovering, I wrote ‘Dancing in the Moonlight’ in which I envisioned an alternate reality, the dream of a peaceful and joyful celebration of life. The song became a huge hit and was recorded by many musicians worldwide. ‘Dancing In The Moonlight’ continues to be popular to this day.”
King Harvest was founded by four pals from Cornell University in Ithaca, New York—Dave Robinson (vocals/bass/keyboards), Ron Altbach (keyboards), Ed Tuleja (guitar), and Rod Novack (saxophone). They somehow migrated to Paris, adding French musician Didier Alexandre and the two Kelly brothers (Sherman on third keyboard and Wells on drums) to the mix. Members came and went for the next few years and the band, officially a one-hit wonder, broke up in 1976. The original four members eventually got back together to perform on the ’70s oldies circuit.
