Yesterday’s classic song of the day was “Don’t Go Breaking My Heart,” a duet between Elton John and Kiki Dee. Today let’s step backwards a year or so and look at Kiki Dee on her own with her big hit, “I’ve Got the Music in Me.” This single, released in July of 1974, went to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #19 in her native England.
“I’ve Got the Music in Me” was credited to the Kiki Dee Band and was written by the band’s keyboardist, Bias Boshell. Mr. Boshell (full first name: Tobias) also played keyboards with the Moody Blues (from 1987 to 1991), Sheena Easton, Duane Eddy, and other artists.
Kiki Dee won a local talent contest when she was just ten years old and kept on going from there. She started singing professionally at age 16 and signed with Fontana Records that same year (1963). She made her bones, however, as a session singer, backing the likes of Dusty Springfield and other top Brit vocalists. For a time, she sang cover versions of hit songs for BBC Radio then became the first white British artist to sign with Motown Records, in 1970. A few years later she signed with Elton John’s Rocket Record Company, which is where she saw her greatest success. She’s kept performing since then, both as a solo act and as a backing vocalist.
If my memory serves me correctly, and it sometimes does, we did “I’ve Got the Music in Me” when I played drums for Indiana University’s Singing Hoosiers back in 1976-1977. It was a hot, hip, happening modern uptempo song that wasn’t terribly threatening to white bread older audiences and had positive, uplifting lyrics. It was fun to play, if I recall.
And here’s your daily bonus video of the day, a terrific performance of “I’ve Got the Music in Me” for the Zoey’s Extraordinary Playlist television show. They pulled out all the stops on this one!
[…] previous UK hit in 1973 with “Amoureuse” and a bigger worldwide hit in 1974 with “I’ve Got the Music In Me.” She’s continued performing and recording since then but with no major hits in the […]