Album: World Party (Arista; 1990)
Songwriters: Benito Benites, Toni C. and John "Virgo" Garrett III
R&B Peak Position: #4
"It's gettin', it's gettin', it's gettin' kind of hectic..."
One simple exclamation ruled the music world in the summer of 1990: "I'VE GOT THE POW-WAH!!!". Those four words were the centerpiece of "The Power", a monster electronic -based jam that introduced the masses to a German production team known as Snap!. Consisting of Frankfurt beatsmiths Michael Muenzing and Luca Anzilotti under the alias of Benito Benites and John "Virgo" Garrett III (to throw off those they felt would be hesitant in supporting a German musical act), Snap! was fronted by rapper Turbo B and a revolving door of big-voiced female singers, and unleashed a slew of dance/ pop smashes that earned international success throughout the '90's.
"Power" was their first hit, though in it's original release it courted tons of controversy. The track was initially constructed as a mincing of several other songs. A drum loop was swiped from Mantronix' "King of The Beats", the rap and sung parts were illegally pilfered from bits of Chill Rob G's "Let The Words Flow" and Jocelyn Brown's "Love's Gonna Get You" (home to that irresistible four-word hook). Even though the samples weren't authorized, the track blew up in Germany and soon caught the attention of American labels trying to push the record Stateside. For the US version, permission was granted to use the Jocelyn portion, but the rap was re-recorded by Turbo B. Soon, the track was a bonafide American dancefloor smash.
Swarmed with a handful of lyrical hooks, the mostly instrumental track was a truly undeniable house/ hip hop force. It's ringing beat, synth tickles, screaming sax fragments and those pummeling electro bits brought anyone and everyone to their feet, rhyming along to Turbo's hard-hitting boasts of being "the lyrical Jesse James" and the incredibly scandalous line, "Copywritten lyrics so they can't be stolen". Peaking in the Pop and R&B Top Five and hitting #1 on the Rap and Dance single charts, Snap's "Power" struck Platinum and yielded worldwide sales of it's parent album, World Party, into the millions. The record wouldn't be the band's only major hit, though. "The Power"'s followup "Ooops Up" (based on The Gap Band's "I Don't Believe You Want To Get Up and Dance (Oops Upside Your Head)") also zoomed up the charts as did the global club staple "Rhythm Is A Dancer" a couple years later.
DL: "The Power (Snap)" (YFH)
At the same time Snap!'s "Power" was dominating airwaves, Chill Rob G released his own version of the tune for his album, Ride The Rhythm. Chill's "Power" wasn't as big of a mainstream hit but it did reach #3 on the Rap charts.
DL: "The Power (Chill Rob G)" (YFH)
2 comments:
Chill Rob G's version was my favorite by far and it was the one most of the clubs I went to played. The video was on The Box almost constantly. Chills Rob G's rap flows so much better than the Snap version.
Thanks for posting the video. It brings back serious memories.
The first time I heard the song it was on a countdown.There was a version of the rap that started with the He-man intro "I have the power" Then I think snap started to sing.The next two weeks I heard the other version which I consider the remix which everyone knows by snap.The he-man version the beat was different though .Can anyone pinpoint me to the name and where that version of the song is ?
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