Love T.K.O.
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (January 2017) |
| "Love T.K.O." | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Side A of the US single | ||||
| Single by Teddy Pendergrass | ||||
| from the album TP | ||||
| B-side | "I Just Called to Say" | |||
| Released | November 1980 | |||
| Recorded | 1980 | |||
| Genre | Soul | |||
| Length | 4:58 3:39 (single version) | |||
| Label | Philadelphia International Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Cecil Womack Gip Noble, Jr. | |||
| Producer(s) | Dexter Wansel, Cecil Womack, Cynthia Biggs | |||
| Teddy Pendergrass singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| "Love T.K.O." | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by David Oliver | ||||
| from the album Here's To You | ||||
| A-side | "My Lady" | |||
| Released | 1980 | |||
| Recorded | 1980 | |||
| Genre | Soul | |||
| Length | 4:36 | |||
| Label | Mercury (45-76067) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Cecil Womack Gip Noble, Jr. | |||
| Producer(s) | Wayne Henderson | |||
| David Oliver singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Love T.K.O." is a song written by Cecil Womack and Gip Noble, Jr.[1] Standing for technical knockout, it was written for soul singer David Oliver,[2] and appeared first on his album Here's to You in 1980. Cecil and Linda Womack recorded the song themselves as Womack & Womack and it appeared simply as "T.K.O." on their debut album Love Wars in 1983.[3]
Teddy Pendergrass recording
[edit]"Love T.K.O." is mainly associated with R&B and soul artist Teddy Pendergrass, who recorded the song for his 1980 album TP, releasing it as a single the same year. Arranged by Dexter Wansel, it reached No. 2 on the Billboard R&B chart and No. 44 on the Billboard Hot 100.[4]
Charts
[edit]Teddy Pendergrass version
[edit]| Chart (1980) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard R&B | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[5] | 44 |
Regina Belle version
[edit]Regina Belle recorded and released her version in 1995 and included on her Reachin' Back LP.
| Chart (1995) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard R&B[6] | 29 |
Other recordings
[edit]"Love TKO" has been covered by several artists, including:
- Deborah Harry
- Hall & Oates
- Bette Midler
- Boz Scaggs
- Lambchop
- Michael McDonald
- Seal
- Fourplay
- Womack & Womack (as just "T.K.O.") on their 1983 album Love Wars
- Modern Man (Pittsburgh R&B/dance/cover band)[7]
- Tatsuro Yamashita on his 1999 album On the Street Corner 3
Samples
[edit]- In 1994, American rapper Ahmad sampled it for his hit single “Back in the Day ”.
- In 1995, R&B group Xscape sampled it for their remix of "Who Can I Run To".
- In 1996, the song was sampled by Kenny Lattimore on "I Won't Let You Down".
- Total as well as featured in the 2015 motion picture Concussion.
Popular culture
[edit]- In 2006, Pendergrass' version of the song was featured in the popular video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City Stories on fictional radio station VCFL.
- It was used in 2005 video game Fahrenheit (a.k.a. Indigo Prophecy).
- DJ Spooky referenced the song in his essay titled "Groove Theory" in URB.
- Artist Ahmad Lewis used the melody for a remix of his 1994 song "Back in the Day" from his self-titled album Ahmad.
References
[edit]- ^ "secondhandsongs.com". secondhandsongs.com. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
- ^ "www.discogs.com". discogs.com. Retrieved February 14, 2023.
- ^ https://www.allmusic.com/album/r22182
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 455.
- ^ US Charts. MusicVF.com. Retrieved March 3, 2020
- ^ "Regina Belle US chart history". Billboard.com. Retrieved March 3, 2020.
- ^ "Google Search". Archived from the original on 2002-08-13. Retrieved 2008-11-25.
