Shakey Ground
Appearance
"Shakey Ground" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by The Temptations | ||||
from the album A Song for You | ||||
B-side | "I'm a Bachelor" | |||
Released | February 1975 | |||
Recorded | 1974 at Motown Recording Studios in Los Angeles | |||
Genre | Soul | |||
Length | 3:11 | |||
Label | Gordy | |||
Songwriter(s) | Jeffrey Bowen Alphonso Boyd Eddie Hazel[1] | |||
Producer(s) | Jeffrey Bowen | |||
The Temptations singles chronology | ||||
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"Shakey Ground" is a 1975 R&B single by The Temptations. It was co-written by Funkadelic guitarist Eddie Hazel, who plays lead guitar on the song.
Background
[edit]Original Funkadelic bassist Billy "Bass" Nelson also plays on the song.
Personnel
[edit]- Lead vocals by Dennis Edwards
- Background vocals by Damon Harris, Richard Street, Melvin Franklin and Otis Williams
- Guitar by Eddie Hazel
- Bass by Billy Bass Nelson
- Soprano saxophone by Donald Charles Baldwin
- Instrumentation by various Los Angeles studio musicians
Chart history
[edit]"Shakey Ground" was the last by the group to reach the number-one spot on the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart: the song also crossed over to the pop chart, reaching number twenty-six on the Billboard Hot 100.[2]
Chart (1975) | Peak position |
---|---|
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 26 |
U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 1 |
Cover versions
[edit]The song has been covered by many artists:
- Van McCoy covered it for his 1975 album Disco Baby.
- Phoebe Snow recorded it for her 1976 album It Looks Like Snow.
- Renée Geyer included the song on her 1976 album Really Really Love You: Live at the Dallas Brooks Hall.
- Delbert McClinton included it on his 1980 album The Jealous Kind.
- Etta James recorded a version for her 1989 album Seven Year Itch.
- Elton John and Don Henley performed it on John's 1993 album Duets.
- Fishbone recorded the song for their 2000 album Fishbone and the Familyhood Nextperience Present: The Psychotic Friends Nuttwerx.
- Aerosmith covered it for their 2012 album Music from Another Dimension!, on which it ended up a Japanese bonus track.
- Max Creek, jam rock band, has been performing the song since the 1980s and continues to do so today.
- Founding member of the Grateful Dead, Bob Weir, has also performed the song live over 20 times; since 2012, Weir has performed the song with his bands Furthur, Ratdog, Dead & Company, Bob Weir and the Wolf Bros., as well as at solo acoustic concerts.
- Bernie Marsden (formerly of Whitesnake) recorded it for his 1981 album Look At Me Now.
References
[edit]- ^ "discogs.com". discogs.com. 1975. Retrieved May 27, 2021.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-2004. Record Research. p. 572.