Cool It Now – New Edition | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning
Chart Performance: Pop (#4) & R&B (#1); 1984
Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne
The five teenagers who made up New Edition were busy recording Mr. Telephone Man when their manager brought them a demo of Cool It Now.
Little did they know that he had just heard it in the hardware store next door, played back on a boom box owned by Vincent Brantley and Rick Timas.
Brantley and Timas were aspiring young songwriters/ musicians/ producers who’d worked up Cool It Now specifically for New Edition. Fortune had smiled on them the night before when they spotted MCA Records’ VP Jheryl Busby, and followed him to a local L.A. diner.
Brantley played the track to Cool It Now and sang the words live to Busby on-the-spot, who promptly invited the two to bring it by the studio the next day. Cool It Now was the first release off NE’s second album. It shot to #1, followed by Mr. Telephone Man, which also topped the R&B list.
This content and all Song Meaning articles were created and written by Top 40 Contributing Editor Ed Osborne. © 2024 Ed Osborne. All Rights Reserved. In addition to these song meaning articles, Ed has written our “Year in Music 1960s-1990s” articles.
Produced by:
- Vincent Brantley
- Rick Timas
Lyrics Written by:
- Vincent Brantley
- Rick Timas
Ed Osborne
Hi. I got my first record at age two and never looked back, spending a decades-long career in radio and the music business. Even after years of reading about and listening to all types of music, I am still fascinated by it. Apart from that, I’m endlessly intrigued by art, nature, and the inner lives of people (and dogs).