Let It Whip – Dazz Band | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#5 ) and R&B (#5); 1982

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

Cleveland’s Dazz Band took its original name from the town’s Kinsman Grill and Dazz, the 1976 #1 single by Brick. “Dazz” – short for “danceable jazz” – was an apt description of the group’s brand of music; a blend that caught moderate R&B airplay for two Kinsman Dazz singles in 1979 and 1980.

A slight name change and a shift to Motown Records brought three more mid-charting R&B records, the last two of which were easy ballads. For the band’s second album, Motown songwriter/producers Reggie Andrews and Ndugu Chancler put together an outrageously funky track using the innovative drum machines of the day.

Searching for a dance-oriented lyric, Reggie came up with the idea of a whip. All eight Dazz members played on the track along with Reggie and Ndugu’s rhythm tracks. Despite the obvious potential of Let It Whip the label initially planned to release another ballad first. Fortunately, hotter heads prevailed and the Dazz gang had a huge crossover smash.

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:

• Reggie Andrews

Lyrics Written by:

• Reggie Andrews
• Leon “Ndugu” Chancler

Awards:

• “Let It Whip” won the 1982 Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals