Shake It Up – The Cars | Top 40 Chart Performance, Story and Song Meaning

Chart Performance: Pop (#4); 1982

Story Behind The Song By Ed Osborne

In becoming America’s premier new wave band, the Cars retained just enough of punk’s edginess to sound slightly rebellious and incorporated enough pop elements to capture mainstream success.

The band’s core, Ric Ocasek and Ben Orr, first hooked up in Ohio where they formed Milkwood, and released the folk-styled album, How’s The Weather. After the demise of Milkwood, Ocasek and Orr eventually landed Boston under the name Cap’n Swing. Although Cap’n Swing went record-less it marked the genesis of the Cars, whose first album racked up multi-platinum sales and three hit singles.

The Cars quickly steamrolled over the competition. After three years, their music had gone from party-fun pop to disengaged alienation. Shake It Up, marked a return to the sound of the early hits, in part because it was penned years before the band was able to produce a satisfactory recording of it. The accompanying video, in an obvious pun on his band’s name, cast Ocasek as an automobile mechanic.

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:

• Roy Thomas Baker

Lyrics Written by:

• Ric Ocasek