Theme from S-Express
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
Related e |
Featured: |
"Theme from S'Express" was a popular single by English dance music band S'Express.
One of the landmarks of early Acid house and sampling culture the single became an instant hit upon its release in April 1988. Written and produced by Mark Moore and Pascal Gabriel the song samples liberally from Rose Royce's "Is it Love You're After" and performance artist Karen Finley's "Tales of Taboo". The hi-hat is sampled from an aerosol spray. The count-in "Uno, dos, uno, dos, tres, quatro" is from Debbie Harry's 1985 single "Feel the Spin".
The song reached number one on the UK Singles Chart for two weeks in April 1988. It fared less well in the USA where it scraped into the Billboard Hot 100 at number ninety-one but reached number one on the Bilboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. It peaked at number eleven in Australia and number two in Germany.
Samples used
This is a list of samples used in "Theme from S-Express".
- Alfredo de la Fé – "Hot to Trot" from Alfredo, 1979 (LP)
- Crystal Grass – "Crystal World" from You're All I Ever Dreamed Of, 1974 (LP)
- Karen Finley – "Tales of Taboo" from Tales of Taboo, 1986 (12")
- Debbie Harry – "Feel the Spin" from Krush Groove soundtrack, 1985 (LP) [removed from U.S. version]
- Vocal sample by Laura Olsher from "The Martian Monsters" from Chilling, Thrilling Sounds of the Haunted House, 1964 (LP) [removed from U.S. version]
- Gil Scott-Heron and Brian Jackson – "The Bottle" from Winter in America, 1974 (LP) [removed from U.S. version]
- Ish Ledesma – "Scream for Daddy" from I Could Love You, 1986 (12")
- Peech Boys – "Don't Make Me Wait" from Life Is Something Special, 1983 (LP)
- Gene Roddenberry – "The Star Trek Dream" from The Star Trek Dream, 1976 (LP) [removed from U.S. version]
- Rose Royce – "Is It Love You're After" from Rose Royce IV: Rainbow Connection, 1979 (LP)
- Sam the Sham & The Pharaohs – "Oh That's Bad, No That's Good" from Oh That's Good, No That's Bad, 1967 (7") [removed from U.S. version]
- Stacey Q – "Two of Hearts" from Better Than Heaven, 1986 (LP) [removed from U.S. version]
- TZ – "I Got the Hots for You" from I Got the Hots for You, 1983 (12")
- Yazoo – "Situation" from Upstairs at Eric's, 1982 (LP)