Deee-Lite - Groove Is In The Heart b/w What Is Love (1990)
UK chart peak - Number 2
"Groove Is In The Heart" is a song that's really lasted well over the years. I still hear it played quite a lot on the radio, in bars etc. In retrospect, it was a wise move for Deee-Lite to choose a 70s feel for the song, because it's given it a more timeless appeal than something like Glenn Medeiros that sounded very in vogue at the time. Also, take note, Jive Bunny - THIS is how you construct a tribute to a bygone era from a bunch of old samples. I was astonished to find just HOW MANY bits of other songs featured when I checked Who Sampled Who - it's virtually ENTIRELY bits of other songs stitched together, but unlike the bunny, it's been done with genuine care & affection, creating something that sounds like both a throwback while also being timeless. The video was CAMP FUN. Lady Miss Kier announces herself as immediately ICONIC in an array of kitsch 70s outfits & Towa Tei looks a lot like the bloke who worked at my local Radio Rentals at the time
This was another one of those singles listed as a double A side but the flip side never got any airplay. I think "What Is Love" is equally good, although nowhere near as commercial. It's got a more current (for 1990) sounding, lilting, slightly trancey dance beat, with Kier wittering "how do you say De-Groovy, De-Gorgeous, Delicious, Deee-Lite" all over it
I remember coming up with a video concept for it as a child with them all being sloshed around a giant WASHING MACHINE
This is one of 3 songs with this title to have reached number 2 in the UK, FACT FANS.
Deee-Lite were beaten to Number 1 by probably the narrowest margin in the history of the UK charts by "The Joker" by The Steve Miller Band. There was a fuss kicked up as apparently both songs had sold the same number of copies, but "The Joker" was given top spot due to a greater sales increase. A later audit revealed that "The Joker" had actually sold about 13 more copies
It's a shame as it only sold due to its feature in a long forgotten Levis advert - it's a song I very much associate with the 70s. Deee-Lite were obviously 70s influenced, but much more modern, it's a shame the new up & coming band of the time missed out.
Unfortunately this proved to be their only major UK hit. I'm not sure if it did anything in the USA, they always struck me as being a bit too FUN FOR EUROPE for American tastes. They did have one more top 30 hit here later in 1990 with "Power Of Love", which Marge was clearly very, erm, INSPIRED BY when she did "Rescue Me". It's a shame because Kier was clearly someone with star quality & their flop 1994 album "Dewdrops In The Garden" is fucking fantastic. These days I think Kier is a DJ & Towa Tei is still releasing music, collaborating with Kylie on the fab but flop single "German Bold Italic".
Donny Osmond EVER LOOKED
