Cameo 'Word Up'

Chart Peak: 6
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'Word Up' charted at No. 50 on 26th August, and became the group's biggest UK hit to date when it made No. 3 on 23rd September.

Side Two starts with what we can safely call the least subtle song on the album, the signature hit from the funk group who'd already existed for over a decade but scored their first US Top 40 with this idiosyncratic take on 80s RnB. Despite the large number of cover versions it's not really that good a song and was utterly confusing to me at the time; I sort of imagined that "Word up" was something like the bat symbol on Gotham City but I wasn't sure what we were supposed to be getting underway.

It's not really about the song though, it's about the groove and the excuse for Larry Blackmon to be ridiculous and show off his bright red codpiece. Even his name is a bit silly, though apparently it's his real one. It's this daft over the top element that makes this version so much better than the more straightforward efforts by Gun, Melanie G and Little Mix.

Also appearing on: Now 6
Available on: Cameo - Universal Masters