"Dreadlock Holiday" is a

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

song by

10cc 10cc are an English rock band formed in Stockport in 1972. The group initially consisted of four musicians – Graham Gouldman, Eric Stewart, Kevin Godley and Lol Creme – who had written and recorded together since 1968. The group featured t ...

. Written by

Eric Stewart Eric Michael Stewart (born 20 January 1945) is an English singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and record producer, best known as a founding member of the rock groups the Mindbenders with whom he played from 1963 to 1968, and likewise of 10 ...

and

Graham Gouldman Graham Keith Gouldman (born 10 May 1946) is an English singer, songwriter, and musician, best known as the co-lead singer and bassist of the art rock band 10cc. He has been the band's only constant member since its formation in 1972. Before 10cc ...

, it was the lead single from the band's 1978 album, ''

Bloody Tourists ''Bloody Tourists'' is the sixth studio album by the English rock band 10cc, released worldwide by Mercury Records and in North America by Polydor Records in September 1978. Recorded at Strawberry Studios South in Dorking, the album was produ ...

''.

Composition

The song was based on real events

and

Moody Blues Moody may refer to: Places * Moody, Alabama, U.S. * Moody, Indiana, U.S. * Moody, Missouri, U.S. * Moody, Texas, U.S. * Moody County, South Dakota, U.S. * Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada * Hundred of Moody, a cadastral division in South A ...

vocalist

Justin Hayward David Justin Hayward (born 14 October 1946) is an English musician best known as the lead singer, songwriter and guitarist of the rock band the Moody Blues. Hayward became the group's principal lead guitarist and vocalist over the 1967–1974 ...

experienced in

Barbados Barbados is an island country in the Lesser Antilles of the West Indies, in the Caribbean region of the Americas, and the most easterly of the Caribbean Islands. It occupies an area of and has a population of about 287,000 (2019 estimate). ...

; and

experienced in

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

commented: "Some of the experiences that are mentioned are true, and some of them are ... fairly true!" Stewart recalled seeing a white guy "trying to be cool and he looked so naff" walking into a group of Afro-Caribbeans and being reprimanded, which became the lyric "Don't you walk through my words, you got to show some respect." Another lyric came from a conversation Gouldman had with a Jamaican, who when asked if he liked cricket replied, "No, I love it!".

Music video

The music video for the song was directed by

Storm Thorgerson Storm Elvin Thorgerson (28 February 1944 – 18 April 2013) was an English graphic designer and music video director. He is best known for closely working with the group Pink Floyd through most of their career, and also created album or other a ...

. The beach scene in the official video was filmed on the Dorset coast near

Charmouth Charmouth is a village and civil parish in west Dorset, England. The village is situated on the mouth of the River Char, around north-east of Lyme Regis. Dorset County Council estimated that in 2013 the population of the civil parish was 1,310 ...

Reception

"Dreadlock Holiday" became the group's international number 1 hit topping the charts in the UK, Belgium, New Zealand and The Netherlands. The single also reached number 2 in Ireland and Australia, became a top 10 hit in Norway and Switzerland, and top 20 in Germany and Sweden. In Austria the song became 10cc's single entry in the charts peaking at number 18. In North America, "Dreadlock Holiday" became a minor hit, peaking at number 45 in Canada's ''RPM'' charts and number 44 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100. When asked why he thought the song didn't do better in the US, Gouldman said that reportedly some radio stations would not play reggae of any kind. In the UK, the song was the band's third number 1 and at the same time final top 10 hit.

Cover versions

Boney M Boney M. was a German- Caribbean vocal group that specialized in disco and funk created by German record producer Frank Farian, who was the group's primary songwriter. Originally based in West Germany, the four original members of the group' ...

covered the song on their 1985 album ''

Eye Dance ''Eye Dance'' is the eighth and final studio album by the vocal group Boney M., released in 1985. The cover artwork was symbolic of the state the group was in at that time, as neither the famous "Boney M." logo nor the group members appeared on ...

''.

Macka B Christopher MacFarlane, better known as Macka B, (born 1966) is a British-born Jamaican reggae artist, performer and activist with a career spanning thirty years and one of Britain's most influential dancehall DJs. As a practicing Rastaman, Mac ...

English DJ covered the song.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Usage in media

* In 2000,

Guy Ritchie Guy Stuart Ritchie (born 10 September 1968) is an English film director, producer and screenwriter. His work includes British gangster films, and the ''Sherlock Holmes'' films starring Robert Downey Jr. Ritchie left school at age 15 and wor ...

's movie '' Snatch'' contained the song. * The song is used in the first episode of The Mighty Boosh, "Killeroo". It is danced to by Rich Fulcher's character, Bob Fossil. * In 2002,

Intenso Project Intenso Project are an English electronic music group consisting of vocalist Ben Ofoedu, DJ Rods, and Leigh Guest (from Double Trouble). On the UK Singles Chart, the band has had hits such as, " Luv Da Sunshine", "Your Music" featuring Laura Jaye, ...

sampled the track in their hit "Luv Da Sunshine". * The song is known for its usage in the flash game The Skullkid. * In 2010,

David Fincher David Andrew Leo Fincher (born August 28, 1962) is an American film director. His films, mostly psychological thrillers and biographical dramas, have received 40 nominations at the Academy Awards, including three for him as Best Director. Fin ...

's movie ''

The Social Network ''The Social Network'' is a 2010 American biographical drama film directed by David Fincher and written by Aaron Sorkin, based on the 2009 book ''The Accidental Billionaires'' by Ben Mezrich. It portrays the founding of social networking web ...

'' contained the song being mixed by a college DJ. * The song has been used as the theme music for cricket programming in the UK on

Sky Sports Sky Sports is a group of British subscription sports channels operated by the satellite pay television company Sky Group (a division of Comcast), and is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland. It ...

. * The song appears in the 2016 video game ''

Watch Dogs 2 ''Watch Dogs 2'' (stylized as ''WATCH_DOGS 2'') is a 2016 action-adventure game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It is the sequel to 2014's ''Watch Dogs'' and the second installment in the ''Watch Dogs'' series. It was ...

''. * The song has been used in " Shot on iPhone XS -- Our Game -- Apple " YouTube video by Apple India. * The song was used in the 2019 Christmas Special of ''

Gavin and Stacey ''Gavin & Stacey'' is a British sitcom written by James Corden and Ruth Jones about two families: one in Billericay, Essex; one in Barry, South Wales. Mathew Horne and Joanna Page play the titular characters Gavin and Stacey and the writers ...

''. * The song is used in the 2013 film ''Life of Crime'' starring Jennifer Aniston, Tim Robbins and Isla Fisher.

References

{{authority control 1978 songs 1978 singles 10cc songs British reggae songs Reggae rock songs Songs written by Graham Gouldman Songs written by Eric Stewart Songs about Jamaica Songs about reggae Holiday songs UK Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in New Zealand Mercury Records singles