"Georgy Porgy" () is a song written by

David Paich David Frank Paich (born June 25, 1954) is an American musician, best known as the co-founder, principal songwriter, keyboardist and singer of the rock band Toto since 1977. He wrote or co-wrote much of Toto's original material, including the ba ...

, included on American rock band Toto's self-titled debut album in 1978. It was released as a single in 1979 and charted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 (number 48) as well as on both the R&B (number 18) and Dance (number 80) charts. The lead vocals are performed by guitarist

Steve Lukather Steven Lee Lukather (born October 21, 1957) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger and record producer, best known as the sole continuous founding member of the rock band Toto. His reputation as a skilled guitarist led to a stea ...

Cheryl Lynn Cheryl Lynn (born Lynda Cheryl Smith; March 11, 1957) is an American singer. She is best known for her songs during the late 1970s through the mid-1980s, including the 1978 R&B/disco song "Got to Be Real". Lynn's singing career began with her ...

provided the female backing vocal, singing an adaptation from the nursery rhyme "

Georgie Porgie "Georgie Porgie" is a popular English language nursery rhyme. It has the Roud Folk Song Index number 19532. Origins and variations Originally the lyrics were: :Georgie Porgie, pudding and pie, :Kissed the girls and made them cry, :When the gi ...

". ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' said the song begins "with stout drumming and melodic piano playing, conga backing and excellent overlapping flute, guitar and vocal lines." The song is still performed on tour. It is adapted with improvisational solos on guitar and keyboards. In a 1988 interview with ''

Modern Drummer ''Modern Drummer'' is a monthly publication targeting the interests of drummers and percussionists. The magazine features interviews, equipment reviews, and columns offering advice on technique, as well as information for the general public. ''Mo ...

'',

Jeff Porcaro Jeffrey Thomas Porcaro (; April 1, 1954 – August 5, 1992) was an American drummer, songwriter, and record producer. He is best known for his work with the rock band Toto but is one of the most recorded session musicians in history, working on ...

discussed developing the

groove Groove or Grooves may refer to: Music * Groove (music) * Groove (drumming) * The Groove (band), an Australian rock/pop band of the 1960s * The Groove (Sirius XM), a US radio station * Groove 101.7FM, a former Perth, Australia, radio station * ...

for "Georgy Porgy": :"...it's imitating Paul Humphrey heavily; it's imitating Earl Palmer very heavily. When it comes to that groove, my biggest influences were

Paul Humphrey Paul Nelson Humphrey (October 12, 1935 – January 31, 2014) was an American jazz and R&B drummer. Biography Humphrey was born in Detroit and began playing drums at age 8, taking private lessons in Detroit. In high school he played baritone hor ...

Ed Greene Ed Greene is an American drummer and session musician. In 1971 he recorded with Donald Byrd (''Ethiopian Knights'', 1972), together with Thurman Green, Harold Land, Bobby Hutcherson, Joe Sample, Bobbye Porter Hall, David T. Walker, and Wilton ...

Earl Palmer Earl Cyril Palmer (October 25, 1924 – September 19, 2008) was an American drummer. Considered one of the inventors of rock and roll, he is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. Palmer was one of the most prolific studio musicians of al ...

, and the godfather of that 16th-note groove,

James Gadson James Gadson ( James Edward Gadson; born June 17, 1939) is an American drummer and session musician. Beginning his career in the late 1960s, Gadson has since become one of the most-recorded drummers in the history of R&B. He is also a singer and ...

. That "Georgy Porgy" groove I owe to them."

Personnel

Toto

– guitars, lead vocals *

– piano *

Steve Porcaro Steven Maxwell Porcaro (born September 2, 1957) is an American keyboardist, songwriter, and film composer, known as one of the founding members of the rock band Toto and the last surviving Porcaro brother (after the deaths of Jeff in 1992 and M ...

– keyboards *

David Hungate William David Hungate (born August 5, 1948) is an American bass guitarist noted as a member of the Los Angeles pop-rock band Toto from 1976 to 1982 and again from 2014 to 2015, and the son of judge William L. Hungate. Along with most of his T ...

– bass *

– drums

Guest musicians

* Lenny Castro – congas *

Jim Horn James Ronald Horn (born November 20, 1940) is an American saxophonist, woodwind player, and session musician. Biography Horn was born in Los Angeles, and after replacing saxophonist Steve Douglas in 1959, he toured with member Duane Eddy for f ...

– saxophone, wind instruments *

Chuck Findley Charles B. Findley (born December 13, 1947 in Johnstown, Pennsylvania) is an American trumpet player known for his diverse work as a session musician. He also plays other brass instruments such as flugelhorn and trombone. His technical abilities ...

– horns *

Marty Paich Martin Louis Paich (January 23, 1925 – August 12, 1995) was an American pianist, composer, arranger, record producer, music director, and conductor. As a musician and arranger he worked with jazz musicians Peggy Lee, Ella Fitzgerald, Stan Kento ...

– string arrangements * Sid Sharp – string arrangements *

– backing vocals

Eric Benét version

American R&B singer-songwriter

Eric Benét Eric Benét Jordan (born October 15, 1967) is an American R&B/neo soul singer-songwriter and actor, who has received a total of four Grammy nominations to date for his musical work. Biography Early life Benét was born on October 15, 1966 ...

recorded a cover of "Georgy Porgy" for his second studio album, '' A Day in the Life''. This version features vocals from fellow American R&B singer

Faith Evans Faith Renée Evans (born June 10, 1973) is an American singer and actress. Born in Lakeland, Florida, and raised in New Jersey, she relocated to Los Angeles in 1991 for a career in the music business. After working as a backing vocalist for Al B ...

and was produced by R&B group

Somethin' for the People Somethin' for the People was a contemporary R&B group from Oakland, California, who scored several hits in the US in the late 1990s. History The group was founded in 1990 by Curtis "Sauce" Wilson and Jeff "Fuzzy" Young, both from Oakland, Calif ...

. Released on February 8, 1999, Benét's version was successful in New Zealand, where it peaked at number two on the

RIANZ Singles Chart Recorded Music NZ (formerly the Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (RIANZ)) is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell recorded music in New Zealand. Membership of Recorded Mus ...

, and it became a top-40 hit in France, the Netherlands, Sweden, and the United Kingdom.

Track listings

UK CD1 # "Georgy Porgy" (radio edit) – 4:19 # "Georgy Porgy" (So So Def radio remix with rap) – 3:56 # "Georgy Porgy" (Somethin' for the People remix) – 4:45 # "Georgy Porgy" (So So Def radio remix without rap) – 3:34 UK CD2 # "Georgy Porgy" (album version) – 4:40 # "Georgy Porgy" (Spreadlove's 2 Step vocal mix) – 6:21 # "Georgy Porgy" (Hippie Torales radio remix) – 3:24 UK 12-inch single :A1. "Georgy Porgy" (Hippie Torales remix) – 6:14 :B1. "Georgy Porgy" (Spreadlove's 2 Step vocal mix) – 6:21 :B2. "Georgy Porgy" (Spreadlove's Demonic dub) – 5:35 European CD single # "Georgy Porgy" (radio edit) – 4:19 # "Georgy Porgy" (Hippie Torales remix) – 6:14 Australian CD single # "Georgy Porgy" (radio edit) # "Georgy Porgy" (Hippie Torales radio remix) # "Georgy Porgy" ( Hani's Fresh Air remix) # "Georgy Porgy" ( Roy Davis Jr. Heavenly Body remix) # "Georgy Porgy" (Hippie Torrales remix) # "Georgy Porgy" (Roy Davis Jr. Galactic Sould remix)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

Other covers

* A version by U.S. soul band Charme was released in 1979 featuring an uncredited vocal by

Luther Vandross Luther Ronzoni Vandross Jr. (April 20, 1951 – July 1, 2005) was an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. Known for his sweet and soulful vocals, Vandross has sold over 40 million records worldwide. He achieved eleven consecutive P ...

. The single was re-released a few years later after the vocalist's rise in popularity and he was then credited as the featured artist. * Disco/jazz-funk band

Side Effect In medicine, a side effect is an effect, whether therapeutic or adverse, that is secondary to the one intended; although the term is predominantly employed to describe adverse effects, it can also apply to beneficial, but unintended, consequence ...

(with

Miki Howard Alicia Michelle "Miki" Howard (born September 30, 1960) is an American singer and actress who had a string of top 10 hit songs in the mid-1980s and early 1990s, including " Baby, Be Mine" (1987), " Come Share My Love" (1986) and "Love Under Ne ...

on background vocals) released their version in 1980 from their album '' After the Rain''. It peaked to number 77 on the US R&B Songs chart. * Montreal born Dwight Druick did a French version in 1979, released on his 1980 album "Tanger". * In 1991, the song was sampled by rapper MC Lyte for her song "Poor Georgie" on the album ''Act Like You Know''.www.whosampled.com
/ref> The song peaked at number 1 on Billboard's Hot Rap Singles on March 6, 1992. * It was recorded by Filipino rock musician

Ramon Jacinto Ramón Pereyra Jacinto (born June 3, 1945), best known by his initials RJ, is a Filipino businessman, musician and radio TV personality. He previously served as Undersecretary for Government Digital Broadcast Television and the Digitization of th ...

together with

Bobby Kimball Robert Troy Kimball (born March 29, 1947) is an American singer and songwriter best known as the original and longtime frontman of the rock band Toto from 1977 to 1984 and again from 1998 to 2008. Kimball has also performed as a solo artist and ...

of Toto from the 2012 album ''

RJ Duets Ramón Pereyra Jacinto (born June 3, 1945), best known by his initials RJ, is a Filipino businessman, musician and radio TV personality. He previously served as Undersecretary for Government Digital Broadcast Television and the Digitization of th ...

''. * The song was used by

Devin the Dude Devin Copeland (born June 4, 1970), better known by his stage name Devin the Dude, is an American rapper from Houston, Texas. He is known for his unique rapping style and his 2002 songs "Lacville '79" and "Doobie Ashtray". Early life Devin Cop ...

in his song "Georgy" from the album '' The Dude'', and by

Guru Guru ( sa, गुरु, IAST: ''guru;'' Pali'': garu'') is a Sanskrit term for a "mentor, guide, expert, or master" of certain knowledge or field. In pan-Indian traditions, a guru is more than a teacher: traditionally, the guru is a reverentia ...

in "Kissed the World" from the album '' Jazzmatazz, Vol. 4''. * The song was also covered by Le Flex on the 2021 album '' ... To Be Continued''. * The song wa
sampled
by Death on the Balcony in their 2015 deep house track
Addict For Your Love
.

References

{{Authority control Toto (band) songs 1978 songs 1979 singles Columbia Records singles Faith Evans songs Songs based on children's songs Songs written by David Paich Warner Records singles