"Ma Baker" is a song by

disco Disco is a genre of dance music and a subculture that emerged in the 1970s from the United States' urban nightlife scene. Its sound is typified by four-on-the-floor beats, syncopated basslines, string sections, brass and horns, electric pia ...

group

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's o ...

, released as a single in 1977. It was the first single off their second album '' Love for Sale'' and their third consecutive chart-topper in Germany. The song was a huge success in Europe and Latin America, topping the charts in many countries there. It was a number 2 hit in the UK (only surpassed by

Donna Summer LaDonna Adrian Gaines (December 31, 1948May 17, 2012), known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the " Queen of Disco", while her mus ...

's "

I Feel Love "I Feel Love" is a song by American singer and songwriter Donna Summer. Produced and co-written by Giorgio Moroder and Pete Bellotte, it was recorded for Summer's fifth studio album, ''I Remember Yesterday'' (1977). The album concept was to have ...

"). In the U.S, the song only reached number 96.

The song

Frank Farian's assistant Hans-Jörg Mayer discovered a popular

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n folkloric song, " Sidi Mansour" while on holiday, and rewrote the song into a disco track. The lyrics by Fred Jay were inspired by the story of legendary 1930s US outlaw

Ma Barker Kate Barker (born Arizona Donnie Clark; October 8, 1873 – January 16, 1935), better known as Ma Barker (and sometimes known as Arizona Barker and Arrie Barker), was the mother of several American criminals who ran the Barker–Karpis Gang ...

, although the name was changed into "Ma Baker" because "it sounded better". With a structure similar to Boney M.'s breakthrough single " Daddy Cool", using the same gimmick percussion, alternating answer-back vocals, and a spoken mid-part, the song opened with a snarling "Freeze, I'm Ma Baker, put your hands in the air and gimme all your money". Although it has never been officially credited, the voice was that of Linda Blake, the wife of Frank Farian's American friend Bill Swisher, who was a soldier in Germany at the time. Bill Swisher performed the spoken mid-part, announcing a bulletin from the FBI. He was used on several later Boney M. recordings, including "

Rasputin Grigori Yefimovich Rasputin (; rus, links=no, Григорий Ефимович Распутин ; – ) was a Russian mystic and self-proclaimed holy man who befriended the family of Nicholas II, the last Emperor of Russia, thus ga ...

" and "

El Lute EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

". Farian re-recorded the song with

Milli Vanilli Milli Vanilli were a German-French R&B duo from Munich. The group was founded by Frank Farian in 1988 and consisted of Fab Morvan and Rob Pilatus. Their debut album, '' All or Nothing'' in Europe, reconfigured as ''Girl You Know It's True'' in ...

in 1988, and reused both spoken voiceovers from the original song in the cover. Boney M.'s version was remixed the same year, 1993 and again in 1998. The song has been covered a number of times, including Banda R-15 and

Knorkator Knorkator is a German band from Berlin that combines heavy metal with comical elements. They proclaim themselves to be "Germany's band in the world" (german: Deutschlands meiste Band der Welt), as the title "The best band in the world" was al ...

. The "ma ma ma ma" chorus vocals were also sampled in

Lady Gaga Stefani Joanne Angelina Germanotta ( ; born March 28, 1986), known professionally as Lady Gaga, is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. She is known for her image reinventions and musical versatility. Gaga began performing as a teenag ...

's " Poker Face".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Sales and certifications

1993 remix

Following the remix of "Brown Girl in the Ring", Farian remixed "Ma Baker" in 1993. While a modest club hit, it failed to enter the European charts. "Borsalino" and "The Most Wanted Woman" are two dub mixes of the track. The new remix was included in the compilation album '' More Gold - 20 Super Hits Vol. II''.

Germany

12"

*"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (

BMG BMG may refer to: Organizations * Music publishing companies: ** Bertelsmann Music Group, a 1987–2008 division of Bertelsmann that was purchased by Sony on October 1, 2008 *** Sony BMG, a 2004–2008 joint venture of Bertelsmann and Sony that wa ...

74321 15940 1, 1993) Side A – Gangster #"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (Bonnie & Clyde mix) – 5:25 #"The Most Wanted Woman" – 3:30 Side B – Fashion #"Borsalino (Trainee Mix)" – 4:55 #"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (Radio Edit) – 3:58

CD

*"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (BMG 74321 15940 2, 1993) #"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (Radio Edit) – 3:58 #"Ma Baker (Remix '93)" (Bonnie & Clyde mix) – 5:25 #"Borsalino (Trainee Mix)" – 4:55 #"The Most Wanted Woman" – 3:30

1998 remix

In 1998, a new remix of "Ma Baker" by

Sash! Sash! (; stylised as SASH!) is a German DJ/production team, fronted by Sascha Lappessen (born 10 June 1970) who works in the recording studio with Ralf Kappmeier, Karl Xander, and Thomas "Alisson" Lüdke. They have sold over 22 million albums w ...

started to chart as a 12" single. Just as the CD-single was about to follow, it was withdrawn, and a new version appeared, re-titled "Somebody Scream! Ma Baker" featuring Horny United. The single was a Top 30 hit in Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, Switzerland, and even peaked at no. 6 (two weeks) in Finland and no. 10 in Sweden. When released in the UK in April, it peaked at no. 22. The accompanying video featured a young woman, kickboxing, training with a gun, the only relation to the original group being her watching the original 1977 video of "Ma Baker" on a TV set.

EU

12"

*Boney M. / Horny United Feat. Boney M. - "Ma Baker" / "Somebody Scream - Ma Baker" (2 x 12", Logic Records/Lautstark/

74321 64561 1, 1999) Side A #Boney M. "Ma Baker" (Extended Vocal Edit) – 5:26 Side B #Boney M. "Ma Baker" (Disco Dub Edit) – 5:35 Side C #Horny United "Somebody Scream" (Massive Mix) – 7:30 #Horny United "Somebody Scream" (Screamless Mix) – 6:16 Side D #Horny United "Somebody Scream - Ma Baker" (Full Vocal Mix) #Horny United "Somebody Scream - Ma Baker" (Ma Baker House Mix)

CD

*Boney M vs. Sash!: "Ma Baker" (BMG 74321 63942 2, 1998) #"Ma Baker" (Tokapi Radio Edit) – 3:24 #"Ma Baker" (Original Edit) – 3:35 #"Ma Baker" (Extended Vocal Edit) – 5:26 #"Ma Baker" (Disco Dub Edit) – 5:35 *Boney M. vs. Sash!/Horny United Featuring Boney M.: "Ma Baker"/"Somebody Scream" (BMG 74321 64561 2, 1999) #Boney M. vs. Sash! "Ma Baker" (Extended Radio Edit) – 4:54 #Boney M. vs. Sash! "Ma Baker" (Disco Dub Edit) (5:32) #Horny United Featuring Boney M. "Somebody Scream (Ma Baker)" (Radio Edit) (Oliver Wallner, Re-Run) – 4:17 #Horny United Featuring Boney M. "Somebody Scream (Ma Baker)" (Massive Mix) (Oliver Wallner, Re-Run) – 6:59

UK

12"

*Boney M. vs. Horny United "Ma Baker/Somebody Scream" (Logic Records 74321 65387 1, 1999) Side A #"Ma Baker" (Club Mix by Horny United) Side B #"Somebody Scream" (Beatroute Star Bar Mix by DJ Slammer & Mark Bambach) #"Somebody Scream" (Cosmic People Mix)

CD

*Boney M. vs. Horny United "Ma Baker/Somebody Scream" (Logic Records 74321 65387 2, 1999) #"Ma Baker/Somebody Scream" (Radio Edit) – 3:06 #"Ma Baker" (Sash! Radio Edit) – 3:27 #"Somebody Scream" (Massive Club mix) – 7:31 #"Ma Baker" (

12" Mix) – 4:55

Charts

References

{{authority control 1977 singles 1977 songs Atco Records singles Atlantic Records singles Boney M. songs Dutch Top 40 number-one singles European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles Great Depression songs Hansa Records singles Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in France Number-one singles in Germany Number-one singles in Spain Number-one singles in Sweden Number-one singles in Switzerland Number-one singles in Norway Song recordings produced by Frank Farian Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles Songs about criminals Songs about Chicago Cultural depictions of Ma Barker Songs about mothers

The song

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Sales and certifications

1993 remix

Germany

12"

CD

1998 remix

EU

12"

CD

UK

12"

CD

Charts

See also

References