"Scorpio" is a song by

Dennis Coffey Dennis James Coffey (born November 11, 1940) is an American guitarist. He was a studio musician for many soul and R&B recordings, and is well known for his 1971 Top 10 hit single " Scorpio". Biography Coffey learned to play guitar at the ag ...

and the Detroit Guitar Band. It charted at number 6 on the

Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

. The song has been sampled in several hip-hop songs since its release in 1971, most notably

Mark Ronson Mark Daniel Ronson (born 4 September 1975) is a British-American DJ, songwriter, record producer, and record executive. He is best known for his collaborations with artists such as Duran Duran, Amy Winehouse, Adele, Lady Gaga, Lily Allen, Robbi ...

's debut single " Ooh Wee",

Public Enemy "Public enemy" is a term which was first widely used in the United States in the 1930s to describe individuals whose activities were seen as criminal and extremely damaging to society, though the phrase had been used for centuries to describe p ...

's "

Night of the Living Baseheads "Night of the Living Baseheads" is the third single released by hip hop group Public Enemy, from their critically acclaimed album ''It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back''. The lyrics deal with the effects of crack cocaine on African-Am ...

LL Cool J James Todd Smith (born January 14, 1968), known professionally as LL Cool J (short for Ladies Love Cool James), is an American rapper, songwriter, record producer, and actor. He is one of the earliest rappers to achieve commercial success, along ...

's " Jingling Baby", and

Young MC Marvin Young (born May 10, 1967), better known by his stage name Young M.C., is a British-born American rapper, singer and actor. He is best known for his 1989 hit " Bust a Move". His debut album ''Stone Cold Rhymin found international accla ...

's " Bust a Move". In 2016, the song was featured in the American television drama series ''

Better Call Saul ''Better Call Saul'' is an American crime and legal drama television series created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould. Part of the ''Breaking Bad'' franchise, it is a spin-off of Gilligan's previous series, ''Breaking Bad'', and serves as a ...

'' in the episode "

Inflatable An inflatable is an object that can be inflated with a gas, usually with air, but hydrogen, helium and nitrogen are also used. One of several advantages of an inflatable is that it can be stored in a small space when not inflated, since inflata ...

". The song is played over a montage of lawyer

Saul Goodman James Morgan Jimmy McGill, better known by his trade name, business name Saul Goodman, is a character (arts), character created by Vince Gilligan and Peter Gould and portrayed by Bob Odenkirk in the television franchise ''Breaking Bad (franchi ...

/Jimmy McGill (played by

Bob Odenkirk Robert John Odenkirk (; born October 22, 1962) is an American actor, comedian and filmmaker best known for his role as Saul Goodman on ''Breaking Bad'' (2008–2013) and its spin-off ''Better Call Saul'' (2015–2022). For the latter, he has re ...

) as he attempts to get himself fired.

Background

"Scorpio" was written by Dennis Coffey for his sophomore album ''

Evolution Evolution is change in the heritable characteristics of biological populations over successive generations. These characteristics are the expressions of genes, which are passed on from parent to offspring during reproduction. Variation ...

''. The guitar line which begins the record actually consists of nine guitar riffs overdubbed on top of one another, spanning three octaves. It features Coffey on rhythm guitar; Rare Earth's

Ray Monette Ray Monette is an American musician born on May 7, 1946. He started his career as a session musician with Motown. He was also a songwriter and, in 1967 Detroit started a band called The Abstract Reality, who released a 45 rpm single "Love Burns Li ...

and Joe Podorsek from the Detroit Guitar Band on guitar;

Uriel Jones Uriel Jones (June 13, 1934 – March 24, 2009) was an American musician. Jones was a recording session drummer for Motown's in-house studio band, the Funk Brothers, during the 1960s and early 1970s. Biography Jones was first hired by Motown as a ...

and

Richard "Pistol" Allen Howard Richard "Pistol" Allen (August 13, 1932 – June 30, 2002) was an American musician, most notable as a Motown session drummer with The Funk Brothers. History Allen was the primary recording session drummer for Motown Records' in-hous ...

on drums;

Bob Babbitt __NOTOC__ Robert Andrew Kreinar (November 26, 1937 – July 16, 2012), known as Bob Babbitt, was a Hungarian-American bassist, most famous for his work as a member of Motown Records' studio band, the Funk Brothers, from 1966 to 1972, as well a ...

on bass; "Bongo" Eddie Brown on congas;

Jack Ashford Jack Ashford (born May 18, 1934), known to his friends as Jashford, is an American musician widely known as the percussionist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the 1960s and early 1970s. Ashford is most famous for playing the ...

on tambourine; and

Earl Van Dyke Earl Van Dyke (July 8, 1930 – September 18, 1992) was an American soul musician, most notable as the main keyboardist for Motown Records' in-house Funk Brothers band during the late 1960s and early 1970s. Career Van Dyke, who was born in Detr ...

on piano. Bob Babbitt and Eddie "Bongo" Brown perform solos. It was written by Dennis Coffey, produced by Mike Theodore, and arranged by both. Jim Burzzese directed recording, which took place at GM Recording Studios in

East Detroit Eastpointe (formerly East Detroit) is a city on the southern edge of Macomb County, Michigan, United States. As of the 2010 census, the city population was 32,442. Eastpointe forms a part of the Metro Detroit area. It borders 8 Mile Road on the ...

. Ray Hall was in charge of mixing, which took place in RCA Recording Studios in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. The song charted at number 6 on the

and number 9 on

R&B Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

. It was Coffey's largest hit; his follow-up "

Taurus Taurus is Latin for 'bull' and may refer to: * Taurus (astrology), the astrological sign * Taurus (constellation), one of the constellations of the zodiac * Taurus (mythology), one of two Greek mythological characters named Taurus * ''Bos taurus ...

" peaked at number 18 and no further Coffey single peaked higher than number 93.

Reception

NPR National Public Radio (NPR, stylized in all lowercase) is an American privately and state funded nonprofit media organization headquartered in Washington, D.C., with its NPR West headquarters in Culver City, California. It differs from other ...

said that "as a distinctive mix of Afro-Latin rhythm and Motor City psyche, it's hard to imagine a more impeccably matched creation". The song would later be sampled in several hip-hop records:

on their song "

" on their album ''

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back ''It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back'' is the second studio album by American hip hop group Public Enemy, released on June 28, 1988, by Def Jam Recordings and Columbia Records. It was recorded from 1987 to 1988 in sessions at Chung Kin ...

'' in 1988;

on his song " Jingling Baby" on his album ''

Walking with a Panther ''Walking with a Panther'' is the third studio album by American hip hop recording artist LL Cool J, released June 9, 1989, on Def Jam Recordings. Background While his previous album ''Bigger and Deffer'' (1987) was produced by The L.A. Posse ...

'' in 1989;

Queen Latifah Dana Elaine Owens (born March 18, 1970), known professionally as Queen Latifah, is an American rapper, actress, and singer. Born in Newark, New Jersey, she signed with Tommy Boy Records in 1989 and released her debut album ''All Hail the Que ...

on her song "Mama Gave Birth To The Soul Children" on her album ''

All Hail the Queen ''All Hail the Queen'' is the debut album by hip-hop artist Queen Latifah. The album was released on November 7, 1989, through Tommy Boy Records. The feminist anthem, "Ladies First" featuring Monie Love remains one of Latifah's signature songs. ...

'' in 1989;

on his song "

Bust A Move (song) "Bust a Move" is a song by British-American rapper Young MC from his 1989 debut album, ''Stone Cold Rhymin. The song is built on a sample of "Found a Child" by the group Ballin' Jack. The drums, produced by a LinnDrum, are sampled from the song ...

" on his album ''

Stone Cold Rhymin' ''Stone Cold Rhymin is the debut album by the American rapper Young MC. It was released in 1989 on Delicious Vinyl and was later re-issued by Rhino Records. The album reached No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' Top Pop Albums chart. The third track, " Bu ...

'' in 1989;

Geto Boys Geto Boys (originally spelled Ghetto Boys) was an American hip-hop group originally formed in Houston, Texas. The Geto Boys enjoyed success in the 1990s with the group's classic lineup consisting of Bushwick Bill, Scarface and Willie D, earning ...

on their song "Do it Like a G.O." on their albums ''

Grip It! On That Other Level ''Grip It! On That Other Level'' is the second studio album by the Houston, Texas based hip-hop group, the Ghetto Boys (later spelled Geto Boys), released on March 12, 1989, on Rap-A-Lot Records. Following the disappointing results of the group' ...

'' in 1989 and ''

The Geto Boys Geto Boys (originally spelled Ghetto Boys) was an American hip-hop group originally formed in Houston, Texas. The Geto Boys enjoyed success in the 1990s with the group's classic lineup consisting of Bushwick Bill, Scarface and Willie D, earnin ...

'' in 1990;

Lord Finesse Lord Finesse (born Robert Hall Jr., February 19, 1970) is an American rapper and hip-hop record producer from The Bronx, New York best known as the leader of the D.I.T.C. crew. About.com ranked him number 29 on its list of the Top-50 Hip-Hop Pro ...

& DJ Mike Smooth on their song "Keep It Flowing" on their album ''

Funky Technician ''Funky Technician'' is the debut album by the American hip hop artists Lord Finesse and DJ Mike Smooth, released in 1990 on Wild Pitch Records. It was produced by Smooth, DJ Premier, and Diamond D and Showbiz. In 1998, the album was selected a ...

'' in 1990;

House of Pain House of Pain was an American hip-hop trio that released three albums in the 1990s. The group consisted of DJ Lethal, Danny Boy, and Everlast. The group's name is a reference to the H. G. Wells novel '' The Island of Dr. Moreau'', a refer ...

on their song "All My Love" on their album ''

'' in 1992 and

on his song " Ooh Wee" from his album ''

Here Comes the Fuzz ''Here Comes the Fuzz'' is the debut studio album by British producer Mark Ronson. The album was released on 8 September 2003, led by the lead single, " Ooh Wee". Unlike Ronson's later releases his debut album focuses more on the genre of hip h ...

'' in 2003.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{Authority control 1971 singles 1971 songs 1970s instrumentals Sussex Records singles