"Wot's It to Ya" is the third single by American musician

Robbie Nevil Robert S. Nevil (born October 2, 1958) is an American pop singer, songwriter, producer, and guitarist who had five ''Billboard'' top 40 hits including his songs "C'est la Vie" (#2, 1986), "Dominoes" (#14, 1987), and " Wot's It to Ya" (#10, 1987 ...

from his self-titled debut album, released as a single in May 1987 by

Manhattan Records Manhattan Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group and operates as a branch of Capitol Music Group. Company history Manhattan Records was formed in 1984 by Bruce Lundvall and was later renamed EMI Manhattan Records af ...

. It peaked at number 10 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100.

Lyrics and writing

The song is about an ex who jilted the singer and then wants to know how he's been, to which the reply is "wot's it to ya". At the end of recording the album, Nevil thought had finished, having cut all the songs. He said that producer Alex Sadkin said "You know what? We still don't have it." I'd be like, "We still don't have what?" And he goes, "We still don't have the first single." Sadkin told Nevil "Always come from the school of you don't have your first single, and always try to the bitter end to come up with something even better." Therefore, "Wot's It to Ya" was written, even though in the end it wasn't released as the first single. The song features a

harmonica The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...

solo by

Judd Lander Judd Lander (born 1 March 1948) is an English harmonicist. Originally from Liverpool, Lander was previously a member of the band The Hideaways. He has experienced success as a prolific session musician, record industry executive, and company direc ...

Track listing

7" # "Wot's It to Ya" – 3:41 # "Wot's It to Ya" (To Ya Remix) – 4:05 12" (US & Canada only) # "Wot's It to Ya" (Rusty's 12" Dance Mix) – 9:57 # "Wot's It to Ya" (Rusty's Vocal Dub Mix) – 6:50 # "Wot's It to Ya" (Rusty's Vocoder Dub) – 6:55 # "Wot's It to Ya" (Extended To Ya Remix) – 5:09 # "Wot's It to Ya" (To Ya Remix) – 4:05 12" (Europe only) # "Wot's It to Ya" (Rusty's 12" Dance Remix) – 9:57 # "Wot's It to Ya" (Dub To Ya Mix) – 6:28 # "Wot's It to Ya" (To Ya Remix) – 4:04 12" (Europe & Australasia only) # "Wot's It to Ya" (Extended To Ya Remix) – 5:09 # "Wot's It to Ya" (Dub To Ya Mix) – 6:28 # "Wot's It to Ya" (To Ya Remix) – 4:04 Cassette (UK only) # "Wot's It To Ya" (Extended To Ya Remix) – 5:09 # " C'est la Vie" (The Steve Street Mix) – 5:11 # " Dominoes" (Extended Vocal Mix) – 6:05 # "Wot's It To Ya" (Extended To Ya Remix) – 5:09 # "C'est la Vie" (The Steve Street Mix) – 5:11 # "Dominoes" (Extended Vocal Mix) – 6:05

Charts

References

{{reflist 1987 singles 1986 songs Robbie Nevil songs Manhattan Records singles Songs written by Robbie Nevil Song recordings produced by Alex Sadkin