"You Make Me Feel Brand New" is a 1974 single by the

Philadelphia soul Philadelphia soul, sometimes called Philly soul, the Philadelphia sound, Phillysound, or The Sound of Philadelphia TSOP, is a genre of late 1960s–1970s soul music characterized by funk influences and lush instrumental arrangements, often feat ...

group

The Stylistics The Stylistics are an American, Philadelphia soul group that achieved their greatest chart success in the 1970s. They formed in 1968, with a lineup of singers Russell Thompkins Jr., Herb Murrell, Airrion Love, James Smith and James Dunn. All of ...

. An R&B

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or ''ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, the song was written by

Thom Bell Thomas Randolph Bell (January 27th, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, record producer, arranger, pianist, and composer known as one of the creators of Philadelphia soul in the 1970s. He found success as a producer ...

and

Linda Creed Linda Diane Creed (December 6, 1948 – April 10, 1986), also known by her married name Linda Epstein, was an American songwriter and lyricist who teamed up with Thom Bell to produce some of the most successful Philadelphia soul groups of the 19 ...

Background

Stylistics tenor Airrion Love starts out the song and then alternates with

Russell Thompkins Jr. Russell Allen Thompkins Jr. (born March 21, 1951) is an American soul singer. Best known as the original lead singer of the vocal group The Stylistics and noted for his high tenor, countertenor, and falsetto vocals. With Russell as lead singer, ...

The song, in a longer five-minute version, had first appeared as a track on the Stylistics' 1973 album, '' Rockin' Roll Baby'', though that version was not released as a single. "You Make Me Feel Brand New" was the fifth track from their 1974 album, ''

Let's Put It All Together ''Let's Put It All Together'' is the fourth studio album recorded by American R&B group The Stylistics, released in May 1974 on the Avco label. It was produced by Hugo & Luigi and recorded at Mediasound Studios in New York City. This was the gr ...

'' and was released as a

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

and reached No. 2 on the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

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 ...

for two weeks. Allmusic - Charts & Awards/ref> "You Make Me Feel Brand New" was kept from the No. 1 spot by "

Billy Don't Be a Hero "Billy Don't Be a Hero" is a 1974 pop music, pop song that was first a UK hit for Paper Lace and then, some months later, a US hit for Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods. The song was written and composed by two British songwriters, Mitch Murray an ...

" by

Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods Bo Donaldson and The Heywoods are an American pop music group, known mainly for their 1970s hit singles, "Billy Don't Be a Hero" and "Who Do You Think You Are". History The band was formed in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1965 by their leader, Robert Walt ...

. In addition, it climbed to No. 5 on the ''Billboard'' R&B chart. ''Billboard'' ranked it as the No. 14 song for 1974. "You Make Me Feel Brand New" also reached No. 2 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

in August 1974. The Stylistics'

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

sold over one million copies in the US, earning the band a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

The award was presented by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

on May 22, 1974. It was the band's fifth gold disc.

Chart performance

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Influence

Neil Sedaka Neil Sedaka (; born March 13, 1939) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist. Since his music career began in 1957, he has sold millions of records worldwide and has written or co-written over 500 songs for himself and other artists, collabo ...

used the song as inspiration to compose the melody of "

The Hungry Years ''The Hungry Years'' is an album by Neil Sedaka, the title of which is an eponymous track from the album. It was released by The Rocket Record Company in 1975. The album is the American edition of '' Overnight Success'', with two songs being rep ...

", noting that it contained a three-semitone key change that he found particularly appealing and called a "drop-dead chord."

Other versions

"You Make Me Feel Brand New" has been recorded by

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

and pop artists including: *In 1975 by

Vicky Leandros Vasiliki Papathanasiou ( el, Βασιλική Παπαθανασίου; born 23 August 1949), generally known as Vicky Leandros ( el, Βίκυ Λέανδρος, links=no), is a Greek singer living in Germany. She is the daughter of singer, music ...

. *In 1982 by

The Salsoul Orchestra The Salsoul Orchestra was the backing Band (music), band of session musicians for many acts on the New York City label Salsoul Records and, under its own name, recorded several hit singles and albums between 1975 and 1982. History The orchestr ...

(vocals by Christine Wiltshire and Ray Stevens). *In 1986 by

Babyface Babyface or Baby Face can refer to: Nicknames * Lester Joseph Gillis a.k.a. Baby Face Nelson, an infamous 1930s bank robber * Roosevelt "Baby Face" Willette (1933–1971), an American hard bop and soul-jazz musician * "Baby Face", Jimmy McLarnin ...

. *In 2003 by

Simply Red Simply Red are a British soul and pop band formed in Manchester in 1985. The lead vocalist of the band is singer and songwriter Mick Hucknall, who, by the time the band initially disbanded in 2010, was the only original member left. Since the ...

(on their studio album ''

Home A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or many humans, and sometimes various companion animals. It is a fully or semi sheltered space and can have both interior and exterior aspects to it. H ...

''). The Simply Red version reached number 10 on the ''

Adult Contemporary Chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on airplay data submitted to ''Billboard'' by sta ...

. *In 2004, the song was covered by

Boyz II Men Boyz II Men (pronounced ''boys to men''), also known as B2M, is an American vocal harmony group from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, best known for emotional ballads and a cappella harmonies. They are currently a trio composed of baritone Nathan M ...

. *Swedish singer

Björn Skifs Björn Nils Olof Skifs (; born 20 April 1947) is a Swedish singer, songwriter, actor, and screenwriter. Career Björn Skifs formed his first musical group, Slam Creepers, in 1962. Slam Creepers split in 1969 and Skifs went on to form a new ban ...

released ''Med varann (in English ''Together''), a cover of the song in Swedish on his album ''Schiffz!'' in 1975 as a duet with ABBA member

Anni-Frid Lyngstad Princess Anni-Frid Synni Reuss, Countess of Plauen (born Anni-Frid Synni Lyngstad on 15 November 1945), also known by her nickname "Frida", is a Norwegian-born Swedish singer, songwriter and environmentalist, who is best known as one of the foun ...

. *Jamaican reggae singer Jacob Miller of Inner Circle recorded the song with Augustus Pablo. *Japanese musician

Tatsuro Yamashita , occasionally credited as Tatsu Yamashita or Tats Yamashita, is a Japanese singer-songwriter and record producer, who is known for pioneering the style of Japanese adult-oriented rock/soft rock music. His most well-known song is "Christmas E ...

recorded his version in 1986, included on the album ''On the Street Corner 2''. *Italian singer Mina included the song on the album '' Rane supreme'', in 1987. *

Roberta Flack Roberta Cleopatra Flack (born February 10, 1937) is a retired American singer. She topped the Billboard Magazine, ''Billboard'' charts with the No. 1 singles "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face", "Killing Me Softly with His Song", "Feel Like M ...

recorded the song in 1992, reaching No. 50 on the U.S. R&B chart. *In 2003,

Lil Mo Cynthia Karen Loving (born November 19, 1978), known professionally as Lil' Mo, is an American singer, songwriter, rapper, television and radio personality. She is best known for her 2001 single " Superwoman Pt. II", featuring then-unknown rapper ...

made her version of the song and named it, Brand Nu. The instruments had also been enhanced and the lyrics are completely different. This song was included in her second album, ''

Meet the Girl Next Door ''Meet the Girl Next Door'' is the second studio album by American rapper and singer Lil' Mo. It was released on April 29, 2003 by Elektra Records. Written and recorded during her eighth-month pregnancy break in which she became a part-time anchor ...

''. *The song was recorded by

Ronnie Milsap Ronnie Lee Milsap (born Ronald Lee Millsaps; January 16, 1943) is an American country music singer and pianist. He was one of country music's most popular and influential performers of the 1970s and 1980s. Nearly completely blind from birth, ...

on his album ''Summer Number 17''. *Jazz guitarist Norman Brown recorded the song in 1999. *Filipino R&B singer

Jay R Gaudencio Sillona III (born February 1, 1981), known professionally as Jay R, is a Filipino-AmericanRicky Lo (April 11, 2004)Jay R: The Heart of The Hunk, ''The Philippine Star'' singer, songwriter, record producer, actor and model. In 2003, he ...

included the song from his 2008 album, ''Soul in Love''. *American pop singer

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

covered the song on his 2008 album, '' A Night to Remember''. *

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

recorded it with

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

on the former's 2009 album ''

Soulbook ''Soulbook'' is the 25th studio album by Rod Stewart. Like his previous five albums, ''Soulbook'' features Stewart singing old material; for this album he sings classic material from Motown and the soul genre. It was released on 17 October 2009 ...

''. *

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

released a mostly instrumental version on his 2011 album ''Plays the Sounds of Philadelphia''. *Jazz

harpist The harp is a stringed musical instrument that has a number of individual strings running at an angle to its soundboard; the strings are plucked with the fingers. Harps can be made and played in various ways, standing or sitting, and in orc ...

Brandee Younger Brandee Younger (born July 1, 1983) is an American harpist. Younger infuses classical, jazz, soul, and funk influences to the harp tradition pioneered by her predecessors and idols Dorothy Ashby and Alice Coltrane. Younger leads her own ensemble ...

and bassist

Dezron Douglas Dezron Lamont Douglas is an American jazz double bassist, composer, and producer. He has produced for Louis Hayes, and Brandee Younger. Biography Douglas was raised in Hartford, Connecticut and studied tuba and bass at the Hartford Conservator ...

played an instrumental version on the 2020 album ''Force Majeure''.

Samples

*The song was sampled in American rapper

Yung Joc Jasiel Amon Robinson (born September 20, 1980), better known by his stage name Yung Joc, is an American rapper. He is best known for his 2006 hit single " It's Goin' Down". and as a feature on T-Pain's US number-one single "Buy U a Drank (Shawt ...

's song "Brand New", which featured

Snoop Dogg Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, " ...

and

Rick Ross William Leonard Roberts II (born January 28, 1976), known professionally as Rick Ross, is an American rapper. Prior to releasing his debut single, "Hustlin'", in 2006, Ross was the subject of a bidding war, receiving offers from Sean Combs, D ...

. *In January 2014,

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

n rappers

Verbal Jint Kim Jin-tae (Hangul: 김진태; born December 19, 1980), better known by his stage name Verbal Jint (Hangul: 버벌진트), is a South Korean rapper, record producer and musician who is known for his groundbreaking innovations in Korean hip hop ...

San E Jung San (; born ), more commonly known by his stage name San E (), is a South Korean rapper. He debuted in 2010 under JYP Entertainment, where he was the label's first solo rapper. He left the company in 2013 to sign with hip hop label Brand Ne ...

Bumkey Kwon Ki-bum (Hangul: 권기범, born September 22, 1984), known as Bumkey (Hangul: 범키), is a South Korean R&B singer under Brand New Music. He made his musical debut in 2010 as part of the hip hop duo 2winS and is currently a member of the K ...

, Swings,

Phantom Phantom may refer to: * Spirit (animating force), the vital principle or animating force within all living things ** Ghost, the soul or spirit of a dead person or animal that can appear to the living Aircraft * Boeing Phantom Ray, a stealthy un ...

and Kanto, all from the

Brand New Music Brand New Music (Hangul: 브랜뉴 뮤직, also stylized as BrandNew Music and initialized as BNM) is a South Korean hip hop company founded in 2011 by rapper . History 2003–2012: Founding and first-generation artists Kim Se-hwan (Hangul: � ...

agency, released "You Make Me Feel Brand New (Brand New Year 2013)", which contains a sample of this song.

Popular culture

*It was also used in TV commercials for

Woolite Woolite is an American brand of laundry detergent and cleaning products owned by the British multinational company Reckitt. The company acquired the Woolite brand when it bought Boyle-Midway from American Home Products / Wyeth in 1990. The comp ...

in the mid 1980s and in TV advertisements for Australian department store

Myer Myer (stylised MYER, sometimes known as Myers) is an Australia, Australian mid-range to upscale department store chain. It trades in all Australian states and one of Australia's two self-governing territories. Myer retails a broad range of ...

in the late 1980s. In Britain, a version was used to advertise BioTex stain removing powder.

References

External links

* {{Authority control 1974 singles 1970s ballads 1974 songs Avco Records singles Cashbox number-one singles Pop ballads Rhythm and blues ballads Simply Red songs Songs written by Linda Creed Songs written by Thom Bell Soul ballads The Stylistics songs