''What Cha' Gonna Do for Me'' is the third solo album by

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, p ...

R&B/

funk Funk is a music genre that originated in African-American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African-Americans in the ...

singer

Chaka Khan Yvette Marie Stevens (born March 23, 1953), better known by her stage name Chaka Khan ( ), is an American singer. Known as the " Queen of Funk", her career has spanned more than five decades beginning in the early 1970s as the lead vocalist of ...

, released on

Warner Bros. Records Warner Records Inc. (known as Warner Bros. Records Inc. until 2019) is an American record label. A subsidiary of Warner Music Group, it is headquartered in Los Angeles, California. It was founded on March 19, 1958, as the recorded music division ...

in 1981. It was

certified gold 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 ...

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 ...

Overview

Three singles were released from ''What Cha' Gonna Do'': the

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Liverpool in 1960. The core lineup of the band comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are widely regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatle ...

cover "

We Can Work It Out "We Can Work It Out" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles, written by Paul McCartney and John Lennon. It was first issued as a A-side and B-side#Double A-side, double A-side single with "Day Tripper" in December 1965. The song was rec ...

" (US R&B #34), the McCrarys cover " Any Old Sunday" (#68) and the album's title track which became a number one hit on ''

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 advertis ...

'' R&B Singles chart. On Billboard's charts, the album reached #3 on Black Albums, #33 on Jazz Albums, and #17 on Pop Albums. This would be Chaka's highest-charting album until her 1980s-era breakthrough ''

I Feel For You "I Feel for You" is a song written by American musician Prince that originally appeared on his 1979 self-titled album. The most successful and best-known version was recorded by R&B singer Chaka Khan and appeared on her 1984 album of the same ...

''. Its popularity among jazz audiences was likely due to the inclusion of the

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie ( ; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improvisation, improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy El ...

composition "Night In Tunisia" with a guest appearance by Gillespie himself as well as what today would be called a 'sample' of

Charlie Parker Charles Parker Jr. (August 29, 1920 – March 12, 1955), nicknamed "Bird" or "Yardbird", was an American jazz Saxophone, saxophonist, bandleader, and composer. Parker was a highly influential soloist and leading figure in the development of beb ...

's legendary four bar

alto The musical term alto, meaning "high" in Italian (Latin: '' altus''), historically refers to the contrapuntal part higher than the tenor and its associated vocal range. In four-part voice leading alto is the second-highest part, sung in ch ...

break from his 1946 recording of the title. Khan's vocal interpretation also features lyrics written by the singer herself. This album was nominated for Best R&B Vocal Performance, Female in 1981.Chaka Khan @ The Envelope Awards Database
(Page 2) The instrumental intro to "

Fate Destiny, sometimes also called fate (), is a predetermined course of events. It may be conceived as a predeterminism, predetermined future, whether in general or of an individual. Fate Although often used interchangeably, the words wiktionary ...

" has been sampled by a host of dance acts all through the 1990s and 2000s, most notably by Stardust on their 1998 hit single "

Music Sounds Better With You "Music Sounds Better with You" is the only record by the French house trio Stardust, released on 20 July 1998. Stardust comprised the Daft Punk member Thomas Bangalter, the DJ Alan Braxe, and the vocalist Benjamin Diamond. Stardust formed for ...

" and a section of "I Know You I Live You" also features on "Bad Habit" by ATFC & Onephatdeeva feat. Lisa Milett.

Reissues

''What Cha' Gonna Do For Me'' has only been re-issued on CD in both Europe and Japan. The album has yet to see a CD release in the United States, but did become domestically available digitally shortly after Khan won multiple Grammys for her 2007 album ''

Funk This ''Funk This'' is the eleventh studio album by American singer Chaka Khan. It was first released by Burgundy Records on September 25, 2007, in the United States. On October 13, 2007, the album entered at its peak position of number fifteen on th ...

''. In 2016, Big Break Records re-issued the album as an expanded edition with special liner notes, rare photos, and containing three bonus tracks: "Only Once", "Lover's Touch" and "I Know You, I Live You (Remix)". Though the remix of "I Know You, I Live You" was previously released on '' Life Is a Dance: The Remix Project'', the other two were only available on 7" singles until the Big Break reissue. "Lover's Touch" was the B-Side of "What Cha' Gonna Do For Me" in the US, and "Only Once" was the B-Side of "We Can Work It Out."

Commercial performance

What Cha' Gonna Do for Me debuted at number 80 on the US ''Billboard'' 200 during the week of May 9, 1981. The album would eventually peak at number 17 on the week of June 20, 1981. The album also peaked at number 3 on ''Billboard''s

Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a music chart published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks R&B and hip-hop albums based on sales in the United States and is compiled by Luminate. The chart debuted as Hot R&B LPs in the issue dated January 30, ...

chart during the week of June 13, 1981. On July 1, 1981, What Cha' Gonna Do for Me was certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America 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 ...

(RIAA).

Track listing

Personnel

* Chaka Khan – vocals, background vocals *

Steve Ferrone Stephen A. Ferrone (born 25 April 1950) is an English drummer. He is known as a member of the rock band Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers from 1994 to 2017, replacing original drummer Stan Lynch, and as part of the "classic lineup" of the Aver ...

– drums all tracks except 1, 6 * Anthony Jackson – bass all tracks except 1, 6 * David Williams – guitar all tracks except 1, 6 *

Hamish Stuart James Hamish Stuart (born 8 October 1949) is a Scottish guitarist, bassist, singer, composer and record producer. He was an original member of the Average White Band. Biography Born in Glasgow, Scotland, Stuart attended Queens Park School ...

– guitar all tracks except 1, 6 *

Larry Williams Lawrence Eugene Williams (May 10, 1935 – January 7, 1980) was an American rhythm and blues and rock and roll singer, songwriter, and pianist from New Orleans. He is best known for writing and recording some rock and roll classics from 1957 to ...

– keyboards, flute, saxophone, synthesizer all tracks except 1, 6 Track 1: “We Can Work It Out”
Drums - Ray Pounds
Keyboards ll Synthesizer ini Moog Bass-

Greg Phillinganes Gregory Arthur Phillinganes (born May 12, 1956) is an American keyboardist, vocalist, and arranger. A session musician, Phillinganes has contributed to numerous albums over a broad array of artists and genres. He has toured with artists includin ...

Guitar – Mike Sembello
Percussion –

Paulinho da Costa Paulinho da Costa (, born Paulo Roberto da Costa on May 31, 1948) is a Brazilian percussionist. Beginning his career as a samba musician in Brazil, he moved to the United States in the early 1970s and worked with Brazilian bandleader Sérgio Me ...

Horn Arrangement – Larry Williams
Horns rass, Reeds– Bill Reichenbach, Gary Grant, Kim Hutchcroft, Larry Hall, Larry Williams
Arranged by tring Arrangement– Arif Mardin
Concert Master -

Gene Orloff Gene Orloff (June 14, 1921 – March 23, 2009) was an American violinist, concertmaster, arranger, contractor and session musician. Background The son of a Russian immigrant violin maker, Orloff would try and get his father's violin down from th ...

Track 2: “What Cha’ Gonna Do For Me”
Synthesizer – Bob Christianson
Percussion – Crusher Bennett
Tenor Saxophone enor Sax Solo Soloist –

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as a performer and composer, received an honorary doctorate from Berklee College of Music in ...

Arranged by orn Arrangement– Arif Mardin
Horns rass, Reeds–

Barry Rogers Barron W. "Barry" Rogers (May 22, 1935 – April 18, 1991) was an American jazz and salsa trombonist. Career Born in The Bronx, he descended from Polish Jews and was raised in Spanish Harlem. His family (original name: Rogenstein) possessed a ...

, Lou Delgatto, Lou Soloff, Michael Brecker,

Randy Brecker Randal Edward Brecker (born November 27, 1945) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, and composer. His versatility has made him a popular studio musician who has recorded with acts in jazz, rock music, rock, and R&B. Early life Brecker was ...

Track 3, 10: “I Know You, I Live You”
Percussion – Crusher Bennett, Chaka Khan
Arranged by orn Arrangement Saxophone – Larry Williams
Trumpet –

Jerry Hey Jerry Hey (born 1950) is an American trumpeter, flugelhornist, horn arranger, string arranger, orchestrator and session musician who has played on hundreds of commercial recordings, including Michael Jackson's '' Thriller'', '' Rock with Y ...

Track 4: “Any Old Sunday”
Flugelhorn – Randy Brecker
Track 5: “We Got Each Other”
Vocals uet Vocal– Mark Stevens
Arranged by orn Arrangement Saxophone – Larry Williams
Trumpet – Jerry Hey Track 6: “And The Melody Still Lingers On (Night In Tunisia)”
Drums – Casey Scheuerell
Bass –

Abraham Laboriel Abraham Laboriel López (born July 17, 1947) is a Mexican-American bassist who has played on over 4,000 recordings and soundtracks. ''Guitar Player'' magazine called him "the most widely used session bassist of our time". Laboriel is the fathe ...

Electric Piano –

Ronnie Foster Ronnie Foster (born May 12, 1950) is an American funk and soul jazz organist, and record producer. His albums recorded for Blue Note Records in the 1970s have gained a cult following after the emergence of acid jazz. Early life Foster was born ...

Keyboards lavitar Solo, Break Synthesizer berheim Bells–

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer. He started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. Hancock soon joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he helped to redefine the role of ...

Percussion – Paulinho da Costa
Synthesizer ini Moog Bass, Prophet 5–

David Foster David Walter Foster (born November 1, 1949) is a Canadian record producer, composer, arranger, and musician. He has won 16 Grammy Awards from 47 nominations. His career began as a keyboardist for the pop group Skylark in the early 1970s befor ...

Trumpet –

Track 7: "Night Moods"
Arranged by tring Arrangement– Arif Mardin
Concert Master - Gene Orloff Track 8: “Heed The Warning”
Synthesizer oog Synthesizer Soloist olo– David Richards Track 9: “Fate”
Clavinet –

Richard Tee Richard Edward Tee (born Richard Edward Ten Ryk; November 24, 1943 – July 21, 1993) was an American jazz fusion pianist, studio musician, singer and arranger, who had several hundred studio credits and played on such notable hits as " I'll B ...

Guitar uitar Solo Soloist –

Hiram Bullock Hiram Law Bullock (September 11, 1955 – July 25, 2008) was an American guitarist known mainly for playing in jazz funk and jazz fusion, but he also worked as a session musician in a variety of genres. Biography Bullock was born in Osaka, Ja ...

Percussion – Crusher Bennett
Synthesizer – David Richards

Non-album tracks

* "Lover's Touch" — B-side of single "What Cha' Gonna Do For Me" (WBS 49692) (Taylor) - 4:31 * "Only Once" — B-side of single "We Can Work It Out" (WBS 49759) (Ruff, Ruff, Kaplan) - 3:55

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

External links

*
What Cha' Gonna Do for Me
' at

Discogs Discogs ( ; short for " discographies") is a database of information about audio recordings, including commercial releases, promotional releases, and bootleg or off-label releases. Database contents are user-generated, and described in ''T ...

{{Authority control 1981 albums Chaka Khan albums Albums produced by Arif Mardin Warner Records albums