| Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin') | |
| Type: | single |
| Artist: | Johnny Rivers |
| Album: | Outside Help |
| B-Side: | Outside Help |
| Released: | June 1977 |
| Genre: | Soft rock |
| Length: | 4:02 |
| Label: | Soul City (original local release) Big Tree (national release) |
| Prev Title: | Ashes and Sand |
| Prev Year: | 2013 |
| Next Title: | Curious Mind (Um, Um, Um, Um, Um, Um) |
| Next Year: | 2013 |
"Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')", initially titled "Slow Dancing", is a song written by Jack Tempchin. Under the title "Slow Dancing", the song originally was a minor US hit in 1976 for the band Funky Kings (of which Tempchin was a member). The song became much better known as "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')" in a 1977 cover version by Johnny Rivers, which became a top ten US hit. It was Rivers' last Top 40 hit in the United States, and became his second Gold record.
In 1979, Johnny Duncan covered the song under its original title "Slow Dancing", and had a top ten hit on the country charts with it in both the US and Canada.
The song describes a young man slow dancing in the middle of the night with his girlfriend. Nothing needs to be done at the moment; the man tells his girlfriend that he wouldn't want to be anywhere else or be with anyone else.
The first version of the song was made on the self-titled 1976 album by the Funky Kings whose membership included its composer Jack Tempchin: entitled "Slow Dancing", the track was issued as a single in October 1976, reaching #13 on the Easy Listening chart in Billboard crossing over to #61 on the Billboard Hot 100. Olivia Newton-John recorded "Slow Dancing" for her 1977 album release Making a Good Thing Better, with the lyrics changed from "my girl" to "my guy." A version of the song also appeared on the 1977 album release One More Tomorrow by the group Unicorn, fronted by Muff Winwood. The Unicorn version was issued as a single in 1977, with a 1978 re-release. "Slow Dancing" was also a single release for Lorna Wright in the summer of 1977.
Rivers recording of the song was originally released under the title "Slow Dancing" in April 1977. It was initially issued on Rivers's own Soul City label; the single was the company's first release following the label's reactivation. After gaining airplay and response from customers, Rivers decided to lease the record to Big Tree (which was a subsidiary of Atlantic Records) for national distribution.[1] The track was then issued on Big Tree in June 1977 under the title "Swayin' to the Music (Slow Dancin')" to avoid confusion with the current single release "Slow Dancing Don't Turn Me On" by the Addrisi Brothers.
Rivers's "Swayin' to the Music" had great chart success, reaching #10 on Billboard Hot 100, #8 on the US Adult Contemporary chart, #3 on Canada's chart, and #7 on Canada's Adult Contemporary chart. It is also Rivers's most successful song on iTunes.
| Chart (1977) | Peak position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | 36 | |
| Canada Top Singles (RPM)[2] | 3 | |
| Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM) | 7 | |
| 10 | ||
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary[3] | 8 | |
| U.S. Cashbox Top 100[4] | 6 | |
| U.S. Record World [5] | 11 |
| Chart (1977) | Rank | |
|---|---|---|
| Canada[6] | 39 | |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[7] | 49 | |
| U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary [8] | ||
| U.S. Cash Box [9] | 9 |
. Joel Whitburn . 1993 . Top Adult Contemporary: 1961–1993 . Record Research . 201.
. The Billboard Book Of Top 40 Country Hits: 1944-2006, Second edition. Joel Whitburn . 2004 . Record Research . 112.