| Time Warp | |
| Cover: | Time Warp.jpg |
| Caption: | South African single A-side label |
| Type: | song |
| Album: | The Rocky Horror Picture Show |
| Length: | 3:18 |
| Composer: | Richard O'Brien, Richard Hartley |
| Lyricist: | Richard O'Brien |
"Time Warp" is a song featured in the 1973 rock musical The Rocky Horror Show, its 1975 film adaptation The Rocky Horror Picture Show, and a 2016 TV production. The song title comes from a dance performed during the chorus of the song.
The song is both an example and a parody of the dance song genre, with much of its lyrics consisting of instructions for performing the dance. (Example: "It's just a jump to the left / And then a step to the right / Put your hands on your hips / Bring your knees in tight.")[1]
This dance became one of the major audience participation activities during screenings of the film and live performances of the show.[2]
The song is in the key of A major.[3]
"Time Warp" was the fifth song in the original stage show (after "Science Fiction/Double Feature", "Dammit Janet", "Over at the Frankenstein Place" and "Sweet Transvestite"), but fourth in the film (following "Over at the Frankenstein Place" and preceding "Sweet Transvestite").
Stage productions continued to use the original placement until Richard O'Brien revised the script for the 1990 West End revival in which he moved the song to the film's placement. For reasons of pacing, most productions now follow this order.[4]
The song is reprised briefly at the end of the film, in flashback, and in the stage show it serves as an encore led by Dr. Frank N. Furter.[4]
| The Rocky Horror Picture Show | ||
|---|---|---|
| Chart (1980–81) | Peak position | |
| Australia (Kent Music Report) | 3 | |
| Canada (RPM Top Singles) | 12 | |
| Europe (Euro Digital Songs) (Billboard) | 16 | |
| France | 20 | |
| UK (UK Singles Chart) | 13 | |
| U.S. (Billboard) (Hot 100)[6] | 29 | |
| Chart (1980) | Position | |
|---|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[7] | 66 | |
| Chart (1981) | Position | |
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[8] | 27 |
The Hillywood Show used the song in a Doctor Who parody, which David Tennant called "extraordinary".[9] [10] [11]
