It was one of those situations that so infuriate record companies, signing an artist who is phenomenally popular live and watching his record sales fail time and time again to live up to company expectations.
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seemingly had broken into the mainstream, but IRS just wasn't seeing the results on paper. And thus the label recommended the DJ record a pop cover, one that would inevitably chart and give his album sales a good kick.
"
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" was an inspired choice. The song was a huge hit back in 1968, topping a clutch of European charts, including Britain's and Germany's, while also creeping into the lower reaches of the U.S. Top 40. The band behind the song,
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, was best remembered in later years for its songwriting guitarist,
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.
The original was a party piece, exuberant pure pop.
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was keen to keep that festive atmosphere, and he and his co-producers, who also perform on the song, effortlessly achieved their goal, helped by sampling
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's signature guitar line. However, while keeping "
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" pop-inflected, the trio adds a storming reggae rhythm that never lets up. Singsonging across the number, sweet backing vocals ringing out behind,
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and company have a glorious time.
"
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" did the trick, and the single soared to the top of the British chart, 26 years after
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had first placed it there. It tore across Europe and Australia, but bizarrely, this time around, America remained impervious to its many charms.