Written by Rick James Key Recordings
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Heading into 1981 Rick James' commercial prospects were looking dim. At the same time his label the legendary Motown Records was slumping. The glory days of the early 70's with massive smash hits by Marvin Gaye, Stevie Wonder and others were far behind. Following 3 successive albums that had hit the Top 10 on the R&B charts, Rick James' 1980 release Garden Of Love struggled into the R&B Top 20 without a Top 10 single.
Rick James' answer to these woes appeared in the spring of 1981. Give It To Me Baby roared out of the gate with bracing Funk beats, searing declamatory vocals, and a fierce horn section. The song would soon find itself seated at the top of the Billboard R&B singles chart for 5 full weeks. Hot on the heels of the single, the accompanying album Street Songs was released and landed at the top of the R&B albums chart.
In the Post-Disco environment of the early 80's, Give It To Me Baby helped break down barriers in Dance clubs and create a niche for edgy Funk in the clubs. Other artists such as Prince and Teena Marie helped champion Dance music with a funky beat.
Give It To Me Baby raised some eyebrows with its frank subject matter. The song details disagreements about having sex when the song's protagonist comes home intoxicated. By current standards, the lyrics would probably seem rather tame, but in the early 1980's Give It To Me Baby generated controversy.
Give It To Me Baby barely reached the Top 40 of the Pop chart, largely due to radio programmer nervousness about the song's subject matter. The followup single Super Freak broke down some of the Pop boundaries but failed to match the success of Give It To Me Baby in R&B and Dance circles. The album Street Songs was a smash across the board and helped commercially revitalize Motown Records and lead them into a new musical era.
