100 Yard Dash

"100 Yard Dash" is a song by American recording artist Raphael Saadiq, released as a single on March 30, 2009, by Columbia Records.[1] It was the second single from Saadiq's 2008 album The Way I See It. "100 Yard Dash" is an upbeat soul song about love as a fast, impulsive race. Although it did not chart, the song was well received by music critics.

For the track and field event, see 100-yard dash.
"100 Yard Dash"
Single by Raphael Saadiq
from the album The Way I See It
ReleasedMarch 30, 2009 (2009-03-30)
Recorded2008
GenreSoul
Length2:18
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Bobby Ozuna, Raphael Saadiq
Producer(s)Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq singles chronology
"Love That Girl"
(2008)		 "100 Yard Dash"
(2009)		 "Never Give You Up"
(2009)
Audio sample
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Music and lyrics

"100 Yard Dash" is a short, upbeat song with a traditional soul style, tambourine shakes,[2] and a stiff backbeat.[3] Percussionist Jack Ashford played characteristically funky, tambourine shuffle notes on the song.[3]

The song's lyrics express playful physicality,[4] and liken love to a fast race that impels a man's heart:[5] "My heart is pumping but still running in place".[6] Arts critic Ken Tucker views "100 Yard Dash" as exemplary of "top-rate" soul songwriting, writing that, "Saadiq takes an unorthodox metaphor ... and he earns it by the variations he sustains verbally, increasing the tension in the song."[5] Saadiq sings at an uncharacteristically high pitch,[7] the highest of any song on the album.[8]

Music video

A music video for the song was released on January 27, 2009.[9] It was filmed in black-and-white and incorporated splashes of color in graphics inspired by classic Reprise and Blue Note Records album covers.[10] Saadiq wanted the video to serve as an "extension" of the song's album and evoke the music era that inspired its sound.[9]

Live performances

Saadiq performed the song on Live from the Artists Den on December 3, 2008.[11] He also performed the song on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno on February 10, 2009,[12] and on Dancing with the Stars on May 13.[13] Niccole Culver of Creative Loafing cited the song as a "crowd favorite" in a review of Saadiq's performance at the Variety Playhouse in Atlanta.[14]

Reception

Luke Grundy of The Independent called "100 Yard Dash" "irrepressibly funky",[15] and Time Out's Areif Sless-Kitain cited it as one of the "strongest tracks" on The Way I See It.[3] Thomas Fawcett of The Austin Chronicle commented that it "demands a sprint to the dance floor."[16] Misha Berson of The Seattle Times complimented "Saadiq's high, sweet voice" and the song's "slick soul arrangement," writing that it "evokes happy memories of '60s Motown stars like Marvin Gaye and The Temptations in their prime."[17] Ken Tucker of NPR praised the song's "propulsive melody" and viewed it as "a brilliant take on Smokey Robinson and the Miracles."[5] Michael Menachem of Billboard found the song to be "complemented by Saadiq's vocal, with emphasis in all the right places", and "recorded in the classic tradition of short R&B songs: It leaves listeners wanting more, so they play the record again and again."[2]

Nate Chinen of The New York Times named "100 Yard Dash" one of the top-five singles of 2008.[18] The single did not chart.[19]

Track listing
CD single[1]
No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
1."100 Yard Dash"Bobby Ozuna, Raphael SaadiqBobby Ozuna (co.), Raphael Saadiq2:18

Personnel

Credits adapted from liner notes for The Way I See It.[20]

  • Jack Ashford – bells, shaker, tambourine, vibraphone
  • Charles Brungardt – recording engineer
  • Tom Coyne – mastering
  • Bobby Ozuna – co-producer, composer
  • Raphael Saadiq – composer, instrumentalist, mixing, producer, recording engineer, vocals
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References
  1. "Raphael Saadiq - 100 Yard Dash". Hung Medien. Archived from the original on 2012-09-21. Retrieved 2012-09-07.
  2. Menachem, Michael (February 21, 2009). "100 Yard Dash". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  3. Sless-Kitain, Areif (November 18, 2008). "Raphael Saadiq". Time Out. Chicago. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-17.
  4. Deusner, Stephen M. (October 22, 2008). "Raphael Saadiq: The Way I See It". Pitchfork Media. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved April 6, 2012.
  5. Bianculli, David; Tucker, Ken (October 10, 2008). "Saadiq Revisits R&B Past In 'The Way I See It'". Fresh Air. Philadelphia. NPR. WHYY-FM. Archived from the original on 2015-01-01. Transcript. Retrieved 2012-04-07.
  6. Hope, Clover (September 17, 2008). "Raphael Saadiq, Celebrating Classic Soul Without Merely Aping It". The Village Voice. New York. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-04-03.
  7. Farinella, David John (January 1, 2009). "Music: Raphael Saadiq". Mix. Archived from the original on 2012-09-21. Retrieved April 21, 2012.
  8. Coachman, Dale (September 1, 2008). "Raphael Saadiq: World Soul". Clutch Magazine. Sutton New Media LLC. Archived from the original on 2012-09-21. Retrieved April 7, 2012.
  9. Eisen, Benjy (January 27, 2009). "Raphael Saadiq, '100 Yard Dash' — Video Premiere". Spinner. AOL. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  10. "The Fab Five". Fort Worth Star-Telegram. February 15, 2009. Your Life section, p. F5. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  11. Concepcion, Mariel (August 14, 2009). "Watch Raphael Saadiq Perform '100 Yard Dash' Live". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  12. Shamz (February 11, 2009). "Video: Raphael Saadiq "100 Yard Dash" (Live on Jay Leno)". Okayplayer. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-04-09.
  13. Barrett, Annie (May 13, 2009). "Dancing With the Stars recap: And Then There Were Three". Entertainment Weekly. New York. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-09-18.
  14. Culver, Niccole (March 31, 2009). "Live review: Raphael Saadiq at Variety Playhouse". Creative Loafing. Atlanta. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  15. Grundy, Luke (May 2, 2011). "Raphael Saadiq, Shepherd's Bush Empire, London". The Independent. London. Archived from the original on September 3, 2012. Retrieved 2012-04-10.
  16. Fawcett, Thomas (October 24, 2012). "Raphael Saadiq". The Austin Chronicle. Archived from the original on September 3, 2012. Retrieved 2012-04-06.
  17. Berson, Misha (September 4, 2009). "Raphael Saadiq finds a new groove of his own in '60s soul". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  18. Chinen, Nate (December 21, 2008). "Standouts in Rap, Jazz and Country". The New York Times. p. AR33. Archived from the original on September 21, 2012. Retrieved 2012-06-30.
  19. "100 Yard Dash - Raphael Saadiq". Billboard. Retrieved 2012-10-19.
  20. The Way I See It (CD liner). Raphael Saadiq. New York City: Columbia Records. 2008. 88697 08585 2.CS1 maint: others (link)
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