I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down
"I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" is a song written by Memphis-based songwriter Earl Randle, and first recorded in 1972 by soul singer Ann Peebles. The song was also a hit in 1984 for English singer Paul Young.
"I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" | ||||
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Single by Ann Peebles | ||||
from the album I Can't Stand the Rain | ||||
B-side | "One Way Street" | |||
Released | January 1973 | |||
Recorded | 1972 | |||
Length | 2:55 | |||
Label | Hi | |||
Songwriter(s) | Earl Randle | |||
Producer(s) | Willie Mitchell | |||
Ann Peebles singles chronology | ||||
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"I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" | |
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Single by Paul Young | |
from the album The Secret of Association | |
B-side | "One Step Forward" |
Released | October 1984 (UK) August 1985 (US) |
Recorded | 1984 |
Genre | New wave, synthpop |
Length | 4:39 |
Label | Columbia (US) CBS (UK) |
Songwriter(s) | Earl Randle |
Producer(s) | Laurie Latham |
Ann Peebles version
Produced by Willie Mitchell and with performances by the Hi Rhythm Section, Ann Peebles' recording was made at the Royal Studios on South Lauderdale Avenue in Memphis.[1] It was issued as a single on the Hi label in January 1973.[2] It reached no.31 on the US R&B chart,[3] and "bubbled under" the Hot 100, reaching no.111.[4] The track was also included on her 1974 album I Can't Stand the Rain.
Writer Craig Werner said:[5]
Like the most powerful gospel soul from the early sixties, "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" serves notice on a cheating lover (white America? the brothers in the Black Panther movement?) that the free ride has come to an end. It's a restatement of the revolutionary gospel anthem "Samson and Delilah," and the message, on every level, is the same: "If I had my way, I would tear this building down."
Later versions
- The song was later recorded by Graham Parker and the Rumour on their 1977 album Stick to Me.
- A cover version by Paul Young reached no. 9 on the UK singles chart in 1984, and no.13 on the Billboard Hot 100 when re-released the following year.[4][6] It was included on Young's album The Secret of Association (1985).
Samples
- The Ann Peebles' version of "I'm Gonna Tear Your Playhouse Down" was sampled in the track "The Plan" by Wu-Tang Clan affiliated group Sunz of Man on their album The Last Shall Be First (1998).
References
- Miss Funkyflyy, "Ann Peebles Bio (part 2)". Retrieved 29 June 2014
- 45cat.com. Retrieved 29 June 2014
- Whitburn, Joel (1996). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942-1995. Record Research. p. 344.
- Whitburn, Joel (2003). Top Pop Singles 1955-2002 (1st ed.). Menomonee Falls, Wisconsin: Record Research Inc. p. 783. ISBN 0-89820-155-1.
- Werner, Craig (2006). A Change is Gonna Come: Music, Race & the Soul of America (1st ed.). p. 181.
- SecondhandSongs.com. Retrieved 29 June 2014