King Harvest formed in 1970 in Ithaca, New York, migrated to Paris, France, broke up in 1972, and then reunited back here in the States when its band members realized they had a hit single on their hands. Its four founding members met at Cornell University and would remain with the band (with many additional players joining over the years) until King Harvest called it quits in 1976. The four members would reunite in 2012, and for the next three years (minus Doc Robinson who, sadly, passed away in December of 2012) released a new album each year. For its relatively short career, King Harvest has released ten studio LPs, (exactly one of which charted) and had 11 singles (two of which charted). King Harvest got a little love from The Beach Boys (Carl Wilson and Mike Love helped the band get signed to a record deal after their one hit song), played country and western in Scandinavia for a while, and have had their one hit single featured numerous times in films.
"Dancing in the Moonlight" was released in 1972, and after having achieved hit status was quickly put on an album of the same name. It would reach #13 (with a bullet!) on the Billboard Hot 100, while the album peaked at #136 on the Billboard 200. It would also reach #5 on the Canadian charts (so many cool kids in Canada...).
Fun Fact: The song was written in 1969 by Sherman Kelly in response to his having been beaten up badly by a gang, as a peaceful celebration of the good he still perceived in the world. He recorded it with his band Boffalongo (there's a name for you), but had no commercial success. His brother Wells introduced it to his band mates in King Harvest who turned it into the only hit of their career.
I'd be the first to admit that the lyrics for "Dancing in the Moonlight" are a bit dated (no one uses "get it on" as a euphemism for sex anymore or says "out of sight" when something is really cool), and its sentiments may be even more so...but no matter. It wondrously captures an era I lived through, when it still seemed possible to solve the world's ills by simply dancing in the moonlight. The song is catchy from beginning to end, features a soulful vocal from Doc Robinson, and wonderful backing vocals from the rest of the band. It's a beautiful piece of pop nirvana, and if it seems a bit too rosy, to steal a line from Elvis Costello, what's so funny about peace, love, and understanding?
Lyric Sheet: "We like our fun and we never fight/You can't dance and stay uptight/It's a supernatural delight..."
Enjoy:
Fuck Donald Trump,
emaycee
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