Take the Heat off Me
Studio album by
Boney M.
ReleasedJune 28, 1976
RecordedDecember 1974 – April 1976
Genre
Length36:05
Label
ProducerFrank Farian
Boney M. chronology
Take the Heat off Me
(1976)		 Love for Sale
(1977)
Singles from Take the Heat off Me
  1. "Baby Do You Wanna Bump"
    Released: February 1975
  2. "Daddy Cool"
    Released: May 31, 1976
  3. "Sunny"
    Released: November 22, 1976
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Christgau's Record GuideB[2]

Take the Heat off Me is the debut album by Euro-Caribbean group Boney M. The album became a major seller in Europe, specifically in the Nordic countries (number 1 in Sweden and Finland, number 2 in Norway), but in the US the album just missed the album chart. Tracks include the hits "Daddy Cool" (number 1 in eight European countries, number 65 on the Billboard Hot 100), "Sunny" (top 5 in many European countries) and the debut single "Baby Do You Wanna Bump".

Additional information

Producer Frank Farian was in a hurry to capitalize on the sudden success of "Daddy Cool" and put together the first Boney M. album quickly, made possible by the use of cover versions and by reusing already existing recordings.

While "Baby Do You Wanna Bump" was reworked from Prince Buster's "Al Capone" (although credited to Farian's alias 'Zambi'), "Sunny", "No Woman No Cry" and "Fever" are cover versions of well-known tracks, albeit rearranged. The title track "Take the Heat off Me" is also a cover, of the 1974 Italian hit "Nessuno mai" ("No one ever") by Italian artist Marcella Bella.

Versions of three tracks had previously been released by another Farian produced artist Gilla in German, "Take the Heat off Me" ("Mir ist kein weg zu weit"), "Lovin' or Leavin'" ("Lieben und frei sein") and the UK/US exclusive "Help, Help" ("Ich brenne"), the last of which Gilla also recorded in English. Gilla would furthermore record German versions of "Sunny" and "No Woman No Cry", using the same backing tracks. The B-side of the single "Sunny", the non-album track "New York City", also recycles Gilla, in fact two of her tracks: "Tu Es" (English version "Why Don't You Do It") and "Ich brenne" ("Help, Help!"). "Got a Man on My Mind" was rewritten from Farian's "Am Samstagabend", the B-side of his 1976 hit single "Rocky".

"Daddy Cool" is in fact the only truly original track on the album.

Track listing

Side A

  1. "Daddy Cool" (Frank Farian, George Reyam (Hans-Jörg Mayer)) – 3:29
  2. "Take the Heat off Me" (Bigazzi, Gianni Bella) – 4:47
  3. "Sunny" (Bobby Hebb) – 4:03
  4. "Baby Do You Wanna Bump" (Zambi (Frank Farian)) – 6:53

Side B

  1. "No Woman No Cry" (Vincent Ford, Bob Marley) – 4:59
  2. "Fever" (Eddie Cooley, John Davenport) – 4:00
  3. "Got a Man on My Mind" (Frank Farian, Fred Jay) – 3:25
  4. "Lovin' or Leavin'" (Frank Farian, Fred Jay) – 4:29

Personnel

Musicians

  • Liz Mitchell – lead vocals (tracks A3, B1, B2 & B3), backing vocals
  • Marcia Barrett – lead vocals (tracks A2 & B4), backing vocals
  • Frank Farian – lead vocals (tracks A1 & A4), backing vocals
  • The Rhythm Machine – musicians
  • Gary Unwin – bass guitar
  • Keith Forsey – drums
  • Nick Woodland – guitar
  • Thor Baldursson – keyboards

Production

  • Frank Farian – producer
  • Steven Hammer (Stefan Klinkhammer) – arranger, conductor
  • Recorded at Union Studios, Munich and Europasound Studios, Frankfurt

Charts

Certifications

Certifications for Take the Heat off Me
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Canada
combined sales with second album 		— 48,000[16]
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[17] Silver 25,000[18]
Finland (Musiikkituottajat)[19] Gold 26,259[19]
France — 300,000[20]
Germany (BVMI)[21] Gold 250,000^
Greece (IFPI Greece)[22] Gold 50,000^
Hong Kong (IFPI Hong Kong)[23] Platinum 20,000*
Spain
combined sales with first album 		— 300,000[24]
Sweden (GLF)[25] Platinum 100,000^
United Kingdom (BPI)[26] Silver 60,000^

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Reissued

  • 1994: CD, BMG 74321 21271 2
  • 2007: CD, Sony BMG Music Entertainment 88697082602
  • 2011: Boney M. Original Album Classics, 5 CD, Sony Music 88697928702
  • 2017: Boney M. Complete, 9 LP, Sony Music 88985406971

References

  1. ↑ Take the Heat off Me at AllMusic
  2. ↑ Christgau, Robert (1981). "Consumer Guide '70s: B". Christgau's Record Guide: Rock Albums of the Seventies. Ticknor & Fields. ISBN 089919026X. Retrieved February 22, 2019 – via robertchristgau.com.
  3. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 41. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  4. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  5. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  6. ↑ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  7. ↑ "Offiziellecharts.de – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 21 October 2021.
  8. ↑ Racca, Guido (2019). M&D Borsa Album 1964–2019 (in Italian). ISBN 978-1094705002.
  9. ↑ "Charts.nz – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  10. ↑ "Norwegiancharts.com – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  11. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Boney M. – Take The Heat Off Me". Hung Medien. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  12. ↑ "Official Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 31 August 2021.
  13. ↑ "Jahreshitparade Alben 1977" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  14. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Album 1977" (in Dutch). Dutch Charts. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  15. ↑ "Top 100 Album-Jahrescharts" (in German). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  16. ↑ David Farrell (July 14, 1979). "Sales Of European Acts Aided By Demographics". Billboard. No. 48. p. 84. Retrieved November 17, 2023 – via Google Books.
  17. ↑ "Gold Records All The Way". Billboard. January 22, 1977. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  18. ↑ "Gold/Silver Record Chart". Billboard. December 26, 1974. Retrieved November 13, 2018.
  19. 1 2 "Boney M" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved August 28, 2013.
  20. ↑ Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique (SNEP). Fabrice Ferment (ed.). "TOP – 1978". 40 ans de tubes : 1960–2000 : les meilleures ventes de 45 tours & CD singles (in French). OCLC 469523661. Archived from the original on October 19, 2020. Retrieved November 17, 2023 – via Top-France.fr.
  21. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Boney M.; 'Take the Headof Me')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie. Retrieved April 9, 2020.
  22. ↑ "From the Music Capitols of the World – Athens" (PDF). Billboard. November 18, 1978. p. 73. Retrieved January 25, 2022 – via World Radio History.
  23. ↑ "IFPIHK Gold Disc Award − 1978". IFPI Hong Kong. Retrieved April 25, 2018.
  24. ↑ "Sounding Board Q". Billboard. July 16, 1979. p. 76. Retrieved November 17, 2023 – via Google Books. {{cite magazine}}: Cite magazine requires |magazine= (help)
  25. ↑ "No Bones To Make" (PDF). Cash Box. October 15, 1977. p. 55. Retrieved November 29, 2019 – via American Radio History.
  26. ↑ "British album certifications – Boney M. – Take the Heat off Me". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
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