"Get It Up" is the debut single by American funk rock band the Time, from their 1981 self-titled debut album. Like most of the album, the song was recorded in Prince's home studio in April 1981, and was produced, arranged, composed and performed by Prince with Morris Day later adding his lead vocals.[1] Revolution keyboardist Doctor Fink provided synth solos on the track, uncredited.

"Get It Up"
7" single cover
Single by the Time
from the album The Time
B-side"After Hi School"
ReleasedJune 26, 1981
RecordedApril 1981
StudioMinneapolis, Minnesota
Genre
Length3:01 (7" edit)
9:08 (album version)
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Prince
Producer(s)
  • Morris Day
  • Prince (as "Jamie Starr")
The Time singles chronology
"Get It Up"
(1981)
"Cool"
(1981)

The funk-pop number relies on synthesizers and contains numerous solos throughout the song. The song is propelled by a strong bass line and contains live drums and handclaps. A raunchy guitar solo provides a rock element to the funky track. "Get It Up" is basically an ode to sex and Day's attempts to get some. Prince's vocals are very apparent in the song, both in the background and the lead at times.

"Get It Up" was only released as a 7" single with the poppy "After Hi School" as its B-side. "After Hi School", while not an outstanding effort was composed by Dez Dickerson and is perhaps the strongest pop effort on the album. Along with the track "Cool", "Get It Up" peaked at number six on the US Billboard Hot R&B singles chart, and at number 16 on the Disco Top 80 chart.[2] The full version of "Get It Up" was later a B-side for the 12" single of "Ice Cream Castles" in 1984. "Get It Up" is one of The Time's more popular numbers, and a live version of the song recorded at the House of Blues in 1998 was included on Morris Day's 2004 album, It's About Time where it segues into "777-9311".

Personnel

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Credits sourced from Prince Vault and Guitarcloud[3][4][nb 1]

TLC version

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"Get It Up"
 
Single by TLC
from the album Poetic Justice: Music from the Motion Picture
ReleasedJune 6, 1993 (1993-06-06)
Recorded1993
Genre
Length4:25 (album version)
4:02 (radio edit)
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)Prince
Producer(s)
TLC singles chronology
"Hat 2 da Back"
(1992)
"Get It Up"
(1993)
"Creep"
(1994)
Music video
"Get It Up" on YouTube

"Get It Up" was covered by American girl group TLC for the Poetic Justice soundtrack becoming a major hit for the group and was later included in TLC's first greatest hits album, Now and Forever: The Hits (2003). The music video for "Get It Up" was shot in June 1993.

Charts

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Notes

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  1. ^ Due to the similar recording times, most of the equipment can be identified by looking at the most recent album Prince made, which in this case is Dirty Mind.

References

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  1. ^ Hill, Dave (1989). Prince A Pop Life (First American ed.). New York: Harmony Books. p. 102. ISBN 0517572826.
  2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Hot Dance/Disco: 1974-2003. Record Research. p. 260.
  3. ^ "Album: The Time - Prince Vault". www.princevault.com. Retrieved 2023-05-05.
  4. ^ "Dirty Mind". guitarcloud.org. Retrieved 2023-05-10.
  5. ^ "TLC ARIA chart history complete to 2024". ARIA. Retrieved July 20, 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
  6. ^ "European Dance Radio" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 39. September 25, 1993. p. 28. Retrieved November 6, 2021.
  7. ^ "TLC – Get It Up". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  8. ^ "TLC Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  9. ^ "TLC Chart History (Dance Singles Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
  10. ^ "TLC Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  11. ^ "TLC Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved December 5, 2017.
  12. ^ "Top 100 Pop Singles" (PDF). Cash Box. Vol. LVI, no. 47. July 31, 1993. p. 12. Retrieved April 20, 2024.
  13. ^ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 1993". Billboard. Archived from the original on August 3, 2015. Retrieved November 5, 2021.