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Get Down Tonight

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"Get Down Tonight"
French 7-Inch Single Cover
Single by KC and the Sunshine Band
from the album KC and the Sunshine Band
B-side"You Don't Know"
ReleasedFebruary 11, 1975
Genre
Length
  • 3:21 (single version)
  • 5:19 (album version)
LabelTK
Songwriters
Producers
  • Harry Wayne Casey
  • Richard Finch
KC and the Sunshine Band singles chronology
"I'm a Pushover"
(1974)		 "Get Down Tonight"
(1975)		 "Shotgun Shuffle"
(1975)
Official audio
"Get Down Tonight" on YouTube

"Get Down Tonight" is a song by American disco and funk band KC and the Sunshine Band, released in February 1975 by TK Records as the first single from their second and self-titled album (1975). The song became widely successful, becoming the first of their five No. 1 hits on the US Billboard Hot 100. It also reached the top of the Billboard Hot Soul Singles chart[5] and was an international chart hit, reaching No. 1 in Canada and charting in Australia (No. 44), Belgium (No. 11), the Netherlands (No. 5), and the UK (No. 21). In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked "Get Down Tonight" number 100 in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".[6]

Composition

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The song displays some of the signature characteristics of the disco era such as a fast tempo and repeating lyrics. It also features a distinctive introduction, employing a guitar solo rendered at double-speed.[7] The song was originally titled "What You Want Is What You Get" before KC changed the title to "Get Down Tonight".[8]

Personnel

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Credits adapted from the liner notes of the 1975 album KC and the Sunshine Band, on which "Get Down Tonight" originally appeared.[9]

  • Harry Wayne Casey – keyboards, vocals
  • Richard Finch – bass guitar, drums, percussion
  • Robert "Shotgun" Johnson – drums
  • Jerome Smith – guitar
  • Fermin Goytisolo – percussion
  • Oliver C. Brown – percussion
  • Ken Faulk – trumpet
  • Vinnie Tanno – trumpet
  • Mike Lewis – tenor saxophone[a]
  • Whit Sidener – baritone saxophone
  • Beverly Champion – background vocals
  • Margaret Reynolds – background vocals
  • Jeanette Williams – background vocals

Sampling

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In 1998, the song was sampled by the house production act Bamboo for the hit single "Bamboogie". It reached No. 2 in the UK Singles Chart in January 1998.[11]

Legacy

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In October 2000, VH1 ranked "Get Down Tonight" number 12 in their list of "100 Greatest Dance Songs".[12] In July 2022, Rolling Stone ranked it number 100 in their list of the "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time".[6]

Charts

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Certifications

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Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[29] Gold 35,000‡
Canada (Music Canada)[30] Gold 75,000^
New Zealand (RMNZ)[31] Gold 15,000‡
United States (RIAA)[32] Platinum 1,000,000‡

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

See also

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Notes

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  1. ↑ Some sources additionally credit Lewis, with Harry Wayne Casey, as horn arranger.[10]

References

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  1. ↑ Yorke, Ritchie (1976). The History of Rock'n'roll. Methuen. p. 169. ISBN 978-0-8467-0186-6. And that's the way fans like it, as KC and the Sunshine Band came through with the top disco hit of the year, Get Down Tonight.
  2. ↑ Echols, Alice (March 29, 2010). "I Hear a Symphony: Black Masculinity and the Disco Turn". Hot Stuff: Disco and the Remaking of American Culture. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 28. ISBN 978-0-393-06675-3. Archived from the original on December 8, 2024. Retrieved December 6, 2024.
  3. ↑ Henderson, Alex. "KC & the Sunshine Band – KC and the Sunshine Band". AllMusic. Archived from the original on June 1, 2013. Retrieved May 23, 2013.
  4. ↑ Weeks, Marcus (2015). "KC & The Sunshine Band – "That's the Way (I Like It)". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die. New York: Universe. p. 350.
  5. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2004). Top R&B/Hip-Hop Singles: 1942–2004. Record Research. p. 315.
  6. 1 2 Dolan, Jon; Lopez, Julyssa; Matos, Michaelangelo; Shaffer, Claire (July 22, 2022). "200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 31, 2022. Retrieved April 6, 2025.
  7. ↑ "40 years ago: 'Get Down Tonight' hits No. 1". MPR News. 2015-09-04. Archived from the original on 2025-09-28. Retrieved 2025-09-05.
  8. ↑ Joe Bosso (July 15, 2014). "Classic tracks: Harry Wayne Casey on KC And The Sunshine Band's Get Down Tonight". MusicRadar. Archived from the original on February 25, 2024. Retrieved April 13, 2024.
  9. ↑ KC And The Sunshine Band (CD liner notes). KC and the Sunshine Band. Collectors' Choice Music / Rhino Entertainment. 2006. R2 76662.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. ↑ "Get Down Tonight". Shazam. Retrieved August 6, 2026.
  11. ↑ Roberts, David (2004). British Hit Singles & Albums (17th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. ISBN 0-85112-199-3.
  12. ↑ "100 Greatest Dance Songs". VH1. October 2000. Archived from the original on March 24, 2002. Retrieved April 11, 2025.
  13. ↑ "Forum – ARIA Charts: Special Occasion Charts – CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989". Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on October 20, 2013. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  14. ↑ "KC & The Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  15. ↑ "Top Singles. Volume 24, Issue 5 (1975-09-27)". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  16. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 39, 1975" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  17. ↑ "KC & The Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  18. ↑ "Official Singles Chart on 26/4/1975 – Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 12, 2013.
  19. 1 2 3 "KC & the Sunshine Band – Awards". AllMusic. Archived from the original on November 6, 2013. Retrieved June 5, 2013.
  20. ↑ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending AUGUST 23, 1975". Cash Box. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012.
  21. ↑ "The Singles Chart" (PDF). Record World. September 6, 1975. p. 25. ISSN 0034-1622. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 26, 2023. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
  22. ↑ "Brazilian Top 100 Year-End 1975". ABPD. Archived from the original on June 30, 2025. Retrieved June 30, 2025.
  23. ↑ "Top 200 singles of 1975 as compiled from RPM charts by Brendan Lyttle". RPM. Vol. 24, no. 14. December 27, 1975. Retrieved May 16, 2016.
  24. ↑ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1975" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Archived from the original on December 20, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  25. ↑ "Jaaroverzichten – Single 1975" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Hung Medien. Archived from the original on February 15, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  26. ↑ "Top 100 Hits for 1975". The Longbored Surfer. Archived from the original on June 13, 2014. Retrieved June 18, 2014.
  27. ↑ "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – 1975". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 11, 2007.
  28. ↑ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1975". Cash Box. Archived from the original on September 20, 2012.
  29. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2025 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 8 July 2025.
  30. ↑ "Canadian single certifications – K.C. and the Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight". Music Canada. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
  31. ↑ "New Zealand single certifications – KC And The Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight". Radioscope. Retrieved June 1, 2026. Type Get Down Tonight in the "Search:" field and press Enter.
  32. ↑ "American single certifications – KC & The Sunshine Band – Get Down Tonight". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 14, 2022.
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