Brown Girl in the Ring (song)

"Brown Girl in the Ring"
Single by Boney M.
from the album Nightflight to Venus
A-side "Rivers of Babylon"
Released 3 April 1978
Format 7" single, 12" single
Recorded 1978
Genre Disco, R&B, reggae
Length 4:03
Label Hansa Records (FRG)
Sire Records (USA)
Atlantic Records (AUS)
Writer(s) Frank Farian
Producer(s) Frank Farian
Boney M. singles chronology
"Belfast"
(1977)		 "Rivers of Babylon"/"Brown Girl in the Ring"
(1978)		 "Rasputin"
(1978)
"Brown Girl in the Ring (Remix '93)"
Single by Boney M.
from the album Gold - 20 Super Hits
Released 1 April 1993
Format 7" single, 12" single, CD single
Genre Disco, R&B, reggae
Label BMG Records (FRG)
Writer(s) Franz Reuter (Frank Farian)
Producer(s) Frank Farian
Boney M. singles chronology
"Megamix"
(1992)		 "Brown Girl in the Ring (Remix)"
(1993)		 "Ma Baker (Remix)"
(1993)

"Brown Girl in the Ring" is a traditional children's song in the West Indies. It was originally featured in the game of the same name, thought to have originated in Jamaica.[1]

The song became internationally known when it was recorded by the group Boney M. in 1978. Originally it was the B-side of their hit "Rivers of Babylon", but became a hit in its own right.

The song had previously been recorded by the group Malcolm's Locks, leading to a dispute over royalties. The song had also been recorded in 1972 by the group Exuma.

Origin

Boys and girls play ring games in many parts of the world, especially during their pre-teen years. In There's a Brown Girl in the Ring, an anthology of Eastern Caribbean song games by Alan Lomax, J.D. Elder and Bess Lomax Hawes, it is suggested that ring games are a children's precursor to adult courtship.

Players form a ring by holding hands, then one girl or boy goes into the middle of the ring and starts skipping or walking around to the song. The girl or boy is then asked, "Show me your motion." At this point the child in the center does his or her favorite dance. If asked "Show me your partner," he or she picks a friend to join him or her in the circle. It has been played for many centuries in all of Jamaica.

Boney M. recording

Arguably the most popular version of the song, Boney M.'s version was originally a single B-side to the group's #1 hit single "Rivers of Babylon" (1978). When "Rivers of Babylon" had slipped to #20 in the UK charts, radio stations suddenly flipped the single, seeing "Brown Girl in the Ring" going all the way to #2 and becoming a hit in its own right. Liz Mitchell had previously recorded the song in 1975 with the group Malcolm's Locks, as the B-side of their single "Caribbean Rock". Mitchell's ex-boyfriend Malcolm Magaron was the group's lead singer. Arranger Peter Herbolzheimer accused Frank Farian of stealing his arrangement for the song, for which Farian claimed credit on the single.[2] The court case ran for more than 20 years in Germany.

The early single pressing features the full-length 4:18 version with a chorus bit being edited out. The single mix is also slightly different from the album version which features steel drums on the outro riff of the song, the single mix doesn't. The single mix has yet to appear on CD (as at May 2014). Rivers of Babylon/Brown Girl in the Ring single is the sixth best-selling single of all time in the UK with sales of 2 million.[3]

1993 Remix

Following the successful sales of the compilation album Gold - 20 Super Hits, Frank Farian remixed "Brown Girl in the Ring" for a single release, April 1993. The remix featured new lead vocals by Liz Mitchell and reached #6 in Denmark, #38 in the UK charts while failing to chart in Germany. The single also included a new remix of "The Calendar Song".

Releases

12" Single

Side A

  1. "Brown Girl in the Ring" (Funny Girl Club Mix) - 5:35
  2. "The Calendar Song (January, February, March...)" (Remix '93) - 3:14

Side B

  1. "Brown Girl in the Ring" (Club Mix - Rap Version) - 5:35
  2. "Brown Girl in the Ring" (Radio Version) - 3:58

CD
"Brown Girl in the Ring (Remix '93)" (MCI/BMG 74321 13705 2, 1993

Other recordings

Bibliography

Charts

Original version

Chart (1978) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Adult Contemporary[5] 8
Canadian RPM Top Singles[6] 79
Eurochart Hot 100 1

Brown girl in the ring (Remix '93)

Chart (1993) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[7] 46
Irish Singles Chart[8] 25
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[9] 20
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[10] 38

References

  1. ↑ "Brown Girl in the Ring - Jamaican Children's Songs - Jamaica - Mama Lisa's World: Children's Songs and Rhymes from Around the World". Mamalisa.com. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  2. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 6 October 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-18.
  3. ↑ Ami Sedghi (4 November 2012). "UK's million-selling singles: the full list". Guardian. Retrieved 4 November 2012.
  4. ↑ "Big red car [sound recording] / the Wiggles. - Version details - Trove". Trove.nla.gov.au. Retrieved 2016-10-13.
  5. ↑ "Brown girl in the ring in Canadian Adult Contemporary Chart". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  6. ↑ "Brown girl in the ring in Canadian Top Singles Chart". Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 10 July 2013.
  7. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Boney M. – Brown Girl In The Ring (Remix '93)" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  8. ↑ "in Irish Chart". IRMA. Archived from the original on 3 June 2009. Retrieved 10 July 2013. 1st result when searching "Brown girl in the ring "
  9. ↑ "Charts.org.nz – Boney M. – Brown Girl In The Ring (Remix '93)". Top 40 Singles.
  10. ↑ "1993 Top 40 Official UK Singles Archive - 17th April 1993". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 July 2013.

External links

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