B-side "Lighten Up" Label Columbia ""How 'Bout Us""
(1981) "Try Again"
(1983) | Genre R&B, soul Writer(s) Dana Walden | |
Released January 18, 1981 (1981-01-18) | ||
"How 'Bout Us" is a 1981 hit single recorded by R&B music group Champaign and composed by band keyboardist Dana Walden. Originally released on the band's debut album of the same name, the title track peaked at #12 on the Hot 100. Of Champaign's seven charting singles, the song remains the group's most successful.
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Song information
The song was originally released in 1975 by an earlier incarnation of the group, named the Water Brothers Band. It was re-recorded by Champaign, and it was Champaign's version that became a hit single. "How 'Bout Us" peaked at #4 on the soul chart and was one of three releases to make the top 10 on the soul chart. The song was on the Hot 100 chart for 23 weeks, peaking at #12 on 6 June 1981, and also reached the top of the Adult Contemporary chart for two weeks. The title track of Champaign's debut album and their first single, the tune combines instrumentals, traditional background vocals repeated multiple times, and poetic verses performed by Champaign's lead vocalist Pauli Carman to create a sound similar to other ballads released during the time.
Reception
Both the song and the album it debuted on were acclaimed retrospectively by Allmusic who called it "smooth, well-crafted pop-R&B topped by the creamy vocals of Pauli Carman and Rena Jones. This debut is a pop hybrid that sounds very promising, although the group never followed through adequately."
Cover versions
The song has been covered as a duet between established blue-eyed soul singer/musician Grayson Hugh and noted R&B superstar, Betty Wright; their version, from the soundtrack of the 1989 film True Love, peaked at #67 on the American pop charts, crossing over to #30 R&B.
A cover by American country music group Girls Next Door peaked at number 71 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart in 1990.
Versions have also been released by Johnny Logan in 1991 and Lulu in 1993.