B-side "Solid (Dub version)" Format 7" vinyl, 12" vinyl Genre Soul, R&B | Released November 9, 1984 Recorded 1984 | |
Length 5:12 (album version)
3:46 (single version)
3:21 (radio edit) | ||
"Solid" is a hit single recorded by the husband-and-wife songwriting duo Ashford & Simpson. It was featured on the 1984 album Solid, and released as a single in November of that year.
It was written by the two and follows a similar template of most of their hits for other artists, except with a slight 1980s inflection to the music. In the lyrics, the narrators of the song celebrate the fact that, through all the difficulties and problems their relationship has faced, they made their love stronger by learning how to forgive and trust each other, and their love for one another remains "solid as a rock".
It was their biggest hit as performers, topping the U.S. R&B chart, peaking at number 12 on the Billboard Hot 100, and peaking at number three on the UK Singles Chart in 1985. It was the 16th best-selling single of 1985 in the UK.
In 2009, Ashford & Simpson remade the song in honor of President Barack Obama, calling it "Solid (As Barack)".
Music video
The video is set on a rainy afternoon in a park. Valerie Simpson exits a taxi in a park on a cloudy day, and escapes from a sudden downpour underneath a bridge. As she sings the opening of the song a cappella, she's joined by Nick Ashford, who joins in. As the video progresses, they're joined by others, including a cyclist in yellow spandex, a gang who just want to sing, and several bongo players, also trying to escape the downpour.