Bad Boys (Inner Circle song)

"Bad Boys" is a 1987 song by the Jamaican reggae band Inner Circle, which gained high popularity in the United States after its re-release in 1993, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 and number seven on the Top 40 Mainstream.[1] It is the opening theme to the American TV show Cops and the theme song of the Bad Boys franchise.

"Bad Boys"
Bad Boys (Swedish edition)
Swedish single picture sleeve, 1990
Single by Inner Circle
from the album One Way and Bad Boys/Bad to the Bone
B-side"Sweat (A La La La La Long)"
ReleasedOctober 1987 (original release)
1990 (1st re-release Europe)
1993 (2nd re-release US)
GenreReggae
Length3:52
LabelIsland
Songwriter(s)Ian Lewis
Producer(s)Ian Lewis, Touter Harvey, Roger Lewis
Inner Circle singles chronology
"Bad Boys"
(1987)		 "Sweat (A La La La La Long)"
(1992)
Audio sample
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History

The song was originally released in October 1987 on the album One Way.[2] In 1992, it was also included on the Bad to the Bone album, and the song was released as a single in 1993, after the unexpected success of their previous international hit single "Sweat (A La La La La Long)". "Bad Boys" reached number 52 in the United Kingdom[3] and number eight in the United States.[1] In the latter territory, it was certified Gold and sold 600,000 copies.[4][5] The song was also released as B-side on Inner Circle's 1992 single, "Sweat (A La La La La Long)".[6] The song was also released as a single in mid-1991 in Norway and Finland, where it peaked at number one.

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[20] Gold 500,000‡

‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

"Bad Boys" was selected as the theme song for Cops because a field producer for the show happened to be a fan of Inner Circle.[21] The song, which was very popular during the 1990s, is also used in the Will Smith and Martin Lawrence action/comedy film series Bad Boys, which was named after the song.[22][23]

A parody of the song was used in a fourth season episode of ABC's Fresh Off the Boat where the chorus goes "Good boys, good boys; whatcha gonna do?".[24]

Another parody of the song is used in the 125th episode of Your Grammar Sucks where Jack Douglass goes "Bad boys, bad boy; Was you gonna do? What you gonna do if it's come for you?".[25]

See also

References
  1. "Inner Circle – Awards". AllMusic. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  2. Moon, Tom (22 October 1987). "Inner Circle celebrates LP release". The Miami Herald. Miami, Florida. p. 44 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  4. "Gold & Platinum – Inner Circle – Bad Boys". RIAA. Retrieved 12 May 2016.
  5. "Best-Selling Records of 1993". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 3. 15 January 1994. p. 73. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. "cdBBQ: Inner Circle". Cdbbq.com. Archived from the original on 7 January 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  7. Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  8. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys". VG-lista. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  9. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys". Singles Top 100. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  10. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  11. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  12. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 0993." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  13. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  14. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Inner Circle". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  15. "Inner Circle – Bad Boys". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  16. "Top 60 Dance Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 31 July 1993. p. 22. Retrieved 9 April 2021.
  17. Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010. Mt. Martha, VIC, Australia: Moonlight Publishing.
  18. "End of Year Charts 1993". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 20 May 2020.
  19. "Top 100 Hits for 1993". The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 27 August 2010.
  20. "American single certifications – Inner Circle – Bad Boys". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 24 July 2023.
  21. Griffin, Gil (2 July 1994). "Inner Circle's Sphere of Influence - Big Beat/Atlantic Set Follows 'Bad' Breakthrough". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 27. ISSN 0006-2510.
  22. "Inner Circle Biography". Bad Boys of Reggae. Archived from the original on 7 January 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2014.
  23. Walker, Klive (2005). Dubwise: reasoning from the reggae underground. Insomniac Press. p. 203. ISBN 1-894663-96-9.
  24. Mitchell (6 December 2017). "'Fresh off the Boat' Episode Review: "Slide Effect"". 8asians. Retrieved 20 October 2018.
  25. jacksfilms (29 September 2020). "This video is demonized :( (YOUR GRAMMAR SUCKS #125)". YouTube.
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