Rev It Up (song)

"Rev It Up" is a song by American musician Jerry Harrison, performed with his band Casual Gods. Written by Harrison, John Sieger, and Ernie Brooks, the song features a prominent guitar riff created by Harrison and Alex Weir of American funk band the Brothers Johnson. The track was recorded in a bomb shelter in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, along with most of Harrison's second album, Casual Gods (1988), on which the song appears as the opening track.

"Rev It Up"
Single by Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods
from the album Casual Gods
B-side"Bobby" (Aboriginal mix)
ReleasedJanuary 18, 1988 (1988-01-18)
StudioD.V. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
GenreFunk rock[1]
Length
  • 4:10 (album version)
  • 3:30 (edit)
LabelSire
Songwriter(s)
  • Jerry Harrison
  • John Sieger
  • Ernie Brooks
Producer(s)Jerry Harrison
Jerry Harrison singles chronology
"Five Minutes"
(1984)		 "Rev It Up"
(1988)		 "Man with a Gun"
(1988)
Music video
"Rev It Up" on YouTube

"Rev It Up" was released as the album's lead single in the United States in January 1988. The song reached number seven on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart and became a top-10 hit in Australia and New Zealand, peaking at numbers three and six, respectively. The song's music video, directed by Harrison and produced by Bell One Productions, was filmed in New York and features babies at a biker bar riding Big Wheels.[2][3]

Background

In the 2021 podcast "This Must Be Talking Heads", Jerry Harrison explained that before the song's creation and in between recording sessions with Talking Heads, he had returned to his hometown of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, to support his mother. He eventually met a young group of musicians and asked them if they knew where the best recording studio in the city was, and they suggested recording with David Vartanian—whom Harrison had been acquainted with during his childhood—in a studio he had built in a bomb shelter. Vartanian agreed to rent Harrison the studio, and he recorded the entire Casual Gods album there except for "A.K.A. Love", which was recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in New York City.[4][5]

Speaking about "Rev It Up", Harrison said that the song sounds like an Eddie Cochran track. Alex Weir came up with the track's primary guitar riff during a jam session with Harrison. After creating additional riffs with Weir and several more parts of the instrumental, Harrison began writing the lyrics about a familiar topic: a boy and a girl driving in a car.[4] Harrison co-wrote the rest of the song with John Sieger and Ernie Brooks and produced it himself.[5] "Rev It Up" appears as the opening track on Casual Gods, which was released on January 12, 1988.[6][7] The single was released in the United States the following week.[8]

Chart performance

On February 6, 1988, "Rev It Up" debuted at number 35 on the US Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart.[9] Nine weeks later, on April 9, the song ascended to its peak of number seven, where it stayed for two weeks.[10][11] The song spent a total of 16 weeks on the chart's top 50 before leaving in May 1988.[12] In Australia, the song debuted on the Australian Music Report in March and went on to peak at number three on May 9, 1988.[13] The single was also a top-10 hit in New Zealand, where it charted for 15 weeks and peaked at number six on the RIANZ Singles Chart in June 1988.[14] In Europe, the song charted in the United Kingdom and West Germany, peaking at number 90 in the former country and number 45 in the latter; it is Harrison's only charting solo single in both nations.[15][16] "Rev It Up" additionally charted in South Africa, peaking at number 14 on the Springbok Radio chart and staying in the top 20 for three weeks.[17]

Track listings

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the Casual Gods album booklet.[5]

Studios

  • Recorded at D.V. Recording (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
  • Mastered at Sterling Sound (New York City)

Personnel

  • Jerry Harrison – writing, vocals, guitar, keyboards, production
  • John Sieger – writing
  • Ernie Brooks – writing, assistant production
  • Arlene Holmes – vocals
  • Alex Weir – guitars
  • Bernie Worrell – keyboards
  • Chris Spedding – bass
  • Rick Jaeger – drums
  • Jim Liban – horns
  • David Vartanian – recording
  • John "Tokes" Potoker – mixing
  • Jack Skinner – mastering

Charts

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States January 18, 1988 — Sire [8]
United Kingdom September 5, 1988
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
[28]

References
  1. Brassneck (February 25, 2023). "Live Review: Remain in Light : Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew at the Vic Theatre • Chicago". Illinois Entertainer. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  2. "Video Track". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 9. February 27, 1988. p. 60.
  3. Wuench, Kevin (July 25, 2014). "The Weekend Is Here, So Heed Jerry Harrison and 'Rev It Up'". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  4. Gordon, Rodney (July 21, 2012). "This Must Be Talking Heads". muckrack.com (Podcast). Melbourne, Australia. Event occurs at 40:09–49:49. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  5. Rev It Up (US CD album booklet). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Sire Records. 1988. W2 25663, 9 25663-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  6. "Casual Gods: Jerry Harrison". AllMusic. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  7. "January Hot Album Releases". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 2. January 9, 1988. p. 84.
  8. Casual Gods (UK test LP liner notes). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records. 1987. SFLP 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. "Album Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 6. February 6, 1988. p. 15.
  10. "Album Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 15. April 9, 1988. p. 16.
  11. "Album Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 16. April 15, 1988. p. 15.
  12. "Album Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 21. May 21, 1988. p. 15.
  13. Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  14. "Jerry Harrison – Rev It Up". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  15. "Jerry Harrison: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  16. "Offiziellecharts.de – Jerry Harrison – Rev It Up" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  17. "SA Charts 1965 – 1989 Songs P–R". rock.co.za. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  18. Rev It Up (US 7-inch single vinyl disc). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Sire Records. 1988. 7-27977.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. Rev It Up (UK 7-inch single vinyl disc). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records, Phonogram Records. 1988. JERRY 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. Rev It Up (European 7-inch single vinyl disc). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records. 1988. 888 940-7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  21. Rev It Up (Australian 7-inch single vinyl disc). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Mercury Records. 1988. 888 940-7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  22. Rev It Up (US 12-inch single vinyl disc). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Sire Records. 1988. 0-20897.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  23. Rev It Up (European maxi-CD single disc notes). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records. 1988. 888 940-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  24. Rev It Up (UK CD single liner notes). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records, Phonogram Records. 1988. JHCD1, 888 940-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  25. Rev It Up (European CDV single liner notes). Jerry Harrison: Casual Gods. Fontana Records. 1988. 080 462-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  26. "End of Year Charts 1988". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved March 8, 2023.
  27. "1988 The Year in Music & Video: Top Album Rock Tracks". Billboard. Vol. 100, no. 52. December 24, 1988. p. Y-22.
  28. "New Singles". Music Week. September 3, 1988. p. 35.
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