The group was formed by Richard Finch, a budding studio engineer prodigy at TK Records and Harry Wayne Casey ("KC"), a record store employee and part-timer at TK Records in Miami. Though both worked at TK Records, their meeting was not immediate, with Finch spending much of his time in the recording studio working with other TK artists and Casey on the phones at the front desk. An introduction by Clarence Reid through a mutual friend was the beginning of their musical connection. Following demo work, Casey and Finch were encouraged to create their own group. The initial members were just Casey and Finch (first starting out as songwriting collaborators), but Finch soon added guitarist Jerome Smith (June 18, 1953 - July 28, 2000), and drummer Robert Johnson, both TK studio musicians.
The first few songs, "Blow Your Whistle" (September 1973) and "Sound Your Funky Horn" (February 1974), were released as singles, and had limited impact. However, a side project writing and producing music for George McCrae took Finch and Casey's "Rock Your Baby", featuring Smith on guitar, and made it a hit in mid-1974, selling 11 million copies worldwide. The band's "Queen of Clubs", which featured uncredited vocals by George McCrae, was a hit in England, peaking at #7, and they went on tour to England in 1975 off that success.
With the release of the self titled triple platinum second album KC and the Sunshine Band in 1975 came the group's first major US hit with "Get Down Tonight". It topped the R&B chart in April and the Billboard chart in August. "That's the Way (I Like It)" also became a number one hit in November 1975 and the group did well at the 1976 Grammy Awards. The 1976 album Part 3 yielded three top 5 singles: "I'm Your Boogie Man", "(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty" and "Keep It Comin' Love". Their success lasted until the fifth album and 1979—80; their last chart topping hit was "Please Don't Go" in December 1979, hitting #1 for one week in January 1980, and becoming the first #1 hit of the 1980s. With the declining popularity of disco, the group explored other styles and changed labels, joining Epic Records in 1980 after TK Records went bankrupt.
In 1981, the partnership between Finch and Casey came to an acrimonious end. Two years after the release of the previous album, the group released two solo albums with new material, geared toward pop: The Painter and Space Cadet. These albums generated little success, but in 1982, a hit track called "Give It Up" on the album All in a Night's Work (recorded before Casey and Finch split partnership) brought a return to success in the UK, and appeared two years later on the United States Billboard Top 40. The song was also featured on the band's next album, 1983's KC Ten. Epic Records, however, refused to issue the song as a single due to its prior failure in the US. Because of this, a frustrated Casey formed Meca Records, releasing the single himself on this label in a final attempt to garner the song some success in America. It worked, but the album still failed to surpass expectations. This led to the group falling into stasis around 1985 with Casey's retirement.
A revival in the interest of disco music in 1991 brought Casey out of retirement. He reformed the group with entirely new members except for the percussionist and began touring once again. Some of the original members of the band are now deceased. The new band has released a large number of compilation albums through Rhino Records, featured along with some newly recorded material. The album Oh Yeah! was released in 1993 after a ten year gap between new albums, excluding compilations.
On July 28, 2000, Jerome Smith (rhythm guitar) died accidentally while working as a bulldozer operator.
In 2001, the band made a brief comeback into the music scene after an eight-year lull with the release of a new album titled I'll Be There For You. The album was praised by critics, but it failed to generate any impact on the charts or in sales. More recently, the group had an appearance in the 2003 remake of the movie The In-Laws.
Several KC/Finch songs have been included in the Dance Dance Revolution series of dance video games. That's the Way (I Like It) was included in the original Dance Dance Revolution, Shake Your Booty was in Dance Dance Revolution 4thMix and Get Down Tonight was in the American home version of DDRMAX2.
The song Keep It Comin' Love was on the soundtrack of the movie "Blow" about 1970s and 1980s cocaine smuggler George Jung.
The track 'I'm your boogie man' was used in the 2009 film of the graphic novel, 'The Watchmen' .
Additionally, many KC/Finch songs, most frequently "I Get Lifted," have been sampled for hip hop songs.
Come To My Island
KC and The Sunshine Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come to my island, just you and me, well
Come to my island where we'll be free
There's no playing around, there's love to be found
There's love everywhere, you feel it in the air
Come to my island, there's plenty of room
Oh, come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
We'll dance and sing, oh, baby, we'll swing
Under the moonlight doin' our thing
Just you and me and silence is the sound
Nobody else anywhere around
Oh, come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
Forget about your troubles, forget about your past
The day is here now, we've got to make it last
I'll hold you in my arms, love you some more
Keep you in my heart for ever more
Oh, come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come to my island, just you and me, yeah
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down
Come to my island, just you and me (You and me)
Come to my island where we'll be free (We'll be free)
Come to my island, just you and me (You and me)
Come to my island where we'll be free
Come to my island, just you and me (Come on down, come on down)
Come to my island where we'll be free (Come on down, down, down)
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down
Come on down, come on down
Come on down, down, down to my island
You'll be free (Just you and me)
You and me (Come to my island) on my island (Where we'll be free)
You'll be free (Come to my island) on my island (Just you and me)
You and me (Come to my island) on my island (Where we'll be free)
(Come to my island, just you and me)
The lyrics to KC and The Sunshine Band's song "Come To My Island" depict an invitation to escape to a secluded island paradise where two people can be free to dance, sing, and love without any distraction from the outside world. The song emphasizes the idea of forgetting about past troubles and living in the moment with someone special. The repetition of the invitation to "come to my island" and the simple, catchy melody contribute to the carefree and romantic atmosphere of the song.
The lyrics also touch on the theme of love, as the singer invites their potential partner to a place where "love is everywhere," and where they can dance and swing under the moonlight. The island is painted as a place of endless possibility and freedom, where silence is the only sound, and where one can be completely oneself.
Overall, the lyrics to "Come To My Island" speak to the desire for a romantic and idyllic escape from the stresses of everyday life. The song's upbeat tempo and optimistic tone make it a fun and uplifting choice for a feel-good playlist.
Line by Line Meaning
Come to my island, just you and me
Escape with me to a secluded island, away from everything and everyone else
Come to my island where we'll be free
Let's find freedom on this island where there are no worries or responsibilities
There's no playing around, there's love to be found
Let's get serious about love and find it on this island
There's love everywhere, you feel it in the air
Love is all around us on this island, we can't help but feel it
Come to my island, there's plenty of room
Our island has plenty of space for us to explore and enjoy together
It's the kind of place you want to come to real soon
This island is so inviting and enjoyable, you'll want to come back again soon
We'll dance and sing, oh, baby, we'll swing
Let's have fun and be carefree, dancing and singing to our hearts' content
Under the moonlight doin' our thing
We'll enjoy the island's natural beauty, especially under the moonlight
Just you and me and silence is the sound
We'll revel in the peacefulness of our isolated island and enjoy each other's company in silence
Nobody else anywhere around
We have complete privacy and there's no one else to disturb us
Forget about your troubles, forget about your past
Let go of any worries or past experiences, and enjoy the present moment with me
The day is here now, we've got to make it last
We need to make the most of the time we have together on this island
I'll hold you in my arms, love you some more
I want to express my love and affection for you on this secluded island
Keep you in my heart for ever more
Our time together on this island will always be cherished in my heart
Contributed by Jordan V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.