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.
Queen of Clubs
KC and The Sunshine Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
She?s the life of the party, she?s a real sensation
She?s got style, y?all, she?s got class
She can groove it slow or move it real fast
In the early evenin? through the midnight hour
She keeps swingin?, she?s got super power
She?s the queen of clubs
If you throw a party and she ain?t there
Well, well, well, well
People, let me tell you that your party?s nowhere
From city to city and coast to coast
She?s more than the hip now, she?s the most
Up in the mountains, out in the plains
Down in the valleys, they echo her name
She?s the queen of clubs
She?s the queen of clubs
Here she come, fine lady
She?s the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She?s the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She?s the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She?s the queen of clubs
She?s the queen of clubs
She?s the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She?s the queen of clubs
She?s the queen of clubs
The song "Queen of Clubs" by KC and The Sunshine Band is an upbeat and catchy song that pays homage to the life of the party - the woman who is the queen of every nightclub across the nation. The lyrics describe her as having style and class, and being able to groove it slow or move it real fast. She is a real sensation and keeps the party going from the early evening until the midnight hour. The song emphasizes that if she isn't at your party, then your party is nowhere. The woman being described is the epitome of fun and excitement.
The lyrics are simple but effective in portraying the vibrance and energy of the queen of clubs. The song highlights her popularity across the country and beyond, with mentions of city to city, coast to coast, up in the mountains, out in the plains, and down in the valleys. The repetition of "She's the queen of clubs" reinforces her status as the ultimate party girl. The song is a celebration of carefree fun and enjoyment, with the queen of clubs being the center of attention.
Line by Line Meaning
In every night club across the nation
She is present and the center of attention in every night club across the country
She's the life of the party, she's a real sensation
She's the most lively and remarkable person and is very popular among the people who party
She's got style, y'all, she's got class
She's fashionable and sophisticated
She can groove it slow or move it real fast
She can dance slowly or quickly, depending on the music that is being played
In the early evenin' through the midnight hour
From early in the evening until midnight, she remains active and dancing
She keeps swingin', she's got super power
She keeps moving and dancing, and she has the energy to keep going all night long
If you throw a party and she ain't there
If she isn't present at your party
People, let me tell you that your party's nowhere
Your party is not complete without her
From city to city and coast to coast
She's famous and well-known across the country
She's more than the hip now, she's the most
She's more than just being fashionable, she's a sensation now.
Up in the mountains, out in the plains
She is known and celebrated in all kinds of terrains
Down in the valleys, they echo her name
Her fame reverberates down to the valleys
Here she come, fine lady
Here comes the fantastic lady
She's the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She's the queen of clubs, even in the valleys
She's the queen of clubs
She's the queen of the dance floor
She's the queen of clubs, out in the valley
She's the top dancer, even in the valleys
She's the queen of clubs
She's the master of the dancing community
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@siversurfer3541
Absolute classic from the mid 70's
Right back to my disco nights in England.
Fantastic days (nights ).
@manfredbeuth2921
One of the first hits of K.C. .......amazing and phantastic!!!!!!!! Love this song and K.C. and the absolute great dancemusic of them/ him forever!!!!!!!!! 😜😄
@AlanTaylormusic
Can't believe some of the comments here about this track. Better things to come? Listen to those horns, the rhythm, the vocal. 100% classic.
@PeterSpaeter96
Of course there were better things to come. Just think of "That's the Way I Like It" or "Shake Your Booty", "Everybody Sound Your Funky Horn" and many more.
I personally sort of like this song (basically for some parts of the bass line), but I agree with 'M. M.' that it isn't quite one of the best KC&TSB songs.
@grimaldus1967
Who gives a fuck what people think, if you like this song, blast it loud and dance around!
@Dommus50
Great music
@studiolegalecampanelli329
George McGrae backing vocals
@user-id1kq2ip3l
Bring back those weekends of people going to nightclubs
@darrylelkins681
When life was real fun
@allisonelizabethrutherford3179
I can't believe its not one of there most popular songs.. I just love this one