Stevie Wonder
Creepin’
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Released in 1974

 

TLC
Creep
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Released in 1994

 

Scala & Kolacny Brothers
Creep
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Released in 2010

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This time on Musical Cousins: three totally different songs with three totally different takes on the word “creep.”

First up, Stevie Wonder’s haunting “Creepin’,” featuring backup vocals from Minnie Riperton. In this song, creep refers to the stealth way a lover invades the dream world. The melody is typical Stevie perfection, but the moody, off-kilter synth floating underneath hints at something less rosy.

In TLC’s 1994 single, “Creep,” the Atlanta trio and producer Dallas Austin made a buoyant R&B/pop classic dedicated to cheating on the one you love.

The last take on the word “creep” comes from an early Radiohead composition where the creep in question is the song’s self-hating narrator. I prefer Scala & Kolacny Brothers’s cover, used to great effect in the trailer for The Social Network. Dozens of post-pubescent Belgian girls singing in unison truly is creepy.

 
 

Let No Man Put Asunder
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Love Having You Around
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Dr. Love (Tom Moulton 12″ Mix)
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Album: Delusions (1977)

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The onset of spring makes disco bloom on my hi-fi. And though it has its place, I’m not talking about the commercial disco I wish I heard at Studio 54; I’m talking about the soulful proto-house disco I wish I heard at the Paradise Garage. One of the best examples of the latter is First Choice’s Delusions LP.

Annette Guest and Rochelle Fleming founded First Choice when they were still Philadelphia high school students. Rochelle reminisces:

Our success didn’t hit us until graduation night. We were marching down the aisle and the principal of the school said he wanted to congratulate First Choice… then the whole graduation class just stood up and hollered and screamed.

Five years later, as disco was starting to dominate the pop landscape, First Choice (Rochelle, Annette, and new member Ursula Herring) released Delusions. In hindsight, First Choice is perceived as more of a singles act rather than album artists. Delusions, however, is a fairly consistent collection of songs, thanks in part to the lush production from MFSB’s rhythm section: Ron Baker, Norman Harris, and Earl Young.

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mj

I Want You Back (Z-Trip Remix)
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Don’t Stop ‘Til You Get Enough (Original Demo)
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I Can’t Help It (Tangoterje Remix)
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Rock With You (House Remix)
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They Don’t Care About Us (DJ Lt. Dan Remix)
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Don’t get me wrong. I had only a grain-of-sand sized belief that Michael Jackson would ever be relevant to my life again, at least from a musical perspective. Certainly, the tabloid drama that was his life continues to enthrall, but it never overshadowed the breathtaking catalog of recordings that he drove into creation.

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