From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atomic Dog
Atomic Dog
Chart (1983)[3] Peak
position
UK Singles Chart 94
U.S. Billboard Hot R&B Songs 1
"Atomic Dog" reach the Top 100 of the Pop Chart at all, though it has ar-
guably attained greater popular stature over the past two
decades due in part to its having been sampled in dozens
of rap songs.
History
George Clinton’s P-Funk reached its commercial and con-
ceptual height during the late 1970s after the release of
Mothership Connection and a series of spectacular concert
tours. Each of these concerts ended with a climactic de-
scent of a giant spaceship from the rafters. However, as
the band and their concept of funk grew, the organiza-
tion became entangled in internal dissension, legal dis-
putes, and creative exhaustion.[1] “Atomic Dog” was P-
Single by George Clinton Funk collective’s last single to reach #1 on the U.S. R&B
chart.
from the album Computer Games
According to Clinton, most of the song’s lyrics were
B-side "Loopzilla", "Man’s Best Friend" ad libbed during the recording process.[2]
Released 1982
Format 7", 12" Critical reception and charts
Recorded January 1982
Although “Atomic Dog” is now regarded a classic in black
popular music, it was held back from radio stations at
Genre Funk first. George Clinton’s bad reputation in the industry, his
Length 4:15 (7" single version) political consciousness (as seen in his previous albums
4:42 (LP and instrumental versions) and recordings), and a general move towards more
10:00 (Atomic mix) youthful-looking acts, kept his songs from being circulat-
ed on radio stations. Only after very strong sales was the
Label Capitol 5201
X-6326
song finally put on the air. The single “Atomic Dog” was
8544 released in December 1982 and reached #1 on the R&B
charts, but failed to reach the top 100 pop charts.
Writer(s) George Clinton/Garry Shider/David Spradley
Producer George Clinton
Sampling in other songs
George Clinton singles chronology
The rhythmic hook from "Atomic Dog" has been widely
sampled by other musicians. Below is a chart of songs
"Loopzilla" Atomic Dog"
"Atomic Dog "Nubian Nut"
(1982) (1982) (1983) which use samples from "Atomic Dog":
"Atomic Dog is a song by George Clinton from his 1982
Atomic Dog" Copyright lawsuit
album Computer Games. The track was released as a single
"Atomic Dog" was the subject of Bridgeport Music, Inc. v.
in December 1982 and became the P-Funk collective’s last
UMG, Inc., et al. (Case No. 07-5596, 6th Cir. 2009),[4] a law-
to reach #1 on the U.S. R&B Chart. The single failed to
suit filed in 2007 by the holders of the composition rights
1
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atomic Dog
Artist Song
ATL “Process Of Elimination”
“Why Must I Feel Like Dat”
BDK “Get Down”
“The Beef Is On”
Biz Markie “The Dragon”
Blackstreet “Booti Call”
Compton’s Most Wanted “I Don’t Dance”
“I Gots Ta Get Over”
College Boyz “Underground Blues”
Consolidated “You Suck”
Digital Underground “Doowutchyalike”
“Bran New Swetta”
“Good Thing We’re Rappin’”
Fu-Schnickens “Back Off”
“Let Me Make...”
Geto Boys “Homie Don’t Play Dat”
Girl Talk “Get It Get It”
Guy “D-O-G Me Out”
MC Hammer “Pumps And A Bump”
Ice Cube “Better Off Dead”
“Ghetto Bird”
“A Man’s Best Friend”
“No Vaseline”
“Summer Vacation”
“The Nigga You Love To Hate”
“2 N Tha Morning”
Ice-T “Funky Gripsta”
Insane Clown Posse "Dog Beats"
Insane Poetry “How Ya Gonna Reason With A...”
JJ&FP “Nuthin’ But A Dog”
K-9 Corps “Dog Talk”
KAM “Peace Treaty”
KMDee “Here We Go Again”
Kris Kross “Party”
K-Solo “I Can’t Hold It Back”
MC Ren “Hound Dogz”
Nas “American Way”
NWH “Ice Froggy Frog”
Oren Waters "Digga Digga Dog" from 102 Dalmatians
2
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atomic Dog
Paris “Bush Killa”
Pitbull Girls
“Coffee, Donuts & Death”
Public Enemy “Pollywanacraka”
PM Dawn “Comatose”
PR & CLS “The Basement”
Redman “Bobyahed2dis”
“Process Of Elimination”
“Slide And Rock On”
“Watch Yo Nuggets”
“Winicumuhround”
Scarface “Diary Of A Madman”
South Central Cartel “South Central...”
Schoolly D “Where’d You Get That Funk From”
Snoop Dogg “Who Am I? (What’s My Name)?”
Stetsasonic “Speaking Of A Girl Named Suzy”
Stezo “It’s My Turn”
Term, X “DJ Is The Selector”
2Pac “Holler If Ya Hear Me”
X-Clan “Earth Bound”
to "Atomic Dog" against the producers of "D.O.G. in Me," David Spradley... also demonstrated that Clinton
a song recorded by the R&B and hip-hop group Public An- exercised some degree of creative control over the
nouncement and included on their 1998 album, All Work, panting by instructing the performers to create a
No Play. In its complaint, Bridgeport claimed that "D.O.G. certain rhythm.
in Me" infringed its copyright by repeating the phrase,
"Bow wow wow, yippie yo, yippie yea" and the sound of The court further described the "Bow Wow refrain" as
rhythmic panting throughout the song, and by repeating the best-known aspect of the song – "in terms of iconol-
the word "dog" in a low tone of voice at regular inter- ogy, perhaps the functional equivalent of ’E.T. phone
vals as a form of musical punctuation. A jury found that home’" – and held that the jury did not act unreasonably
the defendants had willfully infringed Bridgeport’s rights in concluding that there was substantial similarity be-
and awarded statutory damages of $88,980. In a Novem- tween the two works.
ber 2009 decision affirming the lower court ruling, Cir-
cuit Judge Martha Craig Daughtry of the U.S. Court of Ap- References
peals for the Sixth Circuit described the circumstances
surrounding the creation of "Atomic Dog": [1] "Making it Funky" by Ted Friedman
Songwriters David Spradley, Garry Shider, and [2] George Clinton, Still Radiating the Funk
George Clinton created "Atomic Dog" in a [3] Acharts.us - Slim Ft. Yung Joc - So Fly - Music
recording studio in January 1982, working without Charts
a written score... Testimony at trial indicated that [4] U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
the song was composed spontaneously – Spradley (2009-11-04). "Bridgeport Music, Inc. v. UMG, Inc.,
recorded the initial tracks in the studio and et al. (Case No. 07-5596)".
recalled that "when George arrived he had been http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/
partying pretty heavily so he was, you know, 09a0383p-06.pdf.
feeling pretty good," and was unsteady at the • Bulmer, John. Devil Music: Race, Class, and Rock And
microphone. Spradley and Garry Shider "got on Roll. Troy, New York: Russell Sage College Press.
either side of him. We just kind of kept him in • Friedman, Ted. "Making it Funky: The Signifyin(g)
front of the microphone" while Clinton recorded Politics of George Clinton’s Parliafunkadelicment
the vocal tracks that same night... Testimony by Thang".1993.
3
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Atomic Dog
Preceded by Billboard’s Hot R&B Songs number one single Succeeded by
"Billie Jean" by Michael Jackson April 16, 1983 - May 7, 1983 "Candy Girl" by New Edition
• Vincent, Rickey. Funk: The Music, The People, and the
Rhythm of One. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1996.
External links
ISBN 0-312-13499-1. • Song Review at Allmusic
• Songs That Sample "Atomic Dog"
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Atomic_Dog&oldid=461859583"
Categories:
• 1982 singles
• Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs number-one singles
• Funk songs
• George Clinton songs
• Songs written by George Clinton (musician)
This page was last modified on 22 November 2011 at 00:47. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-
ShareAlike License; additional terms may apply. See Terms of use for details. Wikipedia® is a registered trademark of
the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization.Contact us
Privacy policy About Wikipedia Disclaimers Mobile view
4