' Tai n't What You Do ( It 's the Way that You Do It ) - Wikipedia ' Tai n't What You Do ( It 's the Way that You Do It ) song ' Tai n't What You Do ( It 's the Way That You Do It ) is a song written by jazz musicians Melvin `` Sy '' Oliver and James `` Trummy '' Young. It was first recorded in 1939 by Jimmie Lunceford, Harry James, and Ella Fitzgerald, and again the same year by Nat Gonella and His Georgians. The `` shim sham '' is often danced to the Lunceford recording of this song. Contents 1 Fun Boy Three with Bananarama version 2 Track listings 3 Charts 4 References Fun Boy Three with Bananarama version `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' Single by Fun Boy Three with Bananarama from the album Fun Boy Three B - side `` The Funrama Theme '' Released 29 January 1982 Format 7 '' single, 12 '' single Recorded 1981 Genre Pop, ska, new wave Length 2 : 48 Label Chrysalis Records Songwriter ( s ) Sy Oliver Trummy Young Producer ( s ) Dave Jordan, Fun Boy Three Fun Boy Three singles chronology `` The Lunatics ( Have Taken Over the Asylum ) '' ( 1981 ) `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' ( 1982 ) `` Really Saying Something '' ( 1982 ) `` The Lunatics ( Have Taken Over the Asylum ) '' ( 1981 ) `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' ( 1982 ) `` Really Saying Something '' ( 1982 ) Bananarama singles chronology `` Aie a Mwana '' ( 1981 ) `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' ( 1982 ) `` Really Saying Something '' ( 1982 ) The jazz tune was transformed into a pop song with ska elements in 1982. With the title slightly altered to `` It Ai n't What You Do... '', it was recorded by Fun Boy Three and Bananarama, and was included on the former 's self - titled debut album, but it was not available on a Bananarama album until 1988 's Greatest Hits Collection. Terry Hall of Fun Boy Three owned a copy of Bananarama 's previous single `` Aie a Mwana '', and after seeing an article about the trio in The Face, he decided he wanted them to sing background vocals on the song, solely based on the fact that he liked their look. `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' became a big hit in the UK, climbing to number four in the UK Singles Chart, and achieving a Silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The success of the single also prompted Bananarama to return the favour and have Fun Boy Three sing on their next single, `` Really Saying Something ''. In 2012, the cover version was used in a commercial for Hewlett - Packard 's color printers, which aired in the United States. Track listings 7 '' single `` It Ai n't What You Do ( It 's The Way That You Do It ) '' 2 : 54 `` The Funrama Theme '' 2 : 56 + 12 '' single `` It Ai n't What You Do... '' / `` Just Do It '' ( Extended Version ) 5 : 55 + + `` The Funrama Theme '' ( Extended Version ) 5 : 55 + + A remix of `` The Funrama Theme '' with overdubbed brass, titled `` Funrama 2 '', appears on the Fun Boy Three album Fun Boy Three. + + The first 2 : 52 of the 12 '' version is the standard album version of the song, which is different from the 7 ``. Some reissues of the album also include the `` Just Do It '' section as a separate track. Charts Chart ( 1982 ) Peak position Australia ( Kent Music Report ) 55 Belgium ( Ultratop Flanders ) Irish Singles Chart Netherlands ( MegaCharts ) New Zealand ( RIANZ Singles Chart ) 37 UK Singles Chart U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 49 References Jump up ^ `` Ella Fitzgerald Discography - Discography - Part 1 ''. Archived from the original on 2016 - 08 - 08. Retrieved 2008 - 01 - 29. ^ Jump up to : `` BPI > Certifications > Search results for ' Fun Boy Three ' ( from bpi.co.uk ) ''. Imgur.com ( original source published by British Phonographic Industry ). Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. ^ Jump up to : `` Official Charts > Bananarama ''. The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. Jump up ^ Kent, David ( 1993 ). Australian Chart Book 1970 -- 1992 ( Illustrated ed. ). Sydney : Australian Chart Book. p. 25. ISBN 0 - 646 - 11917 - 6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between 1983 and 26 June 1988. Jump up ^ `` Fun Boy Three with Bananarama -- It Ai n't What You Do... '' ( in Dutch ). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. Jump up ^ `` The Irish Charts -- All there is to know > Search results for ' It Ai n't What You Do ' ( from irishcharts.ie ) ''. Imgur.com ( original source published by Fireball Media ). Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. Jump up ^ `` Fun Boy Three with Bananarama -- It Ai n't What You Do... '' ( in Dutch ). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. Jump up ^ `` charts.org.nz > Fun Boy Three with Bananarama -- It Ai n't What You Do... ( song ) ''. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016 - 07 - 31. Bananarama Sara Dallin Keren Woodward Siobhan Fahey Jacquie O'Sullivan Studio albums Deep Sea Skiving Bananarama True Confessions Wow ! Pop Life Please Yourself Ultra Violet / I Found Love Exotica Drama Viva Extended plays Now or Never Compilations Greatest Hits Collection Bunch of Hits The Very Best of Bananarama Venus and Other Hits Really Saying Something : The Platinum Collection Greatest Hits and More More More 30 Years of Bananarama Remix albums 12 '' Mixes The Greatest Remixes Collection The Twelve Inches of Bananarama Drama Remixes, Vol. 1 Other albums The Works Master Series The Essentials Singles `` Aie a Mwana '' `` It Ai n't What You Do ( It 's the Way That You Do It ) '' `` Really Saying Something '' `` Shy Boy '' `` Cheers Then '' `` He 's Got Tact '' `` Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye '' `` Cruel Summer '' `` Robert De Niro 's Waiting... '' `` Rough Justice '' `` King of the Jungle '' `` Hot Line to Heaven '' `` The Wild Life '' `` Do Not Disturb '' `` Venus '' `` More Than Physical '' `` A Trick of the Night '' `` Set on You '' `` I Heard a Rumour '' `` Love in the First Degree '' `` I Ca n't Help It '' `` I Want You Back '' `` Love, Truth and Honesty '' `` Nathan Jones '' `` Help ! '' `` Only Your Love '' `` Preacher Man '' `` Long Train Running '' `` Tripping on Your Love '' `` Movin ' On '' `` Last Thing on My Mind '' `` More, More, More '' `` I Found Love '' `` Every Shade of Blue '' `` Take Me to Your Heart '' `` Careless Whisper '' `` If '' `` Move in My Direction '' `` Look on the Floor ( Hypnotic Tango ) '' `` Love Comes '' `` Love Do n't Live Here '' `` Now or Never '' Featured singles `` Do They Know It 's Christmas ? '' `` Let It Be '' Promotional singles `` The Bananarama Mega-Mix '' `` Megarama ' 89 '' `` Really Saying Something ( Solasso Remix ) '' `` Baby It 's Christmas '' Video compilations And That 's Not All... The Video Singles The Greatest Hits Collection 30 Years of Bananarama Related articles Discography Fun Boy Three Book This 1930s song article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. This 1980s single - related article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=%27Tain%27t_What_You_Do_(It%27s_the_Way_That_You_Do_It)&oldid=866408687 '' Categories : 1939 songs 1982 singles Bananarama songs Fun Boy Three songs Mildred Bailey songs Songs with music by Trummy Young Music videos directed by Steve Barron Songs with music by Sy Oliver 1930s song stubs 1980s single stubs Hidden categories : CS1 Dutch - language sources ( nl ) Articles with short description Articles with hAudio microformats All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from July 2016 All stub articles Talk Contents About Wikipedia Add links This page was last edited on 30 October 2018, at 04 : 00 ( UTC ). Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who sang it ain't what you do it's the way that you do it
Answer: Jimmie Lunceford