Electric Avenue ( song ) - wikipedia Electric Avenue ( song ) For other uses, see Electric Avenue ( disambiguation ). `` Electric Avenue '' UK cover Single by Eddy Grant from the album Killer on the Rampage Released 1982 1983 ( US ) Genre Funk Length 3 : 48 Label Portrait Parlophone EMI Songwriter ( s ) Eddy Grant Producer ( s ) Eddy Grant Audio sample file help `` Electric Avenue '' is a song written, recorded and produced by Eddy Grant, who released it from his 1982 album Killer on the Rampage. In the United States, with the help of the MTV video he shot for it, it was one of 1983 's biggest hits of the year. The song 's title refers to Electric Avenue in the south London district of Brixton which was the first market street to be lit by electricity. The area is now known for its high population of Caribbean immigrants. At the beginning of the 1980s, tensions over unemployment, racism and poverty culminated in the street events now known as the 1981 Brixton riot. Grant, horrified and enraged, wrote and composed the song in response ; a year afterwards, the song was playing over the airwaves. Grant initially released it as a single in 1982, and reached No. 2 on the UK Singles Chart. In 1983, CBS decided to launch the single in the U.S., where it spent five weeks at No. 2 on Billboard Magazine 's Hot 100 charts and hit No. 1 in Cash Box Magazine. ( It was kept out of the top spot on Billboard 's Hot 100 by a combination of two songs, `` Flashdance... What a Feeling '' by Irene Cara and that year 's song of the summer, `` Every Breath You Take '' by The Police. ) `` Electric Avenue '' was a hit on two other US charts : On the soul chart it went to No. 18, and on the dance charts, it peaked at No. 6. It was nominated for a Grammy Award as Best R&B Song of 1983, but lost to Michael Jackson 's `` Billie Jean. '' Contents 1 Music video 2 Other release information 3 Refugee Camp All - Stars version 4 Charts 4.1 Weekly charts 4.1. 1 Original version 4.1. 2 Ringbang Remix 4.2 Year - end charts 5 See also 6 References 7 External links Music video The video was the crucial element for this song to go mainstream in America. The song was already a hit in the UK. When MTV ran music videos on its network, the producers put the song into rotation to add some racial diversity. MTV in their early years played videos by white artists almost exclusively and were criticized by famous musicians like David Bowie for not having black artists on the network. After `` Billie Jean '' aired and was successful, soon MTV was scrambling to get other black artists into their rotation. Once `` Electric Avenue '' aired, it did not take long for the song to climb up to the no. 2 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Other release information The original B - Side to this song was a non-LP track titled `` Time Warp. '' The 45 sold more than one million copies in the United States, earning a platinum certification. It was later re-issued with `` I Do n't Want to Dance '' as the flip side. Electric Avenue was re-released in 2001. The single featured the `` Ringbang Remix, '' and reached number 5 in the UK Singles Chart in June 2001, as well as reaching number 16 on the US dance chart. The Ringbang Remix was also featured on Now That 's What I Call Music ! 49 as track 1 of disc 2. Refugee Camp All - Stars version Refugee Camp All - Stars covered the song in 1997 for the original soundtrack of the movie Money Talks. This cover was titled `` Avenues '' and featured reggae artist Ky - Mani Marley. Their version peaked at No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100. Charts Weekly charts Original version Chart ( 1983 ) Peak position Australia ( Kent Music Report ) Austria ( Ö3 Austria Top 40 ) 6 Belgium ( Ultratop 50 Flanders ) Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) France ( IFOP ) 37 Germany ( Official German Charts ) 9 Ireland ( IRMA ) Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 ) 6 Netherlands ( Single Top 100 ) 8 New Zealand ( Recorded Music NZ ) 32 South Africa ( Springbok Radio ) 9 Sweden ( Sverigetopplistan ) 9 Switzerland ( Schweizer Hitparade ) 6 UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) US Billboard Hot 100 US Billboard Hot Black Singles 18 US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 6 US Billboard Top Rock Tracks 12 US Cash Box Chart ( 2001 ) Peak position Austria ( Ö3 Austria Top 40 ) 56 Denmark ( Tracklisten ) 20 Sweden ( Sverigetopplistan ) 26 Ringbang Remix Chart ( 2001 ) Peak position Belgium ( Ultratip Flanders ) Canada ( Canadian Singles Chart ) 27 Germany ( Official German Charts ) 68 Ireland ( IRMA ) 11 Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 ) 22 Netherlands ( Single Top 100 ) 31 Switzerland ( Schweizer Hitparade ) 100 UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) 5 US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play 16 Year - end charts Chart ( 1983 ) Rank Australia ( Kent Music Report ) 20 Belgium ( Ultratop 50 Flanders ) 46 Canada Top Singles ( RPM ) 6 Germany ( Official German Charts ) 63 Netherlands ( Dutch Top 40 ) 76 UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) 37 US Billboard Hot 100 22 US Cash Box 9 Chart ( 2001 ) Rank UK Singles ( Official Charts Company ) 99 See also List of Cash Box Top 100 number - one singles of 1983 List of number - one singles of 1983 ( Canada ) References Jump up ^ Greene, Jo - Ann. `` Eddy Grant -- Killer on the Rampage ''. AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 16 March 2016. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits : Eighth Edition. Record Research. p. 263. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). Top R&B / Hip - Hop Singles : 1942 - 2004. Record Research. p. 235. Jump up ^ Whitburn, Joel ( 2004 ). Hot Dance / Disco : 1974 - 2003. Record Research. p. 113. Jump up ^ `` Michael Jackson Tops Grammy Nominations ''. Detroit Free Press. 11 January 1984. p. 5B. Jump up ^ Izadi, Elahe ( 12 January 2016 ). `` How David Bowie confronted MTV for ignoring black artists in the early 1980s ''. Chicago Tribune. Retrieved 12 March 2016. Jump up ^ Denisoff, R. Serge ( 1988 ). Inside MTV. Transaction Publishers. ISBN 978 - 0 - 88738 - 864 - 4. ^ Jump up to : `` Official Singles Chart Top 100 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Refugee Camp Allstars -- Chart History ''. Billboard Hot 100. Retrieved 14 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Forum -- ARIA Charts : Special Occasion Charts -- CHART POSITIONS PRE 1989, part 2 ''. Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 May 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Austriancharts.at -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue '' ( in German ). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Ultratop.be -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue '' ( in Dutch ). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Top RPM Singles : Issue 6231. '' RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Le Détail par Artiste '' ( in French ). InfoDisc. Select `` Eddy Grant '' from the artist drop - down menu. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Offiziellecharts.de -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ''. GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 6 May 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` The Irish Charts -- Search Results -- Electric Avenue ''. Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Nederlandse Top 40 -- Eddy Grant - Electric Avenue '' ( in Dutch ). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Dutchcharts.nl -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue '' ( in Dutch ). Single Top 100. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Charts.org.nz -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ''. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` South African Rock Lists Website SA Charts 1969 -- 1989 Acts ( G ) ''. Rock.co.za. Retrieved 6 May 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Swedishcharts.com -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ''. Singles Top 100. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Swisscharts.com -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ''. Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Official Singles Chart Top 100 ''. Official Charts Company. Retrieved 6 May 2016. ^ Jump up to : `` Eddy Grant -- Awards ''. AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` CASH BOX Top 100 Singles -- Week ending JULY 9, 1983 ''. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012... Cash Box. Jump up ^ `` Danishcharts.com -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ''. Tracklisten. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` ( Ringbang + Remix &cat = s Ultratop.be -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ( Ringbang Remix ) '' ) ( in Dutch ). Ultratip. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Offiziellecharts.de -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ( Ringbang Remix '' ). GfK Entertainment Charts. Retrieved 8 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Nederlandse Top 40 -- Eddy Grant - Electric Avenue ( Ringbang Remix By Peter Black ) '' ( in Dutch ). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` ( Ringbang + Remix &cat = s Dutchcharts.nl -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ( Ringbang Remix ) '' ) ( in Dutch ). Single Top 100. Retrieved 8 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` ( Ringbang + Remix &cat = s Swisscharts.com -- Eddy Grant -- Electric Avenue ( Ringbang Remix ) '' ). Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Forum -- ARIA Charts : Special Occasion Charts -- Top 100 End of Year AMR Charts -- 1980s ''. Australian-charts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` Jaaroverzichten 1983 '' ( in Dutch ). Ultratop. Hung Medien. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` The Top Singles of 1983 ''. RPM. Vol. 39 no. 17. 24 December 1983. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ ( in German ) `` Jahrescharts -- 1983 ''. Archived from the original on 9 May 2015... Offiziellecharts.de. GfK Entertainment Charts. Jump up ^ `` Top 100 - Jaaroverzicht van 1983 '' ( in Dutch ). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ Scaping, Peter, ed. ( 1984 ). `` Top 100 singles : 1983 ''. BPI Year Book 1984. British Phonographic Industry. pp. 42 -- 43. ISBN 0 - 906154 - 04 - 9. Jump up ^ `` Top 100 Hits for 1983 ''. The Longbored Surfer. Retrieved 6 May 2016. Jump up ^ `` The CASH BOX Year - End Charts : 1983 ''. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012... Cash Box. Jump up ^ `` ChartsPlusYE2001 '' ( PDF ). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved 6 May 2016. 1980s portal External links Lyrics of this song at MetroLyrics Music video at MTV.com ( Windows Media format ) Eddy Grant Studio albums Eddy Grant Message Man Walking on Sunshine Love in Exile My Turn to Love You Ca n't Get Enough Killer on the Rampage Going for Broke Born Tuff File Under Rock Barefoot Soldier Paintings of the Soul Soca Baptism Hearts and Diamonds Reparation Singles `` Walking on Sunshine '' `` Do You Feel My Love '' `` I Do n't Wanna Dance '' `` Electric Avenue '' `` Romancing the Stone '' `` Gimme Hope Jo'anna '' Songs `` Baby, Come Back '' `` After the Lights Go Down Low '' Related articles Discography The Equals Baby, Come Back Ice Records Ringbang Book : Eddy Grant Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Electric_Avenue_(song)&oldid=842133959 '' Categories : 1982 songs 1982 singles 1983 singles 2009 singles Eddy Grant songs EMI Records singles Funk songs Music videos directed by Steve Barron Parlophone singles Portrait Records singles RPM Top Singles number - one singles Songs about London Songs about poverty Songs written by Eddy Grant Skindred songs Hidden categories : CS1 French - language sources ( fr ) CS1 Dutch - language sources ( nl ) Articles with German - language external links Articles with hAudio microformats Singlechart usages for Austria Singlechart usages for Flanders Singlechart usages for Canadatopsingles Singlechart called without artist Singlechart called without song Singlechart usages for Germany2 Singlechart usages for Ireland2 Singlechart usages for Dutch40 Singlechart usages for Dutch100 Singlechart usages for New Zealand Singlechart usages for Sweden Singlechart usages for Switzerland Singlechart usages for UK Singlechart usages for Denmark Singlechart usages for Flanders Tip Singlechart making named ref Singlechart usages for Swiss Singlechart usages for United Kingdom Talk Contents About Wikipedia Français Simple English Svenska Edit links This page was last edited on 20 May 2018, at 13 : 07. 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Question: when did the song electric avenue come out
Answer: 1982