"Tighten Up" was a 1968 song by Houston, Texas based R&B vocal group Archie Bell & the Drells. It reached #1 on both the Billboard R&B and pop charts in the spring of 1968. It is ranked #265 on the Rolling Stone magazine's list of "the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time" and is one of the earliest funk hits in music history. "Tighten Up" was written by Archie Bell and Billy Buttier. It was one of the first songs that Archie Bell & the Drells recorded, in a session in 1967, along with a number of songs including "She's My Woman". Soon afterwards Bell was drafted into the US Army and began serving in Vietnam. The song became a hit in Houston, and was picked up by Atlantic Records for distribution in April 1968. By the summer it topped both the Billboard R&B and pop charts. It also sold a million copies by May 1968, gaining an RIAA gold disc. The line in "Tighten Up", "we dance just as good as we walk" was a little ironic, given that Bell had been shot in the leg and was consigned to a military hospital bed at the time. The introduction features Bell introducing himself as being from Houston, Texas. According to the Billboard Book of Number One Hits by Fred Bronson, Bell heard a comment after the Kennedy assassination in Dallas, that "nothing good ever came out of Texas." Bell wanted his listeners to know "we were from Texas and we were good." The song described an accompanying dance that the band had invented, also called the "Tighten Up"; this dance became popular concurrently .... + Informações

A #1 hit in 1968 and ranked #268 best of all time by Rolling Stone Magazine.. + Informações

Full length version taken from the 1977 album 'Where Will You Go When the Party's Over' on TSOP.. + Informações

ARCHIE & the DRELLS AT THEIR BEST. A NORTHERN SOUL CLASSIC. + Informações

I just cant help smiling when I hear this track. + Informações

I Could Dance All Night [*] - Archie Bell, Felder, Allan album: Archie Bell & The Drells - Tightening It Up (The Best Of). + Informações

1975 Club Classic,from the 1985 compilation album Club Classics Volume 2 :-). + Informações

Let's Go Disco Archie Bell Soul Train Line. + Informações

Os mais belos hits do século XX.. + Informações

Archie Bell & The Drells. + Informações

Funk and dance legend, songwriter and bandleader Mr. Archie Bell talks about playing with the Drells, having an international hit "Tight Up," and how his sky-high career was briefly disrupted when called to Vietnam. Tighten UP everybody!. + Informações

old people. + Informações

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freesoul. + Informações

Archie Bell & The Drells - Dancing To Your Music (Blackpool Tower Ballroom 1927). + Informações

Double A side - How much do you just love this one ?. + Informações

more quality 1960s & 1970s footage from BBC4sounds and BBC4music. check my other channel for more of the same. + Informações

Album zzz N/A Hi everybody. I'm Archie Drell and the Drells from Houston, Texas. We don't only sing but we dance just as good as we walk. In Houston we just started a new dance called the Tighten Up. This is the music we tighten up to. First tighten up on the drums. Come on now drummer. I want you to tighten it up for me now. oh yeah Tighten up on that bass now. Tighten it up. ha ha Yeah Now let that guitar fall in. Oh yeah Tighten up on that organ now. Ya, do the tighten up. Yeah now. I said if you can do it now, It sure would be tough. Now look here. Come on now. Make it mellow. Let's tighten up now. Do the tighten up. Everybody can do it now. So let's do it. We're gonna tighten up. Let's do the tighten up. You can do it now. So baby get to it. Let's do your left now. Let's do your right. You can do it. But don'tcha just do it light. Come on and tighten up. Tighten it up now. Come on now drum. Tighten it up. Tighten up that bass. Oh yeah Now look here. I want that guitar to fall in on that. Tighten it up now. Oh yeah Now tighten it up organ. There everybody, tighten it up. Now look here. We gonna make it mellow for ya now. We gonna make it mellow now. Tighten up. You can tighten up.. + Informações

Archie Bell with Larry Lange and his Lonely Knights at The Low & Slow Cruising Show at the Edgewood Theatre for the Performing Arts, San Antonio, Oct. 29th, 2011.. + Informações

12" 1975 Club Classic :-). + Informações

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Archie Bell & The Drells - Let's Go Disco (1975). + Informações

This is my kinda sheet right here, nice n simple. Please hook me up with some nice feedback if you will. And when I say that I truly don't mean MORE compliments for me, just keep the conversation going. Add your little wrinkle, because I for one DO CARE what you have to say. Anybody know the role of the TSU Tornadoes in all this?When was the first time you realized that this song was genius? Anybody know about Archie's two younger brothers? One was in the Dazz Band and one was a Denver Bronco. Elaborate, share, etc. Teach me something! Like, what is a Drell anyway? Peace and Thanks, Funk. + Informações

Archie Bell and the Drells - Tighten Up (1968). + Informações