Slow Hand
1981 single by The Pointer Sisters
"Slow Hand" is a song recorded by American vocal group the Pointer Sisters for their eighth studio album Black & White (1981). The song, written by Michael Clark and John Bettis, was released by the Planet label in May 1981 as the lead single from Black & White.
01Background and impact
Although its sultry style recalls the Pointer Sisters' first American top-ten hit, the 1978 number two hit "Fire", "Slow Hand" was not written for the group; in fact John Bettis stated that "the Pointer Sisters were the furthest [act] from [the composers'] minds." However producer Richard Perry said he "knew 'Slow Hand' [would be] an instant smash [hit]...that...would recapitulate and expand on the intimacy [of] 'Fire'." Like "Fire", which also featured Anita Pointer on lead, "Slow Hand" peaked at number two on the Billboard Hot 100 for three weeks behind "Endless Love" by Diana Ross and Lionel Richie. "Slow Hand" reached that position in August 1981 when it also reached number seven on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. In September 1981, the single was certified Gold by the RIAA. "Slow Hand" also afforded the Pointer Sisters international success, including the first appearance by the group in the top-ten on the UK Singles Chart.
02Personnel
The Pointer Sisters
- Anita Pointer, lead vocals
- June Pointer, backing vocals
- Ruth Pointer, backing vocals
Musicians
- John Barnes, electric piano
- William "Smitty" Smith, organ
- Paul Jackson Jr., guitar
- Tim May, guitar
- Nathan Watts, bass
- John Robinson, drums
- Paulinho da Costa, percussion
03Charts
Weekly charts
|
Year-end charts
|
04Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| New Zealand (RMNZ) | Platinum | 30,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
05Del Reeves version
The song was covered in 1981 by country singer Del Reeves, whose version peaked at #53 on the Hot Country Singles chart.
06Conway Twitty version
| "Slow Hand" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Conway Twitty | ||||
| from the album Southern Comfort | ||||
| B-side | "When Love Was Something Else" | |||
| Released | April 24, 1982 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 2:56 | |||
| Label | Elektra | |||
| Songwriters | Michael Clark, John Bettis | |||
| Producers | Jimmy Bowen, Conway Twitty | |||
| Conway Twitty singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
The song was covered in April 1982 by country singer Conway Twitty with minor lyric changes to accommodate a male singer. His version, on Elektra Records, topped the Billboard Hot Country Singles chart for two weeks that June, and was his last multi-week number-one song, and his last gold record.
Weekly charts
| Chart (1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard) | 1 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 6 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (1982) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard) | 20 |
Certifications
| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| United States (RIAA) | Platinum | 1,000,000‡ |
|
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone. | ||
Sources and credits
This article is adapted from the Wikipedia article “Slow Hand”, written by its contributors and licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Fathomly has changed the layout, removed citation markers, navigation and maintenance notices, and adjusted punctuation. This adapted version is shared under the same license. For references, see the original article.
Images, from Wikimedia Commons:
- Slowhand.jpg by Unknown author, Fair use
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