Just_the_Two_of_Us_(Grover_Washington,_Jr._song)

Just the Two of Us (Grover Washington Jr. song)

Just the Two of Us (Grover Washington Jr. song)

1981 R&B song


"Just the Two of Us" is a 1980 song written by Bill Withers, William Salter, and Ralph MacDonald, and recorded by Grover Washington Jr. with Withers on vocals. Elektra Records released it in Washington's 1980 album Winelight and as a February 1981 single.

Quick Facts from the album Winelight, B-side ...

Background

"Just the Two of Us" was written by Bill Withers, Ralph MacDonald and William Salter.[4] Originally an instrumental track written by MacDonald and Salter, MacDonald contacted Withers and he wrote the lyrics.

Composition

Harmony

"Just the Two of Us" is in the key of F minor. The chord progression Dmaj7 – C79 – Fm7 – Em7 A7 of its intro and verse can be thought of as a double-time modified reordering of the first four bars of the "Sunny" chord progression.[5] "Just the Two of Us" restarts this progression but settles on the minor tonic: Dmaj7 – C79 – Fm7 %. Its chorus inserts an additional Em7 chord to chromatically descend from the first Fm7 to Em7 chord.

Instrumentation

The Fender Rhodes electric piano, played in the introduction and throughout, was performed by Richard Tee.

Chart performance

The song reached number 2 on the US Billboard Hot 100, staying there for three weeks, behind "Morning Train (9 to 5)" by Sheena Easton and "Bette Davis Eyes" by Kim Carnes. It was Washington's only Top 40 hit.

The song won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Song.[6] Withers included the edited version on the 1981 compilation Bill Withers' Greatest Hits and many subsequent greatest hits collections.

The song propelled Winelight's success, often credited for leading to the 1980s smooth jazz explosion.[7]

Charts

More information Chart (1981), Peak position ...

Certifications

More information Region, Certification ...

Toshinobu Kubota version

Quick Facts from the album Kubojah: Parallel World I and Sunshine, Moonlight, Released ...

"Just the Two of Us" was covered by Japanese singer Toshinobu Kubota as a duet with Caron Wheeler in 1991, for his album Kubojah: Parallel World I. The song was listed as "Just the 2 of Us", featuring a reggae-style beat. In 1995, Kubota re-recorded the song with a more R&B-style beat for his album Sunshine, Moonlight. In 1996, he released the song as the second single from the album. The song charted at number 30 on the Oricon Weekly Singles chart and remained on the charts for five weeks.[31] It was included in the setlist during the Oyeees! Tour. During the tour, Joi Cardwell, who sang backing vocals during the tour, performed the song as a duet with Kubota. In 2007, Double performed the song on the MTV Japan Icons Special; during the performance, Kubota walked onto the stage to complete the song with her.[citation needed] In 2012, Kubota performed the song with Japanese singer Yuri, who was also a background vocalist during his "Party Ain't A Party Tour". The performance was included on his concert DVD "Party Ain't A Party", which was released in May 2012.[citation needed]

Music video

In 1996, Toshi Kubota and Caron Wheeler shot a music video for the song. The video is set at night, at a party in Kubota's apartment. Wheeler watches the party from the fire escape of the next apartment building. The single version was used for the audio format of the video. There are also shots of other musicians playing their instruments during the party, a group of elderly men playing cards outside the apartment on the sidewalk, and a couple dancing in another room of the apartment.

Formats and track listing

  1. "Just the Two of Us" (Butcher Bros. LP remix) (duet with Caron Wheeler)
  1. "Just the Two of Us" (Butcher Bros. LP remix)
  2. "Just the Two of Us" (Smooth R&B mix)
  3. "Just the Two of Us" (So So Def remix)
  4. "Just the Two of Us" (club mix radio edit)
  5. "Just the Two of Us" (Street mix) (featuring Fat Man Scoop and E. Bros.)

Other cover versions

Appearances in media

Movies and series

The song appeared in the opening sequence of the 2022 film Hotel Transylvania: Transformania.[41] It was also featured in the Futurama season 7 episode, "Fry and Leela's Big Fling" and The Simpsons season 15 episode, "My Big Fat Geek Wedding" and season 34 episode, "One Angry Lisa".

The title was popularized in France to be the main music for advertising campaigns for Caprice des Dieux cheese since 2009.[42]

TikTok

In late 2020, "Just the Two of Us" started trending on TikTok,[43][44] which prompted Salters' granddaughter, Jada Salter, to upload a video to the platform commemorating his work.[45]


References

  1. Breihan, Tom (May 4, 2020). "The Number Ones: Sheena Easton's "Morning Train (Nine to Five)". Stereogum. Retrieved July 19, 2023. Grover Washington Jr. and Bill Withers' elegant smooth-soul reverie ["Just the Two of Us"] peaked at #2...
  2. Coleman, Mark; Evans, Ben (2004). "Bill Withers". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 884. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
  3. Molanphy, Chris (July 31, 2021). "What a Fool Believes Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved February 23, 2024.
  4. Selby, Abe (February 12, 2021). "'Just The Two Of Us' Songwriter Found His Sound In Solitude". NPR. Retrieved 2023-06-27.
  5. Cleary, Tom (2019-11-26). "A history of the chord progression from Bobby Hebb's 'Sunny', and an original tune based on it ('Eye On The Sky')". BirdFeed. Archived from the original on 2024-01-15. Retrieved 2024-01-15.
  6. Micucci, Matt (2020-06-17). "Song of the Day: Grover Washington, Jr. and Bill Withers, "Just the Two of Us"". JAZZIZ Magazine. Archived from the original on 2023-05-29. Retrieved 2024-01-17.
  7. "Australian Chart Books". www.australianchartbooks.com.au. Archived from the original on March 5, 2016.
  8. "Top Singles". RPM Weekly. archived at Library and Archives Canada. June 6, 1981. Retrieved February 24, 2018 via bac-lac.gc.ca.
  9. "Adult Contemporary". RPM Weekly. archived at Library and Archives Canada. 17 July 2013 via bac-lac.gc.ca.
  10. "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 22, 1981" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  11. "Top 100 Singles". Cash Box. republished online at tropicalglen.com. May 9, 1981. Archived from the original on June 3, 2015. Retrieved April 3, 2019.
  12. "Veckolista Heatseeker, vecka 48, 2020" (in Swedish). Sverigetopplistan. Retrieved April 11, 2021.
  13. "Top 100 Singles of 1981". RPM Weekly. archived at Library and Archives Canada. December 26, 1981. Retrieved April 3, 2019 via bac-lac.gc.ca.
  14. "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1981". Dutch Top 40. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  15. "Top Songs 1981". musicoutfitters.com.
  16. "Adult Contemporary Songs – Year-End 1981". Billboard. Retrieved October 9, 2021.
  17. "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved December 10, 2018.
  18. "Italian single certifications – Grover Washington Jr/Withers – Just the Two of Us" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 29 November 2021. Select "2021" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Just the Two of Us" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
  19. "久保田利伸のシングル売り上げランキング". oricon.co.jp (in Japanese). Oricon Style. Retrieved November 4, 2012.
  20. [Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955-2002]
  21. I Like It When You Die Liner Notes
  22. ""Just two of us" une mélodie bien planante - France Bleu". ici, par France Bleu et France 3 (in French). Retrieved 2024-02-27.
  23. Team, Editorial (February 17, 2023). "THEORY OF A DEADMAN Stream New Single "Two Of Us (Stuck)"". Sonic Perspectives. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  24. Yann Savary, Olivier Maréchal. "Just The Two Of Us dans 1 spot TV sur MusiqueDePub.TV". www.musiquedepub.tv (in French). Retrieved 2024-01-06.
  25. Zhang, Cat (21 December 2020). "A Year in Music on TikTok". Pitchfork.

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