Shut Up and Dance (duo)

Career

Shut Up and Dance, an English duo from Stoke Newington, London, are recognized as early innovators in breakbeat hardcore and jungle music, blending hip hop, house, and hardcore. The pair, Philip 'PJ' Johnson and Carlton 'Smiley' Hyman, came together in 1988. Two years later, they nudged the lower end of the UK chart with "£10 to Get In" and "Lamborghini," both issued on their own label, Shut Up and Dance Records. Around this time, they also began working with the Ragga Twins, producing their earliest releases.

In 1992, their double A-side "Autobiography of a Crackhead / The Green Man" reached number 43. That May, they dropped "Raving I'm Raving," which borrowed from Marc Cohn's "Walking in Memphis." Cohn quickly secured an injunction to halt further copies due to a lack of clearance, and a court order was sought to block sales of existing stock. However, Cohn agreed to let those copies sell if all proceeds went to charity.

This sparked panic-buying, as fans knew no more would be pressed. The single shot to number 2 on the UK Singles Chart, then tumbled to number 15 the following week before vanishing entirely. That chart position earned them a spot on BBC One's Top of the Pops on 28 May 1992, alongside Bassheads, Don-E, and Lisa Stansfield. Because they couldn't use the "Walking in Memphis" melody, they performed the lyrics to a different tune.

The duo released one more single from their album Death Is Not the End, "The Art of Moving Butts," featuring singer Erin. The album itself hit number 38 on the UK Albums Chart in June 1992. During 1994 and 1995, they put out several jungle tracks under the alias Red Light. This led to the 1995 album Black Men United, which mixed jungle, downtempo, reggae, and hip hop.

Its single "Save It 'Til the Mourning After," which samples Duran Duran's "Save a Prayer," reached number 25 on the UK chart and appeared as track 14 on Now That's What I Call Music! 30. In 1995, Cher covered "Walking in Memphis" for her album It's a Man's World; when released as a single on 16 October 1995, it included remixes produced by Shut Up and Dance. The duo re-emerged in the early 2000s with a series of UK garage tracks, followed by the breakbeat album Reclaim the Streets.