Home | Songs By Year | Songs from 1949
Mambo No. 5
Buy Mambo No. 5 now from AmazonFirst, read the Wikipedia article. Then, scroll down to see what other TopShelfReviews readers thought about the song. And once you've experienced the song, tell everyone what you thought about it.
Wikipedia article
"'Mambo No. 5'" is an instrumental mambo and jazz dance song originally composed and recorded by Cuban musician Dmaso Prez Prado in 1949 and released the next year.
German singer Lou Bega sampled the original for a new song released under the same name on Bega's 1999 debut album, 'A Little Bit of Mambo'.
Lou Bega version
{{Infobox song
| name = Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit of...)
| cover = Mambo No. 5.jpg
| type = single
| artist = Lou Bega
| album = A Little Bit of Mambo
| released =
| recorded =
| genre = Latin pop
| length =
| label =
| writer =
| producer =
| next_title = I Got a Girl
| next_year = 1999
| misc =
}}
German singer Lou Bega recorded a cover of the song and released it in April 1999 as the first single from his debut album, 'A Little Bit of Mambo' (1999). His version became a summer hit during 1999 in most of Europe. Later that year, it experienced success in the United Kingdom, North America, and Oceania. In France, it set a record by staying at number one for 20 weeks. The song reached number three on the US 'Billboard' Hot 100 on 2 November 1999, giving Bega his only top-40 hit in the United States.
Critical reception
Elisabeth Vincentelli from 'Entertainment Weekly' rated the song with an B minus, adding, "All of a sudden, mambo is hot again, and the unlikely city of Munich is on the Latin-music map. For this we have to thank the Ugandan-Italian Bega and his German producing team, who have hit pay dirt by tacking new lyrics onto an old Perez Prado song. While purists scream murder, the upbeat tune and bouncy, '80s-style synthesizers will rule weddings for months to come."Vincentelli, Elisabeth (10 Sep 1999). "This Week: Music". 'Entertainment Weekly'. Issue 502.Copyright dispute
The song became the subject of a seven-year copyright trial between Prado's estate, Peermusic, and Bega's producers. Bega had only used riffs (which by German law cannot be registered for copyright) from Prado's original and written the entire lyrics, so Bega's producers went to court in order to gain access to all the song's proceedings from Peermusic representing Prado's estate. However, after seven years the Federal Court of Justice of Germany ruled in favor of Peermusic and Prado's estate in 2008, based upon the fact that Bega's producers had sought a royalty agreement with Peermusic prior to releasing the song. Because of Bega's significant contributions to his version, the court's final ruling declared it a new song co-written by Prado and Bega.Music video
The accompanying music video for "Mambo No. 5", directed by Jorn Heitmann, features Lou Bega singing and dancing with flappers. An alternate music video aired on Disney Channel, featuring clips from various Disney films and television series, with newly recorded lyrics by Bega dealing with the featured characters.Track listings
* 'CD single'# "Mambo No. 5" (Radio Edit) 3:39
# "Mambo No. 5" (Extended Mix) 5:14
# "Mambo No. 5" (Enhanced CD-ROM Video) 3:42
* 'Maxi single'
# "Mambo No. 5" (Radio Edit) 3:39
# "Mambo No. 5" (Extended Mix) 5:14
# "Mambo" (Havanna Club Mix) 5:48
# "Mambo" (The Trumpet) 6:01
* '7-inch 45 rpm single'
# "Mambo No. 5" (Radio Edit) 3:39
# "Beauty on the TV Screen" 4:03
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
!Chart (1999)
!Position
|-
!scope="row"|Australia (ARIA)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Austria (3 Austria Top 40)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)
|2
|-
!scope="row"|Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)
|4
|-
!scope="row"|Canada Top Singles ('RPM')
|7
|-
!scope="row"|Canada Adult Contemporary ('RPM')
|22
|-
!scope="row"|Canada Dance/Urban ('RPM')
|6
|-
!scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
|2
|-
!scope="row"|France (SNEP)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Germany (Official German Charts)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)
|4
|-
!scope="row"|Netherlands (Single Top 100)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Romania (Romanian Top 100)
|3
|-
!scope="row"|Spain (PROMUSICAE) 'Click on' Msica grabada.
|1
|-
!scope="row"|Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)
|6
|-
!scope="row"|Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)
|1
|-
!scope="row"|UK Singles (OCC)
|4
|-
!scope="row"|UK Airplay ('Music Week')
|32
|-
!scope="row"|US 'Billboard' Hot 100
|42
|}
{|class="wikitable sortable plainrowheaders" style="text-align:center"
!Chart (2000)
!Position
|-
!scope="row"|Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)
|86
|-
!scope="row"|France (SNEP)
|82
|}
Decade-end charts
Certifications
Release history
Bob the Builder version
On 3 September 2001, BBC Records released a novelty version of the song sung by British actor Neil Morrissey, who provided the voice of Bob for children's television show 'Bob the Builder'. It features background vocals from Rob Rackstraw and Kate Harbour, who voiced several other characters on the show. This cover radically changed the lyrics to fit the theme of the show, making numerous references to construction, repairs and roadway maintenance, as well as the show's characters. The female names from Bega's version are also replaced with types of construction supplies and building tasks, 'e.g.', timber, saw, waterproofing and tiling.
Chart performance
On 9 September 2001, the song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Bob the Builder's second number-one single on the listing after "Can We Fix It?". In doing so, Bob became the first novelty act to top the UK chart with more than one single. Following the 11 September attacks, the song was removed from the BBC Radio 2 playlist, with the station's executive music producer Colin Martin describing the song as being "too frivolous in light of the news that was breaking". The song earned a gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on 12 October 2001 for shipping over 400,000 units. At the end of 2001, it was ranked as the UK's 17th-best-selling single.In Ireland, the song first appeared on the Irish Singles Chart at number 13 on 13 September and peaked at number four the following week. It remained in the top 50 for 10 weeks in total. At the end of the year, the song came in at number 42 on Ireland's year-end chart. "Mambo No. 5" debuted at number three on the Australian Singles Chart on 4 November 2001 and reached number two on 18 November. After staying at the position for another week, the song descended the chart, spending nine more weeks in the top 50. It was Australia's 26th-most-successful hit of the year and shipped over 70,000 copies, allowing it to receive a platinum certification from the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA).
Track listing
* 'CD and maxi-CD single'# "Mambo No. 5"
# "Super Spud" (Spud's dub)
# "Mambo No. 5" (karaoke music)
# "Mambo No. 5" (video CD-ROM)
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Certifications
Release history
Ome Henk parody
In 1999, Dutch TV character Ome Henk took a parody of the song called "Mambo Nr 6" to number 17 on the Dutch Top 40. The lyrics referred to the medicine prescribed to him, which causes hallucinations of the girls he mentions in the song. A parody of commercials for the fictional product is also heard.
Legacy
*The original recording by Prez Prado was inducted into the Latin Grammy Hall of Fame in 2001.
*This song was initially selected as the theme song of the 2000 Democratic National Convention, but this plan was scrapped due to the possibility of people associating the song with Monica Lewinsky, who had a central role in the ClintonLewinsky scandal, with the chorus, "A little bit of Monica in my life".
* The Lou Bega version has become associated with the England cricket team and Test cricket after it was used by UK broadcaster Channel 4 as the theme for their live coverage of England Test matches between 1999 and 2005; the music also accompanied the return of cricket to the channel during the 2021 IndiaEngland series. Having been particularly famous during the 2005 Ashes series won by England, the song is still played today by the England cricket fans, the 'Barmy Army'.
References
Category:1949 songs
Category:1990s fads and trends
Category:1999 debut singles
Category:2001 singles
Category:Ariola Records singles
Category:BBC Records singles
Category:Bob the Builder songs
Category:Dutch Top 40 number-one singles
Category:European Hot 100 Singles number-one singles
Category:Irish Singles Chart number-one singles
Category:Latin Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients
Category:List songs
Category:Lou Bega songs
Category:Mambo
Category:Number-one singles in Australia
Category:Number-one singles in Austria
Category:Number-one singles in the Czech Republic
Category:Number-one singles in Denmark
Category:Number-one singles in Finland
Category:Number-one singles in Germany
Category:Number-one singles in Greece
Category:Number-one singles in Hungary
Category:Number-one singles in Iceland
Category:Number-one singles in Italy
Category:Number-one singles in New Zealand
Category:Number-one singles in Norway
Category:Number-one singles in Scotland
Category:Number-one singles in Spain
Category:Number-one singles in Sweden
Category:Number-one singles in Switzerland
Category:Prez Prado songs
Category:RCA Records singles
Category:RCA Victor singles
Category:RPM Top Singles number-one singles
Category:SNEP Top Singles number-one singles
Category:Songs written by Prez Prado
Category:UK Independent Singles Chart number-one singles
Category:UK Singles Chart number-one singles
Category:Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles
Category:Ultratop 50 Singles (Wallonia) number-one singles
Category:Universal Music Australia singles
Buy Mambo No. 5 now from Amazon
<-- Return to songs from 1949