Here We Go Again! (song)
| "Here We Go Again!" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Portrait | ||||
| from the album Portrait | ||||
| Released | 1992 | |||
| Genre | New jack swing | |||
| Length | 4:20 (album version) 3:55 (radio edit) | |||
| Label | Capitol | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) |
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| Portrait singles chronology | ||||
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"Here We Go Again!" is a song by the American R&B group Portrait. It was released in 1992 as both their debut single as a group and as the lead single from their debut self-titled studio album, which was also released that year. It is a new jack swing song which samples three other songs, including "Bring the Noise" by Public Enemy, and is written about recurring arguments with a significant other. It peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 to become the group's biggest hit and has since been included on lists of the best new jack swing songs and in an episode of the sitcom Family Matters in 1993.
Release and composition
[edit]"Here We Go Again!" was released through Capitol Records in 1992 as the debut single of the Los Angeles-based R&B quartet Portrait, who wrote and produced the song, and as the lead single from their self-titled debut album. Its members at the time were singers Phillip Johnson, Eric Kirkland, Irving Washington III, and Michael Angelo Saulsbery.[1] Its genre is new jack swing, a subgenre that melds R&B with the rhythm and sampling of hip hop. It also has jazz influences and its lyrics are about frequently arguing with an envious lover. It features samples of Chuck D's voice on the Public Enemy song "Bring the Noise", the bass line from the Michael Jackson song "I Can't Help It"—which would be used again on the De La Soul song "Breakadawn" the following year—and the hand clapping beat from "The Humpty Dance" by Digital Underground.[2][3]
Critical reception, commercial performance, and in media
[edit]Complex listed "Here We Go Again!" as the 19th best new jack swing song, with Brian Josephs complimenting it as "the very essence of chill".[2] UDiscover Music included "Here We Go Again!" on their lists of the best 1990s R&B songs and the best new jack swing songs at numbers 39 and 24, respectively, and Charles Waring wrote for the latter list that "Portrait were never able to emulate the success of their playful debut single".[4] Dave Holmes of Decider praised "Here We Go Again!" as "the best lost R&B song of the [1990s]".[5]
"Here We Go Again!" peaked at number 11 on the Billboard Hot 100 in February 1993 and at number three on Billboard's Hot R&B Singles chart in January 1993.[6] Andy Kellman of AllMusic deemed it the group's biggest hit.[7] Portrait performed the song on a 1993 episode of the sitcom Family Matters in which Steve Urkel goes to prom.[8][5]
Charts
[edit]Weekly charts
[edit]| Chart (1992–1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA)[9] | 41 |
| New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[10] | 48 |
| UK Singles (OCC)[11] | 37 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[12] | 11 |
| US Dance Club Songs (Billboard) [13] | 30 |
| US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[6] | 3 |
| US Rhythmic (Billboard)[14] | 1 |
Year-end charts
[edit]| Chart (1993) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100[15] | 59 |
| US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[16] | 22 |
References
[edit]- ^ "Painting A Pretty Picture". Billboard. September 4, 1993. p. 21.
- ^ a b Josephs, Brian (July 20, 2012). "The 25 Best New Jack Swing Songs". Complex. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Best New Jack Swing Songs: 40 Party Starting Jams". uDiscover Music. February 22, 2024. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ Sweet, Patricia (February 3, 2024). "Best 90s R&B Songs: 75 Essential Classics". uDiscover Music. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ a b Holmes, Dave (February 14, 2018). "Dave Holmes Revisits The 20 Lowest Rated TV Shows From Valentine's Day 1993". Decider. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ a b "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs: Week of January 30, 1993". Billboard. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ Kellman, Andy. "Portrait Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ Willman, Chris (October 14, 2020). "DJ Cassidy: The Man Behind the All-Star 'Pass the Mic' Passes On His Love of '70s, '80s and '90s R&B and Early Hip-Hop". Variety. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "[US&titel=Here+We+Go+Again!&cat=s Portrait [US] – Here We Go Again!"]. ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "[US&titel=Here+We+Go+Again!&cat=s Portrait [US] – Here We Go Again!"]. Top 40 Singles. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Billboard Hot 100: Week of February 13, 1993". Billboard. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Dance Club Songs: Week of January 30, 1993". Billboard. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Rhythmic Airplay: Week of February 13, 1993". Billboard. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "The Year In Music 1993 - Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 105, no. 52. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. December 25, 1993. p. YE-20. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved August 19, 2024.
- ^ "Year-End Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs of 1993". Billboard. Archived from the original on July 4, 2018. Retrieved August 19, 2024.