Shalamar

Songwriter: Renaldo Benson Lawrence Payton

Producer: Leon Sylvers III

Just lay it back

You know, everybody's got a fantasy
I got a thing, you got a thing
You know what I'm talkin' about?
But let me tell you about my thing
I've always had this fantasy
About goin' to the planet of Venus
And visit Venus, queen of love
And swim with her
In the famous River of Love
So one night while I was asleep
I must've been dreamin'
'Cause I heard a voice, it said:

You have been elected
To take a trip afar and go galactic
And Venus is your destination
The Venus with love, your space connection

Is this really paradise I'm in
And are you really standin' here next to me
And does your river flow with love so deep
Girl, will you take a swim with me

Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby

Take me to the river, yeah
Baby, why don't you come
Why don't you come with me
Rock 'n rollin' with the tide
Oh, yeah, let me be
Your mighty macho man, hey

Baby bubba
Shake your, shake your booty, baby
I'd really sock it
I'd really sock it to you, mama
I know you love me
I know you really love me, baby

You know, by this time
She didn't quite understand my language
Comin' from a distant place
You know, all this slang I use
But I know she understood
Where I was comin' from
And I know she dug it
'Cause when I smiled at her, she smiled at me
And you know, being the gentleman
That I am and everything
I didn't wanna just take advantage of the lady
I sat there, I talked to her
And I asked her, I said:

Is it wrong to touch your pretty hair
And is it wrong to say that love is fair
And is it wrong for me to be a man
And is it wrong to wanna touch your hand

Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby
Take me, take me to the river, baby

Take me to the river, oh, yeah
Tell me, why don't you come
Why don't you come with me
Rock 'n rollin' with the tide
That's right, oh, yeah, let me be
Your mighty macho man

Take me to the river, your river
Give me your hand
Let me be your mighty macho man
I'll make everything all right
Rock 'n rollin' with the tide
Take me to the river

Baby bubba
Shake your, shake your booty, baby
I'd really sock it
I'd really sock it to you, mama
I know you love me
I know you really love me, baby

Take me, take me
Take me to the river, take me
To swim with Venus, queen of love
Take me, take me
Take me to the river, take me
I wanna go galactic with you, baby
Take me, take me
Take me to the river, take me
Let me be your mighty macho man
Take me, take me, oh, baby mama
Take me to the river, take me...

Shalamar is an American R&B and soul music vocal group, active in the mid-1970s and throughout the 1980s. Their original lineup consisted of Jeffrey Daniel, Jody Watley, and Gary Mumford. The group went through various lineup changes throughout the years, with Mumford replaced by Gerald Brown, and again by Howard Hewett. The lineup of Daniel, Hewett, and Watley was the most successful, selling two Platinum albums (Three For Love, Friends) and one Gold album (Big Fun).

Despite more lineup changes in the ‘80s, the group still churned out hits such as “Dancing in the Sheets” and “Don’t Get Stopped in Beverly Hills”, which won them a Grammy.

Daniel, Hewett, and Watley eventually reunited several times in the ‘90s and as recently as 2015, playing in the UK where they’ve had the most success.

more tracks from the album

Big Fun

From the album

Big Fun (1979)

Shalamar popular songs

Take Me to the RiverShalamar

Shalamar

Big Fun