Fresh

Album: Emergency (1984)
Charted: 11 9
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The slang term "fresh," meaning remarkably cool (or is that Kool?) and original, was gaining traction when Kool & the Gang released this song in 1984. The earliest use of "fresh" in a hip-hop lyric was in 1981 with Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five's "It's Nasty (Genius of Love)":

    I'm a man that's fresh, huh, a woman's pet

    Hip-hop innovators Newcleus used it in their classic "Jam On It," which was popular in the summer of 1984, with the line,

    The beat is fresh y'all

    In November that year, Kool & the Gang became the first to put it in a song title when they released "Fresh" on their album Emergency. Around this time, Doug E. Fresh was also coming onto the scene. "Fresh" didn't go stale until the '90s; it was everywhere in the late '80s, with Beastie Boys and Run-D.M.C. throwing it into a lot of their lyrics. There was also D.J. Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince, who had their first hit, "Parents Just Don't Understand," in 1988.

    Kool & the Gang's "Fresh" was a big hit in the summer of 1985, reaching #9 on the Hot 100 and topping the R&B chart. The group was always in tune with the up-and-coming argot, and would insert it into their songs. When "get down" was hot in 1973, they made it the hook to their hit "Jungle Boogie." They wrote the song "Fresh" knowing the term was getting hot, and they even defined in the song, which is about girl who is "so fresh... so exciting to me."
  • This song may have been a fresh hit for Kool & the Gang, but an early version was sitting on the shelf for a while. The group's lead singer, James "J.T." Taylor, borrowed the tune from the band he was in before joining the Gang. "But it was a totally different groove. When I played it for [drummer] George Brown, he changed it," Taylor told Billboard.
  • The album's producer, Jim Bonnefond, brought in songwriter Sandy Linzer to help with the lyrics. Linzer recalled: "They had a title, and they wanted a lyric about all the fresh things that were going on in the world. I just changed it to 'She's fresh,' wrote the lyrics to the verses, and submitted it."
  • "Fresh" was one of three big hits from Kool & the Gang's Emergency album, along with the rocker "Misled" and the ballad "Cherish." By this time, they had expanded their audience far past the funk fans that enjoyed their '70s hits like "Hollywood Swinging" and "Ladies Night." They had a few more hits before lead singer J.T. Taylor went solo in 1988.

Comments: 1

  • Wreck It Ralph from Louisville I feel that the guy is smitten with the lady. She might have a good personality too.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"

Allen Toussaint - "Southern Nights"They're Playing My Song

A song he wrote and recorded from "sheer spiritual inspiration," Allen's didn't think "Southern Nights" had hit potential until Glen Campbell took it to #1 two years later.

Richard Marx

Richard MarxSongwriter Interviews

Richard explains how Joe Walsh kickstarted his career, and why he chose Hazard, Nebraska for a hit.

Commercials

CommercialsFact or Fiction

Was "Ring Of Fire" really used to sell hemorrhoid cream?

John Doe of X

John Doe of XSongwriter Interviews

With his X-wife Exene, John fronts the band X and writes their songs.

Yoko Ono

Yoko OnoSongwriter Interviews

At 80 years old, Yoko has 10 #1 Dance hits. She discusses some of her songs and explains what inspired John Lennon's return to music in 1980.

Loreena McKennitt

Loreena McKennittSongwriter Interviews

The Celtic music maker Loreena McKennitt on finding musical inspiration, the "New Age" label, and working on the movie Tinker Bell.