Baltimora - Tarzan Boy - (7“ Summer Version) 1985

“Tarzan Boy“ is a 1985 song and single of the Italian disco genre recorded by the Italian musical group Baltimora. It was released in April of that year, under the record label Columbia / EMI Records (Europe) and Manhattan Records (United States) and composed by the duo Maurizio Bassi and Naimy Hackett. Side B included an alternate DJ version of the same song. “Tarzan Boy“ was the group’s first single, taken from their debut album Living in the Background, on which it appears as the first track. However, it was the only success they achieved, internationally. In the United States and the United Kingdom they are considered a “one-hit wonder“ (wonder of a success). In the United States it was again quite popular due to the use that was made of the subject in the 1990s, as a result of a television commercial sponsored by Listerine.1 The song was re-recorded and remastered by Baltimora in 1993, in a new version for the band soundtrack from the film Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles III and Beverly Hills Ninja with Chris Farley. It has been covered by various artists over the years. The chorus uses the cry of Tarzan as a melodic line, and has a fairly basic and light composition. In general, it is very rhythmic and danceable, with an electronic base and simple English lyrics. It tells of a lonely man who is in the middle of an unknown jungle and enjoys his freedom, like Tarzan. In part of the lyrics he invites others to join his adventure. This conceptual ambiguity and added to the homosexuality of its interpreter [citation needed], made many think that it is a declaration of his sexual orientation [citation needed], even though the song was not composed by him. Due to the large number of versions that circulated and made by the band itself, its duration is highly variable, the original being 3:48 minutes on the 7 “single disc (45 RPM), up to a maximum on the so-called“ Tarzan Boy (summer version) “6:40 minutes on a 12“ record. The theme was accompanied by a colorful and simple video clip that used an aesthetic close to the comic, and with McShane dressed in an extravagant outfit and makeup. “Tarzan Boy“ was released in the summer of 1985, and was a great success, debuting in the top 5 of the Italian charts and performing well in many other European countries, such as Denmark, Germany and the Netherlands. The song found its great success in France, where it topped the charts for five consecutive weeks. In the United Kingdom, it reached number three in August 1985. The single had similar success in the United States (where it was released by EMI), with a long tenure on the Billboard Hot 100 for six months and ultimately reaching number 13 in the spring of 1986. Baltimora played her in the American television show “Solid Gold” which further helped her success in that country.