Discography and Biography of The Bar-Kays. Listen to all their hits.
The Bar-Kays Songs

(with biography below if available)

The Bar-Kays are an American soul, R&B, and funk group formed in 1966. The group had dozens of charting singles from the 1960s to the 1980s, including "Soul Finger" (US Billboard Hot 100 number 17, R&B number 3) in 1967, "Son of Shaft" (R&B number 10) in 1972, and "Boogie Body Land" (R&B number 7) in 1980. Initially a funky instrumental soul combo on Stax/Volt, the Bar-Kays were nearly destroyed when most of the band perished in the same plane crash that claimed Otis Redding. Amazingly, the Bar-Kays not only regrouped but prospered, evolving into a popular funk ensemble over the course of the '70s. They continued to score hits on the R&B charts through much of the '80s as well, making for a career longevity that no one would have predicted for Stax's formerly star-crossed number-two house band.

Below is a list of The Bar-Kays songs, sorted by the most popular first. Place mouse on to see information about song. Click song title to play song and to read details about the song including lyrics (if available). Click year to list all songs from that year. Click label to list songs from that record label. Songs with chart position "---" either never made it into the US top 100 R&B or UK charts or we have no details of their highest chart positions if they did.

(Song are sorted in highest US R&B Top 100 and/or UK Top 100 chart position order)


showing 1-38 of 38 records
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artist discography/bio
read song lyrics, etc.
year
record label
1 record label: Volt 148
chart position: RandB #3, US #17, UK #33
written by: Alexander, Caldwell, Cauley, Cunningham, Jones & King
album: Soul Finger / Atlantic Soul Classics
comments: [mainly instrumental]
The Bar-Kays Soul Finger
1967 Volt
2 record label: Mercury 73833
chart position: RandB #5, US #23, UK #41
written by: Michael Beard, Larry Dodson, Harvey Henderson, Lloyd Smith, Frank Thompson
album: Too Hot To Stop
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Shake Your Rump to the Funk
1976 Mercury
3 record label: Mercury 76015
chart position: RandB #3, US #57, US dance #90
written by: J. Alexander, L. Dodson, A. Jones, M. Beard, F. Thompson, W. Stewart, C. Allen, L. Smith, H. Henders
The Bar-Kays Move Your Boogie Body
1979 Mercury
4 record label: Mercury 818 631
chart position: RandB #2, US #73
written by: The Bar Kays and Allen Jones (as Allen A. Jones)
album: Dangerous
The Bar-Kays Freakshow on the Dance Floor
1984 Mercury
5 record label: Mercury 76123
chart position: RandB #5, US #101, US dance #49
written by: Allen Jones (as Allen A. Jones)
album: Nightcruising
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Hit and Run
1981 Mercury
6 record label: Mercury 76088
chart position: RandB #7, US dance #73
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Larry Dodson
album: As One
The Bar-Kays Boogie Body Land
1980 Mercury
7 record label: Mercury 76097
chart position: RandB #7, US dance #73
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Larry Dodson
album: As One
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Body Fever
1981 Mercury
8 record label: Mercury 73888
chart position: RandB #8, US #74
written by: Michael Beard, Larry Dodson, Harvey Henderson, Lloyd Smith, Frank Thompson, Fred Freeman
album: Too Hot to Stop
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Too Hot to Stop (Pt. 1)
1977 Mercury
9 record label: Stax 3216
chart position: RandB #9
written by: Eddie Marion, Henderson Thigpen and James Banks
album: Money Talks
The Bar-Kays Holy Ghost
1978 Stax
10 record label: Mercury 76187
chart position: RandB #9
written by: Allen Jones and Michael Toles
album: Propositions
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Do It (Let Me See You Shake)
1982 Mercury
11 record label: Mercury 888 837
chart position: RandB #9
written by: DeDe Leitta, Larry Dodson and R.J. Rice
album: Contagious
The Bar-Kays Certified True
1987 Mercury
12 record label: Volt 4073
chart position: RandB #10, US #53
written by: Allen Jones, Homer Banks and Brown
The Bar-Kays Son of Shaft
1971 Volt
13 record label: Mercury 534
chart position: RandB #11, US #102
written by: James Alexander, Larry Dodson, Allen Jones, Winston Stewart, Michael Beard, Charles Allen
album: Flying High on Your Love
The Bar-Kays Let's Have Some Fun
1978 Mercury
14 record label: Mercury 872 102
chart position: RandB #11
written by: Alvin Moody, Kenni Hairston and Trevor Gale
album: Animal
The Bar-Kays Struck by You
1989 Mercury
15 record label: Mercury 880 255
chart position: RandB #12, UK #51, US dance #15
written by: The Bar Kays and Allen Jones (as Allen A. Jones)
album: Dangerous
The Bar-Kays Sex O Matic
1984 Mercury
16 record label: Mercury 880 966
chart position: RandB #12, US dance #44
written by: The Bar Kays and Allen Jones (as Allen A. Jones)
album: Banging the Wall
The Bar-Kays Your Place or Mine
1985 Mercury
17 record label: Mercury 810 435
chart position: RandB #13, US dance #62
written by: The Bar Kays, Allen Jones and Michael Toles
album: Propositions
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays She Talks to Me with Her Body
1983 Mercury
18 record label: Mercury 74048
chart position: RandB #14, US #102
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Lloyd Smith
album: Light of Life
The Bar-Kays Shine
1979 Mercury
19 record label: Mercury 880 045
chart position: RandB #17
written by: The Bar Kays and Allen Jones (as Allen A. Jones)
album: Dangerous
The Bar-Kays Dirty Dancer
1984 Mercury
20 record label: Mercury 76036
chart position: RandB #25, US #60
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Larry Dodson
album: Injoy
The Bar-Kays Today Is the Day
1980 Mercury
21 record label: Mercury 73994
chart position: RandB #22
written by: James Alexander, Larry Dodson, Allen Jones, Winston Stewart, Michael Beard, Charles Allen
album: Flying High on Your Love
The Bar-Kays Attitudes
1978 Mercury
22 record label: Stax 601014
chart position: RandB #28, US #76
written by: Steve Cropper and Booker T. Jones
album: Soul Finger
comments: [instrumental]
The Bar-Kays Knucklehead
1967 Stax
23 record label: Mercury 74039
chart position: RandB #26
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Lloyd Smith
album: Light of Life
The Bar-Kays I'll Dance
1978 Mercury
24 record label: Mercury 76143
chart position: RandB #27, US dance #60
written by: Allen Jones and Howard Redmon Jr.
album: Nightcruising
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Freaky Behavior
1982 Mercury
25 record label: Mercury 73915
chart position: RandB #29
written by: James Banks and Henderson Thigpen
album: Too Hot to Stop
The Bar-Kays Spellbound
1977 Mercury
26 record label: Volt 154
chart position: RandB #36, US #91
written by: David Porter and The Bar Kays
The Bar-Kays Give Everybody Some
1967 Volt
27 record label: Mercury 870 018
chart position: RandB #56
written by: Allen Jones, Harvey Henderson, Larry Dodson and Winston Stewart
album: Contagious
The Bar-Kays Don't Hang Up
1987 Mercury
28 record label: Mercury 74048
chart position: RandB #61
written by: Allen Jones, Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Lloyd Smith
album: Light of Life
The Bar-Kays Are You Being Real
1979 Mercury
29 record label: Mercury 872 955
chart position: RandB #66
written by: Chad, Kenni Hairston and Trevor Gale
album: Animal
The Bar-Kays Animal
1989 Mercury
30 record label: Mercury 884 232
chart position: RandB #67
written by: The Bar Kays and Allen Jones
album: Banging the Walls
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Banging the Walls
1985 Mercury
31 record label: Basix 1314
chart position: RandB #82
album: 48 Hours
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays The Slide
1995 Basix
32 record label: Basix 1309
chart position: RandB #96
comments: [funk]
The Bar-Kays Old School Mega Mix
1995 Basix
33 record label: Curb 6837
chart position: RandB #101
written by: Terry Harris
album: Best Of Bar-Kays
The Bar-Kays Everybody Wants That Love
1996 Curb
-- record label: Mercury 74039
written by: Charles Allen, Frank Thompson, Harvey Henderson, James Alexander, Larry Dodson, Lloyd Smith
album: Light of Life
comments: [instrumental]
The Bar-Kays Angel Eyes
1978 Mercury
-- record label: Volt 4111
album: Coldblooded
The Bar-Kays Coldblooded
1974 Volt
-- record label: Mercury 76187
written by: Allen A. Jones, Bar Kays, Michael Toles
album: Nightcruising
The Bar-Kays Feels Like I'm Falling In Love
1982 Mercury
-- record label: Mercury 1181
written by: The Bar-Kays
album: Flying High On Your Love
comments: [disco funk album cut]
The Bar-Kays You Can't Run Away
1977 Mercury
-- record label: Mercury 3844
album: As One
comments: [album cut]
The Bar-Kays Open Your Heart
1980 Mercury




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