Automatic (Pointer Sisters song)

1984 song by the Pointer Sisters

"Automatic"

Single by The Pointer Sisters
from the album  Break Out
B-side| "Nightline"
Released| January 13, 1984
Recorded| 1983
(Los Angeles, California)
Genre|

* Funk[1]
* new wave[1][2]
* electronic rock[2]

Length| 4:48
Label|

* Planet
* RCA

Songwriter(s)|

* Brock Walsh
* Mark Goldenberg

Producer(s)| Richard Perry
The Pointer Sisters singles chronology
| "I Need You"
(1983)  | "Automatic"
(1984)  | "Jump (For My Love)"
(1984)

|
|

Music video
"Automatic" at TopPop on YouTube

"Automatic" is a song recorded by American vocal group the Pointer Sisters for their tenth studio album Break Out (1983). The song was released by the Planet label on January 13, 1984, as the second single from the album. It was written by Brock Walsh and Mark Goldenberg.

"Automatic" reached number five on the US Billboard Hot 100 and became one of their signature songs. Eventually, three other singles from Break Out reached the top-ten on the Hot 100 consecutively. Billboard named the song number 94 on their list of "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs Of All Time".[3]

"Automatic" was the group's first Top 40 hit to feature Ruth Pointer's distinctive contralto on lead.

## Background

[edit]

According to Ruth Pointer, "Automatic" was the final song chosen for Break Out: "We were taking a break from recording in the office of Jim Tract, who was Richard Perry's right-hand man, and Jim mentioned that he had a stash of tapes we might want to listen to [while on] a breather...We all sat up straight when we first heard ['Automatic'] and told Richard we wanted to include it on the album. 'Okay,' he said 'But who would sing the low part?' 'Are you kidding me?' I said, 'I'll do the low part!'"[4]

Although Break Out largely comprised dance tracks, its lead single was the ballad "I Need You", chosen by producer Richard Perry in hopes of reinforcing the Pointer Sisters presence at R&B radio: the dance track "Jump (for My Love)" was intended as the second single but the heavy airplay afforded "Automatic" as an album cut by both dance clubs and radio stations caused the substitution of "Automatic" for "Jump..." as the second single release from Break Out, although "Jump..." would become the most successful US single off Break Out when it became the album's third single.[5] The first Top 40 hit to feature Ruth Pointer's distinctive contralto on lead, "Automatic" reached #5 on the Hot 100 in Billboard in April 1984, also charting on the magazine's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs and Hot Dance Club Play rankings, its #2 R&B chart peak making "Automatic" the highest charting R&B hit by the Pointer Sisters as a trio (in their original four-woman format the Pointer Sisters did score an R&B #1 hit with "How Long (Betcha' Got a Chick on the Side)"). Holding "Automatic" out of the top position of the R&B chart (for three weeks) was "Somebody's Watching Me" by Rockwell.

In the United Kingdom, "Automatic" would afford the Pointer Sisters their all-time biggest hit, spending two weeks at #2 on the UK chart in May 1984 while stuck behind The Reflex by Duran Duran when it also reached #1 in Ireland. "Automatic" also afforded the Pointer Sisters Top-Ten success in Belgium (#5 on the Flemish chart), the Netherlands (#9), and New Zealand (#8). In Australia, "Automatic" reached a chart peak of #15. The B-side of "Automatic" was "Nightline" featuring June Pointer on lead. "Nightline" was also originally featured on Break Out but was dropped from later pressings of the album to allow for the inclusion of the remix of "I'm So Excited".

## Personnel

[edit]

The Pointer Sisters

* Ruth Pointer – lead vocals
* Anita Pointer – backing vocals
* June Pointer – backing vocals

Musicians

* Stephen Mitchell – synthesizers
* Howie Rice – synthesizers
* John Van Tongeren – synthesizers, Minimoog
* Brock Walsh – synthesizers, drum machine programming
* Paul Fox – E-mu Emulator
* Dennis Herring – guitars
* Mark Goldenberg – guitar (bridge)
* Eddie Watkins Jr. – bass

## Charts

[edit]

### Weekly charts

[edit]

| Chart (1984)  | Peak
position

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[6] | 15
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[7] | 5
Belgium (VRT Top 30 Flanders)[8] | 6
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[9] | 17
Ireland (IRMA)[10] | 1
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[11] | 9
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[12] | 6
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[13] | 8
UK Singles (OCC)[14] | 2
US Billboard Hot 100[15] | 5
US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[16] | 36
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[17]
as LP Cuts: I Need You/Automatic/Jump (For My Love) | 2
US Hot Black Singles (Billboard)[18] | 2
US Cash Box Top 100[19] | 8

### Year-end charts

[edit]

| Chart (1984)  | Position

|

Australia (Kent Music Report)[20] | 72
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[21] | 67
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[22] | 74
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[23] | 50
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[24] | 34
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[25] | 38
US Billboard Hot 100[26] | 48
US Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[26]
as LP Cuts: I Need You/Automatic/Jump (For My Love) | 1
US Hot Black Singles (Billboard)[26] | 28
US Cash Box[27] | 50

## Ultra Naté cover

[edit]

"Automatic"

Single by Ultra Naté
from the album  Grime, Silk, & Thunder
Released| 2007
Length| 4:58
Label| Tommy Boy Entertainment
Songwriter(s)| Brock Walsh, Mark Goldenberg
Ultra Naté singles chronology
| "Love's the Only Drug"
(2006)  | "Automatic"
(2007)  | "Give It All You Got"
(2007)

|
|

Music video
"Automatic" on YouTube

Ultra Naté covered "Automatic" and released it as the third single from her album Grime, Silk, & Thunder. Her version topped the US dance chart, hitting number one in the issue dated April 28, 2007. This version appeared briefly in a nightclub scene of Looking: The Movie in 2016.

### Music video

[edit]

The music video for "Automatic" was directed by Karl Giant.[28] Eric Henderson from Slant Magazine commented of the music video's beginning: "For the first two or three minutes, it's nothing if not a stalwart representation of your standard gay-bar video-jukebox fixture." Ultra Naté is later shown wearing a rhinestone-studded liquid Lycra while two men, apparently nude, watch her on their computers.[29] Then Naté appears in a blow-up doll costume,[28] which Henderson believed "sends the entire video into legitimately weird territory, as though David Meyers were asked to direct a video for Nine Inch Nails."[29]

### Track listing

[edit]

* Belgian CD maxi-single[30]

1. "Automatic" (Original Radio Mix) – 3:13
2. "Automatic" (Morgan Page vs. Peace Bisquit Radio Mix) – 3:03
3. "Automatic" (Original Extended) – 6:12
4. "Automatic" (Daz & Diddy Mix) – 7:17

* US CD maxi-single[31]

1. "Automatic" (Original Extended) – 6:16
2. "Automatic" (Digital Dog Mix) – 6:31
3. "Automatic" (Paul Jackson Version Excursion Mix) – 6:19
4. "Automatic" (Spen & Thommy Sugar Vocal Mix) – 8:42
5. "Automatic" (Daz & Diddy Mix) – 7:18
6. "Automatic" (Funky Junction & NK Club Mix) – 6:29
7. "Automatic" (Funky Junction & Splashfunk Mix) – 6:53
8. "Automatic" (Monkey Brothers Ultra Bad Remix) – 8:40
9. "Automatic" (Dave Pezza Electro Dub Mix) – 9:30
10. "Automatic" (Shawn Q's Soltribe Vocal Mix) – 8:47
11. "Automatic" (Morgan Page vs. Peace Bisquit Radio Mix) – 3:04

### Charts

[edit]

Chart (2007-2009)  | Peak
Position

|

Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[32] | 5
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[33] | 26
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[32] | 86
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[32] | 5
US Hot Dance Airplay (Billboard)  | 18
US Hot Dance Club Songs (Billboard)[34] | 1

## Other version

[edit]

In 2006, Belgian singer Afi covered "Automatic".[35] Her version became a minor hit in Belgium, where it reached top twenty on the Flanders Ultratip chart.[36]

In 2022 the song got covered by American group Lake Street Dive.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Matos, Michaelangelo (8 December 2020). "Memorial Coliseum, Los Angeles: August 12, 1984". Can't Slow Down: How 1984 Became Pop's Blockbuster Year. Hachette Books. p. 241\. ISBN 978-0-306-90337-3.
2. ^ a b Molanphy, Chris (16 June 2023). "Yes We Can Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved 1 July 2023.
3. ^ "100 Greatest Girl Group Songs of All Time: Critics' Picks". Billboard. Retrieved 11 July 2017.
4. ^ Pointer, Ruth; Terrill, Marshall (2016). Still So Excited!: my life as a Pointer Sister. Chicago: Triumph Books. ISBN 978-1-62937-145-0.
5. ^ Billboard vol 96 No. 46 (17 November 1984) p. 78
6. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 235\. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
7. ^ "Pointer Sisters – Automatic" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
8. ^ "Radio 2 Top 30". Top 30 (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 October 2016.
9. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 6742." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
10. ^ "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Automatic". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
11. ^ "Pointer Sisters – Automatic" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
12. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 25, 1984" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
13. ^ "Pointer Sisters – Automatic". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
14. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
15. ^ "The Pointer Sisters Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
16. ^ "Billboard April 14, 1984" (PDF). Billboard. New York, NY, USA. 14 April 1984. p. 26. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
17. ^ "Billboard Jan. 21, 1984" (PDF). Billboard. New York, NY, USA. 21 January 1984. p. 45. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
18. ^ "The Pointer Sisters Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
19. ^ "CASH BOX Top 100 Singles – Week ending MARCH 31, 1984". Archived from the original on 1 October 2012. Retrieved 8 October 2016. Cash Box magazine.
20. ^ "Kent Music Report No 548 – 31 December 1984 > National Top 100 Singles for 1984". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 12 January 2022 - via Imgur.com.
21. ^ "Ultratop Jaaroverzichten 1984". Ultratop 50 (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 October 2016.
22. ^ "Dutch Charts Jaaroverzichten Single 1984". Single Top 100 (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 October 2016.
23. ^ "Top 100-Jaaroverzicht van 1984". Dutch Top 40 (in Dutch). Retrieved 8 October 2016.
24. ^ "Official New Zealand Music Chart – End of Year Charts 1984". Recorded Music NZ. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
25. ^ 1984 in British music#Best-selling singles
26. ^ a b c "Volume 96 No. 51, DECEMBER 22. 1984" (PDF). Billboard. New York, NY, USA. 22 December 1984. p. TA-19,TA-21,TA-25. Retrieved 8 October 2016.
27. ^ "The CASH BOX Year-End Charts: 1984". Archived from the original on 30 September 2012. Retrieved 25 April 2014. Cash Box magazine.
28. ^ a b Slompwicz, DJ Ron (25 May 2007). "Ultra Naté – Grime, Silk & Thunder Interview". About.com. The New York Times Company. Archived from the original on 16 October 2011. Retrieved 23 April 2011.
29. ^ a b Henderson, Eric (7 May 2007). "Ultra Naté: Grime Silk Thunder". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
30. ^ "Ultra Naté – Automatic (CD) at Discogs". Discogs. Zinc Media, Inc. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
31. ^ "Ultra Naté – Automatic (CD) at Discogs". Discogs. Zinc Media, Inc. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
32. ^ a b c "Spanishcharts.com – Ultra Naté – Automatic". Canciones Top 50. Hung Medien. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
33. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 29 May 2025.
34. ^ "Club Music, Hot Dance Songs, Club Songs, Dance Club Music Charts". Billboard. Rovi Corporation. Archived from the original on 1 April 2011. Retrieved 25 April 2011.
35. ^ "Afi (4) – Automatic (CD) at Discogs". Discogs. Zinc Media, Inc. Retrieved 26 April 2011.
36. ^ "Ultratop.be – Afi (BE) – Automatic". Ultratip (in Dutch). ULTRATOP & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch. Archived from the original on 2 November 2012. Retrieved 26 April 2011.

* v
* t
* e

The Pointer Sisters

* Ruth Pointer
* Issa Pointer
* Sadako Pointer

* Bonnie Pointer
* June Pointer
* Anita Pointer

Studio albums|

* The Pointer Sisters
* That's a Plenty
* Steppin'
* Having a Party
* Energy
* Priority
* Special Things
* Black & White
* So Excited!
* Break Out
* Contact
* Hot Together
* Serious Slammin'
* Right Rhythm
* Only Sisters Can Do That

Live albums|

* Live at the Opera House

Compilation albums|

* The Best of the Pointer Sisters

Singles|

* "Yes We Can Can"
* "Wang Dang Doodle"
* "Steam Heat"
* "Fairytale"
* "How Long (Betcha' Got a Chick on the Side)"
* "Fire"
* "Everybody Is a Star"
* "Happiness"
* "He's So Shy"
* "Slow Hand"
* "Should I Do It"
* "I'm So Excited"
* "Automatic"
* "Jump (For My Love)"
* "Neutron Dance"
* "Dare Me"
* "Sisters Are Doing It for Themselves" (with Natalia)

Related articles|

* Discography
* Pinball Number Count

* v
* t
* e

Ultra Naté

Studio albums|

* Blue Notes in the Basement
* One Woman's Insanity
* Situation: Critical
* Stranger than Fiction
* Grime, Silk, & Thunder

Singles|

* "Free"
* "Found a Cure"
* "New Kind of Medicine"
* "Brass in Pocket"
* "Freak On"
* "Love's the Only Drug"
* "Automatic"
* "Give It All You Got"
* "Turn It Up"
* "Waiting on You"

Featured singles|

* "If You Could Read My Mind"

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz work

|

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