| "Pata Pata" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 Artwork for German vinyl single | ||||
| Single byMiriam Makeba | ||||
| from the albumPata Pata | ||||
| B-side | "The Ballad of the Sad Young Men" | |||
| Released | 25 November 1967 | |||
| Recorded | 1967 | |||
| Length | 3:10 | |||
| Label | Reprise | |||
| Songwriters | Miriam Makeba andJerry Ragovoy | |||
| Producer | Jerry Ragovoy | |||
| Miriam Makeba singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Alternative release | ||||
.png) A-side label of US vinyl single | ||||
"Pata Pata" is anAfro-pop dance song popularized internationally by South African singerMiriam Makeba. Its composition is credited to Makeba andJerry Ragovoy. Her most popular recording of "Pata Pata" was recorded and released in the United States in 1967.[1][2] The song is considered by many to be Makeba's signature hit and it has since been recorded by many artists.
The song's title "Pata Pata" means "touch touch" in theXhosa language, in which the song was originally written and sung.[2] "Pata Pata" was also the name of a style of dance that was popular in theshebeens ofJohannesburg's Townships[3] in the mid-1950s. The dancer crouched before his partner and patted her body to the rhythm of the music as he rose up and she spun around, making hip circles.[4][5] In another version of the dance,
The male dancers stand in a row with their arms extended out to the front, palms to the floor, while the women pat each in turn in a manner resembling security search body-frisking, after which the men do the same to the women.[6]
Makeba's "Pata Pata" was not the only song inspired by the "Pata Pata" dance.[7] Her "Pata Pata" melody was based on an instrumental "Phatha Phatha" by Shumi Ntutu and Isaac Nkosi, which was in turn based on "Noma Kumnyama" by Alson Mkhize.[7] The popular 1956 "Ei Yow Phata Phata"[8] byDorothy Masuka was distinctly different from Makeba's,[7] but in later years, Masuka made her own recording of the version made popular by Makeba. Masuka claimed that she herself had written it.[9]
Makeba's "Pata Pata" was originally sung, recorded, and released in South Africa by Makeba'sgirl group The Skylarks[10] in either 1956[11] or 1959.[7]
In 1967, after establishing a successful singing career in the US, Makeba re-recorded the song withJerry Ragovoy producing, and with an added spoken part in English. Ragovoy was then billed as the co-writer of the words and music.[12] It was released in the United States on Makeba's studio album of the same name.[2] It was also released as a single and peaked at #12 on 25 November 1967 on the Billboard chart. The flip side song was "Malayisha".[13]
This version's English language content includes a description of the origin of the dance:[14]
Pata Pata is the name of a dance [sat si pata pata]We do down Johannesburg way [sat si pata pata]
And everybody starts to move [sat si pata pata] As soon as Pata Pata starts to play - hoo [sat si pata pata]
The second spoken recitation goes:
"Every Friday and Saturday night,It's Pata Pata time.The dance keeps going all night long,til' the morning sun begins to shine."
The original (1967) version of "Pata Pata" is included onPata Pata (released 1972),The Best of the Early Years (Miriam Makeba), a collection of 24 tracks released in 2002 byWrasse, and the 40-track compilationHer Essential Recordings: The Empress of African Song (2006 Manteca).
In 1988, a duet version withChayanne was recorded. It was included in the albumChayanne. In 1990, Makeba re-recorded the song for her own albumWelela. Makeba also released a renovated version of the song, entitled "Pata Pata 2000", in her 2000 albumHomeland.
Makeba's 1967 version was successful on theBillboard Hot 100, and peaked at No. 12.[15]
On the night she died, Miriam Makeba performed "Pata Pata" just before she collapsed on stage.[16][17]
| Charts (1967) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| USBillboard Hot 100 | 12 |
| US BillboardHot Rhythm & Blues Singles[18] | 7 |
| Venezuela | 1 |
| Iceland | 12 |
