"Ebony and Ivory" is a 1982 number-one single by Paul McCartney, performed with Stevie Wonder. It was released on March 29 of that year. At the simplest level, the song is about the ebony (black) and ivory (white) keys on a piano, but also deals with integration and racial harmony on a deeper level. The title was inspired by McCartney hearing Spike Milligan say "black notes, white notes, and you need to play the two to make harmony folks!".^[1] The song is featured on McCartney's album Tug of War as well as several of Wonder's Greatest Hits albums. Image File history File links Pmsweai. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. ... Tug of war Tug of war, also known as rope pulling, is a sport that directly pits two teams against each other in a test of strength. ... “B-Sides” redirects here. ... is the 146th day of the year (147th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Soft rock, also referred to as light rock or easy rock, is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock and roll to compose a softer, supposedly more ear-pleasing sound for listening, often at work or when driving. ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... Parlophone is a record label, founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindstrom Company. ... For other uses, see EMI (disambiguation). ... A songwriter is someone who writes the lyrics to songs, the musical composition or melody to songs, or both. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... In the music industry, a record producer (or music producer) has many roles, among them controlling the recording sessions, coaching and guiding the musicians, organizing and scheduling production budget and resources, and supervising the recording, mixing and mastering processes. ... For other uses, see George Martin (disambiguation). ... // A record chart, also known as a music chart, is a method of ranking music according to popularity during a given period of time. ... “British Hit Singles” redirects here. ... It has been suggested that Billboard be merged into this article or section. ... “Hot 100” redirects here. ... Kent Music Report front cover 11 October 1976 The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by a music enthusiast, David Kent from the early 1970s through to 1998. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... Temporary Secretary is a song by Paul McCartney, featured on his McCartney II album. ... Take It Away is a soulful Paul McCartney hit from his 1982 album Tug of War. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. ... Dante is the main protagonist of the Devil May Cry video game series, published by Capcom since 2001, currently consisting of three released games and a title under production. ... Year 1982 (MCMLXXXII) was a common year starting on Friday (link displays the 1982 Gregorian calendar). ... These are the Billboard magazine Hot 100 number one hits of 1982. ... A collection of various CD singles In music, a single is a short recording of one or more separate tracks. ... Sir James Paul McCartney, MBE (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist who first gained worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles. ... Stevie Wonder (born Stevland Hardaway Judkins on May 13, 1950, name later changed to Stevland Hardaway Morris),[1] is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. ... Binomial name Diospyros ebenum Koenig ex Retz. ... This article or section does not cite its references or sources. ... A short grand piano, with the top up. ... Children at a parade in North College Hill, Ohio Racial integration, or simply integration includes desegregation (the process of ending systematic racial segregation). ... Terence Alan Milligan KBE (16 April 1918–27 February 2002), known as Spike Milligan, was an Irish comedian, writer, musician, poet and playwright. ... ‹The template below has been proposed for deletion. ...

The lyrics have long been thought to have been written by McCartney alone, but in a biography of McCartney written by Barry Miles it was revealed how Wonder contributed to the majority of the "bookends" or rhymes;McCartney came up with the song's distinctive melody and hook-line (as evidenced by a home demo available on the 1980 bootleg Rude Studio Demos). McCartney claimed in the book that Wonder was afraid of how successful a tune with such a bold racial message would be if it was known that it had an African-American writer, and so pleaded for McCartney to take credit. The song was performed live in the studio by both by McCartney and Wonder, though due to conflicting work schedules, both recorded their parts for the song's music video separately. Barry Miles (commonly known as, and called, simply Miles) is an author who has written biographies of Paul McCartney, William Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg as well as books about John Lennon, the Beatles and Frank Zappa. ... Languages Predominantly American English Religions Protestantism (chiefly Baptist and Methodist); Roman Catholicism; Islam Related ethnic groups Sub-Saharan Africans and other African groups, some with Native American groups. ... A music video is a short film or video that accompanies a complete piece of music, most commonly a song. ...

Following the song's massive chart success, it was derided as "saccharine" and was later named as the tenth worst song of all time by Blender magazine.^[2] Blender is an American magazine that bills itself as the ultimate guide to music and more. ...

Popular culture references

This song has being parodied in many US television shows, such as The Fresh Prince of Bel Air, Everybody Hates Chris and Saturday Night Live, as well as movies such as Undercover Brother and Guess Who. Spoiler warning: The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air was a television sitcom which aired on NBC from 1990 to 1996. ... {{Infobox Television | show_name = Everybody Hates Chris | image = | caption = Everybody Hates Chris title card | format = Sitcom | camera = Single camera | picture_format = 480i (SDTV), 1080i (HDTV) | runtime = 20 mins | creator = Ali LeRoi Chris Rock | developer = Tyler Perry | executive_producer = | starring = Tyler James Williams Terry Crews Tichina Arnold Tequan Richmond Imani Hakim Vincent Martella Travis... This article is about the American television series. ... Undercover Brother is a 2002 comedy starring Eddie Griffin and directed by Malcolm D. Lee (cousin of Spike Lee). ... Guess Who is a 2005 comedy film, directed by Kevin Rodney Sullivan. ...

• On the TV show Friends, the song was sung (off-screen) by Chandler Bing and his co-worker Shelly at a Karaoke in the first-season episode, "The One with the Ick Factor". In the season-10 episode, "The One with Ross's Tan", Ross gets confused by the spray-on tan machine he was using, resulting in him being extremely dark on the front and light on the back. Upon seeing him, Chandler observes that he could sing a duet of "Ebony and Ivory" by himself.
• On the show "Father Ted", Graham Norton's character, Father Noel Furlong, sings the song in a caravan with his religious retreat group in the episode, "Hell".
• On an episode of Scrubs, JD's head sings the song with Kim on her first date.^{[episode needed]}
• In Undercover Brother, the song is sung with Denise Richards and Eddie Griffin. Denise Richards does not actually sing the song- it is sung by Bethany Joy Lenz.
• In the pilot episode of Everybody Hates Chris, the song played over a fight scene featuring African-American Chris (Tyler James Williams) and racist, caucasian Joey Caruso (Travis T.Flory).
• In the episode of the animated sitcom The Simpsons named "Marge's Son Poisoning", Seymour Skinner and his mother are seen singing that song in a karaoke contest.
• In an episode of Eve, JT's mother and Donavon sing this song whilst playing the piano.^{[episode needed]}
• In an episode of MTV's Rob and Big, Rob Dyrdek and Big Black sing karaoke to the song while wearing wigs.
• The song was covered by a hardcore band Murphy's Law for their The Best of Times album.
• In an episode of the sitcom Early Doors, the song is sung by the two Police Officers Phil and Nige at the Karaoke for Mel's 21st Birthday.
• In an episode of Season 3 on Las Vegas, Josh Duhamel's character and James Lesure's characters sing Karaoke to the song.
• In the film Guess Who, the song is played on the radio as Ashton Kutcher and Bernie Mac awkwardly listen during a drive.
• Comedian/musician Stephen Lynch referenced the song in "Vanilla Ice Cream" on his 2005 album The Craig Machine.

For the use of the word in a general sense, see Friendship. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... It has been suggested that Karaoke clubs in Sri Lanka be merged into this article or section. ... The One With the Ick Factor is the twenty-second episode of season one of the television situation comedy Friends. ... The One With Rosss Tan is the third episode of season ten of the television situation comedy Friends. ... Father Ted was a popular 1990s television situation comedy set around the lives of three priests on the extremely remote (and completely fictional) Craggy Island off the west coast of Ireland. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... Father Noel Furlong is a recurring character in the Channel 4 sitcom Father Ted. ... This article is about the US sitcom. ... Dr. John[1] (or Jonathan)[2] Michael[3]J.D. Dorian is a fictional character played by Zach Braff in the American sitcom Scrubs[4] // J.D. is the narrator and main character — he provides the overall narration in the show with the voice-overs linking the two to three... Undercover Brother is a 2002 comedy starring Eddie Griffin and directed by Malcolm D. Lee (cousin of Spike Lee). ... Denise Lee Richards (born February 17, 1971) is an American actress and former fashion model. ... Eddie Griffin (July 15, 1968) is an American comedian and television/film actor. ... Denise Lee Richards (born February 17, 1971) is an American actress and former fashion model. ... Bethany Joy Lenz (born April 2, 1981 in Hollywood, Florida but she moved to Texas at age 4) landed her first role at age 7 as a munchkin in a production of The Wonderful Wizard Of Oz. ... A television pilot is a test episode of an intended television series. ... {{Infobox Television | show_name = Everybody Hates Chris | image = | caption = Everybody Hates Chris title card | format = Sitcom | camera = Single camera | picture_format = 480i (SDTV), 1080i (HDTV) | runtime = 20 mins | creator = Ali LeRoi Chris Rock | developer = Tyler Perry | executive_producer = | starring = Tyler James Williams Terry Crews Tichina Arnold Tequan Richmond Imani Hakim Vincent Martella Travis... Tyler James Williams (born October 9, 1992) is an American actor. ... Animation refers to the process in which each frame of a film or movie is produced individually, whether generated as a computer graphic, or by photographing a drawn image, or by repeatedly making small changes to a model (see claymation and stop motion), and then photographing the result. ... This article is about a genre of comedy. ... Simpsons redirects here. ... Marges Son Poisoning is an episode in Season 17 of The Simpsons. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... It has been suggested that Karaoke clubs in Sri Lanka be merged into this article or section. ... Eve is an American sitcom television series named for its star, rapper Eve, about a trio of women who have their own boutique and clothing line. ... This article is about the original U.S. music television channel. ... Look up Rob and Big in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Murphys Law is a hardcore band from New York. ... Early Doors is a BBC sitcom written by Craig Cash and Phil Mealey. ... This article does not cite any references or sources. ... James Lesure as Mike Cannon in Las Vegas TV Series James Lesure, born in Los Angeles, California hit the media spotlight recently for his portrayal of Mike Cannon on hit TV series Las Vegas. ... Stephen Lynch could refer to: Stephen Lynch (comedian) Stephen Lynch (cricketer) Stephen Lynch (politician) This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists pages that might otherwise share the same title. ... On October 4, 2005, Stephen Lynch released his third official CD of new material, The Craig Machine (What Are Records). ...

References

1. ^ Martin, George (editor): Making Music, page 62. Pan Books, 1983. ISBN 0-330-26945-3
2. ^ http://www.blender.com/guide/articles.aspx?id=819

See also

• Black and white

Black-and-white (or black and white) can refer to a general term used in photography, film, and other media. ...

External link

• "Ebony and Ivory" music video with lyrics