Call Me — Le Click
Frankfurt Eurodance with an American club life: Le Click’s 1997 single “Call Me”, its Junior Vasquez and Spike Me mixes, and a No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100.
- Single by the Frankfurt Eurodance duo Le Click: Kayo Shekoni and Robert Haynes.
- Released by RCA on 3 February 1997, produced by Misar and G.A. Saraf.
- No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 4 on the US dance club chart, No. 1 in Canada’s dance chart.
“Call Me” by Le Click is a German Eurodance record that made its mark in North America: a Top 40 entry on the Billboard Hot 100, a No. 4 on the US club chart and three weeks at No. 1 on Canada’s dance chart in 1997.
Le Click
Le Click was a Eurodance duo from Frankfurt, active from 1993 to 1998 and signed to Logic Records. Its two faces were the Swedish-Nigerian singer Kayo Shekoni, already known in Sweden, and the rapper and singer Robert Haynes. Their US chart debut, “Tonight Is the Night” (1995), featured Melanie Thornton of La Bouche on vocals and reached No. 68 on the Hot 100 and No. 4 on Canada’s dance chart. Shekoni later released “If I Can’t Have You” with LFO in 1998 and represented Sweden at Eurovision 2002 with Afro-dite.
Making “Call Me”
The song was recorded in 1996 and written by Robert Haynes, Nosie Katzmann, Misar, G.A. Saraf and Uwe Wagenknecht; Misar and G.A. Saraf produced it. RCA released it on 3 February 1997 as the second single from the album Tonight Is the Night, which followed on 29 July 1997. Billboard’s Shawnee Smith liked it, writing that Shekoni “oozes the right balance of pep and diva bombasity” and that Haynes “has his party chatter down pat”. The album itself was a smaller hit: No. 95 in Germany and No. 49 on the US Heatseekers chart.
The club mixes
There is no mix officially titled “House Remix”. The German CD maxi-single carried a 6:35 Dance Mix, a UK Airplay Mix and a UK Club Dub. A second German CD, New Mixes, added a Junior Vasquez Mix and the 8:31 Spike Me Club Mix. The US maxi-single went further: Euro Radio Mixes with and without the rap, Junior’s Main Mix (7:07), the Spike Me Club Mix and an 8:00 Spike Dub. For DJs, those long US versions are the ones to look for.
Charts and video
“Call Me” reached No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100 and No. 4 on Hot Dance Club Play. In Canada it topped the RPM Dance/Urban chart for three weeks and finished 1997 at No. 14 on its year-end list. In the UK it peaked at No. 38 (No. 33 on the dance chart, No. 37 in Scotland). Thomas Job directed the video, which premiered in March 1997. The follow-up, “Don’t Go”, reached No. 62 on the Hot 100 and No. 19 on the club chart, and “Heaven’s Got to Be Better” followed as a single. A 2007 iTunes EP, Let’s Click, later gathered three tracks recorded during La Bouche sessions that had not made the final cut.
For more Eurodance from the same years, read the stories of Corona’s “The Rhythm of the Night” and “Try Me Out”, and U96’s “Night in Motion”.
FAQ
Who sang Call Me by Le Click?
Swedish-Nigerian singer Kayo Shekoni, with rapper and singer Robert Haynes.
Is there a house remix of Call Me by Le Click?
No mix is officially called “House Remix”. The club versions are the Junior Vasquez mixes and the Spike Me Club Mix (about 8:30), plus a Spike Dub on the US maxi-single.
How high did Call Me chart?
No. 35 on the Billboard Hot 100, No. 4 on the US Hot Dance Club Play chart, No. 1 for three weeks on Canada’s RPM Dance/Urban chart and No. 38 in the UK.
