
Mambo No. 5

"Mambo No. 5" is an instrumental mambo and jazz dance song originally composed and recorded by Cuban musician Dámaso Pérez Prado in 1949 and released the next year.
The song was used in German musician Lou Bega's sampling of the last 30 seconds of the original, released under the same name on Bega's 1999 debut album "A Little Bit of Mambo".
Lou Bega version.
Lou Bega's cover was a summer hit during 1999 in most of Europe, including Great Britain, as well as in North America and Oceania. In France, it set a record by staying at number one for 20 weeks. The song reached number 3 on the US "Billboard" Hot 100 on 2 November 1999, giving Bega his only top-40 hit in the United States.
Legal controversy.
The song became the subject of a seven-year copyright trial between Prado's estate, Peermusic, and Bega's producers. Bega had only used riffs (which by German law cannot be registered for copyright) from Prado's original and written the entire lyrics, so Bega's producers went to court in order to gain access to all the song's proceedings from Peermusic representing Prado's estate. However, after seven years the Federal Court of Justice of Germany ruled in favor of Peermusic and Prado's estate in 2008, based upon the fact that Bega's producers had sought a royalty agreement with Peermusic prior to releasing the song. Because of Bega's significant contributions to his version, the court's final ruling declared it a new song co-written by Prado and Bega.
Music video.
The music video, directed by Jorn Heitmann, features Lou Bega singing and dancing with flappers. An alternate music video aired on Disney Channel, featuring clips from various Disney films and television series, with newly recorded lyrics by Bega dealing with the featured characters.
Track listings.
CD single
Maxi single
7-inch 45 rpm single
Bob the Builder version.
In 2001, BBC Records released a novelty version of the song sung by British actor Neil Morrissey, who provided the voice of Bob for children's television show "Bob the Builder". It also features background vocals from Rob Rackstraw and Kate Harbour, who voiced several other characters on the show. This cover made radical changes to the lyrics to fit the theme of the show, making numerous references to construction, repairs and roadway maintenance, as well as the show's characters. The female names from Bega's version are also replaced with types of construction supplies and building tasks (e.g. timber, saw, waterproofing, tiling).
Chart performance.
On 9 September 2001, the song debuted at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming Bob the Builder's second number-one single on the listing after "Can We Fix It?". In doing so, Bob became the first novelty act to top the UK chart with more than one single. Following the 11 September attacks, the song was banned from UK radio due to its lyrics about building renovation. It earned a Gold certification from the British Phonographic Industry (BPI) on 12 October 2001 for shipping over 400,000 units. At the end of 2001, it was ranked as the UK's 17th-best-selling single.
In Ireland, the song first appeared on the Irish Singles Chart at number 13 on 13 September and peaked at number four the following week, staying there for three weeks in total. It remained in the top 50 for the next 10 weeks. At the end of the year, the song came in at number 42 on Ireland's year-end chart.
"Mambo No. 5" debuted at number three on the Australian Singles Chart on 4 November 2001 and reached number two on 18 November, held off the top spot by Alien Ant Farm's cover of "Smooth Criminal". After staying at number two for another week, the song began to descend the chart, spending nine more weeks in the top 50. It was Australia's 26th-most-successful hit of the year and shipped over 70,000 copies, allowing it to receive a Platinum certification from ARIA.
Track listing.
Enhanced CD single and maxi-single
Ome Henk parody.
In 1999, Dutch TV character Ome Henk took a parody of the song called "Mambo Nr 6" to number 17 on the Dutch Top 40. The lyrics referred to the medicine prescribed to him, which causes hallucinations of the girls he mentions in the song. A parody of commercials for the fictional product is also heard.