who sang the original version of walking in memphis
Walking in Memphis "Walking in Memphis" is a song composed and originally recorded by the American singer-songwriter Marc Cohn, for whom it remains his signature song. Cohn said the song is "100 percent autobiographical". He described it as a song about "a Jewish gospel-music-lover",[2] and as "a pretty literal transcription of a visit I made ... in 1986. I went to Graceland, I heard Al Green preach the gospel, I saw W. C. Handy's statue. But the song is about more than just a place, it's about a kind of spiritual awakening, one of those trips where you're different when you leave."[3] It reflects on Cohn's experience as a Jew who feels the Gospel spirit of Memphis.
Cha Cha Slide DJ Casper wrote the lyrics for the original around January 1998 and recorded his performance of the original version of the "Casper Slide Part 1" in January 1998. The song was heavily inspired by the Chicago stepping movement.[citation needed] Around June 12, 1999, Perry recorded a second version of the song, entitled "Casper Slide Part 2," at the home studio of Fred Johnson with the help of Hollywood Scott, band leader for the Platinum Band. Perry recorded and released the song at his own expense and manufactured copies and distributed them with the help of Gardner Douglas ("Cisco"), owner of the Cisco's Music World record stores in Chicago, Illinois. The song was played at various night clubs and was used by Perry's nephew, a fitness trainer at Bally Total Fitness Health Club in Chicago's Hyde Park neighborhood, as the music for a step aerobics class.[citation needed]