Hot Pants (James Brown song)

"Hot Pants (She Got to Use What She Got to Get What She Wants)" is a 1971 song by American singer James Brown, released as a single on his People Records label (then distributed by King Records) in July of that year with "Pt. 1" on the A-side and "Pt. 2 and 3" on the B-side. It was a number-one hit on the Billboard R&B chart, and reached number fifteen on the Hot 100 and number ten on the Cashbox magazine charts. "Hot Pants" was Brown's final release under King's purview before he and the People label moved to Polydor Records.

The song is an ode to the captivating power of hotpants, which he and his band first saw on their 1970 European tour. Like much of Brown's funk repertoire, "Hot Pants" has been extensively sampled by various hip hop artists.

Personnel

 * James Brown – lead vocal

with the J.B.'s:
 * Fred Wesley – trombone
 * Jimmy Parker – alto saxophone
 * St. Clair Pinckney – tenor saxophone
 * Bobby Byrd – organ
 * Hearlon "Cheese" Martin – guitar
 * Robert Lee Coleman – guitar
 * Fred Thomas – bass
 * John "Jabo" Starks – drums
 * Johnny Griggs – congas

Other versions and related songs
Soon after moving to Polydor, Brown re-recorded "Hot Pants" for inclusion on the Hot Pants album. The 8:42 long album version, which was never released as a single, was recorded on July 12, 1971, at Rodel Studios in Washington, D.C., with the same personnel as the previous recording. This version of the song was later included on the 1986 compilation album In the Jungle Groove.

Several of Brown's associates also recorded songs about the topic. In 1971, Brown's keyboardist Bobby Byrd recorded "Hot Pants – I'm Coming, I'm Coming, I'm Coming", released as a single on Brown's Brownstone Records; Byrd's "Hot Pants" has also been extensively sampled on songs including "Fight the Power" by Public Enemy, "Fools Gold" by the Stone Roses, "Papua New Guinea" by The Future Sound of London, "Step Back in Time" by Kylie Minogue, and "Good Vibrations" by Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch. The song was featured in the 2004 video game Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas on the fictional funk radio station Master Sounds 98.3.

Byrd's wife Vicki Anderson also recorded an answer song, "I'm Too Tough For Mr. Big Stuff (Hot Pants)", for Brownstone. The J.B.'s recorded the instrumental "Hot Pants Road" as the B-side of their 1972 single "Pass the Peas".

Brown's 1998 single "Funk on Ah Roll" reuses the guitar and horn parts of "Hot Pants".