Patti LaBelle, New Attitude | Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶

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In the 180^th edition of Throwback Vibez (2023), we recollect and reflect on “New Attitude” by Patti LaBelle.

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez ! Throwback Vibez is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past. The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean that they’re ancient – no fossils ! All genres of music are welcome. In the 180^th edition of Throwback Vibez (2023), we recollect and reflect on “New Attitude”, performed by Patti LaBelle.

“Runnin’ hot / Runnin’ cold / I was runnin’ into overload / It was extreme.” Ooh-wee, Patti LaBelle! The iconic, Grammy-winning musician delivered a surefire bop in 1984 with her single, “New Attitude”. Originally, the Bunny Hull, Jon Gilutin, and Sharon T. Robinson penned song appeared on the Beverly Hills Cop soundtrack. One of her most successful hits, it peaked at no. 17 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1985. Naturally, it performed even better on the R&B charts, peaking at no. 3, one of 13 top 10 R&B hits by the chanteuse. “Somehow the wires uncrossed,” she sings in the pre-chorus, adding, “The tables were turned / Never knew I had such a lesson to learn.”

Essentially, Patti LaBelle, or the character she portrays, experiences a paradigm shift – changes her attitude. This is best exemplified in the chorus, the centerpiece:

“I’m feelin’ good from my head to my shoes

Know where I’m goin’ and I know what to do

I’ve tidied up my point of view

I got a new attitude

I’m in control, my worries are few

‘Cause I’ve got love like I never knew

Ooh-ooh, ooh-ooh, ooh

I got a new attitude.”

What a flex ! You know what else is a flex? Those powerful vocals by Patti LaBelle! Her performance is commanding, incredibly nuanced, and playful. There is no shortage of personality and – wait for it – ATTITUDE! Her ad-libs are electrifying to the nth degree with Patti showing off her range. Beyond the performance and the songwriting, the production ( Howard Rice, Peter Bunetta, and Rick Chudacoff) is another selling point. Gotta love those boxy 80s drums. Furthermore, what about that driving synth bass line, and those ear-catching rhythmic synth, all idiomatic of the era. The guitar is rad too. So much more can be said of “New Attitude” but honestly, this Patti classic, which appears on Patti LaBelle’s Greatest Hits, speaks for itself.