"Double Dutch" is a 1983 single by Malcolm McLaren. It is taken from his debut album Duck Rock. "Double Dutch" is the follow-up to his successful debut single, "Buffalo Gals", and reached number 3 on the UK Singles Chart, making it his highest-charting single release. The album version is a slight re-edit of the single, with part of the original middle eight moved to the end of the track. The song concerns the skipping game of the same name, with McLaren's narration mentioning several New York double dutch troupes by name, notably the Ebonettes, whose name is also used as a chant in the chorus.
Mbaqanga group, The Boyoyo Boys, took legal action against McLaren over the similarity of "Double Dutch" with their own hit "Puleng". After a lengthy legal battle in the UK the matter was settled out of court, with payment made to the South African copyright holders, songwriter Petrus Maneli and publisher Gallo Music, but Horn and Mclaren retained their songwriting credits.
The track was heavily sampled by British house music trio Dope Smugglaz on their 1999 track Double Double Dutch.
Famous quotes containing the words double and/or dutch:
“One key, one solution to the mysteries of the human condition, one solution to the old knots of fate, freedom, and foreknowledge, exists, the propounding, namely, of the double consciousness. A man must ride alternately on the horses of his private and public nature, as the equestrians in the circus throw themselves nimbly from horse to horse, or plant one foot on the back of one, and the other foot on the back of the other.”
—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)
“The French courage proceeds from vanity—the German from phlegm—the Turkish from fanaticism & opium—the Spanish from pride—the English from coolness—the Dutch from obstinacy—the Russian from insensibility—but the Italian from anger.”
—George Gordon Noel Byron (1788–1824)