Heartbeat (Taana Gardner song)

"Heartbeat"
Single by Taana Gardner
Released	1981
Format	7" vinyl, 12" vinyl
Genre	Post-disco
Length	9:34 (Club Version)
Label	West End WES-22132 (US)
Songwriter(s)	Kenton Nix
Producer(s)	Kenton Nix

"Heartbeat" is a 1981 dance single by Taana Gardner. It was arranged by Dennis Weeden and Kenton Nix, and released by West End Records, with the more famous club mix created by Larry Levan. It reached the Billboard R&B chart at No. 10 and the No. 6 on the dance chart. It has sold over 800,000 copies.

In his consumer guide for The Village Voice, Robert Christgau reviewed the song's 12-inch release in 1981 and gave it an A rating, indicating "a great record both of whose sides offer enduring pleasure and surprise." He dubbed it a "classic one-shot" and "the hottest r&b record in the city right now for two self-evident reasons", stating:

First is the beat, which is like what it says only deeper and more deliberate (in the drums and handclaps) with palpitations (provided by a slow-humping bass). Second is Taana, who'd combine the melodic dislocations of Esther Phillips and the girlish screech of Diana Ross if she had the technical control of either. Because she doesn't, she also recalls another timbre-sister, Shirley Goodman (of & Lee and 'Shame, Shame, Shame'). First I played the 6:30-minute 'party' version; now I prefer the 9:34-minute 'club' version. One-shot, eh?

Allmusic editor Andy Kellman found the song's rhythm "instantly memorable" and recognized its widespread sampling by hip hop producers, stating "Though hip hop fans are just as familiar with that bass line – often put to great use after its original recording — as rock fans are familiar with the guitar riffs of 'Purple Haze,' no song that has referenced 'Heartbeat' comes close to matching it." Kellman also writes that the song's "greatness comes down to Gardner’s vocals just as much as that rhythm", stating:

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