After having discovered New Edition performing at a local talent show, songwriter/producer Maurice Starr wrote "Candy Girl" for the group, envisioning them as a 1980s answer to The Jackson 5. Ralph Tresvant was positioned as the lead singer, because Starr considered his high tenor as reminiscent of a younger Michael Jackson, while having members Ricky Bell and Bobby Brown sharing alternate leads.
Released as a single in 1983, the song netted a slow ascent up the charts. It eventually peaked at number forty-six on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart singles chart, and number one on the R&B singles chart; it also topped the charts in the UK. The song established New Edition as a seminal teen act of their day, and paved the way for a string of hits to come.
The song has been sampled by several hip-hop acts. Much notably, the song's chorus was lifted for hip-hop group D4L's crossover hit, "Laffy Taffy". It was also the basis for LL Cool J's hit "Candy", which featured Ralph Tresvant and Ricky Bell. Recently, Lil's Keke's track "Luv By Few Hated By Many" also sampled it. The song was also one of the first songs that mixed hip-hop and R&B, with all five band members sharing raps in the song. Some have suggested that the song bears a striking resemblance to the Jackson 5's song, "ABC" and some parts including the hook are sampled from the song. In the film Dogma, Salma Hayek's character dances to this song, which is one of many homages to music the Director Kevin Smith grew up with that he uses in his films.
Producer/writer Maurice Starr ended his relationship with New Edition after losing a lawsuit to own the rights to the group's name. He would later produce and write for the highly-successful New Kids On The Block.
video link
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2PAjIRb7MLI&feature=fvst
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