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Blame It on the Boogie

original song written and composed by Michael George Jackson-Clarke, Elmar Krohn

Manuscripts, fine bindings, an engraving plate and preserved performance ephemera
Arts and lettersInterpretive dossier study · Crown Archives visual atlas
Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionSep 11, 2026
Entity authorityQ2699391 ↗
Source-derived summary

"Blame It on the Boogie" is a song written by English singer-songwriter Mick Jackson, Dave Jackson, and Elmar Krohn. While the song was recorded by Mick Jackson, the best-known version was recorded by the American group the Jacksons, and is the first single from their thirteenth album Destiny. It has also been covered by Clock, Big Fun, and Luis Miguel.

Background

The song was co-authored by Mick Jackson (credited as Michael George Jackson-Clarke) as well as Mick's brother David Jackson and Elmar Krohn.

Although Mick Jackson recorded the song in 1978, "Blame It on the Boogie" was written in hopes of being sold to Stevie Wonder.

Mick Jackson's track was showcased in 1978 at Midem where, according to Mick Jackson, "The Jacksons' manager [Peter Kerstin] heard the track being played... and took a tape recording of it... back to the States [where] the Jacksons quickly recorded a version so it would be out before mine." The Mick Jackson recording was released by Atlantic Records in the US in August 1978 where it reached number 61, rising to 15 in the UK.

According to Michael Jackson of the Jacksons, Bobby Colomby, who was producing the Jacksons' Destiny album, brought the group "Blame It on the Boogie". "It was an uptempo, finger-poppin'-time type song that was a good vehicle for the band approach we wanted to cultivate. I had fun slurring the chorus: [the lyric] 'Blame It on the Boogie' could be sung in one breath without putting my lips together."

Record World praised Michael Jackson's "silky vocals and energetic youthful delivery."

Personnel

The Jacksons version

Michael Jackson – lead vocals and backing vocals

Jackie Jackson, Marlon Jackson, Randy Jackson, Tito Jackson – backing vocals

John Luongo – mixing

Don Murray – engineer

Bobby Colomby, Mike Atkinson – executive producer

Additional musicians

Roland Bautista, Michael Sembello – rhythm guitar

Nathan Watts – bass

Greg Phillinganes – synthesizers and clavinet

Rick Marotta – drums

Laudir de Oliveira, Claudio Slon – congas and tambourine

Jerry Hey – horn arrangements

Chart records

Despite the Mick Jackson original reaching a No.

Editorial summary

This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Blame It on the Boogie” as original song written and composed by Michael George Jackson-Clarke, Elmar Krohn. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.

Editorial reviewA useful identification and reception guide that helps separate the work itself from editions, performances, ownership and later interpretation. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1978—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1978. The account is most persuasive where Blame, Boogie and original can be independently traced.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

The subject matters to the arts & letters register because the source frames it as original song written and composed by Michael George Jackson-Clarke, Elmar Krohn. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.

Evidence profile

Object files, edition statements, performance records and contemporary criticism preserve different stages of the work’s history. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 11, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2699391. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1978.

Critical limits

Rights, attribution and provenance may remain disputed even when a general reference summary presents a stable account. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Separate the work, its editions or performances, and its later reception. Catalogue records, publication histories and object files often preserve different parts of that story.

Best used for
  • Identifying works and editions
  • Tracing reception history
  • Finding collection records
Verify next

The original object or edition, catalogue raisonné, performance record, rights file and holding institution.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Blame It on the Boogie”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Blame It on the Boogie primary sources, Blame It on the Boogie archive and Blame research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Blame It on the Boogie”?
  2. Which edition, object, performance or recording is being described?
  3. Where is authorship, date or provenance documented?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from “Blame It on the Boogie” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.