Underneath it All, a reggae pop single by American band No Doubt featuring Jamaican dancehall artiste Lady Saw, is ranked at number 39 on Billboardmagazine’s 100 Greatest Songs of 2002.
The list, which comprises Billboard‘s Staff Picks, was released on March 22.
Sly Dunbar along with the late Robbie Shakespeare produced Underneath it All.
“I feel good to know that I was part of a production team with the late great Robbie Shakespeare, the No Doubt band and Lady Saw. It feels good knowing that the song made the list,” Dunbar shared in an interview with the Jamaica Observer last week.
The song was written by No Doubt’s lead singer Gwen Stefanie and David Stewart, formerly of the 1980s British pop duo Eurythmics. It was released in July 2002 as the third single from No Doubt’s fourth studio album Rock Steady.
“The song was recorded at the Geejam Studio in Portland and at One Pop Studio in Norbrook. We knew the song was a great song from the time we heard it. The song did what it had to do,” said Dunbar.
Dunbar explained how Lady Saw got involved with the production.
“Robbie and myself were fans of Lady Saw and we worked very closely together on projects. We said to ourselves, let’s get Lady Saw on this track and she came to One Pop studio and did her vocal right there. It was a great vocal performance in one take.”
Underneath it All peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, No Doubt’s highest placement to date on that chart. It also hit number 38 on the Rhythmic Top 40, number one on Mainstream Top 40, number two on Adult Top 40, number 27 on Adult Contemporary and number 18 in the United Kingdom. It also charted in Switzerland, Sweden, Romania, New Zealand, the Netherlands, Ireland, Germany, France, Canada, Belgium, Australia, and Austria.
The song was certified gold for sales of more than 500,000 copies in the United States.
Asked what he thought had contributed to the success of Underneath it All, Dunbar said “I think the overall production, the song itself, is a great song. The melody, just the way Gwen sang, the vocal performance was good. A great song is a great song.”
At the 46th Grammy Awards on February 8, 2004, Underneath it All won the award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal.
Other songs making the Billboard 100 Greatest Songs of 2002 include Gimme the Light by Sean Paul (number nine), A Thousand Miles by Vanessa Carlton (number seven), Cry Me a River by Justin Timberlake (number six), Hot in Herre by Nelly (number four) and Work it by Missy Elliott (number one).
