1964–1972: Career beginnings In 1964, Douglas released his debut single with the Big Stampede, "Crazy Feeling". Upon its release, the single charted at number 55 on the UK Breakers List. Four years later, in 1968, Douglas released his second single and first single as a solo artist, "Serving a Sentence of Life". The song was followed by "Eeny Meeny" in 1969 and "Somebody Stop This Madness" in 1972. None of the three follow-up singles ever charted.
1974–1975: "Kung Fu Fighting" and Kung Fu Fighting and Other Great Love Songs In August 1974, Douglas released the lead single for his then-upcoming debut studio album, "
Kung Fu Fighting", produced by British-Indian songwriter, composer, and producer
Biddu. Upon its release, the single was a commercial success. It topped numerous charts worldwide, including the
Billboard Hot 100 in the
United States and the
Official Singles Chart in the
United Kingdom. The single sold 11 million copies worldwide, making it one of the
best-selling singles of all time. The single was later certified gold by the
Recording Industry Association of America on the 27th of November, 1974. It was also certified Gold by the
British Phonographic Industry (BPI). The single, which is a homage to
martial arts films, overshadowed the rest of Douglas' career, and has led to his appearance on other artists' versions of the song. In the United States, Douglas is considered a
one-hit wonder, since he is commonly known only for "Kung Fu Fighting". The single was followed by the release of Douglas' debut studio album,
Kung Fu Fighting and Other Great Love Songs, on the 16th of November, 1974. Upon its release, the album charted at number 37 on the
Billboard 200, number 40 on the
Australian Albums Chart, and number 48 on the
Canadian Albums Chart, and peaked at the top of the
Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The album was promoted with two more singles. The first, "Dance the Kung Fu", served as a follow-up to "Kung Fu Fighting", and fared only modestly successful, peaking within the top 10 of charts in
Belgium,
Germany, the
Netherlands, and the
United States, the latter on their
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart. The third and final single, "Blue Eyed Soul", only charted at number 25 on the
Belgium Singles Chart. Around this time, Douglas was briefly managed by
Eric Woolfson, who later became the primary songwriter behind
The Alan Parsons Project.
Further activities Douglas recorded the song, "
Don't You Mess with Cupid", a
Steve Cropper and
Eddie Floyd composition, which was backed with "Good Hard Worker". Both songs were produced by
Pierre Tubbs. The single was released in the UK on the United Artists label in 1975. It was also released in Germany on Bellaphon BF 18 298.
1977–present: Post-"Kung Fu Fighting" In 1977, Douglas released his second studio album,
Love Peace and Happiness. The album was accompanied by two singles, including "Shanghai'd" and "Run Back". The latter charted at number 45 on the
GfK Entertainment charts and peaked at number 25 on the
UK singles chart.
Love Peace and Happiness was followed up by Douglas' third studio album,
Keep Pleasing Me, in 1978. Douglas remained musically inactive until 1998, when he featured on a re-recording of "Kung Fu Fighting", performed by British dance act
Bus Stop. The single was commercially successful, charting at number 8 on the UK singles chart and peaking at the top of the
New Zealand singles chart. "Dance the Kung Fu" was sampled on "Cuda nie widy" from the 2001 album
Nibylandia by Polish group Ego, and later by
DJ Premier on his 2007
remix of
Nike's 25th Air Force One anniversary single "
Classic (Better Than I've Ever Been)", featuring American rappers
Kanye West,
Nas,
KRS-One, and
Rakim. "Kung Fu Fighting" was later covered by
Jack Black and
CeeLo Green for the 2008 film
Kung Fu Panda. The song would also be covered by
The Vamps for the
franchise's
third installment in 2016. Douglas is currently represented by music publisher Schacht Musikverlage (SMV) in
Hamburg, Germany. ==Discography==