#61: Desire by Roni Griffith

City: Montreal, PQ
Radio Station: CKOI
Peak Month: January 1982
Peak Position in Montreal ~ #2
Peak position in Vancouver ~ did not chart
Peak Position on Billboard Hot 100 ~ did not chart
YouTube: “Desire”
Lyrics: “Desire”

Roni Griffith was born in Bloomington, Indiana, likely in 1960. Wikipedia states she was “one of the original Coconuts in Kid Creole and the Coconuts.” She was is not among the personnel listed on any of the groups first three albums, but may be uncredited as a backing singer and dancer. With Kid Creole and the Coconuts, Griffith appeared on stage when the band was an opener for concerts headlined by the B-52s and Huey Lewis and the News. Finding success as a musician, in 1981 she appeared on SNL with Kid Creole and the Coconuts. That year Griffith decided to go solo, signing a record contract with Vanguard Records and producer, Bobby Orlando.In early 1981, she released the single “Mondo Man” which was a hit in Long Beach and a Top 40 hit on the Billboard Dance Club chart.

She lived in New York from the age of 19 until she was 23 years old, finding an amount of success within a short period of time. In the summer of 1981, Griffith released her second single titled “Desire”.

Bobby Orlando wrote “Desire”. He was born in 1958 in New York City. The son of a suburban New York schoolteacher, Orlando declined a classical music scholarship to pursue his musical interest, glam rock. In the late 1970s, his professional interests turned to disco and shortly thereafter, he established his own record label, “O” Records. Orlando is credited as one of the founding fathers of Hi-NRG dance music. His productions are easily identifiable by their dense synthesizers, rolling bass lines, and resounding percussion. He has played multiple instruments on his tracks including electronic keyboards, guitars, bass, synthesizers, drums, piano, assorted percussion, trumpet and saxophone. The ringing cowbell percussion lines and robotic sequencers heard in his own single, “She Has a Way”, Roni Griffith’s “The Best Part of Breakin’ Up”, and Divine’s “Native Love (Step by Step)” have been described as defining Bobby Orlando’s trademark sound.

In 1984, Bobby Orlando produced the Pet Shop Boys hit single “West End Girls”, as well as the Pet Shop Boys minor single “One More Chance”. Many of Orlando’s lyrics describe unrequited love, private despair, personal angst and a truth-seeking perspective. Orlando frequently etched philosophical maxims into vinyl records featuring his songs; these adages being literally cut into the grooves near the “lead out” and “lock grooves” of the vinyl. His music has appeared in numerous motion pictures and tv productions, including A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy’s Revenge, Wigstock: The Movie, Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Valley Girl, Dark Mirror, Flying, High Risk, Rappin, Underground, This Is The Night, Eric and Gossip Girl. In 2025, Bobby O (Bobby Orlando) returned to recording with the album Energizer of Purpose, featuring 11 new tracks that continue his signature Hi-NRG sound.

In the music video for “Desire”, Roni Griffith appears in a long white raincoat. She seems to be standing in the midst of what might represent an eruption of lava (but you’d have to watch the music video to make up your own mind). In addition, there are dancers all socially distanced from each other in what might be huge mosquito nets. You have to give early 80s music video makers credit for creating unusual spectacles on the TV screen.

Roni Griffith sings:
I got to have you baby, I want you by my side.
Just climb a boat and take me for a ride.
I need to have your body, your love I really need.
It’s got to be you that kisses me.
Desire – ooh I want you by my side.
Desire – to be my ever lovin’ guy.
Come a little closer, baby don’t be shy. 
I can tell by the look, that you’re a hungry guy.
You make me be a woman, I’ll make you be a man.
To make me want much longer boy, I just can’t stand.

Griffiths lyrics are almost steamy enough to make a woman take off her long white raincoat in a music video.

“Desire” peaked at #2 in Montreal, and Sherbrooke (PQ). Internationally, “Desire” reached #2 in Switzerland, #17 in West Germany, and #34 in Canada. In the USA, “Desire” reached #30 on the Billboard Dance Club chart.

By the end of 1982, Roni Griffith had a hit record with her remake of the Ronettes “(The Best Part of) Breakin’ Up” which charted in the UK. Her debut self-titled album, Roni Griffith, featured backing singers with the Salsoul Orchestra. She also released “Love Is The Drug”, which is a different song from the same-titled hit by Roxy Music. Her single, “Breaking My Heart”, charted into the Top 40 in Belgium in 1983. Roni Griffith’s last single release was her 1984 cover of the Jackson Five’s mid-70s Top 5 hit “Dancing Machine”.

However, on the eve of her first music video and her launch on the new music media outlet MTV, Griffith decided to walk away from everything based on her morals and values as a Christian in the secular music industry.

Into 1983, Griffith decided to pursue a career as a Christian contemporary music artist. She appeared on The 700 Club and was also featured numerous times in her hometown newspaper, The Herald-Times. She subsequently appeared in a 35mm film for Clairol’s mid-80s promotion of Nice ‘N Easy. Clairol had earlier created an ear-worm with their 1965 TV ad campaign launch of Nice ‘N Easy with the slogan “The closer he gets… the better you look.” Nice ‘N Easy was a hair coloring product for women. The ad reps for the company marketed the “Clairol woman as cashmere-sweater-over-the-shoulder types. Like larger-than-life-portraits of the proverbial girl on the block who’s a little prettier than your wife and lives in a house slightly nicer than yours.” In a 1956 ad campaign marketers of Clairol asked “Does she… or doesn’t she? Only her hairdresser knows for sure.” Other slogans for Clairol included “Is it true blondes have more fun?” and “What would your husband do if suddenly you looked ten years younger?” Roni Griffith’s involvement with Clairol was a step away from the music industry and her steamy music video “Desire”. However, there was still a flirtatious come-on in those Nice ‘N Easy commercials.

In 2004, Roni Griffith released her second album, Only You, showcasing Christian contemporary lyrics.

After giving up her fame in the secular music industry and becoming a Christian contemporary artist, in 1994 Griffith became a professional photographer, opening up her talent production company Integrity Productions. She has worked with many companies in Indiana such as the Boy Scouts of America, the Helen Wells Agency, and celebrity clients.

References:
“Roni Griffith,” Wikipedia.org.
Bobby O, “She Has A Way“, “O” Records, 1982.
Divine, “Native Love (Step By Step)“, Break Records, 1982.
The Flirts, “Passion“, “O” Records, 1982.
Pet Shop Boys, “West End Girls“, Bobcat Records, 1984.
Dennis Hunt, “These Boys Aren’t The Critics’ Pets,” Los Angeles Times, May 4, 1986.
“Nice ‘N Easy” TV commercial, Clairol, 1981.
“Nice ‘N Easy” TV commercial, Clairol, 1986.

CKGM 980-AM Montreal (PQ) | January 7, 1982