Jermaine Stewart - We Don't Have to Take Our Clothes Off

“Cherry wine” vividly stands out for me nearly forty years after Jermaine Stewart’s sang about it in his 1986 hit “We Don’t Have to Take Our Clothes Off.” It’s such a specific choice: “We can dance and party, all night, and drink some cherry wine, uh-huh.” Maybe it was a rhythm and rhyme thing. “… and drink some Gewürztraminer” just doesn’t have the same ring. I have never tasted cherry wine, but the mere thought of it is so… sweet. Much like this song.

In addition to pondering cherry wine, one of the things I love about this song is how straightforward it is. Everything you need to know about the song and it’s message is right there in the title. We don’t have to take our clothes off to have a good time. We could dance and party all night (all night). Not until Janet Jackson released “Let’s Wait Awhile,” would a pop hit be so absolutely abstinent. And you’d have to call her Miss Jackson if you’re nasty.

Back in 1986, it wouldn’t occur to a young teenage me to interpret the song any other way than straight up, well, straight. That’s on young me, the lyrics have always been open enough that anyone who loves anybody can have a good time (with or without their clothes off) listening to it. The song is also a pure 80s bop. The angelic keyboard in the intro, the horn stabs, the electric drums are firmly rooted in the mid-Regan era. It’s also imminently fun to sing along to. So grab a friend, and a bottle of whatever wine you like, and nah-nah-nah-nah into the night.

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