Real McCoy is a German Eurodance and pop music project best known for hit singles "Another Night", "Automatic Lover (Call for Love)", "Run Away", "Love & Devotion", "Come and Get Your Love", and "One More Time"; and the multi-platinum album Another Night.
History
1989–1990: Early success in Germany
The Real McCoy project (originally known in Europe as M.C. Sar & the Real McCoy) was the result of the successful collaboration between record producers Juergen Wind (J. Wind), and Frank Hassas (Quickmix), plus the rapper Olaf Jeglitza (O-Jay), under their music production company Freshline Records. Wind and Hassas wrote and produced the project's main hits between 1990 and 1994 at Wind Studios B.C. in Spandau, Berlin. Traditionally, Jeglitza was given additional producer credits alongside Wind and Hassas as J. Wind, Quickmix & O. Jeglitza for Freshline. In reality, Jeglitza only had a minor songwriting role on the team, and strictly provided rap vocals for the song productions. In 1993, he became the front man of the project.
The first single from the project was a cover version of the hit "Pump Up the Jam" by Technotronic featuring new rap verses from Jeglitza. The single was released in 1989 and distributed by ZYX Records in Germany where it reached No. 16 on the singles chart. Following the unexpected success of the single, Wind took over the management of Freshline Records, and became the leading producer and composer behind the project. The follow-up releases were hip house style records. "It's On You" debuted in 1990 and became a top hit in Germany and a success in other European territories. The single was particularly successful in France, where it had earned silver status for selling 200,000 units. The growing success of the two singles motivated ZYX Records to request a live act, and a music video for "It's On You". A Frenchman of African descent named George Shampro Mario was hired to be M.C. Sar, and to act as the front man and rapper for the project. Unbeknownst to the public, he was really a lip-sync artist, who was miming the rap vocals of Jeglitza for the live performances and the music video. During this early stage of the project, Jeglitza remained completely anonymous. The American singer, Patricia Petersen (Patsy), sang the choruses on the single and fronted the project with Mario. Four more singles ("Don't Stop", "Make a Move", "Let's Talk About Love", and "No Showbo") and an album (On the Move!) were later released. Each of these follow-up releases failed commercially. In 1992, Freshline ended their relationship with ZYX Records.
1993–1995: Mainstream success with "Another Night" In late 1992, Freshline had formed a new partnership deal with Hansa Records (BMG Berlin) to release new music for the project. After a deal was finalized, Wind immediately began planning out a success strategy for the project, with Hansa's A&R executive, David Brunner and BMG President Andy Selleneit. The three then made a creative decision to change the musical style of the project from hip house to eurodance and pop. Wind and Hassas wrote and produced the new single "Another Night" while Jeglitza wrote his rap verses. A producer duo known as the Berman Brothers (siblings Frank and Christian Berman) recommended to Wind their session singer, Karin Kasar, for the singing choruses. After hearing a demo of her voice, Wind selected her for the role. In exchange for her participation in the project, the brothers made a deal with Wind to be listed as producers with Freshline as Freshline & The Berman Brothers. They also made a deal with Wind to make the remixes for the single. A mix created by the brothers was selected to be the official single version of the song. Petersen remained the front woman and mimed Kasar's vocals for live performances and the music video for the new single. Wind and Brunner then decided to remove Mario from the project. Jeglitza was then promoted into a front man role alongside Petersen thus making the project a duo act. Brunner organized the marketing, promotion, distribution, sales strategies for the single and was credited as executive producer under the alias "D.N.B."
When released in the Summer of 1993, "Another Night" was only a minor hit in Europe reaching No.18 in Germany and barely making the Top 100 in several other countries. Shortly after the release of the single, Wind and Hassas produced the Maxx hit "Get-A-Way" under the alias "The Movement". Brunner distributed the single through Intercord. When released in October 1993, the single became a major commercial success in Europe alongside the growing success of "Another Night".