Despite the wide range of music Gershon Kingsley has composed, he is most well-known for a 1972 instrumental dance hit called "Popcorn."

Kingsley recalls that he wrote the primary melody to "Popcorn" in about 30 seconds. The song was first released in 1969 as part of a Kingsley solo album called "Music To Moog By." LINK TO: MOOGBY Then the First Moog Quartet, while on their nation-wide tour of college and universities, used "Popcorn" as their encore song.

In 1972, "Popcorn" was recorded by a group of musicians under the band name Hot Butter. Stan Free, who was a member of the First Moog Quartet, played the Moog on this recording. More information on the recording is available here.

The song quickly became an international hit, with cover versions sprouting up all over the world. It hit Number 1 on the German charts and sold over one million copies in that country alone.

And unlike so many pop songs, it has not faded into history. Not at all. Cover versions of "Popcorn" have continued to show up. Most recently, an English group called the "Space Penguins" have used the "Popcorn" melody in their tune "The Electrofunk." It is also featured in the soundtracks of two recent movies, "Dick" and "Detroit Rock City."

And Kingsley himself, with the help of Producer Dave Baron, has remade "Popcorn" for an upcoming compilation on the Beastie Boys' Grand Royal label. Sharing the CD will be Beck, Sonic Youth, Jean-Jacques Perrey and many others. See News. "