Ring My Bell

The song is noted for its innovative use of the Synare electronic drum, playing a decaying high-pitched tom tone on the first beat of every bar. It also uses chimes. The lyrics concern a woman encouraging her partner to relax with her after a hard day at work.^[10]

The lyric "You can ring my bell" was seen as sexually suggestive according to 1984 book The Slanguage of Sex, "'You can ring my bell any time you want to' would be regarded as a 'come-on' phrase in the US if used by a female," and "Songs like 'Ring My Bell' by Anita Ward caused scarcely a raised eyebrow in the '70s."^[11] Billboard magazine included the song on its list of the 50 sexiest songs of all time.^[10] Songwriter Frederick Knight, however, said that he deliberately avoided any overly suggestive lyrics, wanting to project a clean-cut image for Ward.^[12]

The significance of "Ring My Bell" to the history of disco music is discussed in Episode 3 of the 2024 PBS series Disco: Soundtrack of a Revolution.^[13]

"Ring My Bell" was covered by New Zealand-born Australian pop singer Collette. It was released in 1989 as her debut single. The song peaked at number 5 on the ARIA Charts and was certified gold by ARIA.^[56]

• List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States
• List of Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles of 1979
• List of Cash Box Top 100 number-one singles of 1979
• List of European number-one hits of 1979
• List of number-one dance singles of 1979 (U.S.)
• List of number-one R&B singles of 1979 (U.S.)
• List of number-one singles of 1979 (Canada)
• List of number-one singles in 1979 (New Zealand)
• List of number-one singles of 1979 (Spain)
• List of RPM number-one dance singles of 1979
• List of UK Singles Chart number ones of the 1970s
• VG-lista 1964 to 1994