If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me
Encyclopedia
"If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body Would You Hold It Against Me" is a song made famous by the country music
Country music
Country music is a popular American musical style that began in the rural Southern United States in the 1920s. It takes its roots from Western cowboy and folk music...

 duo The Bellamy Brothers
Bellamy Brothers
The Bellamy Brothers are an American pop and country music duo brothers David Milton Bellamy and Homer Howard Bellamy , from Darby, Florida, United States...

. Written by David Bellamy, the song was released in 1979 and became their first No. 1 hit on the Billboard magazine Hot Country Singles
Hot Country Songs
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...

 chart that spring.

Overall, "If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body ..." was the Bellamys' second No. 1 song; their 1976 song, "Let Your Love Flow
Let Your Love Flow
"Let Your Love Flow" is the title of a pop song written by Larry E. Williams, a former roadie for Neil Diamond, and made popular by the American country music duo The Bellamy Brothers. It was offered to Neil Diamond first, but he turned it down...

," topped the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

.

Story

"If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body ..." (in some sources called "If I Said You Have a Beautiful Body ...") derived its double entendre
Double entendre
A double entendre or adianoeta is a figure of speech in which a spoken phrase is devised to be understood in either of two ways. Often the first meaning is straightforward, while the second meaning is less so: often risqué or ironic....

 title from an old Groucho Marx
Groucho Marx
Julius Henry "Groucho" Marx was an American comedian and film star famed as a master of wit. His rapid-fire delivery of innuendo-laden patter earned him many admirers. He made 13 feature films with his siblings the Marx Brothers, of whom he was the third-born...

 quote. Songwriter David Bellamy told country music journalist Tom Roland that he regularly watched Marx's program, You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life
You Bet Your Life is an American quiz show that aired on both radio and television. The original and best-known version was hosted by Groucho Marx of the Marx Brothers, with announcer and assistant George Fenneman. The show debuted on ABC Radio in October 1947, then moved to CBS Radio in September...

, where Marx sometimes used the quote while interviewing an attractive female contestant, then shake his cigar and raise his eyebrows to elicit a reaction. The comment stuck in Bellamy's head as a possible hook line for a song.

"If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body ..." earned its first success in Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...

 before becoming a hit in the United States. The song was also a minor hit on Top 40 stations, peaking at No. 39 on the Billboard Hot 100.

Following the success of "If I Said You Had a Beautiful Body ... ," the Bellamy Brothers would record several more songs that used double-entendre in their titles, most notably their 1981 No. 1 hit "Do You Love as Good as You Look
Do You Love as Good as You Look
"Do You Love as Good as You Look" is a 1981 single written by Jerry Gillespie, Charlie Black, and Rory Michael Bourke and recorded by The Bellamy Brothers. "Do You Love as Good as You Look' would be The Bellamy Brothers fourth number one single on the country charts. The single stayed at number...

."

In a 2003 issue, Country Weekly
Country Weekly
Country Weekly is an American tabloid style weekly magazine established in 1994. The magazine focuses on country music stars and events, and regularly features exclusive interviews with recording artists and country music news...

magazine named it the #1 country pick-up line of all time.

Re-recording

On their 2005 album Angels & Outlaws, Vol. 1, The Bellamy Brothers re-recorded this song with Dolly Parton
Dolly Parton
Dolly Rebecca Parton is an American singer-songwriter, author, multi-instrumentalist, actress and philanthropist, best known for her work in country music. Dolly Parton has appeared in movies like 9 to 5, The Best Little Whorehouse in Texas, Steel Magnolias and Straight Talk...

. This rendition peaked at #60 on the country charts, giving the Bellamy Brothers their first chart entry since "Not" in 1994.

Chart performance

Chart (1979) Peak
position
Canadian RPM Country Tracks 24
UK Singles Chart 3
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles 1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 39
Dutch Top 40 11
New Zealand Singles Chart 17
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