“It’s time to jam!”

With that irresistible command, Sweet Sensation plunged into one of the most emotionally intense “girl group” hits of the 1980s, “Take It While It’s Hot.”

“Take It While It’s Hot” wasn’t the trio’s introduction to the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, and it was far from their biggest hit, but almost exactly 28 years after it debuted on the Hot 100, the song continues to resonate. The lyrics, written for the group by producer/songwriter Joseph Malloy, aka Romeo D.J., express a woman’s desire to “do the special things that lovers do” with the man of her dreams.

Betty LeBron, lead vocalist and always the trio’s visual focal point, said that the song is more about love than sex.

“‘I’ve always dreamed this was the way that it would be / Just like a fantasy / You’re here alone with me,’” LeBron said last week, reciting the first few lines of the song during a telephone interview. “The lyrics are provocative in a way, but it’s not sleazy, and it’s everything I think every guy and every girl dreams of.”

She’ll be singing all the Sweet Sensation classics Saturday when Sweet Sensation joins Salt-N-Pepa, DJ Spinderella, En Vogue and J.J. Fad in a “Ladies of the 80’s” concert at the Blaisdell Arena. The emcee for the evening, KCCN FM 100 deejay Big Teeze, is a Hot 100 chart artist in his own right; he was a member of the Hi-Town DJs, whose nationally released single, “Ding-A-Ling,” made it onto the Hot 100 in 1998.

Sweet Sensation topped the Hot 100 in 1990 with “If Wishes Came True.” Salt-N-Pepa and En Vogue shared a Top 5 hit with their joint recording of “Whatta Man” in 1994. J.J. Fad is remembered as one of the pioneers of female rap for their 1988 hit “Supersonic.”

“You have women who have made an impact in the music business, in the dance genre,” LeBron said. “It’s going to be such a great show to see all these women come together on the stage. … One of the things you’ll see when you see a Sweet Sensation show is that we’re like little Energizer bunnies!”

LeBron spoke from the home that she shares with her husband and her dog, “a big 100-pound chocolate Labrador,” in upstate New York.

She was a very petite 17 when she was noticed by Cherrie Shepherd, the woman who become her manager. Shepherd initially had concerns about managing an underage girl and decided to put singers around her. The result was a trio named Sweet Sensation that was signed by Atco Records, a major label in the 1980s. Their debut album, “Take It While It’s Hot,” was recorded and released in 1988.

LeBron said that one of the things that set it apart was the producers’ decision to use live percussionists and horn players.

“At the time, freestyle music and dance music was coming out, there was a lot of synth and a lot of drum machines, and we used them, but Ted Currier and Cherrie Shepherd really did incorporate live musicians to play percussion and horns. We had (percussionist) Bashiri Johnson and (guitarist) John Hart. They were amazing,” LeBron said. “I used to watch them in the studio.

“Not to discount synth-pop,” she continued. “You always want to evolve and try new things, but I love the idea of having a real live instrument as the core. Live instruments create a soul for that song, for that music, for that lyric, for that melody. (The song) ‘Take It While It’s Hot’ exemplifies that.”

It was one of several songs Romeo J.D. wrote for the group.

“Romeo J.D. was a huge and integral part of the writing team,” LeBron recalled. “Romeo and I recorded (our first single) ‘Hooked on You’ in his little recording studio in his house. Then he came up with ‘Take It While It’s Hot.’ He really had a knack for getting our sound and getting our music. He definitely was the magic behind a lot of the Sweet Sensation songs.”

As with many groups, Sweet Sensation went through changes in lineup. One member left around the time their first album was released; the departure forced Atco to change the cover art.

Since 1991 LeBron has been backed by Belle Ritter and Janae Colon (“my ride-or-die girls,” she said).

She added that although she is 48 she does not feel “old.”

“I’m relishing — I guess don’t want to say my ‘older years’ — everything that I went through in my life since I’ve been in Sweet Sensation,” LeBron said. “ It’s been a long time, but all these 25, 30-plus years have been the best years of my life. I’m still enjoying it.”

All three singers are looking forward to time in Hawaii and plan to go to a “real luau.”

LeBron said Hawaii is a special place.

“The fans are amazing, amazing, amazing,” she said. “I wish I could go today.”