Soulster
I'm surprised you can't remember "Get Down" by GENE CHANDLER. It was quite a big U.S. hit.
According to the Billboard/Joel Whitburn reference books it hit #3 R&B, debuting on 28th October 1978 and made #53 on the Billboard "Pop" listings.
In Britain "Get Down" made it to #11 when released her on 20th Century, debuting on 3rd Februaray 1979.
I've found the 7" version posted on YouTube, which is kind of groovy.
As far as I can see no one has posted the 12" version. I'm pretty sure I still have my 12" of it, but its filed away as I find it quite tedious nowadays.
.
"Get Down" .. GENE CHANDLER.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8fuP-HuiSe0
I'm very familiar with "Get Down" by JOE SIMON, full title "Get Down, Get Down [[Get On The Floor)" and bought it back in 1975 when Polydor released it in Britain. To me it was very in the "Disco" groove of the time .. especially with the opening reference to Kung-Fu Bumping .. two of the current dance crazes.
I also bought the similar styled follow up "Music In My Bones", another track that at the time I would have described as "Disco" or perhaps "Disco/Soul".
Neither "Get Down, Get Down" nor "Music In My Bones" by JOE SIMON were very big selling records in Britain. His only chart hit here was "Step By Step" a year or two earlier.
I find it interesting that you describe "Get Down, Get Down" by JOE SIMON as being "straight up R&B", whereas I regard it as "Disco/Soul"
Here is "Get Down, Get Down" by JOE SIMON, complete with an introduction that you should find interesting.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p6bHgd3BCgM
This difference in terminology does illustrate perfectly what I've been trying to say. Back in 1974/75/76 "up" dancefloor orientated R&B records were being referred to as "Disco" and this was long before the influx of Euro-Disco in 1977/78 and the obsession with 128 BPM thud thud thud music, sacharine strings and cooing female choruses. And it was also long before the "Fever" induced by "That" film.
You mention that the U.S. is very "schizoid" about "Disco" nowadays and I've noticed on this forum that some [[American) posters object to the term being used if it is associated with any of their favourites, there seems to be a tendancy to try to pretend that "Disco", as a musical style, only refers to the later "Euro" styled material in 1978/79. All this is very strange to me, it just seems to be a rewriting of history.
I'm being a bit pedantic here but with "Boogie Oogie Oogie" and "Shame", both these records actually came out in the Spring of 1978, not towards the end of the year. Both tunes were on the U.K. charts in June/July of 1978.
"Shame" debuted on the Billboard R&B chart on April 29th 1978, "Boogie Oogie Oogie" on May 13th 1978.
I Don't think the real difference between R&B-Disco and Euro-Disco was necessarily the tempo, during 1976/77 there were a lot of very fast and furious R&B-Disco tunes .. I'm particularly thinking of some of the Salsoul material from the likes of LOLEATTA HOLLOWAY, LOVE COMMITTEE etc. It was that style of music that took a back seat when "Shame" etc. came along. As you say, R&B-Disco always had more of a groove, with Euro-Disco it was that thud thud that was considered important .. I used to think it was made for people who couldn't dance well!!
And finally .. here is another one you seemed to have missed .. it reached #10 on the U.K. chart in the spring of 1976.
ISAAC HAYES - "Disco Connection"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u0p6xO0JgH4
Fabulous tune .. this seems to be the L.P. version, the 45 was edited down to three and a half minutes.
Interesting that the person who posted it on youtube describes it as "Funk" ..
Roger
Bookmarks