Watch and enjoy
Watch and enjoy
What a cool documentary. Thanks for sharing it, glencro.
Now I know what Tom Moulton really looks like.
One question I've always wanted answered though, Michael Jackson was 19 in 1977; shouldn't he have been too young to get into Studio 54?
Interesting things in that documentary. They talked about women and gays, but they didn't delve too much into Blacks or Latinos, or even anything about the record industry, producers, or the DJs.
And, yeah, Tom Moulton looks like a sound engineer!
looks interesting.
I'm going to take some heat for this, but I gotta be honest: I think the documentary focused way too much on gays, and made it seem like gays, alone, started disco.
Disco music, and the movement, was much, much more than just about gays.
I'd agree with you Soulster .. in England there was a huge "white-working-class" following for the idea of going out to dance to records, stretching back way into the 1960s. The program did make some kind of acknowledgement of this with the section on the Manchester/Lancashire "Northern Soul" scene. My understanding is that it wasn't too different in parts of the U.S. which is why the makers of "Saturday Night Fever" felt able to set their film in a predominantly "white" environment in NYC without the general public thinking they had made it all up.
I also found it a bit strange that the program put quite a bit of emphasis on the androgenous appearance of SYLVESTER and the "campy" appearance of THE VILLAGE PEOPLE and seemed to make out it was something "totally new". The show was made by the BBC in Britain so I can't believe that the producers were unaware of the whole "Glitter-Rock" era in Britain [[1972-74) when the UK pop charts were dominated by pop/rock acts who appeared on stage and TV in full make-up and bizarre outfits.
Compared with what DAVID BOWIE looked like in 1973 THE VILLAGE PEOPLE in 1979 looked to be models of conservatism [[apart perhaps from the gentleman who dressed like an Indian ). Compared with what MARC BOLAN and various members of THE SWEET and SLADE looked like in 1973, SYLVESTER in 1978 looked decidedly butch!! And I've not even mentioned GARY GLITTER or ELTON JOHN!!
However I did generally enjoy the show, especially the early part where the music was "Better" [[or at least as far as I was concerned). It did seem at the end to concentrate too much on the "Pop" end of the whole disco/dance spectrum of music, whereas a lot of the best records of that era IMHO were the Jazz-Fusion/Disco-Funk tunes which were just as popular.
Roger
From my experience, it was possible. I use to get into discos at 18 when the required minimum age was 21. It depended on the group you were with and if the owner approved you. I remember Lyle Alzado scaring me at the door telling me I was too young to come into his place.....but he let me in each and everytime, hehehehehehe! I remember getting preferred entrance to the Palladium which was the successor to Studio 54 and it was all based on who your friends were and who you knew.....
yeah it was.you'de think there wasnt anybody else involved watching that.its the talking heads that get me.telling me what it was like when we were there and get it wrong,i was starting to 2nd guess myself.oh and one day that will be shown when we arent around,then it will be the gospel truth.
And, get this part: they made it seem like the only reason for the backlash was because they were against gays. What about women, Blacks, and Latinos? What about that they were a bunch of crybabies who were upset that white-boy guitar rock was no longer #1?
When the doc went back in time to discuss the origins of disco, all they talked about were gays. What about the fact that heterosexual Blacks created the music? What about Latinos who were looking for acceptance? What about all those baby-boomers who were just tired of rock, Viet Nam, Watergate, and the hippie thing, and wanted to dance and have fun again? How about the veteran soul artists who were coerced or contractually forced to make disco records to keep their record contracts? How about the rockers who made disco records? The doc didn't even mention Chic!
How about how the music was created beyond a drum beat?
Last edited by soulster; 03-07-2012 at 07:32 PM. Reason: added thoughts, corrected misspellings.
You're right. I just watched a few seconds of that to see it was bs. Go Go Clubs was a big influence on disco. Sexy women was the subject in a lot of these disco or dance oriented songs. Movies like Saturday Night Fever, Thank God Is Friday, & Disco 9000 wasn't about gays. Here's a little history http://www.jahsonic.com/Discotheque.html
Last edited by P-Shark: The Revenge; 03-07-2012 at 05:17 PM.
It did at first come off like it was a documentary on the gay rights movement. As far as the Disco Sucks movement and a backlash towards women, Blacks, and Latinos? I definitely felt that to be a large part of the motivation behind that Disco demolition event at Comminsky Park in Chicago back in 1979. What I find most interesting is that during the disco era, I clearly remember partying in clubs that had many white patrons that having a great time dancing to the music. By the time the Disco Sucks movement caught full steam, I think the majority of the public had already accepted disco music and were buying it. The crybabies as you called them were a minority that made a lot of noise causing the disco fever to finally die down.
Disco however did hurt a lot of musicians, Black & White. There were some black people also protesting disco. Toward the end of 70's disco was becoming monotonous.
One song that really bugged the hell out of me:
I saw a TV show about that U.S. "Disco Sucks" movement a few months back [[can't remember where), and one of the theories put forward about the motivation behind a lot of the people who joined in the nonsense was that they just couldn't dance!! The show I saw painted a picture of thousands of young white hetero males jumping on the bandwagon with "Saturday Night Fever" etc. then actually going to a "Disco" and feeling total fools when people realised they just couldn't move!!
Roger
Yeah that record and that one by Gary's Gang got on my nerves. Did anyone notice that they overdubbed George McCrae's vocals to "Rock Your Baby" with someone else's singing? I wonder why? I also wondered why they did not include more of the artists and their perspective on the era. There were so many that are still around.
George Clinton made no bones about how much he hated disco. Rick James only teased you with disco to get you to listen to his punk-funk.
Other things that were inaccurate is that Giorgio Moroder was responsible for starting European disco. Truth be told, there were other people besides Moroder who were doing disco, like Michael Kunze, who presented us with Silver Convention. before those two, there was Jacques Morales, who had success with The Ritchie Family long before he had success with the Villiage People? And, back in the U.S., what about the other guys in Philly who used MFSB, like Thom Bell and Vince Montana? And, while they talked to Nile Rodgers, not once did they ever mention he, and Bernard Edwards.
Studio 54 stayed in business for at least another year or two after the so-called end of disco in 1979. And, we had many disco hits after that infamous night at the ballpark.
No, that really was George McCrae's singing.
About the discos. A LOT of people went to discos because it was just the thing to do in those days. You went to a club, you danced.
I must note that, and i'm sure err'body reading this forum knows, Black folk went to discos and listened to Slave, Evelyn "Champagne King", Parliament/Funkadelic, Rose Royce, Rick James, Heatwave, and Johnnie Taylor. You might hear something like "Push Push In The Bush", but the music didn't get too discoey. You just couldn't play Donna Summer or Village People shit and get away with it! And, you wouldn'd dare play Sylvester or Dan Hartman's "Instant Replay"! People would leave cursing you out!
Last edited by soulster; 03-07-2012 at 07:51 PM.
Soulster, that was not George McCraes' voice at all! LOL! I thought that was why they started talking over his singing to camoflage [[sp?) the fact that they had overdubbed some other dude's voice singing "live" to that clip of George performing it lip-synched on the Tops of the Pops show.
Anyway, during the disco era, I lived in both parts of the country [[East and West). It did seem in the East we partied more to true R&B dance records, while out West they played the Donna Summer, Village People and Dan Hartman stuff more in all discos. I remember having an argument with a friend out in Colorado that Johnny Taylor's "Disco Lady" was disco/dance music as far as I was concerned coming from back East. The folks I met from LA and other places out West partied more to typical disco music. I think Chic's stuff was popular across the board.
True, he said disco is like making love with one stroke> Google Books
Richie Family was an American group.Other things that were inaccurate is that Giorgio Moroder was responsible for starting European disco. Truth be told, there were other people besides Moroder who were doing disco, like Michael Kunze, who presented us with Silver Convention. before those two, there was Jacques Morales, who had success with The Ritchie Family long before he had success with the Villiage People? And, back in the U.S., what about the other guys in Philly who used MFSB, like Thom Bell and Vince Montana? And, while they talked to Nile Rodgers, not once did they ever mention he, and Bernard Edwards.
Studio 54 stayed in business for at least another year or two after the so-called end of disco in 1979. And, we had many disco hits after that infamous night at the ballpark.
I listened to it again. You're right. That's not him. I guess they substituted something else because they couldn't get the clearance for the recording for the documentary.
That made Johnnie Taylor angry when people called his song disco. It was not disco, but an R&B song with a disco flavor. Towards the end they added a more funk flavor to it, much like what Rick James did with a few of his songs. he would start it out as disco and morph it into a funk jam.Anyway, during the disco era, I lived in both parts of the country [[East and West). It did seem in the East we partied more to true R&B dance records, while out West they played the Donna Summer, Village People and Dan Hartman stuff more in all discos. I remember having an argument with a friend out in Colorado that Johnny Taylor's "Disco Lady" was disco/dance music as far as I was concerned coming from back East. The folks I met from LA and other places out West partied more to typical disco music. I think Chic's stuff was popular across the board.
That's what I was thinking about. Maybe they could not get a clearance.
Now regarding Johnny Taylor's record. True it was not "Disco" but it was a much better dance record than a lot of that crap that was out there labeled "Disco". Johnny tore it up! Which again brings me back to this documentary and the way was handled. Disco music was born out of soul, r&b, black dance music! We had been dancing to soul/funk records at house parties since the 50's and all through the 60's when I was a kid. Now along came "disco" and everyone discovered dance music.
A&E produced their own documentary on Disco some years back that was much, much better than this one by the BBC. Even the VH-1 history of Disco was more comprehensive. I am going to see if I can find them online.
Speaking of Johnny Taylor he had a cameo in DISCO 9000. I thought it was a pretty good flick
Don't get me started about how some people label anything that was recorded by a Black person, or that can be danced to, as 'disco". It's just like how they label the same as hip-hop today. It's the same old attempt to compartmentalize and marginalize anything Black.
Some of my favorite disco music are instrumentals. Salsoul Orchestra, Barry White, MFSB, Van McCoy, David Shire...I actually do Like disco a bit. [[cause at least they are singing on the record)...
The song is not rare but the 45 is. But yeah I see your point. Ebay sellers love over using the word rare and often times adding "very" before it.
I'm talking about lps you can often find in used record stores.
Its funny how "Disco Lady" by JOHNNIE TAYLOR always crops up in these discussions about "Disco" music.
When it came out I never really thought of it as a "Disco" record, to me its much too slow and "slinky", though musically I think it does owe a bit to "Rock Your Baby". I wonder if it would ever get mentioned in such a way if it had been called "Sexy Lady" or "Groovy Lady" or something similar, which I think were the original words when songwriter HARVEY SCALES first wrote the tune ... I've always liked the record by the way!!
I have a copy of "Disco 9000" on a U.S. Columbia 45 and I've got a copy of it on a C.D. issued in the U.K. by Westside back in 2001 ...
http://www.allmusic.com/album/rated-...o-9000-r550576
I'm open to offers for my 45 and looking forward to being able to book a world cruise on the proceeds!!
Roger
Well, I hardly think that there much of a demand for that "Disco 2000" 45, so don't go booking any cruises just yet!
Funny thing you mentioned the tempo of disco music. Before the biggest [[worst) part of the craze starting in 1978, at least in the U.S., the tempo of the average disco/dance song was slower in tempo. The ones that were more R&B were slower. That may be one of the objections to the European-style disco of the later 70s is that it was much faster.
What!! "Disco 9000" isn't worth 9000? I guess I can put away the suncream then!!
A lot of those Euro-Disco records in 1977/8/9 were very big on beat but very lacking in rhythm to my ears and I much preferred the funkier stuff from America .. MASS PRODUCTION, KLEEER, CHIC etc. etc. etc. Though I did like "I Feel Love" by DONNA SUMMER and a handful of others enough to spend cash on buying a copy.
One thing to take into account if comparing the U.K. "Disco" experience with the U.S. and [[possibly) Continental Europe is that in British discos in the late 1970s the D.Js still talked between records as if they were presenting a radio show and there wasn't the obsession with mixing/segueing the songs together to make it sound like a five hour continuous track that I understand was the norm in the U.S. As a result people in Britain were used to gaps in the music and dancing to a mix of tempos and musical styles.
Roger
As far as the documentary was concerned, I found the narrator's voice extremely grating. And, as I tried to post yesterday, I was surprised at some of the omissions. To those listed above, can I add Dr Buzzard's Original Savanah Band, which whilst not a chart hit in the UK did, thanks to Chris Hill, spark a brief forties revival, with everyone turning up at discos looking like they'd stepped off Glenn Miller's missing flight. And A Taste of Honey, Eddie Henderson [[played at the wrong speed for maximum effect), Change, Patrick Juvet, Poussez, Black Ivory and even those traditional rock artists who recorded 'disco' tunes, such as Rod Stewart, Rolling Stones, Kiss. Disco was diverse; both the people who attended and those who performed it.
Anther thought - having watched the documentary I dug out a three CD disco set for the car. Driving home from football last night, The Fatback Band and 'Bus Stop' came on. Now I loved the Fatback Band, especially Yum Yum, Spanish Hustle, Keep On Steppin' and I Found Lovin', and Bus Stop has long been a favourite. I asked my daughter, who is 27 years of age, what she thought of the track and she replied that she couldn't understand why anyone would write a song about a bus stop! So I spent the next few miles telling her about some of the well known dance styles from the 60s and 70s....
Well, here in America, the idea was escapism. What better way to do that than to have the atmosphere of extended tracks and non-stop music? I mean, we lost a useless war, the economy sucked, food and gas prices were soaring, our president resigned in disgrace, drugs were a big problem, we had school busing riots, union strikes...disco had to happen!
This thread, and perhaps that documentary, is yet again pointing out major cultural differences between the U.S. and the U.K..
Looking at the track listings for the two Anthems compilations, it's amazing how many jazz funk musicians became big in the UK thanks to exposure in the clubs, or discos. Aside from Eddie Henderson, there was Roy Ayers [[Running Away), Lonnie Liston Smith [[Expansions), Rodney Franklin [[The Groove), Charles Earland [[Let The Music Play, although I prefer Intergalactic Love Song), Tom Browne [[Funkin' For Jamaica), Donald Byrd [[Fallin' Like Dominoes) and John Handy [[Hard Work). Others that don't appear on the albums but which I recall getting massive amounts of club play include Eddie Russ [[Zaius), Crusaders [[Street Life, obviously, but also Stomp & Buck Dance), Ronnie Laws [[Always there), Deodato [[Night Cruiser and Whistle Bump), Ramsey Lewis [[Sun Goddess), Hubert Laws [[Chicago Theme and Inflation Chaser), B Baker Chocolate Co [[Snow Blower), Blackbyrds [[multiple tracks), Bob James [[Westchester Lady), Bobbi Humphrey [[Home Made Jam), Brecker Brothers [[Sneakin' Up Behind You), Grover Washington [[Mister Magic), Herbie Hancock [[multiple tracks), Lalo Schifrin [[Jaws), Brothers Johnson [[Streetwave), Willie Bob [[Always There), Brecker Brothers [[Sneakin' Up Behind You), Weather Report [[Birdland), Arthur Adams [[You Got The Floor) - and not one of these artists got a mention on Joy Of Disco!
Another thing that struck me soulster is that the show dated the "birth" of "Disco" as the Stonewall Riots in NYC when the patrons of the Stonewall "dance bar" got fed up with being raided by the police as in 1969 it was illegal in NYC for members of the same sex to dance together. The convention being boy-girl couples.
Yet here in Britain for as long as I can recall it hasn't been thought in the slightest bit unusual for people to dance on their own, or in groups [[same sex or otherwise). Indeed, at "Northern Soul" events it is unusual for people to dance together at all, everyone claiming a little bit of dancefloor for themselves to show off their moves.
Didn't some wit once describe Britain and America as "two nations divided by a common language?"
Roger
That was true freedom! LOL! We use to have great time flying in those days. The food was great , the drinks were plentiful and once that "no smoking " sign went off and the curtain was drawn, that's when party would start hehehehehehe! We even use to dress up when flying.
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