Now in the peerless homestretch of Larry Levan's Live At The Paradise Garage--the Strut version, with 1979 added to title by poster SoftTalk Mesa---ilx or something currently messing my YouTube pastes, but look for that post, with perfect sound on non-audiophile headphones. Ahhhhhhhhhh
― dow, Wednesday, 8 April 2020 21:37 (four years ago) link
pretty delighted to have stumbled across this -- robbie leslie's extended remix of jimmy ruffin's "hold on to my love" that disconet put out in 1981. the standard-length version, which had been a pop hit the previous year, is a tight and solid tune, but extended it really takes on a heightened sense of epic drama.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RXQjC0FfxrU
youtube comments seem to suggest that this was a hit at the saint.
― dyl, Monday, 11 May 2020 06:21 (four years ago) link
'81 was clearly still a transition period from trad disco to hi-NRG--there's a slight awkwardness to this J. Ruffin remix's production and performance to my ears which I find endearing
― call mr zbow that's my name that name again is mr zbow (Craig D.), Monday, 11 May 2020 10:26 (four years ago) link
I made a few disco playlists of some of my favourite tunes for a Finnish board, might as well share them here, in case anyone's interested. They are meant to be introductions to various types of disco, but I tried to veer away from the obvious hits everyone knows:
"Classic disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlb15vknlCMtcd7ephRCOf6y- String and horn heavy tunes in the classic disco mold.
"Instrumental disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlaYhyjx3cReXChfDrj69oqR- Disco tunes that are fully instrumental or only have some backing vocals, also includes disco covers of movie themes.
"Space disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlYPs0pJOWxlmxk75CQ1ropT- Disco with space-themed lyrics and/or cosmic sounds.
"Gay disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlYFatzo2UUt8_Ntc59Kggac- Tunes done by gay artists and/or with a gay or campy feel.
"Synth disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlaGlq8la12gxpuQzGi_DF7W- Disco with synth leads, mostly boogie from the early '80s.
I'll be updating the lists every now and then.
― Tuomas, Monday, 11 May 2020 12:38 (four years ago) link
Nice Tuomas! Were you into the Disco Discharge comps? Your playlists kinda remind me of them.
― Daniel_Rf, Wednesday, 13 May 2020 09:41 (four years ago) link
I have two or three of those, but never really dug deeper. The Disco Recharge series of album reissues from the same label is great though, especially since they reissued all of Boris Midney's various projects... He's pretty much my favourite disco composer/producer of them all. When it comes to disco compilations, my favourites are Ben Liebrand's magisterial "Grand 12-inches" seroes, and (for rare '80s disco and boogie) Unidisc's "Star -Funk" series.
― Tuomas, Wednesday, 13 May 2020 14:27 (four years ago) link
I used to own all the Disco Discharge comp CDs, but sold them; unlike most CDs, they've retained most of their value. There's some superb stuff on them, of course, but in general the aesthetic was a pinch too zingy for my tastes - and in particular, some of the later Hi-NRG comps really weren't great at all.
― mike t-diva, Wednesday, 13 May 2020 18:08 (four years ago) link
too zingy for my tastes
This is a fantastic way to describe those comps. There was always something a little ... not for me about them?
― Vegemite Is My Grrl (Eric H.), Wednesday, 13 May 2020 18:51 (four years ago) link
What do yall mean by "zingy"? Never heard this series.
― dow, Wednesday, 13 May 2020 19:22 (four years ago) link
I would recommend the Grand 12-inches series for you if you aren't familiar with it already... It covers a lot of same ground as the Disco Discharge, but has way more mellow and funky stuff, and since it isn't limited to disco only, it also has loads of great extended versions of '80s R&B and synth pop too, with an occasional old school rap and house tune thrown in as well. The only downside is that Liebrand apparently couldn't get/afford anything from the Warner Bros archives, so there's no Prince or Madonna on the comps, but other than that they have almost all the great 12"/extended mixes from the seventies and eighties you can imagine.
― Tuomas, Wednesday, 13 May 2020 20:46 (four years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZ4nLTlCkLo
― Kate (rushomancy), Thursday, 14 May 2020 02:46 (four years ago) link
I started making a Spotify playlist of all those Disco Discharge comps earlier this week. I've added the first ten so far:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/58Sjf1TMQF5tMrk8xsBeFr?si=s7cnKA7LQcaUz9HoGXMH_A
And there's already one on there for the Grand 12 Inches series:
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4LqfSYJkMpSNeUmcjefMSr?si=CmIeAuSEThyG_6Lb709KLA
― groovypanda, Thursday, 14 May 2020 10:54 (four years ago) link
And there's already one on there for the Grand 12 Inches series:https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4LqfSYJkMpSNeUmcjefMSr?si=CmIeAuSEThyG_6Lb709KLA
It's nice that someone has made this, but since the actual comps apparently aren't on Spotify, it looks like in many case they've added the radio/7" edit of the song on the list, and not the 12" version, which, you know, kinda goes against the spirit of something called "Grand 12-inches" :) Based on the notes on Liebrand's site, several of the track on these comps are extended mixes he has uncovered from various archives, which have never been released on CD before, and I guess they aren't on Spotify either? There's also a handful of extended mixes he's done himself specifically for this compilations by blending together the vocal and dub mixes from the original tapes. These include "Beat the Street" by Sharon Redd, "You're the One for Me" by D-Train, "Love Can't Turn Around" by Farley Jackmaster Funk, etc., and they're mostly really good, since Liebrand is an excellent remixer.
― Tuomas, Thursday, 14 May 2020 11:34 (four years ago) link
I made one more playlist:
"Smooth disco"http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLdW4Wfh6CZlZwrRGFCyxmkZzh_O61L2Zf- More mellow and romantic (but still danceable) tunes for the wee hours of the night.
― Tuomas, Thursday, 14 May 2020 12:51 (four years ago) link
Ah, haven't listened to the Grand 12 inches one as i've probably got 75% of the albums anyway xp
When I was making the Disco Discharge one I always tried to include the correct versions from the compilations
― groovypanda, Thursday, 14 May 2020 15:32 (four years ago) link
the sound quality on the “Grand 12 Inch” series is supposedly really good too:
I have taken the greatest care to come up with the best possible masters, sometimes comparing up to 5 different versions to find out which one sounded the best and most pure. And sometimes even baking the analog master tapes to make them playable again.
― brimstead, Thursday, 14 May 2020 18:04 (four years ago) link
Yeah, the comps generally sound really good.
― Tuomas, Thursday, 14 May 2020 19:06 (four years ago) link
fucking hell this moonstone version of "the visitors" is killing me rn, so amazing
― Kate (rushomancy), Friday, 15 May 2020 14:35 (four years ago) link
enjoying this Greek banger from 1979
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRMU787OEtY
― coptic feels (seandalai), Sunday, 17 May 2020 01:29 (four years ago) link
tuomas thank you very much for posting your playlists!
― visiting, Sunday, 17 May 2020 02:19 (four years ago) link
― Tuomas, Monday, 18 May 2020 17:24 (four years ago) link
fucking hell goddamn IAN LEVINE produced that? christ, that must be the one thing he's ever done in his life that isn't fucking horrible
― Kate (rushomancy), Monday, 18 May 2020 17:35 (four years ago) link
Here's another not-fucking-horrible Ian Levine production (and co-write): finally, in 2001, he made a genuinely great Northern Soul record.
Sidney Barnes - Standing On Solid Ground
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kMpnlZ7PaoI
― mike t-diva, Monday, 18 May 2020 18:02 (four years ago) link
https://youtu.be/4LDTn01uHnoI actually genuinely love the over-the-top quality of Levine's hi-NRG work with Earlene Bentley, but I can understand it's not everyone's piece of cake.
― Tuomas, Tuesday, 19 May 2020 06:54 (four years ago) link
Let's try that again:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4LDTn01uHno
― Tuomas, Tuesday, 19 May 2020 06:56 (four years ago) link
speaking of "wait what the fuck", here's a disco record with vocals by clare torry, songs written by mike ratledge and karl jenkins. i knew about the "soft space" late-period softs disco single, i didn't know about this. and based on this song it's... great! fucking great! and that cover!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZaoD90BnzZ8
― Kate (rushomancy), Tuesday, 19 May 2020 23:19 (four years ago) link
here's a 45 i came across today while sorting records:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nTGGwVoJuqgunknown artist - what a man
just an all around goofy but pretty great tune. i guess this is a re-discovery.
somebody is trying to get $500 for it on discogs lol
― budo jeru, Tuesday, 19 May 2020 23:29 (four years ago) link
this is a pretty decent playlist i ran across today
http://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLSnqKIn6Nc8AJiFWqE5n2xs12AEFy-PwZ
― Kate (rushomancy), Wednesday, 20 May 2020 22:26 (four years ago) link
And speaking of old proggers making dance records, here's the Francois Kevorkian remix of King Crimson's "Sleepless", from 1984:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFiptMUAprE
― mike t-diva, Thursday, 21 May 2020 09:53 (four years ago) link
More danceable Fripp, this one with David Byrne:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IuuFP8gh2_E
― dan selzer, Thursday, 21 May 2020 13:50 (four years ago) link
got to looking through the discog of ricki byars muldrow (now beckwith) and ronald muldrow, aka chemise, aka parents of georgia anne muldrow (!), and found this gem, released same year as "she can't love you." doesn't reach quite the same heights, but some real nice chords and changes.
vivian prince, "a hold on you" (produced/written by the muldrows)https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIgf3vvf_ag&feature=emb_logo
― andrew m., Thursday, 21 May 2020 15:28 (four years ago) link
one of the prominent trumpet lines from this kept popping into my head throughout the day and i couldn't quite place it until just now
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fVbNoXt-Z7I
really a lovely record
― dyl, Saturday, 20 June 2020 05:21 (four years ago) link
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jl_E96x0u3o&feature=youtu.be&fbclid=IwAR0ZnvslHS-yGkmdD12fOhith4APaKUs0U74zWBCj_5yZlxlgKqvXA0YnSA
― Daniel_Rf, Tuesday, 4 August 2020 12:28 (four years ago) link
No? http://youtu.be/Jl_E96x0u3o
nice! some groovin' rosco from the boys. had to look that one up. maurice gibb produced!
― andrew m., Tuesday, 4 August 2020 14:20 (four years ago) link
been listening to this one a lot lately and think it would vibe with a playlist of tunes from this thread.
title track from eddy grant's '82 album most famous, of course, for giving us "electric avenue."
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FMLMRWONZMU
― andrew m., Tuesday, 4 August 2020 14:27 (four years ago) link
Also in genuinely great grooves from perhaps unexpected light music quarters xp), this really is a masterpiece all the way.
https://tooslowtodisco.bandcamp.com/track/marti-caine-love-the-way-you-love-me
― Basil Ker-ching (Noel Emits), Tuesday, 4 August 2020 21:15 (four years ago) link
love that. had no idea who she was, wouldn’t have guessed she was british.
― No mean feat. DaBaby (breastcrawl), Tuesday, 4 August 2020 22:27 (four years ago) link
― andrew m.
looks like psychemagik has an edit:
https://psychemagik.bandcamp.com/track/bonus-i-i-i-edit
― Kate (rushomancy), Tuesday, 4 August 2020 23:46 (four years ago) link
There's also a Todd Terje one.
― Daniel_Rf, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 11:06 (four years ago) link
That wonderful Marti Caine track (comp/prod Barry Blue) first re-emerged in 2018 in a Velvet Season & The Heart Of Gold 12” re-edit - it was a big seller for several months.
― mike t-diva, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 11:20 (four years ago) link
Bill Brewster comped it in 2013.
― Basil Ker-ching (Noel Emits), Wednesday, 5 August 2020 11:23 (four years ago) link
Kind of bizarre to see Marti Caine's name popping up. She was mostly a comedian, I think? Basically a *Northern Variety performer - sang, told jokes, danced, did a bit of everything.
― Sonny Shamrock (Tom D.), Wednesday, 5 August 2020 12:07 (four years ago) link
(*Northern variety - a cabaret circuit in the North of England, working men's clubs, local theatres, seaside resorts etc)
― Sonny Shamrock (Tom D.), Wednesday, 5 August 2020 12:13 (four years ago) link
South African space disco from 1977. Clearly heard ‘Love to Love You Baby’ and thought is that as far as she can go.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QcfMZWjk2C8
Hot R.S. - House of the Rising Sun
― Dan Worsley, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 12:48 (four years ago) link
Yea, he's championed it for years and it was the opening track on his 2013 Late Night Tales selection
― chonky floof (groovypanda), Wednesday, 5 August 2020 13:14 (four years ago) link
The b side to that one is probably better known xp
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7YMXV8id3cY
― chonky floof (groovypanda), Wednesday, 5 August 2020 13:16 (four years ago) link
Detailed this on Rolling Reissues---it's a bit uneven, but plenty momentum: comp for Tim Lawrence's book of the same title, Love Saves the Day : A History Of American Dance Music Culture 1970-1979 (with Lawrence's notes providing context for each track)---on vinyl as pts.1 and 2; I've got both on the 2-CD edition
https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a0762179765_10.jpgPt. 1:1.Les Troubadours Du Roi Baudouin - Dibwe Diambula Kabanda 03:00 2.Chuck Mangione - Land Of Make Believe 12:06 3.Wilson Pickett - Don't Knock My Love (Part 1) 02:22 4.Wilson Pickett - Don't Knock My Love (Part 2) 04:01 5.James Brown - Give It Up Or Turn It Loose 06:29 6.Jackson 5 - Hum Along And Dance (Uncut Version) 15:06 7.Brainstorm - Lovin' Is Really My Game (12" Version) 07:40 8.Domenic Troiano - We All Need Love (12" Version) 05:32 9.Gladys Knight And The Pips - It's Time To Go Now 02:29
― dow, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 17:45 (four years ago) link
Pt. 2:https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a3594227143_10.jpg
1.Willie Hutch - Brother's Gonna Work It Out 04:46 2.Charles Earland - Leaving This Planet 07:27 3.Laura Lee - (If You Want To Try Love Again) Remember Me 03:57 4.The Modulations - I Can't Fight Your Love 04:15 5.Margie Joseph - Prophecy 05:23 6.Blue Magic - Welcome To The Club 05:14 7.Twennynine with Lenny White - Fancy Dancer (12" Version) 06:21 8.Miroslav Vitous - New York City 09:31 9.Edgar Winter - Above and Beyond (12" Version) 06:26
― dow, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 17:48 (four years ago) link
Even better! Incl.in terms of headsnapping variety, at times.soundtrack for Lawrence's second book in the NYC Trilogy,Life & Death On A New York Dance Floor (1980 - 1983)(Also got the CD edition)
https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a2858224731_10.jpg Unlile Love Saves The DayYou can listen to the whole thing on bandcamp:https://reappearingrecords.bandcamp.com/album/life-death-on-a-new-york-dance-floor-1980-1983But here are the track listings from discogs, because incl. all artists' names, unlike bandcamp page:Dinosaur L Go Bang! (LP Version) 7:53–Tuxedomoon Desire 7:05–Gray (2) Drum Mode 7:22–Alan Vega Saturn Drive 5:39–David Byrne Big Business (Dance Mix) 6:17–Johnny Dynell & New York 88* Jam Hot (Rhumba Rock) 6:51–Rammellzee Vs K-Rob Beat Bop 10:11–3 Teens Kill 4 Hold Up 3:55–John Robie Vena Cava 7:03–James White & The Blacks Contort Yourself (August Darnell Mix) 6:12–Quando Quango Love Tempo (Mark Kamins Mix) 7:52–George Kranz Din Daa Daa (Trommeltanz) 6:20–Loose Joints Pop Your Funk (Instrumental) (7" B-Side) 2:44–Material Bustin' Out (Long Version) 8:25–Peech Boys Don't Make Me Wait (Extended Version) 7:23–Edwin Birdsong Rapper Dapper Snapper 6:37
― dow, Wednesday, 5 August 2020 17:59 (four years ago) link