MetaFilter posts tagged with disco

A brief musical history of Garage

empath — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 22:06:00 -0800

In the waning days of the Disco era, Larry Levan crafted a new style of dance music, which, like House music in Chicago, came to be named after the nightclub where it was most played, the Paradise Garage. Garage music may have started with disco, but over the decades, it's evolved in some surprising ways: The first Garage records were mostly extended remixes of disco records: Roberta Flack - Loving You Is Such An Easy Thing To Do MFSB - Love Is The Message Lolleata Halloway - Love Sensation Eventually Larry's taste for deep, soulful tracks inspired local music producers to make tracks just for Paradise Garage and the classic Garage sound was born: Wish - Nice and Soft Mahogany - Ride On the Rhythm Over time, the sound got picked by Club Zanzibar in New Jersey where it picked up influences from the new House music coming out of the Warehouse in Chicago and by the early 90s had evolved into the sound that also became known as Deep House: Underground Solution - Luv Dancin Odyssey - Feel My Love Butch Quick - Higher Garage continued to develop and crossed over into the UK, where it began being played at raves in the UK and then back in the US, where the influence of ecstasy caused the DJs to begin pitching the records up and looking for slightly harder and "druggy" records and speed Garage was born: Todd Edwards - Push The Love Sneaker Pimps - Spin Spin Sugar (Armand Van Helden Mix) Industry Standard - So More (I refuse) The speed of the records continued to increase until they went over 135bpm, where something like a phase shift happened -- the 4 to the floor beat became too hard to dance to at that speed, so they started dropping every other beat and in the late 90s(after picking up some R&B and Drum & Bass influences) 2-Step Garage was born: DJ Zinc - 138 Trek Artful Dodger - Rewind MJ Cole - Sincere Azzido de Bass - Dooms Night (Stanton Warriors remix) Dreem Teem - Buddy X 99 2-step garage had massive mainstream success in the early 2000s, but after a backlash it went back underground where a new sound started percolating in London's urban clubs. The sounds got darker, more bass-heavy, dirtier. 2-Step started crossing over with London's hip-hop sub-genre - grime. And finally, some producers decided to drop 2-step's 140 BPM tempo down by half to 70bpm so it would mix with hip-hop, and Dubstep was born: La Roux - In for the Kill (Skream Remix) Plastic Man - White Gloves Rusko - Cockney Thug TC - Where's My Money (Caspa Remix) Mala - Alicia That's a hell of a long way from the Paradise Garage. (apologies in advance if I got some of the details wrong -- this was never really my scene, so I'm not an expert)

History of Montreal disco(s)

joeclark — Wed, 21 Oct 2009 11:58:12 -0800

Funkytown: The Montreal Disco Era. Studio 54? Qu’est-ce que c’est? By the late 1970s, “Montreal had platinum-status admission to the VIP lounge of coolest-of-the-cool disco cities.” An oral history of the city where no one bats an eye at going out to dance at 1:30 AM in –20°C weather. (Contains links to MP3 of CBC Radio documentary.) Incidentally, the film Funkytown mentioned in the comments is an upcoming bilingual historical comedy-drama about the Montreal disco scene that, by the looks of it, will feature some really bitchin’ wardrobe.

when hip hop arrived

flapjax at midnite — Wed, 14 Oct 2009 00:31:40 -0800

It was 30 years ago today... October, 1979: Rapper's Delight by the Sugarhill Gang was released. A few days later, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five gave us the tighter and catchier (IMHO) Super rappin'. Hip Hop had arrived. Here's a charming interview with a New York City paramedic who, as a very young photographer on the South Bronx scene back in the day, was the unofficial photo-documentarian of the birth of hip hop.

It’s on and on and on on and on like the hot butter on the what? Popcorn!

filthy light thief — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 15:39:18 -0800

Mark Skillz, hip hop historian of a sort and an occasional writer for Wax Poetics, represents the old school of hip hop and lets others tell their stories on Hip Hop 101A. From Eddie Cheba recalling his time as a top DJ in the small world of hip hop in 1977, to the life of Sparky D, who took up the good fight for UTFO and started the Roxanne Wars, one of hip hop's first rap battles. Read up on the fall of funk and the rise of Planet Rock, and reminisce with Reggie Wells about the birth of hip hop from black club deejays in Manhattan who were refining a slick style of talk over disco records to open hip hop jams in the park. As a bonus, Wells throws out a playlist straight from Club 371 (videos after the break). Double Cross – First Choice (Double Cross single, 1979) Soul Makossa – Manu Dubango Pipeline (Soul Makossa single, 1972) Galaxy – War (Galaxy album, 1977) Runaway Love – Linda Clifford (Runaway Love single, 1978) Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me – Peter Brown (Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me single, 1977) Shame – Evelyn Champagne King (Shame single, 1977; music video) Turn the Beat Around - Vicky Sue Robinson (full song as part of a playlist) (Never Gonna Let You Go album, 1976; live video / another live vid) Hot Shot – Karen Young (Hot Shot single, 1978; live video) Busting Loose - Chuck Brown and the Soul Searchers (Bustin' Loose single, 1978; live video, Chuck Brown talking about the song) Super Sporm (slight edit to fit onto YouTube) – Captain Sky (Super Sporm single, 1978) Put The Music Where Your Mouth Is – Olympic Runners (Put The Music Where Your Mouth Is / Do It Over single, 1974; re-edit) Runnin’ Away – Roy Ayers Ubiquity (Running Away single, 1977, modern live show cut) Movin’ On – Brass Construction (Brass Construction album, 1974) Dr. Love – First Choice (Dr. Love single, 1977; instrumental dub version) Love is the Message – MFSB (Love Is The Message album, 1973; bonus: Danny Krivit Special Edit, video, in playlist) Ladies Night – Kool and the Gang (Ladie's Night single, 1979; live video from 1979, in a playlist, and a more recent live video, with the band being introduced by Sinbad) Let’s Get it Together – El Coco (Let's Get It Together / Fait Le Chat (Do the Cat) single, 1976) Bounce, Rock, Skate and Roll (part 1) – Vaughn Mason and Crew (Bounce, Rock, Skate & Roll single, 1979, part 2) If you're looking for more hip hop history, check the MetaFilter archives .

“I remember from the get-go, it wasn’t a normal crowd.”

NotMyselfRightNow — Sun, 12 Jul 2009 07:19:37 -0800

Thirty years ago today was the infamous "Disco Demolition Night" at Chicago's Comiskey Park. It didn't go exactly as planned: "In the warm air that night, baseball’s routine and soothing sounds mixed with the tribal cadence of off-color chanting, the drifting scent of marijuana and the sight of vinyl records descending through the summer dusk like Frisbees." It wasn't the first time a 70s baseball promotion went astray. Considered by some "the worst idea ever," "Ten Cent Beer Night" at Cleveland Municipal Stadium five years earlier ended when "a large number of intoxicated fans – some armed with knives, chains, and portions of stadium seats that they had torn apart – surged onto the field, and others hurled bottles from the stands." (Previously on MeFi)

Disko feelink, you don't have to be born with it

Dragonness — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 21:38:26 -0800

Learn to disco dance in under 4 minutes (SLYT).

Plaid Stallions!!

pearlybob — Thu, 23 Oct 2008 22:12:27 -0800

All Kinds of 70's awesomeness!! Plaid Stallions!!

"We had hoped to finish last, but Portugal decided otherwise."

grounded — Tue, 07 Oct 2008 12:09:16 -0800

Marc Moulin, Belgian pop culture polymath and electropop pioneer, has died. Moulin was probably best known outside of Belgium for the electronic group Telex, founded in 1978 with Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers. Telex scored an international hit with Moskow Diskow, made a great video for their version of Twist a Saint-Tropez, did anything but Rock Around the Clock and, most famously, entered the 1980 Eurovision Song Contest with a cheerfully mocking song titled Euro-Vision. Telex's stated goal for Eurovision -- to finish last -- was thwarted by Portugal, who for reasons not entirely clear, awarded them 10 points. The band continued on until the mid-eighties with songs like We're All Getting Old, L'Amour Toujours and Temporary Chicken. Moulin was a longtime presence on the Belgian jazz scene, from his early days with the fusion group Placebo up until his last release for Blue Note, 2007's I Am You. When not making music, Moulin was a playwright, journalist and radio producer.

"You just heard the drums. It seemed like he kept them going forever."

Len — Thu, 07 Feb 2008 10:38:16 -0800

Mixed With Love: The Musical World Of Walter Gibbons: "This tale begins with a skinny white DJ mixing between the breaks of obscure Motown records with the ambidextrous intensity of an octopus on speed. It closes with the same man, sick with Aids and all but blind, fumbling for gospel records as he spins up eternal hope in a fading dusk. In between, Walter Gibbons transformed the art of DJing and marked out the future co-ordinates of remixology." Like fellow disco oddball Arthur Russell (mentioned previously on MeFi), Walter Gibbons stood out on his own, his inventive genius – he was the first DJ to bring reel-to-reel mixing into the booth – and his dogged determination often going unsung. I thought about posting this in flapjax at midnite's (excellent) disco thread the other day, but Gibbons has gone long enough playing support to other artists, and Tim Lawrence's essay – orginallly written for the liner notes of this compilation – is a beautiful tribute. Walter Gibbons discography Walter Gibbons on Youtube: Luv You Madly Orchestra: Moon Maiden (1978) Strafe: Set It Off (1984)

talk about it, talk about it, talk about it, talk about it.

flapjax at midnite — Sun, 03 Feb 2008 21:24:27 -0800

Everybody on the dance floor for two of the high masterpieces of disco from 1979: Lipps Inc.'s Funkytown and Anita Ward's Ring My Bell. Hey, Funkytown even has its own comprehensive website! No doubt about it, 1979 was a very BIG year for disco. Not everyone back in '79, though, was ready to shake their booty. Oh well. Doooooooooooooooooooooooo Wikipedia pages for Funkytown and Ring My Bell.

Disco Polo

sgt.serenity — Fri, 28 Dec 2007 08:14:42 -0800

World getting you down ? then why not cheer yourslef up by watching some videos By B O Y S - perhaps the greatest Disco Polo band in the world. Click on the big play button in the last link to have Disco Polo streaming into your home 24/7 !

Oh God Yes.

Alex404 — Mon, 23 Apr 2007 07:55:50 -0800

Apache. The greatest song for an action movie ever made. The 1977 Disco Version? It's hard to say.

Ziabista Disco Polo !

sgt.serenity — Sat, 17 Mar 2007 12:46:24 -0800

Disco Polo - It makes ITALO DISCO look like StockHausen, Disco Polo Is coming to rule the world (and fix your sink).

He'll clean your pipes and rock your world.

brain_drain — Thu, 03 Aug 2006 11:53:12 -0800

Dancing Pipecleaner Man. Make him boogie! [flash]

Village Idiot

scblackman — Wed, 29 Mar 2006 13:23:02 -0800

We may run out of oil, but we'll never run out of irony. Victor Willis, the policeman from the 70s disco band "Village People" was arrested for going AWOL (at the age of 54) after agreeing to a plea bargain for 2005 gun and drug possession charges. He'll be exploring a new fan base in prison. Good thing the folks from America's Most Wanted were on this case. It's not like we have terrorists out there on the lam. Maybe he should've hidden in Paris. Somebody there seems to fancy him.

You are a Mystery, It's so Confusing

piratebowling — Mon, 13 Mar 2006 12:14:10 -0800

Amanda Lear is one of the greatest enigmatic personalities to emerge from the 70's. Known in equal measures for her disco hits (such as Enigma,Queen of Chinatown, and Follow Me WARNING, youtube link) and her affairs with David Bowie, Brian Ferry of Roxy Music (and thus appearing on their For Your Pleasure album cover) and Salvador Dali. Her past was hazy at best. The most debated aspect of her past (so prevalent as to be mentioned even in reviews of her paintings is what sex she was born (One popular telling of the rumor even claimed it was Dali who paid for her surgery to become a woman). Her more recent, very private life took a tragic turn in 2000 when her home in France burned down killing her husband, the equally interesting Alain-Philippe Malagnac d'Argens de Villele. [MI]

Nothing is new

cmicali — Mon, 24 Jan 2005 07:39:44 -0800

Jazz, Funk, Soul, Disco joints sampled in House, Hip-hop, and others [via memepool]

Everybody hustle.

miss lynnster — Mon, 17 Jan 2005 23:13:37 -0800

Learn Disco! They say it drives the chicks wild... maybe you'll finally get a date!
(The end of the video is the grooviest part. Courtesy NewToday.)

Rick James dead.

adampsyche — Fri, 06 Aug 2004 12:28:21 -0800

Rick James dead. Big red breaking news box at CNN.com, also here. :(

Disco Sucks!

Bonzai — Wed, 14 Jul 2004 08:21:59 -0800

25 years ago a Chicago radio disc jockey had an idea for a promotional event. Steve Dahl invited his listeners to bring a disco record to a double-header White Sox game. Between games he was going to blow them up. What happened was a full scale riot that caused the White Sox to forfeit and disco to die.

Going Back To Jive County

skylar — Tue, 02 Dec 2003 01:51:54 -0800

Attack of the Disco Furball! The cute animated character has become something of a staple for alterno-pop videos - from the runaway milk carton in Blur's Coffee and TV to the big-nosed moper in Moby's Why Does My Heart Feel So Bad. But new heights of weirdness are reached on this Flash video called Jive County which shows a be-stetsoned one-legged bundle of hair bouncing to an electro beat.

Le Freak C'Est Chic

y2karl — Thu, 16 Oct 2003 00:28:22 -0800

Since finding that Tongue In Chic was on CD at last, of late I've thought of the rhythm section nonpareil, Chic, with that welded groove between Nile Rodgers's guitar and Bernard Edwards's bass. As performers and producers--applying the patented Chic sound to an encyclopedia of superstars--what Chic played was a tight and transcendent penthouse funk. Now I find that Nile Rodgers has a homepage, too. The Links pages one and all are motherlodes of Chic-ism, let it be noted. Ah-h-h, Freak Out!

Hey Stu, you should try that!

Stan Chin — Sat, 06 Sep 2003 00:30:55 -0800

Stealth Disco. This is why I don't work in an office. People like this. Doing shit like that. [Sensible Erection]

Shpilkes in the Genecktageesoink

dhoyt — Thu, 31 Jul 2003 10:20:11 -0800

Bar Mitzvah Disco • When We Were Shtetl Fabulous
"If you are Jewish, there would have been a golden year when it seemed like you attended a bar mitzvah disco almost weekly. Each one was like a pee-wee Studio 54, a potent cocktail of ritual, acne, insecurity, and hormones run amok." Help the folks at Bar Mitzvah Disco gather photos, stories and details from Bar/Bat Mitzvahs from the 70s and 80s to publish in their forthcoming book on the subject.

Sesame Seventies

pxe2000 — Tue, 24 Jun 2003 23:41:55 -0800

Sesame Seventies is an informational website about the three disco-related Muppets/Sesame Street records released in the 1970s. It makes for a good argument in favor of file-sharing, it reveals some of the stranger children's music of the past twenty or so years, and it's cute. (warning, some flash)