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Meco

Meco Monardo presents Camouflage and Showdown (CD)

FTG Records - Funkytowngrooves Ltd. (UK) / original release: 1977 & 1978 - CD release: 2009 / FTG-202
CD in jewel case with liner notes

Producer: Meco Monardo, Tony Bongiovi, Harold Wheeler and Jay Ellis
Arrangers: Harold Wheeler (1), Lance Quinn (2, 4, 6, 8, 9, 11), Brad Baker (2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 11), Meco Monardo (5, 7, 9, 10, 12), Sampson and Misti (10), Tony Bongiovi (12)

Vocals on Camouflage: Sondra Simon as Mysti and Eugene Pitt as Sampson

Recorded at Sun Dragon Studios, New York City and Opel Studios, New York City
Recording engineer: Ed Stasium
Remix engineer: Steve Jerome
Cover design: Meco and Jay
Cover art: Joe Lagana
A product of Honeybee Records Inc. - nationally distributed by Prelude Records

CD release credits:
Executive producer: Tony Calvert and Matt Murphy
Producer: Donald Cleveland
Art direction: Matt Murphy and Tony Calvert
Design: Anna Forrester for Almac
Vinyl restoration by DiscoMusic.com member, Bruce G. Bartlett (with an assist by Donald Cleveland)
Liner notes: DiscoMusic.com member, Stephen L. Freeman

 

1. Disco Symphony / MacArthur Park 14:47 Camouflage feat. Mysti 1977 Disco Symphony
   (Curtis Blandon) / (Jimmy Webb)


2. Take A Ride 9:13 Camouflage feat. Mysti 1977 Disco Symphony
   (J. Ellis, S. Simon, E. Pitt)


3. Bee Sting 7:36 Camouflage feat. Mysti 1977 Disco Symphony
   (J. Ellis, D. Oriolo, S. Simon)


4. What's Your Name 5:56 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (Roger Cook, Bobby Woods)


5. Walkin' In Music 3:41 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (Lionel Job)


6. Gotta Get Into You / Lay, Lady, Lay 6:38 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (T.T. Majors) / (Bob Dylan)


7. Keep Doin' It 6:02 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (Curtis Blandon, Meco Monardo, Jay Ellis)


8. Freaky 4:02 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (Curtis Blandon, Eugene Pitt, Richard Harris, Janay Hayes)


9. Come Down In Time 4:01 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
   (Elton John, Bernie Taupin)


10. Let's Make A Deal 3:58 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
    (Curtis Blandon)


11. Take A Ride [7" Single Version] 4:04 Camouflage feat. Mysti 1977 Disco Symphony
    (J. Ellis, S. Simon, E. Pitt)


12. The Impulse [7" Single Version] 3:11 Showdown feat. Sampson 1977 Showdown
    (J. Ellis, M. Monardo)

Camouflage / Showdown is a studio project of producer Meco Monardo who was very influential in Disco's early days and behind such legendary tracks as Gloria Gaynor's Never Can Say Goodbye, and Al Downing's 1974 hit, I'll be Holding On and of course his later Star Wars Theme. Meco has the ability to go from a Broadway show style to a funky low tempo number to electronic thumps as in his later works. He is a very versatile and skilled producer, writer, arranger and musician. The guy has tackled it all.

The ever-energized independent reissue label, Funky Town Grooves has unearthed some nuggets from Monardo's past and brought them back to life for the digital age. FTG, despite being unable to locate master tapes even with the assistance of Tom Moulton, forged ahead and had DiscoMusic.com member, Bruce Bartlett meticulously restore two of Meco's larger than life albums, Disco Symphony by Camouflage featuring Mysti and the self titled album by Showdown featuring Sampson. The restoration done on these tracks is superb and highlights the extra effort given to this material.

The opening track, Disco Symphony is essentially just that... big and symphonic with a larger than life soundscape that contains many distinct elements. While i have to admit that I'm not a fan of this type of material others had great things to say about this track:

Remicks a member of DiscoMusic.com writes:

I always keep this album handy and play it whenever I want to remind myself of the innocence of disco at this period ...the experimenting with just how far can one take all this flashy splashy orchestration before it becomes as Bernie describes it :" OVER THE TOP" !! This is disco before the formula got too figured out ... but its the kind of production that paved the way . I think over-the-top is a fair description ... the full choir like vocals ... the frenzied percussion ...relentless harps ... resounding French Horns .... the s-t-r-i-n-g-s .... but for me its a good thing .... I never made the connection at the time of this being Meco as in Gloria Gaynor's NEVER CAN SAY GOODBYE, but that explains the same chugging guitars, to me another plus. Also this really is a symphony in that it isn't just a looping of a narrow concept to create a longer disco version... making it enjoyable listening from beginning to end while experiencing its many changes.

I was making tapes for bars and yes this got included and I got quite a bit of feedback (inquiries) about the MACARTHUR PARK cut. Imagine my surprise when a year later Donna Summer would run away with something sounding suspiciously similar! Giorgio Moroder had to have listened to this (Camouflage) album before creating his version of MacArthur Park for Donna Summer. Play this version which came out first... and then compare it to Donna's. It's Meco vs. Giorgio... and an interesting study of the evolution of the disco sound.

Another DiscoMusic.com member Stephen L. Freeman writes:

I always loved how it (MacArthur Park) sped back-up, going back into the grand finale for "Disco Symphony". And how Meco tacked-on the ending of Gershwin's "Rhapsody In Blue" for dramatic effect at the end. I love listening to it... "Take A Ride" (one of my all time favourite tracks) survived for decades as an after-hours cult classic.

And lastly from Donald Cleveland of FTG who is also a DiscoMusic.com member:

Man, I love that Disco Symphony LP... it reminds me of the very best elements of the Stratavarious LP. That solid symphonic soul with a nice disco swing and solid soulful vocals.

Folks, if you like seeing lesser known releases that other labels wouldn't even bother to release, then you should support the smaller labels like FunkyTownGrooves (FTG) by buying their CDs. They take big financial risks to bring you these long lost rarities so show them that you appreciate the extra effort and the labors of love they put out to collectors by putting your money where your mouth is.

Buy from:
Amazon.com (US)
Amazon.co.uk (UK)

Also see:
Meco Monardo Interview

Submitted by DiscoMusic.com (3698)