Discussion on When Exactly Did Disco Die and When Was the Beginning of the End? within the Disco Music of the 70s and 80s forums, part of the General Music Discussions at DiscoMusic.com category; [quote=stevieboy32808;99425]Stop separating disco and dance. Disco is dance music, that's all I'm saying. [/b] Stevieboy, of course I agree with ...
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#31
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| [quote=stevieboy32808;99425]Stop separating disco and dance. Disco is dance music, that's all I'm saying. [/b] Stevieboy, of course I agree with you that Disco is dance music but the names 'Disco' and 'Dance Music' are being used to refer to a certain style of music or a time period. This custom has been set by the industry, the press, the media, the people who sell the music... I think Marky's quote hits the nail on the head.... markydefad Quote:
see ???....;) |
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#32
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| [quote=Mixmachine;99383] Quote:
'Last night a dj saved my life' is written from the perspective of European authors and the writers have done a tremendous good job researching and working on their material. |
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#33
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| They *are* real strings. You could never get something like that with analog synthesizers. The sampling technology needed to fake something like that (as was later done on Blackbox's "Dreamland" album) didn't exist at the time. The Fairlight was still 8-bit back then (non-tech speak: it sounded really crappy), wouldn't have had nearly enough memory, and it cost as much as a house. |
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#34
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| Sandy, Mea culpa.
__________________ "Lost inside adorable illusion...." |
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#35
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| Well, this thread is slowing up real fast; so, I will give a summation of what we've all talked about regarding disco's death. Remember, sometimes summations will lead into another subject but still remain within the subject or topic, so don't be surprised if this thread is given new life. This is my opinion and my opinion only. Most of us have given our view, take, and focus on disco's life, from birth to death, et al, the who, what, when, where, how, and why. I am going to give my own summation to this subject via facts, opinions, and valid points, primarily based on my own "real life" experience and research. Please feel free to also give your views, opinions, takes, analysis, etc. I don't know everything so if I am off line, or out of line on something, and you know I am for a fact, educate me immediately. I am not offended when it comes to disco. Yes I lived that era, but much of it has become blurred and forgotten. Here goes: 1) Disco began to take off in 1975 from a few artists and producers that began playing the long, 12" single version of songs ("Love to love you baby - Donna Summer). In 1975 disco had not reached its peak, but was beginning to take off and on the way to rule the music industy. 2) Disco began to capture the hearts, minds, souls, and feet of many in the mid-70's. In 1976 it still had not reached its peak, but it continued its ascendency towards ruling radio, media, tv, night clubs, everything began to breathe disco. At work or at play, the gossip and topic was disco, dancing, learning how to dance, learning the hustle. 3) Around mid to late 1977, the advent of the late 70's, Disco began to reign supreme; at this time Disco began to take over the disco and top 40 charts, and the music industy. In this year, just about everything was breathing and living disco. Rock and Rollers began to hop on the disco bandwagon around late 1977 as the Movie Saturday Night Fever further helped to propel disco to its peak. Of particular note, at this time not all disco sounded the same within the United States; certain regions had a different style and sound of disco, i.e., New York sound, Philly sound, LA sound, etc. 4) 1978 saw Disco at the top and at its peak within the music industry, reigning supreme, and basically unmatched by any other music genre in the music industry. It got to a point where other genres were suffering and losing a lot of money and had no choice but to discoize or "go disco" with their songs, music, etc. Many genres and recording artists had no choice but to jump on the disco bandwagon; some were successful, and others failed and disappeared into oblivion later resurfacing after the disco era. Another Disco movie, Thank God It's Friday, though not as successful as "Saturday Night Fever," was released, and further cemented disco's rise to fame, power and glory. 5) In 1978 Disco may have reigned supreme, however, negative winds began to blow as "disco sucks" stickers began to show up on automobiles and vehicles around the nation. Late 1978 saw a noticeable decrease in disco album sales as just about every record produced or released had a disco touch; also, many of the new disco artists and producers were producing and releasing silly and totally rediculous disco records. 6) Disco continued its decline into 1979, but the music didn't stop and some fairly reputable and respectful songs, artists, records and producers were released in 1979. In mid-1979, a disco demolition, led by then young Steve Dahl, was held at Comiskey Park in Chicago. The purpose was to once and for all destroy and kill disco. Millions of disco records were broken on the air, nationwide on rock and roll radio stations, and trashed and broken up at the demolition in Comisky Park. Disco was already weakening and this event, led by an extremely negative anti-disco marketing and promotional ploy nationwide, later proved to be successful, and the initial death knell and "stake in the heart" to disco. Not only did this one single event lead to disco's death in America, but also around the world. 7) 1980 saw disco trying desperately to hang on, but everyone knew the party was over. Anti-disco campaigns and marketing ploys continued further dampening and silencing disco music. Discos began to close, record stores lowered their prices to sell off disco music both old and new, and the word disco was virtually banned or not mentioned in many places. Many former discoers hid behind the scenes trying to figure out where the music industry was going, what the next fad would be, and what to do next. By this time there were virtually no disco radio stations left. The music industry was in a flux as the crash and departure of disco left a huge void which could not immediately be filled. During this time many songs still had a disco flavor but had reverted to more of a funk, soul or rock style. 8) By late 1980, the word disco had ceased to be mentioned, many discos were then called dance clubs, and the word dance was now substituted for the word disco; but the music, though now called dance, remained but sounded different. Gone were the strings, horns, "overkill" percussion, background/back-up singers, and other items associated with the old disco guard. The new dance music, which really was disco renamed with a slightly different style, was composed and performed from a synthesizer or keyboard, with maybe a drummer and bass player, and of course a vocalist, no more, no less. There were a few songs released with the old disco flavor, but they were few and far between. 9) 1981 ushered in with a new type of music emerging through the airwaves called pop. Much of the new music was, like most post disco era music, composed and performed from a keyboard/synthesizer. The majority of the dance music had reverted to the new composition style as well. By this time the word disco was no more or not mentioned. In the 1970's and into the immediate early 80's disco had basically been the norm, and had ruled the airwaves; now pop and british pop, beginning in mid-1981 began to take over and once and for all snuffed out the disco era. Fashion began to change, and a new trend, along with the new pop music was also taking shape. Anyone wearing bell bottoms, fluffed sleeves, ruffled shirts, or stack/high heeled shoes, or long hair were laughed at and/or ridiculed. 10) 1982 - 1984: Somewhere during this timeframe, disco as we all knew it in the 1970's and into the early 80's, finally died. During this time, the new 80's pop phenom had taken shape and cemented itself as the new replacement for disco, and would continue its reign throughout the 1980's into the early 90's. At first I hated the new music, but being a musician I grew to like it. Disco was now old school and you were laughed at, or told you were in a time warp if you still listened to disco or yearned for the old disco era. Every once in a while a DJ would play an old disco song, but it wouldn't last long on the turntable. CLOSING COMMENTS: In my opinion Comiskey was the death knell and the beginning of the end for disco. Disco was already in decline during 1978 but Comiskey further accelerated its death. Some may say that there were other factors as well, but let's face it, disco was humming right along until "the other side" that hated disco began to plot behind the scenes as to how to bring Disco down, and bring it down forever. It could be possible that had Comiskey not happened, we would still be breathing the word disco, but with a new fashion and trend (similar to what has happened to rap and hip hop over the years). The people at Comiskey, and others who hated disco, succeeded in getting rid of the name, the music as we knew it in the 70's, and the fad/trend; yes, they succeeded. But they didn't succeed in getting rid of the spirit because if that was so, there would not have been any type of dance music whatsoever left or any clubs to dance in; but the spirit remained. Also, that same spirit remained in the millions of disco faithful fans, like myself, who loved and still love and revered this artform which was snatched from out midst. Comiskey succeeded in getting the name changed from disco to dance, killing the music as we knew it in the 70's, and killing the whole fad and/or trend as we knew it. But the so called dance music, which is really disco with a different name, and without the old type of fad and trend, is Disco's child, much larger, but not as popular. Since the mid-90's many dance artists and producers have put out "disco" flavored records, reminding me of that glorious era that we loved that no other music genre has not been able to repeat, replicate, or duplicate. Disco as we knew it may have died, but the spirit remains. Today I listened to "RICE AND BEANS ORCHESTRA (CROSSOVER), and FRENCH KISS (PANIC)." Boy did those strings and that beat sound good! Garry-----:lol:
__________________ KEEP DANCIN Y'ALL! REMEMBER, DISCO IS STILL ALIVE, IT HAS DROPPED IT'S NAME AND CHANGED IT'S FACE OVER THE YEARS TO FIT EACH GENERATION AND TIME, BUT THE MISSION REMAINS THE SAME; TO KEEP EM DANCIN! BE SURE TO CHECK OUT MY ARTIST PAGE AT: http://www.garrybcoston.us http://WWW.FRESHSTARTREFERRAL.COM CLICK ON THE ABOVE URL AND DONATE TO THE HOMELESS AND NEEDY! THANK YOU. Garry |
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#36
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| Hey Paul and All From a woman's point of view huh? Whew! There is extensive info here and it's evident that lots of thought and research went into this discussion. It will take me hours to read all of this. No, days if I click on all the links. Everybody here has made a valid point one way or the other. Having only become politcal as of late I can't debate that aspect. In another forum I hinted as to why it started to die. It became too commercially mainstream. Especially with the release of Saturday Night Fever. I know I am stating things that have already been said, but. Also another point well made is the fact that everybody then got into the act to make a buck and/or comeback. Disco Duck, Charo, et al, were novelty acts at best, and cleared the dance floor. DJ's were introducing new music called rap and Rappers Delight. Again it cleared the dance floor of all us hard core disco dancers. What was left were the John Travolta wannabee's and people who did not have a clue as to what disco really was. All over were the "disco sucks" stickers and people who had a real hatred for everything disco. The disco ball as I knew it was starting to end and I was sad. Winds of change were everywhere and not just in the music. Econonmics were getting tough, and people were getting more conservative. Clubs were dying and those of us like myself were getting older and settling down with families. It was scary because of the AIDS scare and it was safer to be safe. For me 1972-1981 were the best of times, but we all knew it had to end. Or did we? I don't need to read a book. I was there from day one. They have their memories and I have mine just as you all do. So in essence it's not just on thing that toppled the disco regime. Things change, people change, and times change. Period! A natural progession in the order of things called evolution. Disco never died it evolved and is in our hearts still as evident as we are here. Sharing the love a of culture that too many never understood. It's an honor to be among you all here. Many of you who are the DJ's and the founders of what is now called Dance music. Bless you all for the sharing of your time, knoweledge, and expertise on what may forever remain a mystery. Diva
__________________ Dance Yourself Dizzy! |
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#37
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| Well, I needn't add anything. It's just refreshing to read more women's point of view. 8)
__________________ Find them and destroy them! |
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#38
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| **** I have to agree Paul. It is refreshing . Thanks Diva, and I can tell by your comments .... you really were there all right ! 8) Wasn't it a blast while it lasted ! :D *****
__________________ +++ Change Gonna Come +++ |
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#39
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| Quote:
I agree with all of your post. And I did, in my post, touch on the commercialism aspect. And yes, people change, times change, etc., this I agree. But I slightly disagree about the one single event that many feel changed that era and lent to disco's death. That event in Comiskey, in my opinion, was devoutly successful in silencing "disco as we knew it." We all know that it (Disco) never really died as I stated in the post; it evolved as you said. Dance music is nothing but Disco with a different name. The reason I disagree is this: If Comiskey had not happened, I firmly believe that Disco as we knew it would have still changed and evolved, but it would not have died like it did; it would have changed and evolved over time and the word "Disco" would still be in use and with us today, and we would not have ever been ashamed of the word, or brokenhearted and sad over the loss of the use of the word, the era, and the trend that we so loved and were so used to. I will use a certain music genre as an example, namely rap. Rap started during the disco era, right in the middle of it. You can say that Disco may have gave birth to a step child in those days. But look at rap today, still here, has evolved about 4 times since the 70's, fads have changed, people have changed, cultures have changed, and thinkings have changed but rap remains (that ryhmes, am I a rapper?). Disco, I believe, would have remained in the same type vain had it not been for Dahl's Comiskey Park assasination. Anyway, we don't have to point fingers or blame anyone. Like you said Disco Diva, Disco is still here; in another name, another form and style, in the hearts of the millions who are still alive that had the privilege to live that era. Dance music is good, and it is the child of Disco, but it will never truly replace or be like the magic of DISCO. Garry:-D
__________________ KEEP DANCIN Y'ALL! REMEMBER, DISCO IS STILL ALIVE, IT HAS DROPPED IT'S NAME AND CHANGED IT'S FACE OVER THE YEARS TO FIT EACH GENERATION AND TIME, BUT THE MISSION REMAINS THE SAME; TO KEEP EM DANCIN! BE SURE TO CHECK OUT MY ARTIST PAGE AT: http://www.garrybcoston.us http://WWW.FRESHSTARTREFERRAL.COM CLICK ON THE ABOVE URL AND DONATE TO THE HOMELESS AND NEEDY! THANK YOU. Garry |
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#40
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| Here is an interesting article for y'all to enjoy. Funny, I never read this article, or never really researched anything for this thread, yet, in this article, everything we've been saying, about disco not dying but the name changed, dance music is nothing but disco without the disco name, is stated in this article which was printed two years ago. The header of the article is: DISCO DEMOLITION: "BELL BOTTOMS BE GONE! By Andy Behrens Special to Page 3 SPORTS & MUSIC They arrived in Dodge Darts and Chevy Novas. They jammed the Dan Ryan Expressway and filled the side streets near Comiskey Park. They had disco records in their hands and half-pints hidden in their pockets. They were the Insane Coho Lips, and they were headed to Disco Demolition Night. It was July 12, 1979. The Cohos were fans of Steve Dahl, a 24-year-old disc jockey at WLUP-FM in Chicago. Their nickname referred to a local street gang, "The Insane Unknowns," and a local fish, the coho salmon. Dahl and his wry, subordinate co-host, Garry Meier, organized the Cohos around a simple and surprisingly powerful idea: Disco Sucks. The Cohos scrawled it on the banners they brought with them to Comiskey. "Steve was really taking control of Chicago back then," says Jeff Schwartz, former head of promotions at WLUP. "At the time, we didn't really know how big he was. "After that night, we knew." Dahl arrived in Chicago in 1978, when most local radio was scripted and geriatric. He was different. He was improvised and irreverent. Dahl was also militantly anti-disco. If you were young and shiftless -- and viscerally repulsed by Abba -- Steve Dahl was a god. And you were drawn to Disco Demolition. The gimmick was relatively simple. It was designed by Dahl, Schwartz, and Mike Veeck, the son of White Sox owner Bill Veeck. Fans who brought a disco record to the park were admitted for 98 cents -- the ticket price matched WLUP's frequency, FM 98. Dahl would blow up the records between games of a Detroit-Chicago doubleheader. "I was really just trying to get through the evening without being humiliated," Dahl says. "I mean, how many people could you draw? A few thousand? The park would still look empty." Dahl's apprehension seemed justifiable. Comiskey Park had a capacity of 52,000, and the previous night's game had drawn only 15,520 fans. The White Sox were 40-46. They might've actually sucked more than disco -- it's debatable. An estimated 90,000 people showed up for Disco Demolition Night. Bill Veeck would later observe that sometimes a promotion can work too well. Amped Cohos shook the ticket booths, drawing ballpark security away from the field. The Chicago police department closed expressway exits at 31st and 35th streets to discourage late-arriving fans. When the Comiskey gates were finally shut, hundreds of undaunted Cohos scaled the exterior walls. If you were young and shiftless -- and repulsed by Abba -- Disco Demolition Night was for you.Once inside, they drank Schlitz. Lots of Schlitz. A Schlitzload. The Tigers scored unearned runs in the first and second innings. They never trailed. Players on both teams were pelted with debris. The final score of the first game was 4-1, Detroit. Pat Underwood was the winning pitcher. Ron LeFlore stole two bases. No one homered. It was really a wretched game, but that's only a footnote. The festivities began when the game ended. Wasted Cohos cheered themselves hoarse. Dahl wore a combat helmet and circled the field in a jeep. The White Sox wore batting helmets and hid in their dugout. Dahl was introduced by Meier. Vinyl 45s whistled through the air. The Cohos chanted "Disco sucks!" A crate of records was obliterated in centerfield. Fans roared. Ken Kravec began to warm up on the mound - he was scheduled to start for the Sox in game two. He sprinted for the clubhouse when thousands of Cohos began to spill onto the field. * * * * * * * In 1979, baseball had a complex relationship with disco. While Chicago fans were blowing it up, Pittsburgh fans were riding Sister Sledge's anthemic "We Are Family" to the World Series -- there's actually a fair argument that they were a better candidate for MVP than Pirate first baseman Willie Stargell. Bill James gave Sister Sledge, like, 22 win shares. The music worked for the Pirates. Not for the Cohos. The anti-disco crusade was a fundamentally local fight in Chicago. Rock stations were flipping their formats to disco. Dahl had left his previous employer, WDAI, when it became "Disco DAI." He and the station parted ways on Christmas Eve, 1978. And then it was on. "It was the rockers versus the discoers," says Harry Wayne Casey, front-man of KC and the Sunshine Band. "We were like Elvis in the fifties and the Beatles in the sixties. Of course there was a backlash. We changed music." When you're talking to Casey, you can't help but reply "Uh-huh, uh-huh" to everything he says. Like you're a backup singer. Maybe that's the way ... uh-huh, uh-huh ... he likes it ... uh-huh, uh-huh. But it's totally distracting. "It didn't affect me right away," he says of Disco Demolition Night. "While that was going on, I had two hits on the charts, 'Please Don't Go' and 'Yes I'm Ready.'" Initially, disco maven Gloria Gaynor was also unmoved. "My first reaction was that it was silly. If you don't like the music, don't listen. I still don't think it affected anything except the use of the word 'Disco.' The music's alive and well. It just changed its name to protect the innocent. "And if they did kill it, they didn't kill me," she adds, in the truest spirit of her biggest hit. (What, you thought she'd crumble? You thought she'd lay down and die? Oh no, not -- never mind.) Disco Demolition Night hasn't prevented K.C. and the Sunshine Band from grooving on.Casey met Mike Veeck years later, at a conciliatory promotional event. "I can remember telling him, 'You weren't just attacking the music, you were attacking people and their livelihoods. You were taking food off their tables.'" The Cohos were attacking something they considered elitist and vapid. Dahl had recorded a parody of Rod Stewart's "Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?" with his band, Teenage Radiation. He called it "Do Ya Think I'm Disco?" The lyrics mocked a sellout yuppie who shellacked himself in disco clothes and lurked in exclusive clubs. The sound mocked Stewart, a sellout rocker who shellacked himself in leopard skin and lurked on "Solid Gold." If you were a Coho, that was the enemy. Today, that's often overlooked. "The worst thing is people calling Disco Demolition homophobic or racist," says Dahl. "It just wasn't. It's really easy to look at it historically, from this perspective, and attach all those things to it. But we weren't thinking like that." Social critics have argued that the backlash against disco was implicitly macho and bigoted, an attack on a cultural aesthetic that was non-white and not necessarily heterosexual. But the Cohos would've said that argument sucks. If doing a one-hitter in your parent's basement while listening to Obscured By Clouds was macho, then yeah, the Cohos were macho. "We were just disenfranchised 24-year-old males," says Dahl. Casey saw nothing discriminatory in Dahl's anti-disco crusade. "Who thinks of that stuff, anyway? I just figured the guy was an idiot." * * * * * * * Harry Caray stared down at the field from the Channel 44 broadcast booth. He held a microphone against his yellow polyester shirt. Things seemed to be spinning out of control. Like the batting cage that was pinwheeling across the outfield, for example - that seemed out of control. Or the shirtless guys climbing the foul poles. Or the fires burning in centerfield. Harry tried to restore order. He said what he always said in extraordinary moments: "Holy cow!" The crowd cheered. White Sox organist Nancy Faust began to play. Harry asked, "What say we all regain our seats so we can play baseball again?" More cheering. But no one took their seats. They ripped grass from the infield and threw pieces of broken records into the bleachers. In 1959, Comiskey Park had a real circus entertain the fans during a double header.Tiger manager Sparky Anderson told the Chicago Tribune, "Beer and baseball go together, they have for years. But I think those kids were doing things other than beer." In the umpire's room underneath Comiskey Park, Bill Veeck argued. He wanted to complete the doubleheader. He later told the press, "It was a happy crowd, not a mean crowd." Crew chief Dave Phillips disagreed. He phoned A.L. president Lee MacPhail, who initially decided only to postpone game two. Sparky Anderson argued that the Sox should forfeit. Anderson won the debate. Police in riot gear eventually cleared the field. The fires were extinguished and the haze lifted. Six people were injured and 39 arrested for disorderly conduct -- no doubt the 39 slowest, insanest Cohos. Bill Veeck returned to the playing surface and grabbed a microphone. "Please keep your rain checks," he told the crowd. "We'll tell you what to do with them once we figure it out ourselves." Dahl and Meier retreated to a downtown Holiday Inn. "We listened to the radio," Dahl recalls. "All the talk shows from around here and, you know, people talking about how we should be fired. We pretty much stayed up all night. And then we went to work." Dahl's voice was slow and gravelly the next morning. He read the headlines in the Tribune and Sun-Times. He mocked the indignant tone of local coverage. "I think for the most part everything was wonderful," he told his listeners. "Some maniac Cohos got wild, went down on the field." He paused. "Which you shouldn't have done. Bad little Cohos." Andy Behrens is a freelance writer in Chicago.
__________________ KEEP DANCIN Y'ALL! REMEMBER, DISCO IS STILL ALIVE, IT HAS DROPPED IT'S NAME AND CHANGED IT'S FACE OVER THE YEARS TO FIT EACH GENERATION AND TIME, BUT THE MISSION REMAINS THE SAME; TO KEEP EM DANCIN! BE SURE TO CHECK OUT MY ARTIST PAGE AT: http://www.garrybcoston.us http://WWW.FRESHSTARTREFERRAL.COM CLICK ON THE ABOVE URL AND DONATE TO THE HOMELESS AND NEEDY! THANK YOU. Garry |
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#41
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| Demographics, AIDS and socio-political changes in the early 80's ended Disco as we knew it. To a very great degree the Disco Generation grew up and moved on with their lives. I know; I was there... |
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#42
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| Quote:
DiscoDiva
__________________ Dance Yourself Dizzy! |
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#43
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| Quote:
DD
__________________ Dance Yourself Dizzy! |
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#44
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| Quote:
"In my mind, when I think about what Disco Demolition was about, it was about eighteen-to-twenty-four-year-old disenfranchised rock guys like myself not wanting to have to look like that to get laid." Steve Dahl from this Rolling Stone Article. Last edited by Mixmachine; October 14th, 2006 at 09:53 PM. |
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#45
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| and all things Disco began to displace Rock as the dominant pop culture music culminating with “Saturday Night Fever”. Did you read my post? DD
__________________ Dance Yourself Dizzy! |