Longest early 70's disco song?

[QUINNY]

NrgBeat: Very interesting. You'd have thought that it would be the other way around.After all, there's only so many hits, so why not spread 'em out?
In the UK it was common for jocks to play virtually the whole 12" (out of sheer laziness!!) 'cos mixing was not really done by the mass of DJs in the Disco era.
Personally, 3-4 minutes was enough of most records for me. That way I could play all the hits plus all the new records I wanted to play too.

[Mixmachine]

If the record was a hit I could 'work'that record and the floor for ten minutes easy, I had two copies of every hit song, in a good nite when I was inspired, I would remix my own version right there live, I only wish now I had all those tapes. Oh well, who knew.

[NickNack]

To Quinny: Yes, all the time. Had no problem with it at all. AAMOF, I refused to chop all the songs up just because of length AND I hated the way a lot of dj's were mixing out on the breaks, probably the strongest part of the song.

To FunkyDude: "Get Ready", Rare Earth, 21:30, from 1969. A "live" take on The Temptations hit but workable up to the drummer's solo.

_________________
If It Don't Mean a Thing, Would You Dance to My Music
Nicky

<font size=-1>[ This Message was edited by: NickNack on 2002-09-04 20:19 ]</font>

[ashley]

.. sadly UK djs had it all wrong .. but for the right reasons .. the UK has a strong club culture .. most urban teenagers in the UK find themselves in a nightclub every weekend .. a long tradition going back to the 1950s ( and probably earlier ) .. so UK djs needed to keep the popular hits spinning .. and quickly, as back in the 70s all clubs would close at 2.00am .. so there was no requirement for a long extended dance mix .. The USA was very different .. clubs were open all night, the crowds were more discerning, djs needed to create differing moods throughout the night, as well as visit the bathroom occasionally .. everyone whooped, whistled, stomped and cheered when a good disco break was used .. so US djs would use 2 copies and extend the breaks, or extend the introductions and create their own remixes using different instrumental breaks over & into each other .. creating long soundscapes that were far beyond the understanding of a casual UK club audience .. so in the USA clever & imaginative club djs took on almost legendary status ( Tony Humphries / Larry Levan etc .. ) .. UK clubbers & djs were baffled by these 20 minute LP disco tracks emerging from America .. which is probably why Alec R Costandinos & Boris Midney had very limited success in British nightclubs ..

[Simon White]

Originally Posted by ashley

.. sadly UK djs had it all wrong .. but for the right reasons .. the UK has a strong club culture .. most urban teenagers in the UK find themselves in a nightclub every weekend .. a long tradition going back to the 1950s ( and probably earlier ) .. so UK djs needed to keep the popular hits spinning .. and quickly, as back in the 70s all clubs would close at 2.00am .. so there was no requirement for a long extended dance mix ..

Important point Ashley.
That UK club culture was important and SO strong and it also illustrates the difference between the commercial discos who were playing the hits and the upfront serious UK clubbers who's knowledge and passion still resounds to this day. So a commercial jobbing DJ would have to play what the punters wanted, while a serious DJ would take the crowd on a journey.

[SandraDee]

Originally Posted by ashley

.. which is probably why Alec R Costandinos & Boris Midney had very limited success in British nightclubs ..

'Eurodisco' acts like these got little support from underground UK clubs because they were always obsessed with everything being black & funky (nothing wrong with funky stuff I hasten to add). What I love about the US clubs (certainly the quality gay ones anyway) was that they were completely open-minded & mixed disco music from all genres; they'd think nothing of playing Hall & Oates followed by Cerrone followed by Crown Heights Affair for example. Maybe more commercial UK clubs would've played an eclectic mix like this but only if the tracks were in the charts & known to most dancers at the time. That's the way I see it. Eurodisco tracks only seemed to become successful here if holidaymakers heard them while away in the summer which meant that generally it was the tackier end of Eurodisco that made it here (Boney M & Ottowan for example, sorry Boney M & Ottowan fans ).

[Simon White]

Originally Posted by SandraDee

'Eurodisco' acts like these got little support from underground UK clubs because they were always obsessed with everything being black & funky

Noooo....the reason was quite simple .. it was because the records were in the main awful, very pop orientated and often one step removed from "James Last Goes Disco" or else incredibly poppy. Mainland Europe always had a very rich stream of that kind of stuff and only a handful of acts or producers rose above it.

Which "underground UK clubs" Sandy? The Gay clubs ? Nope. The serious UK club scene ? Nope.
A look at playlists of the time proves that the UK clubs were playing better and mostly US tracks by then.

[SandraDee]

Originally Posted by Simon White

Noooo....the reason was quite simple .. it was because the records were in the main awful, very pop orientated and often one step removed from "James Last Goes Disco" or else incredibly poppy. Mainland Europe always had a very rich stream of that kind of stuff and only a handful of acts or producers rose above it.

I don't what you mean by James Last Goes Disco. There was lots of brilliant eurodisco like Chocolats, Cerrone, Love & Kisses, Revanche, Crystal Grass, Madleen Kane, Don Ray, Voyage, Baciotti and hundreds of others that sound nothing like James Last to me. Simon, you're just such a typical example of a British DJ who's prejudiced against euro disco; what you've just said proves my point. Even if some tracks/acts were poppy, what's wrong with that? Disco can be good quality & commercial IMO; I'm sorry Simon but your comments strike me as needlessly dismissive & you sound like one of those 'soul snobs' that have always proliferated on the UK dance scene.