Bonnie Pointer's HEAVEN MUST HAVE : THIS IS disco

[remicks]

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Why is disco music so much fun ?? ( hmm well ....it is dance music for crying out loud !! ) .. Sounds flip .... but really isn't that the underlying component that makes disco compelling.... it makes one want to move .....

But of course not all music that makes people want to move ... not all dance music is disco music ....just ask famdam from her early Urban Cowboy DJ day s .....

Seems like the exact answer to what is disco is vague .... there's a significant gray area where certain songs are argued as being disco or not . I find that because of this , since you can't assign an exact formula to the music , it makes it ten times more fun ! Through the years ... there was a wonderful variety of sounds that got disco play.

There are those songs that no one argues as being disco... Sylvester's DANCE (DISCO HEAT ) ... is an example .... its one thing only: ... disco .... it'll be forever attached to that genre.
Then there are other songs that no one argues as not being disco as well .... but then again .....are they ?? If one assigns certain requirements for a song to be disco , then ( amazingly ), a song like RING MY BELL ... may not make the cut ....released in 1979..... it didn't follow all the disco music guidelines of the day ..... no four on the floor ....but who is going to say because of this , this higher BPM , yet still funky song overall, wasn't therefore a disco song ? I guess someone could ... . just remember .... no denying this : it went to the top on the disco chart !!!!

But still , there are those many many songs that are "pure" disco .... plain and simple .... not one bit of analysis needed to reach that conclusion .

OK , then ....where's this Sunday afternoon, avoiding my taxes , rant going ??

Well, if you'd like to hear something that seems to illustrate how the purposeful tweaking of songs then distinguished them as being truly disco.... here's a great little study .

Bonnie Pointer's
HEAVEN MUST HAVE SENT YOU
The Motown 7" 45 release.
One side is the album version .... the original intended version .
It's a delightful rendition ... complete and valid as a hit song just as presented. Quite enjoyable.
Bonnie's vocals are almost the same ....strong and bold and beautiful and raucous.... perfect for disco really ..... her Louis Armstrong growling scatting is terrific. Martha Wash probably applauded her vocals ...
but the arrangement ....it's very old time Motown ... a nice bouncy piano .... strong 2/4 real drumming but no heavy bass drums ....
This is Bonnie Pointer recapturing the I HEAR A SYMPHONY Supremes-styled days of Motown.... very successfully too ....

But, I doubt this lively version .... as bouncy and upbeat as it was .... would have garnered club play in 1979 . It is discoish ....but ......

So now turn it over . Here's the remix ...

From the very onset .... that rapid drum roll ... the loud chimes ... the slicing strings ....the sped up , louder, busy bass line ( the .... ummm ....banjos ???? ) ..... Bonnie’s opening vocal, on this side only, is a "get ready to move and groove " high pitched grunting moan . Funny how something as minor as this can do so much. Then her voice seems a little more chambered : much more upfront but also hollow ....Then parts of the song are clearly edited ...not the continuous flow found on the first side ....which is perfectly acceptable in a disco mix where you want a song to change out …. drop out and return .…. rebuild . The energy ....the fun ....the celebratory excitement ... the propelled aggressiveness.... the handclaps 8) !! ....
The reworking of this song is such that its sound is transformed into something almost frantic.

The result is that the original version, on a certain level , might make you want to move ….
But this frenetic disco-ized new version , moreover , makes you HAVE to move ..



THIS IS DISCO . 8)


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[paul]

gee remicks...I don't know if I can listen to Heaven Must Have... the same way again. Thanks :lol:

[needlefingers]

New... this fall.....on ABC.....

EXTREME DISCO MAKEOVERS!

[Simon White]

A great version of a great song...I don't think The Elgins original Motown recording was a big a hit in the US as it was in the UK..it still gets played today and fills the dancefloor.

The less disco version by Bonnie is pretty much a copy of the Elgins Motown version but the Disco version..wow what a track !

I wore myself out dancing to Bonnie's one (and her version of the Four Tops 'I Can't Help Myself' ) as a kid.

'Heaven' mixes perfectly out of 'Mighty Real' on the drum roll.

Ian Levine recorded an awesome version styled after Bonnie's disco version with The Elgins on Nightmare records. The lead singer on the original Motown version was Saundra Edwards who left the group and was replaced by Yvonne Vernee who sang on the Nightmare version. Levine recorded some really nice tracks with Saundra too. She is a nice lady.

[A2Mark57]

Great initial post!

I LOVE the disco version of Bonnie's "Heaven Must Have Sent You"! As stated, it's quite different from her "original" version. (Which I also appreciate.)

It's frustrating trying to find the long, fun disco version. There are so many versions of both mixes/versions/takes.

Same with "Honey Pie (Honey Bunch)."

[Simon White]

I'd love to hear the different versions (or at least see a listing) - I know of the two Bonnie Pointer versions (Elgins remake/Disco version) plus the 90's Elgins recording.....are there other mixes/versions then?

Great initial post!

I LOVE the disco version of Bonnie's "Heaven Must Have Sent You"! As stated, it's quite different from her "original" version. (Which I also appreciate.)

It's frustrating trying to find the long, fun disco version. There are so many versions of both mixes/versions/takes.

Same with "Honey Pie (Honey Bunch)."

[remicks]

Great initial post!

I LOVE the disco version of Bonnie's "Heaven Must Have Sent You"! As stated, it's quite different from her "original" version. (Which I also appreciate.)

"

Thanks! ...always nice to hear when a post of mine is appreciated ...
And better late than never: .... thanks should be said to you also Paul !! :icon_biggrin: )

I agree .. and also love this song .
Both versions are worth listening to... (with for me the discofied one getting the final nod) This is an especially great opportunity to analyze the particulars in the treatment given a song to strengthen it as "disco".


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[remicks]

It's frustrating trying to find the long, fun disco version. There are so many versions of both mixes/versions/takes.

Yes there are !!! I didn't realize it , but go to discogs and try to sort thru it!!!! I'm going to post the various versions as they appear on youtube.

But first ! I am so captivated by this version, thought I'd share it .

It sounds so pure, so geniune ....or whats the better word???... heavenly ???....??? Anyway - I don't know if i'm just in a mood , but it moved me to joyous tears . I see someone at youtube posted a comment of a similar experience , so ..........{???}






music, - heaven must have sent you .


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[RobbaDobba]

It's not THAT frustrating...I have it on CD twice: on Rebound Records' Disco Nights Vol 7: Motown Dance and Disco Gold, the 2006-ish UMG collection. Full 7 minute plus disco-ized version on both.

[needlefingers]

For those who may not know, the cello and the violin in the break of Bonnie Pointer's disco version, was sampled in Beat That Bitch by Johnny Dangerous.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qybQwx1CcSM

[The Disco Dentist]

An update ...
BBR have just released a remastered, expanded C.D. of her first Motown album, 'Bonnie Pointer'. Included are all three versions of HMBMAA, sounding fabulous !
Arresting Stuff .....
DD