What is EuroDisco?

[Nadia]

I like dance/disco music, but I am relatively new to some of these terms and artists, so I would like to know, what exactly is eurodisco? Does it just mean that the singer is from Europe, or is there more to it than that?

[K-Bee]

Well, Nadia. There's a lot of different views on the term euro disco.

For instance. The Munich sound which grew out of late 70's Germany. (ie Boney M and so on). The credit for creating this sound should go to Frank Farian and his Hansa International Label.

There was also an italian scene in the early 80s. Groups like Raff & Gazebo (I believe he hailed from Italy)

Oh - and don't forget Giorgio Moroder: the daddy of all things cheesy :D

It was not so much where the singers came from. It was more a producer thing.

[stevee D]

Nadia, as a teenager growing up in the 80's in Melbourne Australia Euro disco was life! It was mainly listened to by young Australians of european backgrounds (Greeks, Italians, Macedonians, Croatians, Serbs etc). It did not make the commercial charts except for a few that slipped through the net.
The music was about 120 + Bpm and the words were sometimes cheesy. If you get a chance to listen to artists like Ken Laslo ("Hey, Hey Guy") , Fancy ("Slice me nice") you will probably understand what I'm talking about.

Cheers and happy listening - Steve

[Sierra-Leone]

I' ll try to suppose, that euro-disco derivates from euro-pop music, esp. "deutscher schlager". The 120BPM beats were simply added to them (at the begining of all euro-era). Many disco-songs in Europe were sung by common pop-singers, who used and pretended to be modern:) Not like in America, where the origin was black funk. Here, I THINK lies the difference between two branches of d.i.s.c.o.
Then there were Farian, Moroder, Moehrl, Unwin,
Monn etc.
Ah, yes! The Euro-disco is LESS earthling, ground, flesh disco, than American.
Euro disco is COSMIC. I mean - the ideal euro disco was cosmic. Not ideal part - here were copies of american style. In general Euro-disco Lyrics are more seriously and\or more NOT-sexappeal.
That's in short.

[JussiK]

Mr. S. Leone has it right - eurodisco indeed evolved largely from continental easy listening and pop genres, chansons, schlagers and holiday hits, as well as from soundtracks of Euro exploitation films of the early-to-mid 70's such as Emmanuelle, The Story of O and countless Italian action pics. The tunes are simple and the hooks strong and nagging.

This is how to do it. Take some late 60's yé-yé from France, add flamenco guitar from Spain, some exotic percussion from Africa, a bit off funkiness in name only from the USA - some wah wah guitar will do -, a stomping four on the floor marching beat from Germany (where else...), go back to France for some suggestive lyrics and have a vocalist with aspirations of Stardom who does not speak a word of English to sing, purr and lisp them, in English. An American or British model seeking any kind of employment from is also ideal, or a low-rent 40-something cabaret star with huge breasts from Madrid. An Italian arranger will dramatize the orchestral arrangement with overblown string ornamentation. Violins are all-important but in a budget presentation you can do with a simple synth. Call a photographer from Holland who will send you an unrelated shot of a completely or nearly nude woman and use that in the cover image of the finished recording. Soften the effect should you wanna make a try for the American market with a remixed and elongated demo.

There you have it, eurodisco as it was devoured by the masses from Palermo to Reykjavik in 1977 and in Tokyo and Rio too. It's not quite that simple though, as it takes a certain definite talent to come up with the twisted wonderfulness that is say "Pretty Maid" by The Pretty Maid Company, and a LOT of talent to come up with a true masterpiece that is a "Cerrone's Paradise".

[K-Bee]

:lol: :lol: LOL, Jussik

What an excellent describtion of the phenomenon that is euro disco. Especially the part about the middle aged artificially enhanced cabaret star made me laugh.

I might print out the describtion and hang it on my wall !
:P

[Sierra-Leone]

Wonderful! That's a description! :)

[discofrank]

Jussik,

True! True! The eurodisco sound wasn't just over exuberant in orchestral and exotic sense, but the covers and images portrayed are over sexual and appealing to all. A TOTAL marketing procedure - it takes a true genius to come-up with such artistic idea![/i]

[JussiK]

But hey, it wasn't all just sexy fluff, fun as those typically euro records were and still are. The mid-to-late 70's period also gave us eurodisco records by genuinely talented singers such as Dalida and France Gall, Diva perfection from Sylvie Vartan ( check out her 1976 "Disco Queen" instead of "I don't want the night to end"), the larger than life Amanda Lear, plus several productions by Serge Gainsbourg himself. The iconic Serge had his own hit with "Sea, Sex And Sun" and he composed great tracks for the likes of Alan Chamfort, a sales chart topping pop idol still active in France. Also, there were the afro-eurodisco records that actually ignited the whole disco movement with Manu Dibango's "Soul Makossa", the wicked polyrhythmic Burundi tracks, rai-disco hybrids by Algerian and Moroccoan artists, and so on. Lots of unclassifiable, exciting titles like "Kamassa Beef/Cumba Cumba" by The Monstars, for example. This record sounds like a Burundi track done under the influence of the Village People and some very very strong drugs.

[denharrow]

Euro-Disco / Eurodance ( today ) or Italo-Disco /Italodance ( today ) are simple melodies, with " boom boom beat " and a lot of synthesizers, a nice chorus.

Whenever I listen to a 80,s 90s or 00s italo song it makes me dancing.

Ciao Thomas Spiegel

[Nic.]

Reading all the comments, made me wonder where a record like Blue monday from New Order fits in this story?

It is Eurodance at it's best.

See for instance Divine's Love reaction (which was "based" on it) or the BRILLIANT Kylie remix of Can't get you outta my head (which borrowed the whole musical track from Blue Monday).

:roll:

[JussiK]

I wonder if Blue Monday fits the bill here - it does have the beat and mood several other acts from Europe like Aleph and Azul Y Negro ( on Fly To Me and la Noche respectively ) employed, yet New Order may be coming from a separate camp and be too distinctly British to be called euro. More like Behind the Wheel by Depeche Mode, Blue Monday could be a hi-nrg-rock dance hybrid, or what?

[Nic.]

yet New Order may be coming from a separate camp and be too distinctly British to be called euro.

What about the Pet Shop Boys they are distinctly British?

I think the confusion with New Order, arrives from the fact they originated in New Wave/Pop, hence Joy Division.
But still Blue Monday must be Euro Pop, why else would Divine and Kylie (queen of Europop) copy the song!