Most Underrated Disco Songs

**PaulC** · May 16th, 2003, 03:35 PM

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**markydefad** · May 16th, 2003, 03:45 PM

EVERYTHING on MY TOP 25 list:

From "This Will Be A Night to Remember" by Eddie Holman to....was it "24 Hours A Day" by Barbara Pennington??? Can't exactly remember. BUT, MY choices were choice. :P

**paul** · May 16th, 2003, 05:39 PM

Off the top my head:

1) Countdown - Dan Hartman
2) Can You Get It (Suzie Caeser) - Mandrill
3) Keep Your Body Workin' - Kleeer
4) Dance With You - Carrie Lucas

**markydefad** · May 16th, 2003, 06:16 PM

It's always shocking to me that more people don't know "The Greatest Show On Earth" by Metropolis. I constantly see folks praising some other song by that group ("I Love New York", etc.) when the BEST song was indisputably "TGSOE" (Munich Machine Meets Salsoul's Sweethearts of Sigma Sound). :D

**Art Figueroa** · May 16th, 2003, 06:23 PM

have to agree with you on that one marky, I couldn't stand I love New York and I was living there at the time, but The Greatest Show on Earth, well that a great tune. Matter of fact I am listening to it right now!

Art

**discodoc** · May 16th, 2003, 11:47 PM

I will answer this from different perspective...

One thing I really can't stand is when "disco snobs" put down The Bee Gees. If you are a disco snob, then the disco songs that are most underrated by you are "More Than A Woman" & "Night Fever" by The Bee Gees.

Other songs that should have been bigger than they were include (with more apologies to the "snobs"):
"Souveniers" by Voyage
"Native New Yorker" by Odessey
"That's Where The Happy People Go" by The Trammps
"Born To Be Alive" by Patrick Hernandez (sure everyone here knows this song but ask the average American... only went to #16 on The Hot 100)
"Heaven Knows" by Donna Summer (she had so many #1's, but this wasn't one of them. Should've been!
"Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel" by Tavares

**HustleBaby** · May 17th, 2003, 12:29 AM

Another song by Donna Summer which seems unpopular or nonexistant is "Sunset People". It has more of a 80's pop to it but I'll take it over "Bad Girls" and "Hot Stuff" ANYDAY!
BTW, I like "Heaven knows as well :) .

*DELIGHTFUL*

**efunk_adelic** · May 17th, 2003, 01:13 AM

Ummm!!!

I didn't realize nobody like's Kleeer - Keep Your Body Workin' .... so add that to my list of underated. I must play that song 3 times a week.

Faith, Hope & Charity - Too Each His Own
Didn't even make the top 500 :cry:

Brass Construction - Ha Cha Cha
I never seen anything on threads about this song

:o :o :o
I'll add some more later

**HustleBaby** · May 17th, 2003, 01:31 AM

Gamble & Huff usually gets the most props as music producers however, we need to give more recognition to The Salsoul Orchestra. Not that they are never mentioned, yet they are underrated as a whole. Songs like "Tangerine", "Magic Bird of Fire", "Salsoul Rainbow" and others didn't get as much airplay on the radios compared to G & H's hits. Even Love Unlimited gets more airplay than Salsoul. The only time that I've heard Salsoul was in my house, neighborhood parades and Dance Fever. My mother said if its not on her turntable, the only place that she would hear SSO is at the discotheques. So my point is that they're underrated.

The Ritchie Family is also underrated. Only die-hard disco fans like us are familiar with this group and enjoy their music, unlike the average Joe/Jane who's totally clueless and flocks to The Village People.

I have to give props to John Davis & Monster Orchestra (which I feel deserves more recognition). I don't remember seeing any of his songs on Billboard's top ten, if so fill me in.

*DELIGHTFUL*

**K-Bee** · May 17th, 2003, 01:36 AM

Hustlebaby,
I agree with you on Sunset people. Great song that nobody seem to care much about.

Also that "Don't let Go" track by Isaac Hayes that everybody apparently hates but me :-?

**efunk_adelic** · May 17th, 2003, 02:16 AM

Originally Written by K-Bee

Also that "Don't let Go" track by Isaac Hayes that everybody apparently hates but me :-?

Umm, I like it K-Bee :D

I like a lot of songs that are "bass" driven like:

Keep that Body Working, etc....

**Art Figueroa** · May 17th, 2003, 11:09 AM

I like Don't Let Go also. Another gem, in my opinion, is Jean Shy's rendition of That Old Black Magic. It's the b side to Night Dancer. I think NickNack will back me up on this one!

Art

**NickNack** · May 17th, 2003, 01:55 PM

Originally Written by Art Figueroa

I like Don't Let Go also. Another gem, in my opinion, is Jean Shy's rendition of That Old Black Magic. It's the b side to Night Dancer. I think NickNack will back me up on this one!

Art

Hi Art,

I've mentioned "That Old Black Magic" on the board several times. As a matter of fact, someone recently found the 12" of "Night Dancer" while out hunting and I told him don't forget to play the B-side.

K-Bee: I like "Don't Let Go" also --- a lot!
efunk--: Kleeer is great, too. :)
HustleBaby: You are so right about "Sunset People". That was a big favorite in the clubs, long after people tired of "Hot Stuff/Bad Girs".

**paul** · May 18th, 2003, 01:26 AM

Hey Delight :P
Sunset People is a great pick. That was, in my mind one of Donna's better song. It never did get the run it deserved and sadly I don't have it in my collection. Now you've got me on the hunt.
As for "Don't Let Go", it's kind of a strange song. Maybe because Isaac was going for a different sound makes me appreciate it. I bought one of those compilation cd's just for that song.

**efunk_adelic** · May 18th, 2003, 01:59 AM

Originally Written by paul

As for "Don't Let Go", it's kind of a strange song. Maybe because Isaac was going for a different sound makes me appreciate it. I bought one of those compilation cd's just for that song.

Don't let go... sounds like **** on a radio station... but if you are in a nightclub with a great sound system... with that thumping bassline going... there's no reason to get off the dance floor with a good DJ spinin'

**SandraDee** · May 18th, 2003, 11:37 AM

Nicky, I think that was me who found a copy of Jean Shy's 'Night Dancer' but unfortunately it was the 7" with the same track on the b-side!

Some of the tracks mentioned above like Tavares, Odyssey & Patrick hernandez were huge hits so I dont understand why they are classed as 'under-rated'; have I missed something here? :-?

**SandraDee** · May 18th, 2003, 11:46 AM

Oh, & I agree with Hustlebaby about 'Sunset People' being much better than Hot stuff or Bad girls. So much of the Bad Girls LP was naff IMO as it came from that period of '79 where Giorgio & the Munich gang ran out of ideas disco-wise & started to make pseudo-rock records instead. (not even good rock records). I know I've said it b4 & bored u to death but give me 'Once Upon a Time' by La Donna any day- what a classic disco LP of gargantuan proportions! :o

**discodoc** · May 19th, 2003, 12:37 AM

Some of the tracks mentioned above like Tavares, Odyssey & Patrick hernandez were huge hits so I dont understand why they are classed as 'under-rated'; have I missed something here? :-?[/quote]

I don't consider a track to be "huge" if 99 out of 100 people you ask on the streets have never heard of them. Sadly, (at least here in America), that is the case with these songs (and artists, for that matter). These songs SHOULD be as recognizable as "YMCA" or "I Will Survive," but they are not (not even close) and thus I consider them to be underrated. Perhaps a song like "Dancer" by Gino Soccio would better fit your definition?

**markydefad** · May 19th, 2003, 02:43 PM

"Sunset People" was certainly played at Troc (although at around 143 bpm, it was reeeeeaaaal FAST-- played at peak time)--but it was an LP cut--not released as a single. The same goes for "Our Love" which was another fave. Someone said here once the New Order's "Blue Monday/The Beach" was an homage to the Giorgio Moroder drum machine beats in "Our Love". Never thought of that--but I makes sense when you think of it.

I really like "Don't Let Go" by Isaac Hayes also. Don't know why anyone would hate that!!!

Sharon Ridley's "Changin'" was an early-morning Troc classic. It was really rare (at the time) and only a handful of folks had it. I remember we borrowed it from a DJ (Michael Neuman--The Sireeene of Sound) who let us tape it. It's that "drama diva" thing that makes this song a "Gay Classic." It finally became accessible on one of those Columbia or Epic "Club Classics" cds.

**markydefad** · May 19th, 2003, 03:30 PM

I feel "Fill My Life With Love" by Saint Tropez deserves more recognition. YES, I'm praising a Rinder/Lewis (El Coco) production!!!!! I guess Hell has frozen over!!!!! :P

When Keefe put this on his first list for the Top 500--I gave it a listen, and I've grown to love those harmonized instrumental hooks with the piano and strings. A lost classic. That said, the more popular "One More Minute" is still soundin' good also.

**BrunoRepublic** · May 19th, 2003, 05:39 PM

Originally Written by paul

Hey Delight :P
Sunset People is a great pick. That was, in my mind one of Donna's better song. It never did get the run it deserved and sadly I don't have it in my collection. Now you've got me on the hunt.

You won't have to hunt for too long. The "Bad Girls" LP sold in the millions (sales-wise, I think it was in the top 25 LPs of the 70s) and there are heaps of used copies around. So even though it's a double LP, you shouldn't have to pay too much for it. I got a copy in great shape for $1.... Cnd.

Alternately, a "Deluxe Edition" CD is coming out soon, with a second disc of material. Nobody seems to know what that extra material will be, mind you. I'm hoping for some unreleased studio tracks, but I suspect it will just be some of the 12" mixes and maybe some live material.

**paul** · May 19th, 2003, 06:18 PM

Thanks for the info Graham. $1 Canadian huh, hmm. You kind of enticed me with this new cd release comprised of Sunset People and whatever. Do you know when it's coming out?

**Com King** · May 21st, 2003, 04:03 AM

Hi everybody,

first I'd like to say that I'm quite surprised to hear that Patrick Hernandez's Born to be Alive is realtively unknown in the States.

I think if you ask 100 hundred french people (not disco fans), 98 of them will know this song. It's maybe the most known disco track in France, maybe with some Claude François stuff.

I thought it was a worldwide phenomenon ( aaah those french guys :)).

For me the 3 most underrated songs are :
1 - Spank ( This song has absolutely everything, fantastic intro, fantastic chorus, fantastic break, no?)
2 - Pow Wow ( I put in my top 5 all time favourite )
3 - Supernature

**tdaram** · May 21st, 2003, 04:46 AM

hey com king, hey everybody,

your english is very good. com king you re quite bilingual. I agree with your underrated songs.

i would add some stuff:

upfront influatuation
disco circus over and over
stomp by bro j
love and kisses stuff
demis roussos L.O.V.E
cory daye
and ... candi staton.
oh candi , such a great voice. read her book, there are about 30 different miracle stories .

:D

**Com King** · May 21st, 2003, 05:23 AM

Hi tdaram,

I'm glad to see that I'm not the only fan of Candi ...

But the fact is I'm just unable to put Candi's songs in a list of underrated songs. It sounds like an insult to her for me. But yes, of course she's underrated. She's the greatest of all........ Sorry everybody if I'm in love with her.

I'd like to add too :

K.I.D. - Hupuendi Musiki Wangu
and Silver Convention - Fly Robin Fly ( What a marvellous arrangement of strings in this song )

By the way, tdaram, thanx for my english ;)