A Question of Giorgio

[JussiK]

What happened with Giorgio's "Let The Music Play" track when it came out in 1977? The Vince Aletti book does not mention any djs pushing it, nor did I hear it played anywhere in Europe. I wasn't even aware of it until much later. Did any of you people buy it when it was new? Was it out in the US at all commercially? In Europe it was hidden on the B-side of the 7 of I Wanna Funk With You Tonite. - Could have been the track was seen as too short for club play bitd. Still, a bit odd as Let The Music Play has all the ingredients of the similar sounding, popular cuts of the Nights In White Satin album. The version on this clip is speeded up a lot for some reason, losing much of it's sleazy charm:
YouTube - Giorgio Moroder - Let The Music Play - 1977

[PierreConstantin]

What happened with Giorgio's "Let The Music Play" track when it came out in 1977? In Europe it was hidden on the B-side of the 7 of I Wanna Funk With You Tonite.

I always wondered myself why, too. Maybe it's because it's not very original compared to "From here to eternity".
I have a French 7" (Atlantic) and it's the A-side. BTW the cover is awful :icon_biggrin: with all the elements of bad bad taste. It says in French that it's Giorgio's new disco hit after "Knights in white satin".

[Mixmachine]

What happened with Giorgio's "Let The Music Play" track when it came out in 1977? Did any of you people buy it when it was new? Was it out in the US at all commercially? In Europe it was hidden on the B-side of the 7 of I Wanna Funk With You Tonite. -

This very same 7" (pictured above and in the vaults) of "Let the music play" was available for retail sales at record shops in Miami Florida, although not every shop stocked 'imported' records like these, you had to visit certain small shops that specialized in stocking Disco imports from around the world; even then, these few shops stocked small amounts of copies mainly because with the exception of hard core Disco collectors and/or DJs, very few "average" shoppers cared to pay the high price of imports, as for Djs, if you had to have a copy of a record like this (or any other imported vinyl), you had to check in and visit the shops almost daily, as the shop keepers hardly ever re-stocked imported records, unless they were hugely popular, so when available copies were gone, that was it..

I liked this 7" a lot, both sides, even picked up 2 copies myself, and I know other local DJ friends owned copies too, but I don't remember any Buzz about this record, and honestly, I can't remember if I ever played or ever heard this in a club, too much water under the Disco bridge.... :icon_confused:

I'm sure that the fact that it was a relative short version released only on a 7" in 1977 didn't help with DJ curiosity either...




http://www.discomusic.com/records-more/3057_0_2_0_C/

[the disco kid]

I'm with you Jussi.

I didn't know about it till after the fact. I do have a sunshine sound acetate of it that is remixed, from back in the day, so that would indicate to me that some DJ's were playing it here in the U.S.

Personally I don't think I never heard it out, but it did sound familiar to me once I was introduced to it, possibly just because it was the Giorgio sound...

It's a great song, and I also wondered why it wasn't included on the Knights In White Satin LP.

Now I own 2 7" singles of it...both with different artwork, I'm a bit of a Giorgio fanatic!

[the disco kid]

The photo on the cover is flawless! Come on!

[Videoskooter]

Weird question, the girl that's holding G's leg, is that Ramona from Silver Convention?

[discokicks]

Thanks Jussi for this topic! I have to say that it's pretty damn exciting being introduced to this "new" song by Giorgio right now. It takes me back to my teenage years when I first discovered Moroder's music and how I'd scour our small city music shops throughout the late '70s looking for anything that read "Moroder/Bellotte".

And this song doesn't disappoint...other than when it fades. I love hearing that familiar sax towards the end. Giorgio could do no wrong in my books back then...one of my all-time musical heroes.

[JussiK]

DiscoKicks you might also want to check out "Doctor Funk" by Smiley, if you don't know it already. This is a Moroder&Bellotte production from 1976 on Oasis label, 7 inch only. B-side is the instrumental version called "Funk You Very Much", with Munich strings replacing the female singer, Karen Taylor. Also from Moroder&Bellotte in 1976: "Disco Man" by Chris Bennett.
-And you do have "Theme For A Dream", credited to Dino Solera, from Oasis label 1977? This one is Giorgio at his best.

[PierreConstantin]

Apparently Moroder had too many songs for Knights in White Satin. In another thread I've talked about another song on my pressing of the album Knights in White Satin (Atlantic/WEA 50313, 1976, France). The B side of the album has four songs: the usual three and, just before «I Wanna Funk with you tonight», a fourth one, uncredited on the sleeve. Its length is 3:50 and it's very similar to «I Wanna Funk with you tonight»: same instrumental track, a raspy male voice, female background vocalists repeating «Bad bad love is on our side»... A hidden track in 1976? And it's not on all pressings (not even all French pressings). :icon_question:

[Chap2Power]

Very interesting stuff here, since I've been working on trying to get this little masterpiece out working with friends doing UK compilations.

I'm surprised to see a pressing of the single on Atlantic here, because in Canada we only ever saw the Durium vinyl that Videoskooter has posted here.

When I mentioned this to Giorgio years ago, he had forgotten about it !

I agree with most posts here that it was just left off of the "Knights In White Satin" album due to space, and what a shame that was.

On the point of Dino Solera, a 12" single of "Classically Elise" was released on a New York indie called Hidden Sign Records and the album was never seen much over here. That album, I agree, is great if you can get your hands on it.

It seems to have the same kind of cult following as the "Einzelganger" LP, which is completely electronic and expiremental and was on Oasis in the US and other locales..

[Cory Ander]

Apparently Moroder had too many songs for Knights in White Satin. In another thread I've talked about another song on my pressing of the album Knights in White Satin (Atlantic/WEA 50313, 1976, France). The B side of the album has four songs: the usual three and, just before «I Wanna Funk with you tonight», a fourth one, uncredited on the sleeve. Its length is 3:50 and it's very similar to «I Wanna Funk with you tonight»: same instrumental track, a raspy male voice, female background vocalists repeating «Bad bad love is on our side»... A hidden track in 1976? And it's not on all pressings (not even all French pressings). :icon_question:

since Moroder was pretty prolific back then I wouldn't be surprised if he did indeed have too many songs to fit on the Nights in White Satin album, but I'm mystified why he'd include two covers of the Moody Blues classic (and both make me wretch).

[remicks]

*****

- While "lyricist" is probably not something I'd place especially high on a Donna Summer resume ....... this song is nonetheless a good example of what you get when its just Giorgio and Bellotte left to their own devices. (Without a little outside help, its : let the music play X 50 )

- Then there's a lack of passion in this overly repeated lazy sentiment ... I can almost imagine Giorgio being interrupted from a summer afternoon's nap on the couch and half-awake dismissively advising :
"Let the children pla-ay" ..

I mean:
"Let the music pla-ay " ......

(as effective either way.... while replacing "music" with "children" imo suits the song better)

let the children pla-ay .... I'm going back to my nap now .... let the children play ....

And to say vocally it sounds like Amanda Lear done badly ....Is probably twice the insult.



The thing is ... its not as if the concept here of LET THE MUSIC PLAY is out-of-whack for a disco song .
That proclamation is quite deliverable :

Barry White:



Shannon:




******

[SandraDee]

Don't forget this one remmy :

[PierreConstantin]

since Moroder was pretty prolific back then I wouldn't be surprised if he did indeed have too many songs to fit on the Nights in White Satin album, but I'm mystified why he'd include two covers of the Moody Blues classic (and both make me wretch).

It's true that this album is not as memorable as the brilliant From here to eternity. Nevertheless, "Nights in white satin" wasn't a bad idea for a cover but in my opinion the obscure 1978 Linda Law version is much better (and had besides a nice Moroder touch).

[JussiK]

All The Night, the b-side of the Linda Law version of Nights In White Satin has been a cosmic disco anthem for a few years now:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnN8zqz7chw

In fact, it's no longer that hot anymore as the prices for the original Carrere pressings have gone down from the reported all time highs of 800 euros a piece to only 75:

http://www.discogs.com/sell/list?rel...d=829108&ev=rb

and you can get the 7" for 50. Sic transit gloria cosmic, blame it on the global recession! I'm myself waiting for the prices of this one to go down:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TAZow...eature=related

So far, there have been no recent sightings of any original 12" copies - as opposed to the the Baia Degli Angeli reissues - of "Un Habit En La Bemol" at all, for any price, so it'll be a long wait.