Top 10 Disco Albums

[guy1]

I'm pretty new to collecting disco albums & am looking to get some recommendations of essential albums that are available on cd. I thought it would be good to see what people's top 10 albums are.......

[PierreConstantin]

In alphabetical order:

1- LINDA CLIFFORD: Let me be your woman (1979) reissued by Charly with the lp Here's my love (1979); Medium Rare Records in San Francisco reissued it with a bonus 12" mix. [Medium Rare reissued also If my friends could see me now from 1978 with 3 long mixes.]

2- GLORIA GAYNOR: Love tracks (1978) with "I will survive" on an expensive Japanese pressing; 8 tracks.

3- THELMA HOUSTON: Any way you like it (1976) with "Don't leave me this way"; 9 tracks; rare and expensive.

4- FRANCE JOLI: her first album, France Joli (1979) was reissued by Unidisc under the name Come to me. 4 original tracks + 4 short versions + 1 instrumental + 1 remix. [Her 1982 album Now! was also reissued by Unidisc (8 tracks + 3 mixes) but it's not very disco.]

5- CURTIS MAYFIELD: Heartbeat (1979); reissued on an expensive Japanese pressing: 8 tracks + 1 bonus track + 1 short mix; reissued also by Charly without bonuses but with the album Something to believe in (1980).

6- NEW YORK CITI PEECH BOYS: Life is something special (1982) with "Don't make me wait" on an expensive Japanese pressing; 8 tracks + 4 bonus tracks.

7- NORMA JEAN: her self-titled 1978 album: 7 original tracks + 2 long mixes + 1 short mix + 2 tracks from 1979.

8- DIANA ROSS: diana (1980) in its 2-cd deluxe form with a cd of 12" versions from 1976 to 1979 (this bonus cd was also released under the name of Rarities); The boss (1979) is an excellent album: the cd has the original tracks + 2 long mixes; but a third one is only available on The Motown anthology and a fourth only on diana (deluxe). The album Diana Ross with "Love hangover" (1976) was released on cd but without bonuses (the original 9 track album) and it's quite rare.

9- SISTER SLEDGE: We are family (1979) in its deluxe form: 8 tracks + 4 remixes.

10- DONNA SUMMER: Bad girls (1979) in its 2-cd deluxe form with a cd of 12" versions from 1977 to 1979.

[SandraDee]

My 'desert island' 10 (LPs where I like all the tracks & often play them all the way through):

Once Upon a Time -Donna Summer
The Boss - Diana Ross
Off The Wall - MJ
We Are Family - Sister Sledge
Face To Face - Gino Soccio
The Dude - Quincy Jones
Sounds & Stuff Like That - Quincy Jones
E = MC2 - Giorgio Moroder
Glow Of Love - Change
Keep On Jumpin - Musique

[FranceJoliFan]

I'm pretty new to collecting disco albums & am looking to get some recommendations of essential albums that are available on cd. I thought it would be good to see what people's top 10 albums are.......

Be careful. Collecting disco albums can turn into a lifetime obsession.

: )

It's good to have a turntable in case you can only find stuff on vinyl. Plus there's a lot of 12" singles out there that never show up on cds.

I've had good luck with compilations, greatest hits packages, soundtracks even. But a lot of those songs get recycled a lot. My favorite is the old disco instruction records, especially when the songs are mixed.

So these are some favorite albums, the ones where I like most or all of the songs on them--as opposed to lps where I only like one or two cuts:


From Beginning To End - Destination
Keep On Jumpin' - Musique
Hot Butterfly - Gregg Diamond/Bionic Boogie
Belle De Jour - Saint Tropez
Lime II - Lime
Tonight - France Joli
The Double Album - Tantra
I'm A Man - Macho
Outline - Gino Soccio
All I Need (aka Do Ya Wanna Funk) - Sylvester
Kano - Kano
Megatron Man - Patrick Cowley
Beautiful Bend - Boris Midney/Beautiful Bend
Fire Night Dance - Peter Jacques Band
E=MC2 - Giorgio Moroder
Bad Reputation - Ritchie Family
Village People - Village People
Fever - Fever

I think I went over ten, though.

[Nano]

nice thread!

my modest list here. take note that there are different trends in disco music and each individual tends to identify more with a specific trend (eurodisco, tecno, funky disco, philly-kind of stuff, latin, etc.)

EARTH, WIND & FIRE - All 'n all (1977)
INSTANT FUNK - Instant Funk (1978) or Witch doctor (1979)
FATBACK - Hot box (1980)
THE GAP BAND - II (1979)
GIORGIO MORODER - From here to eternity (1977) or E=MC2 (1979)
DONNA SUMMER - Bad girls (1979)
BARRABAS - Watch out (1976)
CANDI STATON - House of love (1978)
GINO SOCCIO - S-Beat (1980)
JOHNNY 'GUITAR' WATSON - Giant (1978)

Of course I'm being unfair to many other records as good as these ones but that I'm just tired to listen to (by Kool & The Gang, One Way, Raydio, Chic, Prince, etc. etc.) I listed classic stuff that I still listen from time to time, and some recent discoveries (discoveries for me, that is).

[discodjinn]

Disco was dominated by 12" singles, some that were never part of an album. Still, disco offered some great long-plays. Ignoring greatest-hits collections, these albums all have limited weak spots and lack filler. Trying to keep the alphabetical list to ten or so, I offered some choices. But of course would recommend each of these.

Ashford&Simpson: Stay Free Soulfulness for the dancefloor.
BT Express: Do It For 5-borough disco-funk.
Change: Miracles Chic imitation is the highest form of flattery.
Chic: C'est Chic or Real People Chic was the pinnacle of disco playing.
Linda Clifford: I'm Yours Clifford is a must. Contained as bonus disc to her Greatest Hits cd.
Don Armando or Dr Buzzard I Darnell and Hernandez were the pinnacle of disco lyrics.
Chaka Khan: Naughty Ripe Khan. Nuff said!
Sister Sledge: We Are Family Anthems galore.
Gino Soccio: Outline Spare as a Canadian tundra.
Donna Summer: Four Seasons of Love The most consistent Summer lp.
Sylvester: Stars or Two Tons:Backatcha Gospel-fueled rave-ups.

[guy1]

Thanks for these lists guys, lots of albums for me to explore though many are sadly hard to find. Please keep them comin'!

[Jay Negron]

Very Hard to compile!!!
Lesse, Hmmmm, Ok:

1- That's Where The Happy People Go - The Trammps (Atlantic 1976)
2- Disco Champs - The Trammps (PIR/CBS 1977)
3- The Salsoul Orchestra - Salsoul Orchestra (Salsoul 1976)
4- Never Can Say Goodbye - Gloria Gaynor (MGM 1975)
5- Get Down With The Philly Sound - Dimitri From Paris (BBE 2010 - New CD Comp)
6- Village People - Village People (Casablanca 1977)
7- Universal Love - MFSB (PIR/CBS 1977)
8- Garden Of Love - Don Ray (Polydor 1978)
9- Unlimited - Barry White (Hip-O-Select 2009, CD Comp)
10 - Philadelphia Classics - Various Artists - Tom Moulton Mix (PIR/CBS 1977)

[kdavid13]

My top 10 would be :

1- Donna Summer Once upon a time
2- Alec Costandinos Romeo & Juliet
3- Gino Soccio Outline
4- Donna Summer Bad Girls
5- Giorgio Moroder E=mc2
6- France Joli France Joli (Her 1st album)
7- Grace Jones Fame
8- Diana Ross diana
9- Philadelhia Classics (featuring MFSB/Three Degrees/O'Jays...)
10-"A Tom Moulton Mix" 2CD compilation (featuring Grace Jones/B.T.Express/Andrea True Connection & Isaac Hayes - just to name a few)

[totouk]

My 'desert island' 10 (LPs where I like all the tracks & often play them all the way through):

Once Upon a Time -Donna Summer
The Boss - Diana Ross
Off The Wall - MJ
We Are Family - Sister Sledge
Face To Face - Gino Soccio
The Dude - Quincy Jones
Sounds & Stuff Like That - Quincy Jones
E = MC2 - Giorgio Moroder
Glow Of Love - Change
Keep On Jumpin - Musique

Quite a surprise to see Sounds and stuff like that. I play the first side sometimes and LOVE Love, I Never Had It So Good. It used to be on loads of different tape compilations over the years. Great to see it mentioned.

toto

[SandraDee]

Quite a surprise to see Sounds and stuff like that. I play the first side sometimes and LOVE Love, I Never Had It So Good. It used to be on loads of different tape compilations over the years. Great to see it mentioned.

toto

Oh 'LINHISG' is pure class isn't it? It always amazes me that when people talk about Luther Vandross in disco they always go on & on about his work with Change, Bionic Boogie, Soiree, Odyssey, Chic etc etc but nobody ever mentions that he was a lead vocalist on this '78 LP, & disco fans hardly ever acknowledge this LP. Maybe Quincy is considered too jazz-soul by many disco fans, but I always see him as very much a key player in the disco spectrum.

[totouk]

I tried posting a list of albums I had this afternoon but it seems to have disappeared so I'll try again. I have a playlist on my iphone called Disco Albums and the list is

Our Ms Brooks - Pattie Brooks (after getting the CD)
Confessions - D C LaRue
I'm ON My Way - Jackie Moore (a recent discovery although I knew the lead single well)
Supernature Cerrone
Glow Of Love - Change
Two Tons O' Fun
Hang Together - Odyssey
Adventures In The Land of Music - Dynasty
Ultimate
Mr Big Shot - Simon Orchestra
Cheri - Madleen Kane (side 1)
Here's My Love - Linda Clifford (went with this one but I did struggle on which one)
Evita - Festival
Hold Your Horses - First Choice
From Beginning to End - Destination
New Dimensions - Three Degrees
Panic - French Kiss (a few Simon Soussan productions sneaking in)
Suite Seventeen (from Take a Bite) - Marlena Shaw

Quite a few strange ones in there that some people may not call disco but almost all of them are long term favourites of mine.

toto

[Cory Ander]

I'm pretty new to collecting disco albums & am looking to get some recommendations of essential albums that are available on cd. I thought it would be good to see what people's top 10 albums are.......

you picked kind of a bad time to start collecting as many of disco's classics are either hard to find, incredibly expensive or out of print. These ten immediately come to my mind, but only at this very moment: 1. "Belle du Jour" St Tropez 2. "Brazil" and 3 "African Queens" the Ritchie Family (and yes, I HAVE seen both on CD but not recently) 4. "Megatron Man" Patrick Cowley 5. "Miracles" Change 6. "The Greatest Hits" Lime 7. "The Casablanca Records Story" 8. "More More More" Andrea True Connection 9. "Best of" Silver Convention 10. "Disco Connection" 1976-1981 5/21/2010

[SandraDee]

Adventures In The Land of Music - Dynasty

toto

Good choice; along with the Whispers 'Love For Love', this has got to be the best Solar LP ever.

[Discoimperium]

Here's mine (couldn't leave it at 10, sorry :-).

01) Donna Summer - Once Upon A Time
02) Voyage - Fly Away
03) Gino Soccio - Outline
04) Roberta Kelly - Zodiac Lady
05) Giorgio Moroder - E = MC2
06) Phylicia Allen - Josephine Superstar
07) Amanda Lear - Never Trust A Pretty Face
08) Erotic Drum Band - Touch Me Where It's Hot
09) Azoto & Lucrethia - Dance Skinsation
10) Roni Griffith - Roni Griffith
11) Hott City - Ain't Love Grand
12) Z.A.C.K - Disco Cosmix
13) Donna Summer - Bad Girls
14) Voyage - One Step Higher
15) Poussez! - Poussez!

Cheers.

[eddie]

Yes Sandra Dee, Love for love is a great album by the Whispers. Really any album by them is essential. In answering this question, one has to look at disco albums with a split genre approach. There was always ballads in the case of the Whispers, rock on many releases like Alicia Bridges, and other styles that really weren't for the dancefloor. I'm a soul man and prefer a variety of tempos but these I listed are more concentrated on disco. I'm a CD only collector as well and all are available on that format. About half are original albums with the rest being various artists' compilations.

These really can't be missed is

Constellation Orchestra (Prelude) 1978

Ashford and Simpson-The Warner Bros. Years: Hits, Remixes & Rarities cd(Rhino) 2008
Note: Wounded bird just reissued their complete Warner Brothers catalog

Strikers-Greatest hits cd (Unidisc/Sequel) Not sure if they had an album but these are 12" mixes on cd

Unlimited Touch-Searching to find the one cd (includes most of their 2 Prelude albums and only one ballad)

Soiree'-1979 album of covers that featured Luther Vandross but only on one track. The rest without him is even better as they tackle Carl Carlton/Robert Knight's Everlasting love and the Contours "Do you love me".

COMPILATIONS
Saturday Night Fever 1978 (Obvious one but it's essential)

Salsoul Gold Master series vol 1-3 (12" versions and rarities of major artists of this label)

Philadelphia International Records 12-Inch Singles [Import]

Phat Trax Vol 1-7 (Rhino) A cross between funk and disco with an emphasis on the 6th volume.

John Morales-The M&M mixes An expansion of the original version with additional instrumentation and studio outtakes from the original sessions.

[Adrian Scott]

How about these? They are all long time favourites of mine:

1) Midnight Rendezvoous - Tasha Thomas, 2) Risque - Chic, 3) Hot Butterfly - Bionic Boogie, 4) Off The Wall - Michael Jackson, 5) Disco Inferno - Trammps, 6) Bad Girls - Donna Summer, 7) The Glow of Love - Change, 8) I Wanna Be Loved By You - Claudia Barry, 9)Portfolio - Grace Jones, 10) Keep On Dancing - Gary's Gang. I could go on, but it is only suposed to be ten titles!

[InvisibleMan]

no one seems to have mentioned one of my favorites Theo Vaness - Bad Bad Boy :)
or how about another funky white boy Peter Brown - Fantasy Love Affair

[guy1]

please keep the lists coming, feel free to add more than 10 if you want!

[remicks]

*****

These to me are not so much a TOP 10 -

but they are desirable hard core disco LPS :


















******

[Jackson9]

i would pick that QJ album too.. i can't live without these

Evelyn "Champagne" King - Smooth Talk
Quincy Jones - Sounds... And Stuff Like That!!
Chaka Khan - Chaka
Sister Sledge - We Are Family
Stephanie Mills -What Cha Gonna Do With My Lovin'
First Choice - Hold Your Horses
Skyy - Skyyport
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall
Gwen Guthrie - Padlock
Janet Jackson - Control

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

hmmm... so many ways to come at this list.
The Top 15 (honestly, couldn't get it down to 10) vinyl LP's I play most often.
These, I can guarantee I'll always listen to both sides, all the way through.

Ferrara - Wuthering Heights
Costandinos - Romeo & Juliet
Ritchie Family - African Queens
love & kisses - love & kisses
Saint Tropez - Belle De Jour (original Canadian mixes)
Paris Connection - Paris Connection
USA/European Connection - Come Into My Heart
Madleen Kane - Rough Diamond
First Choice - So Let Us Entertain You
Pattie Brooks - Our Ms. Brooks
Cerrone - Love In C-Minor
Roberta Kelly - Trouble Maker
Grace Jones - Portfolio
Carol Jiani - Hit 'n Run Lover
Nightlife Unlimited - Nightlife Unlimited

[InvisibleMan]

i would pick that QJ album too.. i can't live without these


Janet Jackson - Control

isn't that R&B and urban 80's dance?

[Jackson9]

and ?? pedantically pigeonholing again Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

[STEPHEN L FREEMAN]

JEEZ!!! HTF could I have forgotten this???

Paul Jabara / "The Third Album"

It's freakin' essential to getting through 'life', itself!