When Did Lights Become A Big Deal?

[QUINNY]

Don't think this has been touched on before.

Just as important as the records in some discotheques, was the ambiance that the venue created. As well as being partly responsible for the progression in sound systems, Disco also saw meteoric leaps in lighting technology take place.

To be truthful, generally the U.K. was years behind when it came to sound systems and lighting systems. In my first club in '72, the lighting was a hand made, 3 channel sound to light system that drove maybe 3 X 60 watt coloured bulbs per channel. If we wanted smoke, we had to specially order a chunk of dry ice, which came to the nearest railway station for collection. To get the effect you merely put the dry ice into hot water and the fog was born. Only trouble was it was wet and it almost became impossible to dance on the PVC tiled dancefloor after using said dry ice.
When I first went to work in Marbella, Spain in '74, I was amazed at the sophisticated sound and lighting sytems they had, compared to the UK. Albeit, the disco I went to work in wasn't one of the most up to date and some of the gear was querky, but even this modest discotheque, managed/owned by two ex mercenary fighters (so therefore little interest in discos per se) was light years ahead of anything I'd seen in my home patch.
When I moved to Mallorca in '75 I spent my first night in Palma, the capital of the island, and was gobsmacked by nearly every club I went to that night. They were all heaving with people, the sound systems were massive and the lights were something else.

Back in the UK in '78 on and it wasn't until the early to mid '80s that the first really glitzy, no expense spared type of discotheque opened in the area. True, back in '78 and '79 every discotheque was going through more refurbishments than you could shake a stick at and some more lighting appeared, but nothing really bold. Just more and more PAR 36's throwing their narrow beams around the rooms. From then on, there was no going back and in some ways the soul of discos disappeared. By the mid '80s it was more about the glitz and the razzamatazz than the music. Venues were great if the decor was too, in too many punters' eyes.

So how was it it your neck of the woods?

[JussiK]

When I moved to Mallorca in '75 I spent my first night in Palma, the capital of the island, and was gobsmacked by nearly every club I went to that night. They were all heaving with people, the sound systems were massive and the lights were something else.
So how was it it your neck of the woods?

Ah, Palma de Mallorca in 1975! Stepping down from the plane with your mates and no parents! That was the start and 2 weeks later boarding the plane back home reduced to quivering heaps of discoed flesh, with insane happy grins on tanned faces. What a party town, Palma, my god! The El Terreno clubs like The Superstar and El Exegano - or thereabouts- were where the night would begin, and on we'd go to that huge centrally located 1000 people megadisco the name of which I've forgotten. And the places in Palma town proper! Lights, indeed and what about that music - wonderful afro funk stuff, Gloria gaynor, The Ritchie Family! - anyway, about the lights in general. Over here we mainly had either a couple of lone red and green lightbulbs flashing melancholically here and there or a ceiling full of lightning apparatuses going berserk all at once, with no programming, just insane overkill and fear of epileptic fits. In other words, no intelligent lightshows until the 80's in my neck of the woods.

[Keith RS]

I'm not really sure which clubs in Philly first had big lights and when, but I noticed that in early 1978 clubs started making a point in their ads about elaborate light systems. The clubs seemed to be trying to out do each other from '78-'80.

One club that I used to go to (Ripley's 6th & South Sts.)had a guy working the lights all night. He seemed to know how to entice the crowd.

[NickNack]

Lights were already a "big deal" when I was hired as the floorman, then doorman, of The Gallery in 1973. I realize now The Gallery has to be one of the earliest gay afterhours clubs that existed. All those that followed in the coming years stuck to a similar formula: Large loft-like space, elaborate sound system (eg., Richard Long Designs) and sophisticated lighting system with a lightman devoted to it. Maybe in the beginning the dj was doing sound and lights but by 1974/1975 the larger clubs hired a dedicated lightman. If the dj was smart, he got his friend/lover hired with him or at least became friendly with the guy who was there. They had to be in synch to make it work.

Nicky Siano and Michael (last name forgotten :oops: ) at The Gallery were tight and it showed when they worked together. Mike new what Nicky wanted and how to deliver it, changing intensity and mood for verses, choruses, breaks and mixing transitions. Siano never wanted it too bright and loved it pitch black on hard breaks with just a hint of light in the distance. The lighting design and panel were built to deliver. Nothing was automated except that large spinning mirrored ball. Everything else Mike worked manually: switches, dimmers, foot pedals, whatever. He really knew the music and every cue point he wanted to hit. And like the dj, he changed his "rush" cues so if you were a regular you never tired of the experience. Between Siano and Mike, you had no choice but to "feel" the music. It was awesome.

I had the chance to do lights with Nicky for a short while. (Mike had quit after an argument but came back about 5 or 6 weeks later.) That light panel was intimidating at first but Nicky helped me settle in. He worked so hard you felt stupid if you weren't doing something on that panel :) . By working with him, watching Mike and just dancing in the place I learned how to use a strobe light "properly" so as not to induce 'headaches and seizures' :roll: but to capture drum and cymbal rushes and explode them on the floor. I learned the colors that made a floor 'cool' or 'hot'. I learned to be still as the dj manipulated the sound before an expected rush and to drop everything out when he poured it on. I can get high just thinking about it. :D

By 1976/1977, the afterhours that were opening as dance palaces had the expected dj/lightman combination with elaborate systems. Even the work-a-day (12 Noon to 4 AM)bars with cabaret licenses which allowed people to dance put in some type of lighting to appease the crowds. The clubs that were running these same regular hours as the bars were also built with a lighting system for the dj. Very, very few got away with just the music anymore.

[remicks]

Lights were already a "big deal" when I was hired as the floorman, then doorman, of The Gallery in 1973. I realize now The Gallery has to be one of the earliest gay afterhours clubs that existed. All those that followed in the coming years stuck to a similar formula: Large loft-like space, elaborate sound system (eg., Richard Long Designs) and sophisticated lighting system with a lightman devoted to it. Maybe in the beginning the dj was doing sound and lights but by 1974/1975 the larger clubs hired a dedicated lightman. If the dj was smart, he got his friend/lover hired with him or at least became friendly with the guy who was there. They had to be in synch to make it work.

Nicky Siano and Michael (last name forgotten :oops: ) at The Gallery were tight and it showed when they worked together. Mike new what Nicky wanted and how to deliver it, changing intensity and mood for verses, choruses, breaks and mixing transitions. Siano never wanted it too bright and loved it pitch black on hard breaks with just a hint of light in the distance. The lighting design and panel were built to deliver. Nothing was automated except that large spinning mirrored ball. Everything else Mike worked manually: switches, dimmers, foot pedals, whatever. He really knew the music and every cue point he wanted to hit. And like the dj, he changed his "rush" cues so if you were a regular you never tired of the experience. Between Siano and Mike, you had no choice but to "feel" the music. It was awesome.

I had the chance to do lights with Nicky for a short while. (Mike had quit after an argument but came back about 5 or 6 weeks later.) That light panel was intimidating at first but Nicky helped me settle in. He worked so hard you felt stupid if you weren't doing something on that panel :) . By working with him, watching Mike and just dancing in the place I learned how to use a strobe light "properly" so as not to induce 'headaches and seizures' :roll: but to capture drum and cymbal rushes and explode them on the floor. I learned the colors that made a floor 'cool' or 'hot'. I learned to be still as the dj manipulated the sound before an expected rush and to drop everything out when he poured it on. I can get high just thinking about it. :D

By 1976/1977, the afterhours that were opening as dance palaces had the expected dj/lightman combination with elaborate systems. Even the work-a-day (12 Noon to 4 AM)bars with cabaret licenses which allowed people to dance put in some type of lighting to appease the crowds. The clubs that were running these same regular hours as the bars were also built with a lighting system for the dj. Very, very few got away with just the music anymore.

Very well written .... brought back to mind many of the finer points of lighting techniques applied within a club .....
There was a thin line between having the floor aware in an enjoyable way the work being put into the lights ... or resulting in the lights becoming annoying or distracting ....
A real art and so important to the whole disco scene ......:icon_cool: :icon_cool: :icon_cool:

*****

[Tim Tam]

Not really adding to this conversation. Just an observation.

The clubs I used to frequent in Melb. Australia in the very late 80's and throughout the 90's I thought had pretty ordinary lighting. Although they had lasers, special moving lighting rigs, computerized sequencing, smoke and all the gadgets, the lights seldom if ever seemed related to the music that was being played. They did absolutely nothing to enhance the mood of the venues and I always thought hey would have been better spending less on the actual lights and more on paying a guy or gal to control them. Just like music, lighting is better when it is done by people rather than a computer.



Cheers,
Tim Tam

[remicks]

The clubs I used to frequent in Melb. Australia in the very late 80's and throughout the 90's I thought had pretty ordinary lighting. Although they had lasers, special moving lighting rigs, computerized sequencing, smoke and all the gadgets, the lights seldom if ever seemed related to the music that was being played. They did absolutely nothing to enhance the mood of the venues and I always thought hey would have been better spending less on the actual lights and more on paying a guy or gal to control them. Just like music, lighting is better when it is done by people rather than a computer.

This is so true .
I remember some of those hotel lobby type clubs that also had ongoing lights that just spun and flashed regardless of the music . Another reason disco got less respect by the unwitting masses as they experienced it this way .
There was something very "on" about a disco club .....the live DJ ... the live lighting .... made it a live performance that was being presented . If that weren't critical to the experience , clubs owners would have gladly used the easier (cheaper ) route of just playing tapes and randomly pre- programmed lights .

The lighting person brought the lights to life ... using them in specifically chosen ways to underscore the particulars of the music at the moment. The lighting person, as much as the DJ ... had to know the music in order to appropriately respond to it AND he also had to know the habits and particulars of the DJ .... so as to to be ready to properly support specific mixes and tricks with complimentary light choices .

*****

[discokicks]

Nicky Siano and Michael (last name forgotten :oops: ) at The Gallery were tight and it showed when they worked together. Mike new what Nicky wanted and how to deliver it, changing intensity and mood for verses, choruses, breaks and mixing transitions. Siano never wanted it too bright and loved it pitch black on hard breaks with just a hint of light in the distance. The lighting design and panel were built to deliver. Nothing was automated except that large spinning mirrored ball. Everything else Mike worked manually: switches, dimmers, foot pedals, whatever. He really knew the music and every cue point he wanted to hit.

By working with him, watching Mike and just dancing in the place I learned how to use a strobe light "properly" so as not to induce 'headaches and seizures' :roll: but to capture drum and cymbal rushes and explode them on the floor. I learned the colors that made a floor 'cool' or 'hot'. I learned to be still as the dj manipulated the sound before an expected rush and to drop everything out when he poured it on. I can get high just thinking about it. :D

Reading this just thrills me! To know that other guys out there have that passion to make the whole disco experience truly special, comforts me. Whether it was the 70s or the present, you can always tell how credible and serious a club is by the whole package of music and lights.

The lighting person brought the lights to life ... using them in specifically chosen ways to underscore the particulars of the music at the moment. The lighting person, as much as the DJ ... had to know the music in order to appropriately respond to it AND he also had to know the habits and particulars of the DJ .... so as to to be ready to properly support specific mixes and tricks with complimentary light choices .

*****

That synchronization of a dj with a good lighting person is truly a unique thing but when it happens, it makes for a very satisfying, fun night for the dj. A friend of mine loved to play the lights to my music but he just wasn't that good. I'd always tolerate it for a while and then push him aside to do it myself....:icon_lol: ....still do.

[Nano]

I remember in 1980-81, in my home town (Mar del Plata), a new discotheque opened in the summer. It was called Light Power and there was some anticipation because the owners had wasted big money in publicity and advertising. All flyers stated the details of the gear that was to be used. Like "10,000 watts of so and so lights", "audio-rhytmic automatic system", "1200w of sound in 80 speaker boxes" and so on (I'm making the numbers up, have already forgotten how much we used to have then).

A few weeks after the opening it was obvious the results didn't make up for the announcements. The people didn't care to go. One of the smaller and cheaper clubs where I used to go with my friends distributed a simple flyer that went like this:

"We don't have the best lights.
We don't have the best sound system.
We don't have the best board.
We don't have the best turntables.

We only have the best music".

[BKRich]

Lights were always a major part of the dance scene. Back to the Ballroom Dance from years ago. The lighting in clubs was a major part of the feel of the atmosphere for having a good time (like the the lighted floor in 2001 in Brooklyn). The reason I know a little about this is that I did the lighting and sound in alot of clubs in NYC with a company called Heavy Light and Sound from Brooklyn on 86th street.

[Bernie]

Lights were always a major part of the dance scene. Back to the Ballroom Dance from years ago. The lighting in clubs was a major part of the feel of the atmosphere for having a good time (like the the lighted floor in 2001 in Brooklyn). The reason I know a little about this is that I did the lighting and sound in alot of clubs in NYC with a company called Heavy Light and Sound from Brooklyn on 86th street.

Hi BKRich,

Thanks for becoming a DiscoMusic.com member. Look forward to more of your posts about the lighting you did for the New York Discos.

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