Best and Worst disco cover version

[discohunter]

One thing I've noticed, is that there are alot of original compositions, but also a lot of tracks that have been covered and made in a disco version.

What would you rate as the best and the worst?

Examples:

Linda Clifford - Bridge Over Troubled Water
P'zzazz - I Heard It Through The Grapevine
Ritz - Locomotion
Boystown gang - Can't Take My Eyes Off You

the worst for me is:
Tuxedo Junction - Chattanooga Choo Choo (awful!)

discohunter

[DISCODISK]

DISCOHUNTER i dont want to talk about the bad ones as it can be too painful a subject, one you mentioned is already making me feel ill :lol: but two GOOD ones from the mid 70s
THE TEMPREES-AT LAST-we produce
RONNIE WALKER-MAGICS IN THE AIR-event (sweet sweet philly disco soul,check it in the 'philly ear candy' c.d :P

[Nano]

Then I'll put some of the worst IMHO:

-"School" (Supertramp) by THE RAES
-"Out of time" (Rolling Stones) by CHARISMA
-"Do it again" (Steely Dan) by CLAUDJA BARRY

:D

[sfbeary]

i think the worst disco crimes ever committed were almost always in the form of cover versions. these are among the worst of many:

Wonder Band - Whole Lotta Love (Led Zep)

Ringo Starr - Drowning In a Sea of Love (Joe Simon)


here are two Motown cover versions that work against all odds:

Buffalo Smoke - Stubborn Kind of Fella

Inner Life - Ain't No Mountain High Enough

[nrgbeat]

One of the worst is "This Time Baby" by Pandella.

[Mario]

Hi Guys...I hope I don't offend someone out there by offering my two cents :-? I've always loved Carol Douglas, but I couldn't "stand" her cover versions of "Dancing Queen" and "Night Fever" :x Now her other work was great, so I'll forgive her... :lol: Take Care All Mario 8)

[markydefad]

Magda Layna's cover of "When Will I See You Again" (on Moby Dick Records from SF) is pretty dreadful. :evil:

She was a Troc regular from what I've read. I'm guessing she was their link to the Columbia drug cartel. Hence, her "recording" career. :lol: :lol: :lol:

While not the "worst"...Linda Clifford's cover of the Broadway show tune "If My Friends Could See Me Now" (from "Sweet Charity") always annoyed me. Too hyper, forced... cheesy...a Fan Queen (I Wanna Be a ShowGirl) delight, however. Everything she did after that was an improvement.

[sirius]

Dear Friends!
There is really an endless list of DiscoCoverVersions but
I like the most of them...here are some faves:
LINDA CLIFFORD"Bridge Over Troubled Water"
SYLVESTER"Fever"
EMILY WOODS"Venus"
CYNTHIA WOODARD"California Dreamin´"
AMII STEWART"Light My Fire"
and so many others...
The most terrible cover-version I have is "Hey Jude" by
SUZANNE DENY...
The interesting thing with this cover-versions is the some-
times real craze-instrumentation and certainly effects.
Cosmic Love & Kisses From SIRIUS & DARKTUNES...

[discosavvy]

Mark, you're right, the disco version of "If My Friends Could See Me Now" is really too quick and sugary. It was frightening when I watched Pink Lady's rendition from early 1980 on their short-lived disco-oriented television variety show. The music sounded just as silly as Linda Clifford's version. I prefer sugary covers like "Up on the Roof" by Viola Wills and "Mahogany" by the Sylvers. Maybe it's the degree of sugar that matters.

I don't usually like disco versions of old songs, because so many of them were done for money rather than quality reasons, but here are some that I especially like:

1. Montana Orchestra - "Fly Me to the Moon" (1978)
2. Inner Life - "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (1981)
3. Donna Summer - "Could It Be Magic" (1976)
4. Melba Moore - "You Stepped Into My Life" (1978)
5. Gloria Gaynor - "Never Can Say Goodbye" (1974)

"Again" by the Night People (1980) is sometimes played on World Disco Radio Community (Radio WDRC), and it has its charm. That was originally a hit back in 1949. Disco Spectacular's version of "Good Morning Starshine", from the musical "Hair", is rather interesting too. Frankie Valli's disco version of "Our Day Will Come" from 1975 was pretty good and despite it being a top 20 hit it never gets included on any disco compilations! Salazar made some cool versions of old 1960s songs for First American Records in 1980-1982. Their versions of "Let's Hang On" and "Lightnin' Strikes" are worth a listen if you like those songs. I wonder what they did with "Hang On, Sloopy" in 1982?

Café Crème's "Unlimited Citations - The Beatles Disco Medley" is more listenable than Stars on 45's Beatles medley, IMHO, and certainly better than "Beatlemania" by D.B.M.

Here are some that should have never been made:
"All or Nothing at All (Disco Version)" by Frank Sinatra (1995)
"Here Comes the Night" by the Beach Boys (1979)
"There's No Business Like Show Business" by Ethel Merman (1979)
"Love Me Tonight" and "Walk Away Renee" by Pink Lady (1979)
"Otis Redding Medley" by Syl Johnson (1979)
"MacArthur Park" by Donna Summer (1978)
"1-2-3" by Wayne Newton (1977)
"This Empty Place" by Stephanie Mills (1975)

COOLEST ODDITIES:

Boots Clements - "Yippy-i-aye Yippy-i-yo (Ghostriders in the Sky)" (1981) - southwestern country classic

Goombay Dance Band - "Aloha-Oe, Until We Meet Again" (1980) - Hawaiian traditional tune

Cab Calloway - "Minnie the Moocher (Disco Version)" (1977) - the fun '30s jazz tune

Adriano Celentano - "People" (1979) - disco version of the 1964 Barbra Streisand song that goes "people who need people are the luckiest people in the world"

I like the above 4 songs because each is unlike any other disco song you've heard!

[Nano]

Now I'll choose some cover versions I like:

-"Venus" by THE SHOCKING BLUE
-"Mac Arthur Park" by DONNA SUMMER
-"Because the night" (Patti Smith-Bruce Springsteen) by MIGHTY POPE
-"Knock on wood" (Hayes-Porter) by AMII STEWART
-"Band a gong" (Marc Bolan) by WITCH QUEEN
-"96 tears" by THELMA HOUSTON (12")

[markydefad]

OK, some covers I think are good.

La Vie En Rose - Grace Jones (originally a hit for Edith Piaf)
Groove Me - Fern Kinney (King Floyd)
Sing, Sing, Sing - Charlie Callello Orchestra (Benny Goodman)
Walking On Sunshine - Rocker's Revenge (Eddy Grant)
Don't Leave Me This Way - Thelma Houston (Harold Melvin & The Blue Notes)
La Bamba - Antonia Rodriguez (Ritchie Valens)
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - Santa Esmeralda (The Animals)
Heaven Must Have Sent You - Bonnie Pointer (The Elgins)
Can't Turn You Loose/Block Party - Anthony White (Otis Redding)
Touch Me In The Morning - Marlena Shaw (Diana Ross)
Forever Came Today - Jackson Five (Diana Ross & The Supremes)
Begin The Beguine - Johnny Mathis (Cole Porter standard)
This Time Baby - Jackie Moore (The O'Jays)
Zing! Went The Strings Of My Heart - The Trammps (Judy Garland)
What a Diff 'rence A Day Makes - Esther Phillips (Dinah Washington)
Hi-Jack - Herbie Mann (Barrabas)
Could It Be Magic - Donna Summer (Barry Manilow/Chopin)
This Is the House Where Love Died - Pattie Brooks (First Choice)
Girl Don't Make Me Wait - Pattie Brooks (Bunny Sigler)

THE WORST:

Baby Face - Wing & A Prayer....
Singing In The Rain - Sheila & B. Devotion

& some more of those old Big Band/Broadway/Hollywood standards that were disoc-tized in the rush to get on the "Disco Bandwagon" in the heady days of 1975-1976.

You know their names.

[BobbyNunn]

"don't stop til you get enough" by king of house :D :D :D :D i'm jokin' don't be afraid lol lol hahahaah

[SandraDee]

I love almost any discotized versions of crappy old songs (including Sheila's Singin In The Rain & Linda's If My Friends...sorry guyz!); they're always an improvement; I personally think every song ever written should've been covered in a disco style preferably with sindrums, strings, analogue sequecers & girly vocals (& I'm not being ironic...sorry! :-? ) My world can never get enough disco!! :P

[markydefad]

I love almost any discotized versions of crappy old songs (including Sheila's Singin In The Rain & Linda's If My Friends...sorry guyz!); they're always an improvement; I personally think every song ever written should've been covered in a disco style preferably with sindrums, strings, analogue sequecers & girly vocals (& I'm not being ironic...sorry! :-? ) My world can never get enough disco!! :P

Ah Sandy Dee....so you're a secret FAN (I Wanna Be A Showgirl) QUEEN, eh???? :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol: :lol:

Now why am I NOT surprised???? :P

Do you have a feathered headdress like Lola?...she was a Showgirl, too. And a boyfriend named Tony?

p.s. Watch out for Rico--he wears a diamond. He's trouble, FYI. :P

[SandraDee]

All the things you say are true Blanchy but what I don't get is that there was blood & a single gun shot but just who shot who ? :-? My feathered head dress hasn't had an airing since I appeared in the promo video for Pet Shop Boys' 'What Have I Done To Deserve This'; I just don't get the demand for it any more. :cry:

[Videoskooter]

Discoversions are usually not that bad-there's always a piece in the record that's interesting and if the coverversion is too bad, I just have a laugh with it.

I have a problem with Top-40 covers from old discotunes.

Too much examples, but maybe 1: N-Trance.

The worst cover of all times still is "Holiday rap" by Mc Miker G and DJ Sven. It sucked like nothing has sucked before or after :o

[sfbeary]

"holiday rap" is so sucky it's brilliant!

then again, in america, we didn't hear it on top 40 radio like you folks surely did.

steely dan - that's funny that you say any song sounds better in a disco version! i do like quite a few of the remakes that other people have mentioned that they like, and hate a few as well.

of all the disco records ever made, though, the few that i absolutely do hate are almost all cover versions.

but even so, i'll take a bad disco remake over nearly any hi-NRG remake of disco or pop or show tunes. norma lewis "maybe this time" was pretty great, but i think, despite the 1983 date, that one was more disco than NRG. same goes for stereo fun inc's "got you where i want you babe," an ultra-faithful and basically just longer cover version of an obscure early hazell dean 7".

when ian levine started hauling out all those cheesy cover versions not fit for an aerobics class, oh it used to torture me!!!

[QUINNY]

The worst cover of all times still is "Holiday rap" by Mc Miker G and DJ Sven. It sucked like nothing has sucked before or after :o

Think you're way off beam with this. If anything, I liked this rap version as much as Madonna's original. Don't know if they made it so intentionally tongue in cheek, but it ceratinly worked the dancefloor (and fave of all faves had the girlies thinking it was Madonna coming up and staying there: Cue well known, opening synth lines mixed under record. Smiling faces from some diehard Madonna fans....great he's playing Holiday....frowns as the rapping starts, turning to smiles as they realise it ain't so bad after all. I LOVED seeing that.). I used to openly laugh at the human beatbox part....still do.

I'm with Marky. Thoise discotized versions of show tunes and old standards of '75 & '76 are amongst the most heinous of efforts, committed in the name of Disco.

[efunk_adelic]

OK, some covers I think are good.

Baby Face - Wing & A Prayer....
Singing In The Rain - Sheila & B. Devotion

& some more of those old Big Band/Broadway/Hollywood standards that were disoc-tized in the rush to get on the "Disco Bandwagon" in the heady days of 1975-1976.

You know their names.

Marky, I must be a freak then.... :( I really don't care much about it now.... but I used to like BABY FACE.. :oops:

[Marcio**]

Gary's Gang "Rock Around The Clock"
Gloria Gaynor "I've Got You Under My Skin"
Penny McLean "Smoke Gets In Your Eyes"
Love Unlimited "If This World Were Mine" (originally by Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell)
Biddu & The Orchestra Eastern Man "Girl You'll Be A Woman Soon"
Luisa Fernandez "Granada"
Barbara Joyce "Do It Till You're Satisfied"
Samba Soul "I'm You" (originally by Peter Frampton)


:-?

[NickNack]

Some goodies:

Boystown Gang - Can't Take My Eyes Off of You
Barry White - Standing In The Shadows of Love
Isaac Hayes - I'm Gonna Make You Love Me
Biddu Orchestra - Summer of '42
Inner City Jam Band - What I Did for Love
Kongas - Gimme Some Lovin'
Phyllis Hyman - Kiss You All Over
Viola Wills - (There Is) Always Something There to Remind Me
Jeanne Shy - That Old Black Magic

BTW: Someone mentioned "Venus" by Shocking Blue. That's not actually a cover but a remix. They did the song in 1969. "Venus" by Bananarama would be one choice for a cover.

[Nano]

Thanks for the correction. I was the one who mentioned "Venus" :oops:

[NickNack]

Thanks for the correction. I was the one who mentioned "Venus" :oops:

Cool. I was too lazy to scroll back and find out.

ONE MORE COVER:

Isaac Hayes - Don't Let Go He worked the hell out of this old Roy Hamilton song. :D

[nrgbeat]

The worst cover of all times still is "Holiday rap" by Mc Miker G and DJ Sven. It sucked like nothing has sucked before or after :o

Think you're way off beam with this. If anything, I liked this rap version as much as Madonna's original. Don't know if they made it so intentionally tongue in cheek, but it ceratinly worked the dancefloor (and fave of all faves had the girlies thinking it was Madonna coming up and staying there: Cue well known, opening synth lines mixed under record. Smiling faces from some diehard Madonna fans....great he's playing Holiday....frowns as the rapping starts, turning to smiles as they realise it ain't so bad after all. I LOVED seeing that.). I used to openly laugh at the human beatbox part....still do.

I'm not a fan of rap but "Holiday Rap" is quirky fun. You can also mix back and forth between that and Madonna's version.

[Funky Dude]

A lot of disco cover versions I thought were real good. Here's some real good ones:

Cerrone - Black Is Black 1976
La Belle Epoque - Black Is Black 1977 (14 minute version rules :D !!!!)
Gloria Gaynor - I've Got You Under My Skin 1976
Isaac Hayes - Don't Let Go 1979 (Didn't know there was an older version but seeing NickNack mentioned it, this song kicks arse!!!)
Destination - Move On Up 1979
Amii Stewart - Light My Fire 1979
Esther Philips - What A Difference A Day Makes 1975
Gloria Gaynor - Never Can Say Goodbye 1974
Frankie Avalon - Venus 1976 (A great cover of his original version)
Doug Parkinson - Everlasting Love 1974 (Probably one of the earliest examples of Aussie disco music, this version sounds probably even better than Carl Calton's version as it has the disco wah wah sounds in it)
Soul Train Gang - My Cherie Amour 1978
Biddu Orchestra - Summer Of '42 1975
Bobby Rydell - Sway 1976 (Just like Frankie Avalon he does a great disco cover of his original)
Edwin Starr - Twenty-Five Miles 1980 (A fantastic disco remake of his original 1970 version)
Herbie Mann - Hijack 1975
Giorgio Moroder - Knights In White Satin 1976
Jackson 5 - Forever Came Today 1975
Joe Bataan - Latin Strut 1973 (not sure which came first, Deodato's or Joe's but both equally good)
KC & The Sunshine Band - It's The Same Old Song 1978
KC & The Sunshine Band - Rock Your Baby 1975
Linda Lewis - It's In His Kiss 1975
Liquid Smoke - Dance, Dance, Dance 1975
Marcia Hines - Jumpin' Jack Flash 1975 (This has to be THE BEST version of this song I've heard :D :D :D !!! It has that real fast early 70's "Junkie Chase" funk guitar sound to it, also cool hard rock guitar riffs in it too, AWSOME :D !!!)
MFSB - K-Jee 1975
Paradise Express - Dance 1978 (Assuming Paul Jabara's version is the original this song this song is a disco cover of a disco song, and it is THE BEST :D !!!!!)
Van McCoy - Get Dancing 1975 (another disco remake of a disco song, this version is really cool because of the real funky wah wah sounds, wonder if some of the were done by the Moog synthesizer)
Yambu - Sunny 1975
Boney M - Sunny 1976

Ones that do put me off would be:
Rice & Beans Orchestra - The Blue Danube Hustle 1976 (Waltz waltz waltz ewww :oops: )
Walter Murphy - 5th Of Beethoven 1976
Sheila & B. Devotion - Singing In The Rain 1978 (Have to agree with Marky there, the original was a **** **** **** song that someone like Bing Crosby would sing back in the 50s whilst wearing an archetypal 50s hat and trench coat, so it's hard to make a good version of that song)

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