Disco - still around in 1987??

[Jts]

I can think of dozens of elctro-disco/jazz-funk records made as late as 1986 (even though "Disco is Dead" rallies had taken place 7 years earlier), such as Zapp's Computer Love, and Midnight Star's Midas Touch to name a few, but I can think of nothing from 1987. I am not talking about early house or badly synthesised/drum machine "disco" (ie Spagna or Rick Astley) but music that continued in the vein of pure disco (people who know the above records will know what I'm talking about)

It may not have been in the mainstream, but what disco records were made as late as 1987?

[discosavvy]

I can think of dozens of elctro-disco/jazz-funk records made as late as 1986...such as Zapp's Computer Love, and Midnight Star's Midas Touch to name a few.... It may not have been in the mainstream, but what disco records were made as late as 1987?

"Who Will Be the One" by Blue Feather (1985, from the Netherlands) is probably the last example of "traditional" disco from the 1980s in the sense of having both live bass guitar and live rhythm guitar, and not being able to fall into the "electronica" category. I only found out about this track's existence in June 2004.

I don't consider "Computer Love" and "Midas Touch" to be disco. Actually, compared to those two, "Never Gonna Give You Up" sounds a bit more like disco with its imitation of violins and trumpets and the brief real guitar segment when the women sing "oooh give you up, oooh give you up" which lasts 16 seconds.

1986 is one of four years for which I can't find any genuine disco records (yet); the others are 1989, 1990, and 1991. The closest you get to disco in this period are "Always on My Mind" by James Last (1988, with real horns and maybe real bass - also listen for his great version of "Love Will Save the Day"), "Disco Lover" by Frieda (1987, with real rhythm guitar played by Nile Rodgers and a disco sensibility), and "Tribute (Right On)" by the Pasadenas (1988 - the underlying disco beat is overrun by another set of stronger erratic beats, but this is a great tune with bass, rhythm guitar, and horns).

I read about two additional western songs that might be disco, but I can't tell you for sure:

"Give, Give, Give" by Disco Aid a.k.a. Dance Aid (1986 - a charity song, as the song title and artist name imply)

"Disco Queen (Club Mix)" by Ronnette and Anquannette (1988)

In India producer Nandu Bhende was still cranking out "disco" albums in 1986 and 1987. He made one sometime after November 1986 in the Gujarati language. He also continued to make Hindi-language "disco", like 1987's "Disco Mazaa" medley. That's said to be medley of Hindi film hits set to a non-stop disco beat. Nandu told me: "The album had all live instruments except a drum machine for the main beat. The instruments were bass guitar, electric guitar, 2 synthesizers, three percussionists who played a host of instruments from congas, thumbs, cowbells, cabasa etc. The violins were from the synths."

You'd probably be able to find some rare "disco" from Afghanistan and Pakistan from the late 1980s too. Even if they didn't make any (I'm not sure if they did), it's reported that Afghanis played disco records and tapes during the 1980s and 1990s.

[MixMasterMax]

This is ridiculous, everyone knows Afghanistan had tremendous Disco hits.

Taliban Oppressed Orchestra - Hell Must Be Missing Osama
Abdullah Beard - Goat Milk Hangover
Talibannps - Opium Inferno
Giorgio Abdulazees - From Here To A Mountain Hole
The Three Burka's - Dirty Ol' Sheik
Two Tons O' Bombs - Earth Can Be Just Like Hell
B-17's Take Off - Harlow Zair

[Jts]

Don't forget Osama Michael Walden's "I shoulda bombed ya"

or Osamady's "Use up the WMDs and wear em out"

[galocha]

[quote="discosavvy"]

1986 is one of four years for which I can't find any genuine disco records (yet); the others are 1989, 1990, and 1991.

What about Lisa Stansfield 'Affection' Album? There are nice disco songs like 'Mighty Love', 'All around the world' and 'What did I do to you?' from 1989. The have REAL strings and flutes! I love Lisa and her producers.

[efunk_adelic]

What is the classification of these records...


BLACK BOX - EVERYBODY EVERYBODY
ROBIN S - SHOW ME LOVE


both from the early 90's....

these tracks are about as disco as you can get...

[BrunoRepublic]

Black Box was done almost entirely with samplers. It had the disco sound, but not the production.

Robin S was anemic house IMHO.

[sfbeary]

hey discosavvy,

Frieda's "Disco Lover" is a disco parody or a disco pastiche, (complete with sections of "Let's All Chant") not genuine disco. i once saw a "performance" by Frieda of this song in the Pyramid Club in nyc's east village, where i used to live. it was a woman with a mannequin head on top of her head and a dress cut up to the mannequin's neck so that it looked as though the manequin's head was actually her head. she'd bounce around on stage to the song in time to the song, but she couldn't sing or even lip-sync since the head was supposed to be doing the singing!

i don't know where you got the info that Nile Rodgers plays on that cut - i have the 12" picture sleeve in front of me (with press releases from the time included along with the record), and it credits John Flansburgh, who went on to become famous with the alternative-rock duo They Might Be Giants. he plays in a Rodgers style here, but it's more play-chic than Chic.

btw - on the flipside "Plastic Rap," dolly Frieda disses the Cabbage Patch Kids and theatens to turn them into sauerkraut.

[Videoskooter]

I can't think of any real disco from those years. Dancemusic was dominated by the terrible SAW-productions and American en British R&B and Funk consisted mostly in over-the-top-drummachinestuff.

Most of the disco-releases here was vintage stuff and mostly terribly remixed by people like Jellybean and Ben Liebrand.

I just didn't like the cold sound of those things. And yes Lisa Stansfield and Coldcut came very close to the real thing.

But when it comes up to stand-up bass, violins and warm sounds: nope, I can't think of anything. Afrika Bambaata and UB40???? "Reckless", I don't remember the exact year and it was a good song but was that disco? Nope.

And in the early nineties there were lots of discocompilations where they put Cerrone behind Black Box and stuff like that.
I can't go with that! The only exception was "From disco to disco" from Whirlpool Productions (the disco-opera-rmx) which was an instant classic for me.

[efunk_adelic]

Black Box was done almost entirely with samplers. It had the disco sound, but not the production.

Robin S was anemic house IMHO.

Graham, I was speaking in terms that you can HUSTLE to these songs...

[Forrrce]

I wouldn't class the Zapp or Midnight Star tracks as disco at all. The closest to disco I can think of, post '85, is house. Mostly through sampling, some tracks are more 'disco' than others.

[K-Bee]

Yeah it's true that 1987 was the year most things about dancemusic changed. The general "feel good" dance stuff originating from 70s disco did suffer a lot that year, making room for black music subgenres such as House, Rap & New jack Swing in the process.
I don't wanna go into the debate of whether Midnight Star or Zapp are disco or not, but fact of the matter is that music sounding like Mid. S's "Midas Touch" or, say, Jennie Burton's "Bad Habbit" almost vanished in 1986.
The only songs I can think of right now still keeping that particular sound alive after '86 are:

The Soul Club - "I Want Your Guy" (MCA 12", 1987)
- That was produced by Allen George/Fred Mcfarlane also responible for the infamous "Somebody Elses Guy" by Jocelyn B a few year prior to this release. This was probably their last track being in the style. George/McFarlane went on to pen & produce "Show me Love" for Robin S in 1993.


Intrigue - "Together Forever" (1987)
Produced by Leroy Burgess....not as popular as "Fly Girl" but a better song alltogether in my book.

Eleanor Goodman - "Sneak Preview" (Trumpet 12", 1987)
It might have been a rip-off of Evelyn Kings "Your Personal Touch" but I love it anyway! :D