Tony Orlando
Don't Let Go (12")
Elektra Records (UK) / 1978 / K 12311
12" Disco single 45 rpm vinyl record
Genre: Dance
Written by Jesse Stone
Produced by Jerry Wexler & Barry Beckett
Side A
Don't Let Go / 8.53 / 107 BPM
Side B
Bring It On Home To Me / 3.56
THE Tony Orlando from Dawn's "Tie A Yellow Ribbon Round The Old Oak Tree" fame. This was his attempt at Disco and it ain't a bad one. Never really having to stretch his vocals you wonder who it was that persuaded him to try the disco route.
More for the end of the night it's a mid-tempo floaty grinder. I used to work in a record shop at the time of its release and I always remember playing it in the shop and getting the customers to guess who it was that was singing. You can guess the reaction when they were told. Flip it over for a totally unrelated country tune more suited to Dawn. This was obviously only ever gonna be a one off.
Submitted by Sparky (15)
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Jan 08, 2007 | 12:56 pmWow!
The best I can do by way of description is: Tony Orlando over a Bee Gees-styled track. That does NOT sound promising, but the record is not bad at all.
It is quite different from Issac Hayes' disco remake and Roy Hamilton's afro-rockabilly original. And it works a serious dancer's record. Its long, slow breaks don't reinvent the wheel, but are carefully arranged.
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Jan 08, 2007 | 12:22 pm
Wow!
The best I can do by way of description is Tony Orlando over a Bee Gees-styled track. I know that does NOT sound promising.
But it's not bad at all. It certainly works a serious dancer's track, with its long, slow, carefully-arranged breaks.
Tony was just getting over a nervous breakdown upon this release. His best friend comedian Freddie Prince committed suicide a few months ago,and the stress made him walk off his TV variety show.
This was an attempt to get Tony noticed again, but without the Dawn name, it didn't go too far. Plus no one couldn't believe it was him doing a disco record.