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In the early eighties people started to cry out that Disco was dead. They laughed and made jokes about that awful music
style that finally would end.... But did Disco really die?
Disco music was with it's 4 in a bar rhythm made for dancin' and since people likes to dance - it isn't surprising that
this music style became so popular as it did. The late seventies WAS the Disco era!
When Disco "died", it just came out alive in new different shapes. It got new names like; Hi-Nrg, House, Italo-disco,
Euro, Garage (after the legendary New York club - Paradise Garage) and it
gets new names commin' all the time...
There are some differences between Disco and all the new types of Disco - I choose to call them all Dance music from now
on - since that's what it's made for... Get people to "Dance, dance, dance" (like
Chic used to sing already in 1977).
All the classical Disco tunes hade real people behind each instrument. There was this drummer playing that didn't get
everything perfectly in rhythm through a whole song and a piano player that played a tone wrong and stuff like that.
This is part of the charm of Disco - besides it's a GREAT music style that have had a big impact on many peoples lives.
In Disco they often used big powerful arrangements, often with many musicians involved in kind of orchestral settings.
They used horn-, string- and rhythm sections to make this great concert like tunes and the masters of this Orchestral
Disco is undoubtly the Salsoul Orchestra - led by the one and only Vince Montana Jr.
From these orchestra's and real musicians that Disco used - the Dance music scene took on the line
Giorgio Moroder had started by using "synths" instead of some of the
musicians. Together with other new technical equipments a Dance music production didn't use all the people involved in
a Disco production. The people involved in a recording have been cut down from these big productions to just a couple
of people handeling some synths and drum machines.
Don't take me wrong now... I love the "Disco of today", ie Dance music, but I think Disco is more alive and got more
feelings than todays dance tracks. But to bring back that feeling - todays "musicians" often choose to sample old songs...
and mostly it's old Disco songs that's sampled or covered. For example Will Smith's "Men in Black" is based
on Patrice Rushen's "Forget me nots" and Will's latest release is based on a Sister Sledge tune.
And a list like this could go on forever...
SO... To get back to my opening question - Is Disco really dead? What do YOU think?
I'd say it's NOT! Just listen to all the Disco samples, covers, remixes and influences you hear in todays music - and
I guess this kind of proves that Disco's NOT dead!
Maybe Disco was out in the cold for a while - But now it's back stronger than ever!
Disco is NOT dead - LONG LIVE DISCO!!!
Take care and Disco-on,
"Discoguy"
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