GOOD THINGS COME :: Daniel Wang - Free Lovin'

Daniel Wang - Free Lovin'

If you love something, let it go, if it comes back to you it was always meant to be, if not it never was ... remember that quote? Well, it happened to me with this song, as it does with many others. See, I once had a catalog of thousands of digital downloads. This being one of those downloaded when I had an E-Music subscription.

I ended up not just losing one, but two hard drives filled with songs. This was one of those songs I couldn't get out of my head. I have tried to search for it, high and low using lyrics and other ways to no avail. Yesterday, I was going through Facebook memories and came across a mix I did. The download link no longer worked but the playlist was there. As I was going through it today, hoping to recreate the mix - I heard it. OMG! You can't escape from me song!

And that is the reason I blog, to share my passion with you. This is an amazing yet, simple track from Daniel Wang on his Balihu label. I hope you enjoy it as much as I have.



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DISCO DELITE :: The Evolution of Disco

The Evolution of Disco

I was talking to my hair stylist today about music and the topic quickly turned to disco. We both agreed that it still had a huge place in our hearts after all these years - or in his words "the kind of music that makes the lights sparkle!" I told him I would make him a mix with some of my favorite old and new disco tracks. I decided to do it here, so I could also explain some of the history and why these tracks mean so much to me. 

To understand disco, you really have to understand that disco was a product of the underground. More importantly, it helped to shine a light on many social issues concerning minorities, including people of color, women and most importantly - the gay community. It challenged the straight white male patriarchy and quickly gained some enemies. 

Disco combined the elements of funk, soul, pop and salsa. With its four on the floor beat, it was the anti-thesis of rock music. It could also be mixed easily creating DJ culture and a vibe that didn't have to be interrupted.

Some say that what we call disco, was original started in NYC, at a regular private party called The Loft - thrown by DJ David Mancuso. One of the songs seminal to those parties was "Soul Makossa" by Manu Dibango, which David found in a West Indian music store. The artist, originally from Cameroon had his track re-released as a US single in 1973 where it reached #35 in the charts.

Disco also reached popularity in Europe. Anita Meyer reached #1 in the Dutch charts in 1981. It's a great example of how strong female "diva" voices came to dominate disco. I love this track. It just screams passion.

Cloud One's "Disco Juice" is another favorite. It premiered in 1976 and like many disco tracks has been remixed into various house tracks.

As disco grew in popularity, it became regionalized. For example, there was the Philadelphia sound. Also remixes of songs from pop to movie soundtracks to classical became popular. Walter Murphy's 1976 remix of Beethoven's Fifth was incredibly popular and well done, I should add.

I want to skip ahead next to 2010 and a song that almost didn't happen - Midnight Magic's - "Beam Me Up". Observe the differences and similarities between disco from the 70's and today's music. Hailing from Brooklyn, Midnite Magic are on James Murphy's DFA Records label. James, of course, got his start from incorporating disco into his sets during his infamous Manhattan parties.




Boston's J Paul Getto is also highly influenced by the disco sound. This can be heard in another of my favorite tracks - "Space Disco" from 2011.




Let's get real now. There are probably no other two people that influenced disco more than the two that collaborated on this next disco gem - "I Feel Love". Donna Summer on vocals and Giorgio Moroder on track. Remember, I said how big disco was getting in Europe. Well, Giorgio might have done more than anyone to move that along. This one reached #6 in 1977, which is really an accomplishment considering it really it such a minimal song.




Moroder continues to work to this day. His contribution to disco and eventually electronic music can not be understated. Daft Punk recently brought him in to work on their latest album - as he was such a big influence to them. It's really amazing how the sounds and layout of Moroder's "The Chase" is to "I Feel Loved".




I don't know a lot about this next track. It's fairly recent and does a great job of combining the old and new elements of disco.




We've now come full circle. Why do I say that? Well because this last track combines a hip hop artist with a Nu-disco track. Disco's popularity eventually waned in the 80's, but not it's influence as hip hop DJ's took the skills that they had learned from disco DJ's to cut between records; as well as even sample disco. Would Sugar Hill's "Rapper's Delight" be as big as it was had it not sampled Chic's "Good Times". It's hard to say.




You can listen to the above tracks together in a Youtube playlist here.

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Disco hater Steve Dahl can rot in Hell

Fuck you @SteveDahlShow ... disco is still huge and you're still an insensitive prick!

— barrel~dEM (@barreldEM) September 15, 2015

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Todd Terje Essential Mix 2013

Todd Terje Essential Mix 2013

Enjoy this Essential Mix from Todd Terje from July 26 of this year. It's chock full of afrobeat, rare groove and disco.



Tracklist:
1.wally badarou - voices
2.riuichi sakamoto & robin scott - once in a lifetime
3.herb alpert - rotation
4.jim morrison - ghost song
5.guru guru - taoma
6.edu lobo - zanzibar
7.paul mauriat - from jupiter with love
8.juan laya & jorge montiel - cumbanchero
9.traks - wild safari (edit)
10.men at work - down under (chuck norris dub)
11.dennis brown - out of the funk
12.tanner ross - straight to the moon
13.tim green - cherry
14.let's get lost - 1002 nights
15.nese karaböcek - yali yali (edit)
16.angelo & eighteen - flight 2
17.status iv - you ain't really down (edit)
18.lone - lying in the reeds
19.chico hablas - los voladores (edit)
20.joe - r.e.j. bit
21.kitty winter - new morning (prins thomas edit)
22.shindai lovers - a little bit faster (prins thomas edit)
23.linus loves - skagg
24.steve miller band - serenade
25.sleazy mcqueen - mrs vanderbilt
26.guitar slim green - shake it up (edit)
27.gerry rafferty - right down the line (12" mix)
28.nicolette larson - lotta love (12" mix)

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Donna Summer - Bad Girls (Gigamesh Remix)

Donna Summer - Bad Girls (Gigamesh Remix)

I have been noticeably away from the site lately due to the new job and all the hours I am working ... assured the transition is just temporary, this blog is and will always be my first love. So to the music - Gigamesh might be, in my opinion - one of the greatest remixers out there. His version of - Michael Jackson's Don't Stop Till You Get Enough is still one of my favorite remixes and is still one of the top songs on my phone. Apparently, I just missed Gigamesh up the road at an all weekend festival last weekend in Woodbury, TN - but I'll always have his remixes to carry me through.



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FRIDAY EPICNESS :: Deodato - Also Sprach Zarathustra

Eumir Deodato (full name Eumir Deodato de Almeida, born 22 June 1943, Rio de Janeiro) is a Brazilian pianist, composer, record producer and arranger, primarily based in the jazz realm but who historically has been known for eclectic melding of big band and combo jazz with varied elements of rock/pop, R&B/funk, Brazilian/Latin, and symphonic or orchestral music. Mainly, his records can be categorized as pop/jazz or crossover jazz. His successes as an original artist (keyboards) occurred mainly in the 1970s. Since then, he has produced or arranged music in more than 500 albums for acts ranging from Kool and the Gang to Björk, Christophe and K.D. Lang.

His first album in the U.S., Prelude, released in 1972, was of a big band Latin jazz style that immediately attracted a wide audience. The album was produced by Creed Taylor on his CTI (Creed Taylor Inc.) label. The nine-minute funky version of Richard Strauss' Also Sprach Zarathustra, entitled "Also Sprach Zarathustra (2001)", won the 1974 Grammy Award for Best Pop Instrumental Performance. It went to No. 2 in the pop charts in the US, No. 3 in Canada, and No. 7 in the UK and was CTI's biggest single. The album climbed to No. 3 in the Billboard chart, the label's best-selling album and an amazing sales achievement for a jazz-based release



BONUS: Richard Strauss - Also Sprach Zarathustra (Young Punx Remix)


"My God It's Full of Stars" Boats

CLASSIC DISCO :: Manu Dibango - Soul Makossa

The first disco track to break onto the Billboard top ten, was Manu Dibango's "Soul Makossa". Actually, it was more African than disco based, but no matter, it paved the way for the disco revolution on this month in 1973.

"Soul Makossa" was a 1972 recording by the Paris-based Cameroonian artist Emmanual "Manu" Dibango, and it is now best remembered as the source of the rhythmic chant—"Mama-ko, mama-sa, maka-mako-sa"—that appears in Michael Jackson's "Wanna Be Startin' Somethin''" (1982) and Rihanna's "Don't Stop The Music" (2006). Issued on the French label Fiesta, "Soul Makossa" might never have been heard on this side of the Atlantic had disco legend and DJ, David Mancuso not pulled it from a shelf in a Jamaican record shop in Brooklyn one day in the spring of 1973 and, after hearing it, immediately recognized its percussion-heavy, Afro-Latin sound and repetitive chorus as absolutely perfect for the dance floor.

BONUS: Afrika Bambaataa - Soul Makossa


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CLASSIXX :: Supernature (Hot Toddy Remix)

Classixx
Supernature (Hot Toddy Remix)

WEBSITE: Classixx.LA

TWITTER: Twitter.com/Classixx

MYSPACE: Myspace.com/ClassixxMusic

FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/CLASSIXXOfficial

YOUTUBE: YouTube.com/CLASSIXXO…

Moon Boots - Backyard Boogie Mix (download)

Chicago disco-naut Moon Boots has just dropped a funky "Backyard Boogie Mix" just in time for your summer BBQ's and pool parties. The mix features some true gems, such as Chic - Good Times (Kon's Night Time Edit), Tropicool Monsoon Season - Green On Blue (Moon Boots Remix) and Sugarhill Gang - Hot Hot Summer Day (Theo Parrish Re-Edit).



TRACKLIST
0. Guy / Teddy's Jam

1. Patrice Rushen + Cosmic Kids / Remind Me (Le Nonsense Remix) + Whisper Softly

2. World Premiere / Share the Night (Breakdown Mix) 

3. Kurtis Blow + Next / Christmas Rappin (Instrumental) + Too Close (Acapella) 

4. Gino Soccio / Try It Out (Original + Instrumental)
5. Chic / Good Times (Kon's Night Time Edit) 

6. Young & Co + Pieces of a Dream / I Like It + Mt Airy Groove (Edit)

7. Fonda Rae / Over Like A Fat Rat

8. NV / It's Alright (Shep Pettibone Remix) 

9. Tropicool Monsoon Season / Green On Blue (Moon Boots Remix) 

10. Imagination / Burning Up (Koko Edit)

11. Earth, Wind & Fire / Brazilian Rhyme (Bozo Meko Edit)
12. T.S. Monk / Candidate For Love (Khidja Edit)
13. Alexander Robotnick / It's Alright Baby

14. Salsoul Orchestra + MFSB / Ooh I Love It (Greg Wilson Edit) + Love is the Message (Danny Krivit Edit)
15. Mary Wells / Take Me I'm Yours (Mercury Edit)

16. Sugarhill Gang / Hot Hot Summer Day (Theo Parrish Re-Edit)

DOWNLOAD

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YOU GOT AN ORGAN GOING THERE :: Giorgio Moroder - Tears

The godfather of disco, most recently known for a collaboration on the latest Daft Punk album, Giorgio Moroder has been making epic tunes for close to 50 years now. You might recognize Tears as the major sample used in DJ Shadow's Organ Grinder.

BONUS: Giorgio Moroder - From Here To Eternity


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81 AND BEYOND :: Connexional - Visione (Original Mix)

Visione
Connexional

Preview of Visione's upcoming E.P. "81 AND BEYOND" out on Beatport July released by Weather Beats

Best known for his remix of THE CHROMATICS "Tick of the Clock" on ITALIANS DO IT BETTER Records, VISIONE is a producer from Chicago who delves in many different styles ranging from hypnotic downtempo electro, 80's synthwave, Chillout and much more.

Follow on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/visione81 https://soundcloud.com/visione_official

Malente - I Like It (Riva Starr's Remix)

Here's a little disco infused house to start your week of right. I first heard this track a few years back on a Mixmag CD done by Duck Sauce a.k.a. A-Trak and Armand Van Helden.

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THE FATHER, SON AND :: Holy Ghost! - Dumb Disco Ideas

DFA alum Holy Ghost bring us an excellent 8 minute track with "Dumb Disco Ideas". Are they taking a piss at someone who is about to release an album of disco retro tracks? Who cares. "Dumb Disco Ideas" is catchy, upbeat and just plain groovy. The video is pretty clever as well.
9/10

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Phoenix - Trying To Be Cool (The Chainsmokers Remix) (download)

N.Y.C. based DJ / Producers Andrew Taggart and Andrew Winter a.k.a. The Chainsmokers have created "straight fiya" once again with their remix of Phoenix's "Trying To Be Cool". The Chainsmokers have spun with DJs around the world including Avicii, DJ AM, Steve Aoki, Pete Tong, Max Vangeli, Calvin Harris, and Mark Knight.

DOWNLOAD: https://soundcloud.com/thechainsmokers/trying-to-be-cool-the/download

BONUS: BINGO BALLS - Mixtape Monday feat. The Chainsmokers


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DO YOU LIKE BASS? ::- Classixx - I'll Get You feat. Jeppe

Classixx
I'll Get You feat. Jeppe
WEBSITE: Classixx.LA
TWITTER: Twitter.com/Classixx
MYSPACE: Myspace.com/ClassixxMusic
FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/CLASSIXXOfficial
YOUTUBE: YouTube.com/CLASSIXXOfficial

Holy Ghost! (Classixx Acacpulco Nights Version) - I Will Come Back

Holy Ghost! (Classixx Acacpulco Nights Version)
I Will Come Back

WEBSITE: Classixx.LA
TWITTER: Twitter.com/Classixx
MYSPACE: Myspace.com/ClassixxMusic
FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/CLASSIXXOfficial
YOUTUBE: YouTube.com/CLASSIXXOfficial

Classixx - Holdin on

Classixx
Holding on

WEBSITE: Classixx.LA
TWITTER: Twitter.com/Classixx
MYSPACE: Myspace.com/ClassixxMusic
FACEBOOK: Facebook.com/CLASSIXXOfficial
YOUTUBE: YouTube.com/CLASSIXXOfficial

ITALIANS DO IT BETTER :: Bottin - No Static (Official Video)

Bottin
No Static

"Bottin makes music only an Italian can make... probably. Take a youth spent against a background of old Italian Giallo soundtracks, add in late 70s Italian disco influences, a touch of free and easy west-coast vibe and a smattering of kitsch. That just about half describes Bottin".

http://www.bottin.it/
https://www.facebook.com/bottin1
https://soundcloud.com/bottin

SO TIGHT :: Gabriell - Giovanotty

Gabriell
Giovanotty

Two years old... however the treasure is unveiled... this track will take a hold on you...
serious shit right here!
https://www.facebook.com/gabriellgabriell https://soundcloud.com/gabriellgabriell

CHICAGO HOUSE EVOLVED :: All the same (VISIONE Original Mix) FREE DOWNLOAD

VISIONE
All the same

Formerly known as "Drew Id" - VISIONE is a producer from Chicago who delves in many different styles ranging from dark hypnotic hard hitting electro vibes to cinematic grooves all the way to chillout and indie dance... It is hard to pin down a genre to fit him in..

P.S.
Look for VISIONE's "Tick of the Clock: The stroke of Midnight Remix" on THE CHROMATICS re-release of their smash hit "Tick of the Clock" single in the next few weeks on I-tunes.. Limited Press Vinyl Edition release date TBA from ITALIANS DO IT BETTER records

Free Download: https://soundcloud.com/visione_official/limbo-wip
Follow on Soundcloud: https://soundcloud.com/visione_official