What springs to mind when we think of disco? 1960s, dance clubs, funky lights? It is a start, but there is a lot more to Disco then the few well know facts.
When the Disco Era Began
Disco first reared his head in the late 1960s. You could describe it as a genre of dance orientated pop, amalgamating elements of funk and soul music. It usually composes of soaring, often reverberated vocals, complimented by strings, horns, electric pianos and guitars. Disco remained a popular music form until the late 1970s. It was that successful that it led to its own dance routines and clothes fashion.
The first big disco performers in the mid 1970's were Donna Summer, Boney M., The Jackson 5, Barry White and ABBA. One of the first disco songs to reach number one in the charts was "Rock the Boat", a million seller song created by "The Hues Corporation" in 1974. Others soon followed with "Love's Theme", Barry White's Love Unlimited Orchestra, and the production of the first side-long disco mix vinyl album by Gloria Gaynor.
Well known Disco Icons
But it was the Bee Gees who became the face of disco. After challenging the Beatles in the late 1960s, the Bee Gees returned with a dramatic change in style which let to their first disco hit "Jive Talking", which formed part of their "Main Course" album, published in 1975. Their second album "Children of the world" was a follow up, including many famous disco songs including the worldwide hit "You should be dancing". Many non-disco artists recorded disco songs to take their share in the increasing popular music form.
During 1975 hits such as "Love to Love You, Baby" and "The Hustle" brought disco further into the mainstream. Othert famous disco songs were "Dancing Machine" from the Jackson 5. "You're the First, the Last, My Everything" from Barry White and "Lady Marmalade" from LaBelle. From 1976 to 1979 disco music was at its peak with film productions such as "Saturday Night Fever" and "Thank God It's Friday".
Many bands, such as ABBA, helped to spread disco around Europe and Australia, increasing its popularity. Dalida released a song called "J’attendrai", which proved a great hit in Canada and Japan.
In the early 1980s, disco music declined in popularity, but it still had an important influence on the dance genres produced in the 1980s and 1990s, better known as house and techno.