Friday, February 29, 2008

Disco Delivery #53:
Barbara Law - Take All Of Me (1979, Pavillion/Epic)



Don't just stand there wishin' for me.. go ahead, make your move..

Barbara Law - Take All Of Me
Barbara Law - Can You Read My Mind
Barbara Law - Love Shot
Barbara Law - Somethin's Burnin'
Barbara Law - Shake Your Bait


Several years back when I was really getting into Paul Sabu's disco productions, I had come across this album quite by chance (like most of them) at the used record shop. With Sabu being one of the main contributors to the album, that along with the sexy, inviting cover shots pretty much convinced me to buy it. Although Sabu wasn't actually credited as a producer on this one, as a guitarist and a songwriter on a couple of tracks, his stamp is all over the album. Recorded in Toronto (Manta Sound) and New York and produced by Can-Con record producer Harry Hinde, who had also produced The Raes and Susan Jacks, to name just a couple of the acts he produced on the Canadian scene, admittedly, the Canadian connection was another factor that swayed me. Interestingly, despite the Can-Con elements, they used a great deal of big American musicians on here. Aside from Paul Sabu, some of the ubiquitous names here include Maeretha Stewart (misspelled as Meritha Stewart), Yvonne Lewis and Cissy Houston with background vocals, Jimmy Maelen on percussion, one time Motown Funk Brother Bob Babbitt on bass and arrangements courtesy of yet another prominent Motown figure, David Van De Pitte.

With this being her apparent one and only album release, on the surface, Barbara Law appeared to me like yet another one-shot disco singer of her time - identity and background a complete mystery, briefly achieving some success during the disco era but otherwise fading into obscurity swiftly thereafter. However, a quick look at her IMDB profile revealed a little bit more. A Genie (one of the Canadian movie awards) nominated actress for her role in a little 1984 erotic thriller, "Bedroom Eyes," Law seems to have a respectable list of acting credits to her name, mostly in Canadian productions up to 1997. Prior to the acting and the disco however, in her native Ireland, Barbara Law, then known as Barbara Dixon was a singer in a little, albeit unfortunately named female trio - Maxi, Dick & Twink, 'Maxi' being Irene McCoubrey, 'Dick' being Barbara, and 'Twink' being Adele King (both 'Maxi' and 'Twink' have gone on to become prominent media personalities in Ireland).. Although the group seemed to have a pretty brief run of things in the late 60's/early 70's, they were reportedly one of the most popular girl groups in Ireland at the time. Their best known single would most likely be "Things You Hear About Me" (hear the song here), which placed second in the contest to represent Ireland at the 1970 Eurovision Song Contest. After briefly becoming the singer for a group called The Royal Showband, Barbara would emigrate to Canada and marry another singer, Peter Law of yet another group in the same scene, The Pacific Showband (AKA The Dublin Corporation).. There's a ton of information on the world of Irish showbands/groups that Barbara circulated in at this time, including vintage pix of the lady herself at irishshowbands.net.

Anyway, that all brings us to this album, released 1979 on DJ/disco mixer John Luongo's CBS associated Pavillion label. A rather safe, slick, largely middle-of-the-road disco affair for the most part, it's not something I'd consider to be a classic album by any stretch, but it definitely has it's good moments along with some rather dire ones, as well. For me though, the best of the bunch would have to be the title track, "Take All Of Me." A nice piece of dramatic midtempo disco, with a slightly twangy intro, hypnotic bass and infectious guitar refrain (which I'm guessing was courtesy of Sabu) complimented with some pretty, uplifting string arrangements and percussion hooks/fill-ins, it's seven minutes of sensual disco bliss. An irresistable invitation, with it's pleasant melody and sexy lyrics, it seemed perfectly suited to Barbara Law's somewhat smoky, gritty delivery. Both sexy and assertive, her voice seemed to be perfectly balanced between vulnerability and edginess, this song bringing out the best qualities in her voice, unlike many of the others on the album.. Not surprisingly, it was also the single off the album, charting on the Billboard disco charts at #31. As far as I know, the 12" and album versions are identical, mixed by John Luongo and Michael Barbiero who together had also mixed disco hits like Jackie Moore's "This Time Baby" and Dan Hartman's "Relight My Fire," among others. As far as this mix goes, among other things, I love the break which not only has some great bass and percussion, but is pretty generous on the cowbell, too..

The second track, "Can You Read My Mind" pretty much continues in the same middle-of-the-road disco direction, which is halfway pleasant, but not quite as good as the title track; her edgy vocal style feeling somewhat disconnected from the overly twee, flowery arrangements at times. After trying out a little ballad "On My Own Again," they end Side One with "I Just Live" (audio link) a complete and total mess, which is most likely the worst track on the entire album. Interestingly, it was the first of two songs on the album written by the renowned team of Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris, the same guys who wrote The Raes' big hit "A Little Lovin' (Keeps The Doctor Away)" as well as Gloria Gaynor's "I Will Survive," no less. Unfortunately, this one's not even close to either of those. Opening with what sounds like a signature Paul Sabu guitar refrain, not surprisingly they try to turn her into a rough and ready disco-rock singer of some sort, however the lightweight production never really takes off. Granted, there's probably only so much one can do with incredibly trite lyrics like: "I just live every minute and.. I just love.. and I love to live..uh-huh and I love to luh-huh-huh-uve." However, if you do manage to get to the end of the song, Barbara's gravelly vocals end up sounding so parched by then, you'll likely find yourself either reaching straight for the needle or the nearest bag of throat lozenges.. In spite of all that though, I'll admit that the original version of this song by Demis Roussos, taken off his 1978 self-titled album (produced by Perren himself) works much better than this version.

The second Perren/Fekaris contribution on the album, "Love Shot" fares somewhat better. Catchy and with a chorus like: "love shot, gimme all you got.. make it quick, 'cause I'm real sick," it's more than just a little on the campy side. Granted, it's no "I Will Survive" either, but it's certainly a little easier on the ears than their other contribution. Just like that song however, this one's also a cover, originally performed by the actor Lawrence Hilton-Jacobs off his 1979 album "All the Way...Love" (ABC) (also produced by Perren).

The remaining three tracks on Side Two were turned over to less typical, more rock oriented disco fare for which Paul Sabu contributed two tracks - "Do It All Night," and "Shake Your Bait" (which would both end up on the soundtrack of a 1982 film, "Spring Fever"). The best of this bunch however is probably "Somethin's Burnin'." A little over-the-top to be sure, but with an arrangement that's a little heavier, yet not overly frantic, along with some special effects not altogether foreign from some Paul Sabu productions of the time, it's one that's actually grown on me. With Barbara's vocals probably best described as 'disco queen-channels-metal queen,' wailing and growling her way through the whole thing - really, what's not to love?

Ouf of the two Paul Sabu contributions that I had mentioned, the better one is probably "Shake Your Bait," which, if the title didn't give away, is cheesy as hell, but definitely one of the more obviously disco oriented tracks on the album. Written by both Sabu and Hinde, it's feels like a typical Paul Sabu track, with it's propulsive backing and rock oriented vocal delivery, and Barbara practically burning and growling her voice out, commanding everyone to 'shake their bait,' like it was an order, dammit! For the most part though, it pretty much picks up where the previous track left off, the punchy guitars and horn arrangements being probably the best parts of this track. Although the production values are lighter than a typical Sabu track, and even if he isn't actually credited as a producer, I wouldn't be surprised if Sabu had some input in the production of this one, as this likely wouldn't have been out of place on some of his own productions like the Ann-Margret or Sister Power albums he did.

Overall though, as far as the entire record is concerned, while not entirely bad, I'd still put the results somewhat on the mediocre side. One of those albums where you suspect that the only reason they went in a disco direction was because they thought that's what would sell, not so much because anyone had anything interesting to offer. That said, the title track along with the last couple of tracks are probably the only songs on the entire LP that stand out among the sort of pleasant, but ultimately bland 'corporate disco' filler that typified a good portion of the record. For what I paid though, the wonderful title track alone was worth the purchase. Certainly not something to search tirelessly for, but worth picking up for those who enjoy, say Harry Hinde's disco work with The Raes or Paul Sabu's productions.

Some Trivia: I'm not sure how many times producer Harry Hinde and Paul Sabu had collaborated prior to or after 1979, but nearly a decade later, they would end up collaborating again on some of the first recordings by a then unknown, up and coming singer from Northern Ontario named Eileen Twain. Nothing would end up happening with those recordings until years later, when Eileen Twain hit it big in the mid 90's as country-pop star Shania Twain. Since then, both Hinde and Sabu have licensed and released those recordings to various assortments of low-budget labels and under just as many titles and ending up in some requisite legal wrangling in the process..

LINKS:
BARBARA LAW - TAKE ALL OF ME LP @ DISCOGS
HARRY HINDE @ DISCOGS
PAUL SABU @ DISCOGS
THE POP CULTURE CANTINA - THE LEGEND OF PAUL SABU (APRIL 12, 2007)
MAXI, DICK & TWINK @ IRISH BEAT-GROUPS ARCHIVE
JOHN LUONGO @ DISCO-DISCO.COM
MICHAEL BARBIERO @ DISCOGS

CATEGORIES: DISCO DELIVERIES, CAN-CON DISCO

Wednesday, February 20, 2008

New Donna Summer album coming in May..


I know there's been a lack of updates on here lately, but I figure this was as good a time as any to update everyone on Donna Summer's record deal and upcoming album, which I had first posted about back in August '06..

Aside from the little crumbs of info that have slowly leaked out in the last year or so, firm details regarding her next album, entitled "Crayons," tentatively scheduled for a May 20th release, are finally starting to come out. Promos for one of the songs, "I'm A Fire" have already been released and are circulating among fans and DJ's. The first promo includes remixes by the likes of Craig C, RedTop and Solitaire, which aim straight for the gay clubs, and seem to be getting a positive response so far. Although the mixes by Solitaire and Craig C. are especially good; with it's sleek, sexy sound, the best version is undoubtedly the original mix, her voice sounding as powerful and vital as ever.. It's no "Love To Love You.." or "I Feel Love," or anything extraordinarily cutting-edge for that matter, but with more than a few shades of lounge/deep house, it's a gracefully sensual, uplifting dance track in it's own right. Mature enough to suit her age and not engage in any desperate trend-riding, yet still fresh enough to reintroduce her to a current audience and capture the attention of longtime fans.

For a little background, the alleged producer of this track, Sebastian Arocha Morton AKA ROCAsound was one of the first names to be associated with this project last summer (the other was collaborator Vikter Duplaix). Notably, Morton was also behind Samantha James' Billboard #1 Dance hit, "Rise," and her album of the same name. Can't help but detect elements of the deep house/'electronic soul' style in both this and the Samantha James tracks; in other words, somewhat similar to some of the Jay Denes/Naked Music releases by the likes of Aya, Blue Six etc.. and some of Jody Watley's more recent work. Although "I'm A Fire" seems to be somewhere in between that and a more mainstream style (higher tempo, more assertive vocal); the tracks from the Samantha James album (which can be heard in full on her Myspace) might give a bit of an idea of what Morton's contributions on Donna's record might sound like (that is, if there are any others).

In addition to this first promo, a second set of remixes is also being sent out. In Da Mix Worldwide has some details along with a preview of one of them, called the Soulflower Mix..

Surprisingly (or perhaps not so surprisingly) "I'm A Fire" has already been leaked to YouTube. I could easily envision an Afterlife style chill-out mix on this track. Take a listen:



Donna Summer - I'm A Fire (Sebastian's Original Mix)
Uploaded by iamafire

Despite this bring the first song to be leaked out, it must be noted apparently a different single will be serviced to radio. That first single is reportedly slated to be a song called either "Stamp" or "Stamp Your Feet," promos set to be distributed next month. Judging from the review of that song on the So, and Thus.. blog, it definitely looks like they're making an effort to aim for a more current pop audience on that particular track. Reminds me of what Burgundy did with Chaka Khan album, when they led off with a single - "Disrespectful" (feat. Mary J. Blige), that was clearly meant to appeal to a younger demographic. Anyway, I haven't heard it yet so I'll reserve judgement until I actually do.

As far as the album goes, some of the producers on the record aside from Sebastian Arocha Morton AKA ROCAsound (Jody Watley, Samantha James) reportedly include Greg Kurstin (Lily Allen, Peaches, Sophie Ellis-Bextor, Kylie Minogue - see her latest single, "Wow"), J.R. Rotem and Evan 'Kidd' Bogart (Rihanna, Sean Kingston), son of late Casablanca founder, Neil Bogart, no less. The Freemasons were also reported to be on the album earlier last year, however, it's uncertain whether anything actually came out of that.. Some of the other collaborators that have been reported so far include singer/songwriter/actor Danielle Brisebois, Toby Gad, Fergie, Kandi Burruss and hip-hop violinist Miri Ben-Ari.. Some additional collaborators and song titles reported to be on the album were also posted by a fan on the prince.org forums last November. Granted some of these are unofficially reported, so who knows if all of the collaborators will appear on the record, however the first official press on the upcoming album in Billboard (published on February 25th) and the official press release (published February 26th) confirmed some of these listed here, along with Lester Mendez (Carlos Santana, Shakira, Nelly Furtado) listed in the earlier prince.org posting.

Donna Summer Inks With Burgundy
February 25, 2008, 11:10 AM ET
Jonathan Cohen, N.Y.


Donna Summer will break a 17-year drought of studio albums with all new material thanks to a new deal with Sony BMG's Burgundy Records. Dubbed "Crayons," the project will arrive May 20.

Summer is working with a wide range of collaborators, including Danielle Brisebois, Greg Kurstin, J.R. Rotem, Lester Mendez and Evan Bogart.

"My dream is that when people hear the music it will remind them of their youth, their childhood and the joy and wonderment they felt exploring their first pack of crayons," Summer says. (read full article)

For her first original album since "Mistaken Identity" (1991, Atlantic) all of seventeen years ago, it's definitely encouraging to see her moving forward and working with some current producers and songwriters. If anything, from what I've heard so far, it's certainly preferrable (and I know I've said this already) to the dire trend of veteran artists releasing cover albums. With Burgundy having come off a successful run with their last major release, Chaka Khan's "Funk This," which peaked at #5 on the Billboard R&B charts (her highest charting album since the mid-80s), spawned a #1 Billboard club hit and two Grammy Awards last week, it seems they're gearing up to make this at least equally successful. Either way, after all the bits of new material and all the false starts in the past several years, it's definitely an exciting time to be a Donna Summer fan.

Updates:

  • 2/20/08: The first picture of a possible album cover (now placed at top of the post) has been tracked down on the Croatian site Menart Records, which also lists six of the possible titles on the album... Credit to Cathy, the Donna Tribute webmistress and the Endless Summer Forum for the photo link..
  • 2/25/08: Added names to list of collaborators, added links to first official press and corrected release date. The initial, widely circulated date of May 6th has been corrected to May 20th, which has been confirmed on the first two pieces of official press published in Billboard Magazine and on the website of A&R Consultants Pure Tone Music.
  • 2/29/08: Added link to official press release. Album artwork posted on the 20th now confirmed as the official album cover via the Official Donna Summer Website - added a much clearer album image.

    PREVIOUS RELATED ENTRIES:
    BBC RADIO 2: CLASSIC SINGLES - I FEEL LOVE (SUNDAY DECEMBER 30, 2007)
    TWIGGY DOES DISCO.. (WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM DONNA) (TUESDAY SEPTEMBER 18, 2007)
    NEW DEAL FOR DONNA (THURSDAY AUGUST 3, 2006)
    DONNA SUMMER - I GOT YOUR LOVE (MONDAY JANUARY 16, 2006)

    DISCO DELIVERY #52: STAINLESS STEAL - CAN-CAN (1978, WARNER BROS.) (TUESDAY FEBRUARY 5, 2008)
    DISCO DELIVERY #40: MUNICH MACHINE - A WHITER SHADE OF PALE (1978, CASABLANCA) (SUNDAY APRIL 29, 2007)
    DISCO DELIVERY #14: SUZI LANE - OOH LA LA (1979, ELEKTRA) (SATURDAY APRIL 8, 2006)
    DISCO DELIVERY #5: GIORGIO MORODER - FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1977, OASIS/CASABLANCA) (FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3, 2006)

    LINKS:
    PR NEWSWIRE - OFFICIAL PRESS RELEASE (TUESDAY FEBRUARY 26, 2008)
    BILLBOARD - DONNA SUMMER INKS WITH BURGUNDY (BY JONATHAN COHEN) (MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2008)
    PURE TONE MUSIC - THE QUEEN IS BACK: DONNA SUMMER MAKES LONG-AWAITED RETURN WITH FIRST STUDIO ALBUM IN 17 YEARS! (MONDAY FEBRUARY 25, 2008)
    SO, AND THUS..: STAMP YOUR FEET - DONNA SUMMER'S NEW SINGLE (FEBRUARY 17. 2008)

    DONNA TRIBUTE - NEWS
    DONNA SUMMER - OFFICIAL WEBSITE
    DONNA SUMMER @ WIKIPEDIA
    DONNA SUMMER @ BURGUNDY RECORDS
    ASCAP - SONGS WRITTEN BY: SUMMER, DONNA A.
    IN DA MIX WORLWIDE - DONNA SUMMER - I'M A FIRE (SOULFLOWER MIX) (WEDNESDAY FEBRUARY 20, 2007)
    PRINCE.ORG FORUM - DETAILS ON DONNA SUMMER'S UPCOMING ALBUM (NOVEMBER 8, 2007)
    SEBASTIAN AROCHA MORTON - ROCASOUND
    SEBASTIAN AROCHA MORTON @ DISCOGS
    SEBASTIAN AROCHA MORTON (ROCASOUND) @ DISCOGS (SEPARATE ENTRY)
    GREG KURSTIN @ EMI MUSIC PUBLISHING
    GREG KURSTIN @ DISCOGS
    EVAN 'KIDD' BOGART @ WIKIPEDIA
    EVAN 'KIDD' BOGART @ MYSPACE
    DANIELLE BRISEBOIS @ WIKIPEDIA
    DANIELLE BRISEBOIS @ MYSPACE
    DANIELLE BRISEBOIS OFFICIAL SITE
    TOBY GAD OFFICIAL SITE
    TOBY GAD VIDEO BLOG - WEBISODE 5 FEAT. DONNA SUMMER, BC JEAN
    BURGUNDY RECORDS @ WIKIPEDIA

    CATEGORIES: DISCO NEWS, NUDISCO
  • Tuesday, February 05, 2008

    Disco Delivery #52:
    Stainless Steal - Can-Can (1978, Warner Bros.)



    Stainless Steal - More Than Meets The Eye
    Stainless Steal - Messing With You (Is Like Messing With The Devil)
    Stainless Steal - It All Comes Down To Love
    Stainless Steal - Can-Can

    These days, Giorgio Moroder's well deserved reputation as an innovator and pioneer in disco and in electronic music has become quite firmly established (and well-explored on a few of my previous entries). However, the contributions of his frequent right-hand man/ co-producer, (particularly with their material for Donna Summer and Roberta Kelly), Pete Bellotte seems to have been somewhat overlooked in comparison. With so much of the focus being on Moroder's innovations, often times on the albums where they're both credited as producers, it's not always clear where one's contributions ended and the other's began..

    In listening to some of Bellotte's productions outside of his partnership with Moroder, the easy way to describe Bellotte's style (in relation to the Moroder/Bellotte productions) would probably be to envision a heightened emphasis on the rhythm section. While that's obviously an oversimplification, in comparison to a lot of the Moroder or Moroder/Bellotte records, the synthesized element, while still prominent, rarely seemed to go beyond sweetening or colouring on most of Bellotte's productions.. More specifically though, Bellotte's productions seemed to have a distinct emphasis and style particularly on the guitars and horns, which is especially evident on this album and is perhaps Bellotte's most obvious stylistic stamp.

    Comparing the output of Moroder & Bellotte individually, I'd say Moroder's own productions were generally much more consistent and distinctive, not to mention more prolific than Bellotte's. I'd give him that distinction even just for the excellent Suzi Lane and Battlestar Galactica records he did. Bellotte's output, on the other hand, while not without it's high points, was obviously less so. Case in point, Elton John's "Victim Of Love" (1979, MCA) album, evidently Bellotte's most prominent effort as a solo producer, it would give him the dubious distinction of having produced what is likely the most discredited effort of Elton John's career. It's a record that's been so widely maligned by fans and critics alike that even the artist himself has since disowned it. Then again, to be fair, Giorgio also gave us The Sylvers' lamentable effort (or non-effort as it were) "Disco Fever" (1979, Casablanca), so I suppose it goes without saying that Moroder certainly had his share as well...

    Anyway, point is - duds aside, Bellotte still managed to deliver some rather underrated work in his own right. This album in particular, evidently one of his lesser known productions has some of my favourite work of his. Produced of course by Bellotte, arranged by frequent collaborator Geoff Bastow, I'd assume some of the usual Munich Machine suspects (Keith Forsey, Gary Unwin, Thor Baldursson etc.. ) also had a hand in this, but with the back cover giving out no musican credits and little else aside from bum of an anonymous model, there's really no telling for sure.. The one name that does stand out in the brief credits is Jimmy Simpson, who mixed the entire album and is also likely responsible for a good deal of it's excellence as well. Prolific as Simpson was, this is seems to be the first (and so far the only) time I've seen his name attached to anything associated with Moroder or Bellotte or any of their circle of collaborators.

    Taking up all of side one, the main attraction on the record seems to have been the bombastic 14 minute disco version of the Can-Can (AKA Jacques Offenbach's "Galop Infernal"). Straight out of the "do a disco version of anything and it'll sell" school of thought, as an idea, it's as derivative as it gets.. With it being a classical piece associated with dancing, I suppose someone would have done it eventually.. That said, as much as something like this isn't really supposed to be any good, it's redeemed quite wonderfully by some great arrangements and improvisation, which keep things exciting and engaging. Certainly no small feat with 14 minutes at one's disposal. The sections at the 3 minute and the 11 minute marks are especially nice, with the arrangements at both points putting an unmistakable 'Munich Machine' stamp on things. In some ways this reminds me somewhat of the disco remake of Handel's Messiah, AKA "Hallelujah 2000" by Hallelujah 2000, particularly at the start and the finish, so fans of that might enjoy this one as well. Granted, this track's perhaps a bit too twee and bombastic to sway any disco cynics, and while I wouldn't exactly consider it a highly inspired moment myself, it definitely comes across much better than one might expect it to..

    For me though the best part of the record would have to be the three tracks on side two - all written by Bellotte & Bastow. All three are similar in their feel and tempo and are fairly minimal in their lyrics, largely consisting of the repetition of the title verse (or variaton of it) by an anonymous vocal chorus. Instrumentally speaking though, I find these to be some of the best examples of Bellotte's own sound and style. Sublime, yet lively and even whimsical at times, the distinctive synth sweetening, somewhat lighter than those on a Moroder production, along with the prominence of those signature guitar riffs (which I'm guessing are courtesy of either arranger Geoff Bastow or Mats Björklund) and horns are all over these tracks.

    As far as the tracks themselves go, "More Than Meets The Eye" is the wordiest (which isn't really saying much) and perhaps the strongest of the three.. Opening with a simple, funky guitar line easing into a sublime string arrangement; with those signature guitar riffs and shooting synth stabs, it manages to makes an strong impression without the bombast of the A-side. The following track, "Messing With You (Is Like Messing With The Devil)" is probably the most synth heavy, opening with a great loopy, whimsical synth, with the delicate string arrangements pretty much taking over from there. However, the sexy, blissful break in the middle of the track, laden with strings and a sly bassline is definitely one of the highlights on here, definitely my favourite part of the track. The last selection on the album, "It All Comes Down To Love," a fun little track with it's unmistakable strut and warm keys which probably make it the most identifiable with the established Munich disco sound that he and Moroder as well as the likes of Kunze/Levay had pioneered. It has to be said here as well, that the sensual break, with the wispery vocals and lush instrumentation are to die for.

    For me, one of the things that I notice about the side two tracks are how spacious and, in a way, less frantic than say, the A-side and some of Belotte's other, more well-known productions like Trax's "Watch Out For The Boogie Man!" Marsha Hunt's "The Other Side Of Midnight," and Melba Moore's "Burn" to name a few of the ones I've heard so far. Perhaps that is where Jimmy Simpson's involvement may have come in... Overall though, while all three tracks seemed to rely on repeated lyrics and hooky riffs to some degree, these three tracks are mixed and arranged well enough that there's enough interesting musical variation in them to balance out the repetition (the wonderful string-laden instrumental section in the middle of "Messing With You" to name one good example).

    While this is likely the most anonymous out of all the albums Pete Bellotte produced, not to mention one which seemed to come and go without a trace (perhaps even moreso than usual), this has definitely become one of my favourite Bellotte solo productions.. When I had stumbled across this album a little while back, it honestly wasn't one that I had especially high hopes for, especially given how anonymous and unknown it was (in spite of it's well-known producer). At best, I was hoping for at least something worthwhile - one track, even. At the very least, after listening to the album I would have been able to say that I'd heard all fourteen minutes of a disco version of the Can-Can and lived to tell it... Nevertheless, all that aside, this little album pretty much exceeded my initial expectations. The fact that it was a production from a recognizable which I hadn't heard or heard of before proved to be an added bonus. I guess the most rewarding finds are often the most unexpected.

    Just a little side note: While Bellotte seems to have kept a rather low profile, the BBC caught up with him for a brief update/interview in 2004 just around the time he was inducted (with Giorgio Moroder and Donna Summer) into the Dance Music Hall Of Fame (which seems to be up in the air, as of this writing). The article: "In Tune With Britain's Disco King" is the most recent interview that I've found with him so far...

    PREVIOUS RELATED ENTRIES:
    BBC RADIO 2: CLASSIC SINGLES - I FEEL LOVE (SATURDAY DECEMBER 30, 2007)
    DISCO DELIVERY #43: WARDELL PIPER (1979, MIDSONG INTERNATIONAL) (MONDAY AUGUST 27, 2007)
    DISCO DELIVERY #40: MUNICH MACHINE - A WHITER SHADE OF PALE (1978, CASABLANCA) (SUNDAY APRIL 29, 2007)
    DISCO DELIVERY #14: SUZI LANE - OOH LA LA (1979, ELEKTRA) (SATURDAY APRIL 8, 2006)
    DISCO DELIVERY #5: GIORGIO MORODER - FROM HERE TO ETERNITY (1977, OASIS/CASABLANCA) (FRIDAY FEBRUARY 3, 2006)

    LINKS:
    STAINLESS STEAL - CAN-CAN LP @ DISCOGS
    PETE BELLOTTE @ DISCOGS
    PETE BELLOTTE @ ALL MUSIC GUIDE
    BBC NEWS: IN TUNE WITH BRITAIN'S DISCO KING (BY TOM BISHOP) (WEDNESDAY SEPTEMBER 29, 2004)

    CATEGORIES: DISCO DELIVERIES, WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO..

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