David Christie - Love Is The Most Important Thing

Here is an early David Christie LP I came across in a Jersey City record store that Michael Simonetti put me onto when I was in NYC in January.


Some of you may know of my LOVE of Mr. Christie due in large part to his one US album, Back Fire, which had amazing production by Tom Moulton on it.

Love Is The Most Important Thing predates Back Fire by a couple of years, and the production work on it is all by Christie himself, who was quite a force in the Euro disco scene. He even recorded a song that was up for competition in the 70's for the french selection of Eurovision (sorry, i'm not totally clear on the year....).

The songs on this are all written by Christie under his nom de plume, James Bolden. We have the original version of "Don't Stop Me" (which would get a stellar remix by Moulton on Back Fire, which you can find here.) as well as a medley of some of his other hits for people like Tina Charles, "Bolden's Medley". There's a rocker with a great build-up called "All Night Man" and a great semi-calypso swing number called "Ain't No Two Ways About It".


As for more info on Christie.... From the back of the album:

Le Nom James Bolden s'est trouve sur quelque 20 millions de disques vendus dans le monde entier entre 1976 et 1978. Bolden est le pseudonyme de David Christie en tant que compositeur. Bolden/Christie avec Jack Robinson comme auteur ont produit des "Tubes" pour Gloria Gaynor, Tina Charles, Demis Roussos, Morris Albert, Jimmy James, James Last, Les Humphrie Singers, Etc. "Le Medley" comport trois de ses succes qui ont figure en tete des hit parades Anglo-Americains.

But I don't speak french so that really does me no good!

A couple of other names of note on the album: Ex-Allman Bros. guitarist, Jerry Groom, and the legendary electronic musician/producer/engineer Harry Thumann.

David Christie - Love Is The Most Important Thing


David Christie - Ain't No Two Ways About It


David Christie - Bolden's Medley (Love Me Like A Lover, Do It Yourself, I Love To Love)


David Christie - Don't Stop Me

Spectacular Re-ups!

Roberta Kelly - Zodiac Lady

Revelation - Get In Touch

Disco Spectacular - Hair

Grace Jones - Muse Re-Up

Great old Grace Jones album, Muse. Finally Re-uped!

Loggins & Messina - Pathway To Glory

Sorry it's been so long folks. School's out and I seem to have less and less time. And I also really wanted to highlight that last mix and let it really float out there for awhile.

Recently there's been the publication of a fantastic new book on the history of disco. The Disco Files 1973-1978: New York's Underground, Week By Week By Vince Aletti is trully a revelation!

Vince Aletti was a writer for Record World, a weekly publication dedicated to reviewing the new records being played out on radio and in clubs. Aletti's beat was disco and he knew it well. The book contains every article during the time Aletti wrote for the publication, and includes charts from DJs. The Disco Files also contains info about tons of forgotten classic disco records, many pictures of covers and stories from the DJs and club owners about what records were hot each week and how they moved the clubs.

If you are at all a disco freak like I am, then FIND THIS BOOK!


One of the things Aletti writes about throughout the book is songs that come from left field and somehow miraculously become cult disco hits. Some of these shock and surprise me when I read about them.

The first one I came across was a track off an old Loggins & Messina record called Full Sail. The track, "Pathway To Glory" is an 8 minute plus opus that moves from mellow minor key violin solo to full-fledged rock out and back to new folk singer/songwriter style in it's short life. It was championed by brother DJs working two separate clubs, Gary and James "Tank" Broaddus.


I still am grappling with how exactly this might have been played out in early discos. The article it is mentioned in is from the week of December 14th, 1974. In the article Aletti writes:

Though there are bound to be challenges to Gary Broaddus' claim to be "the only deejay who can have black people dancing to rock music," it's obvious from his top 10 list this week that he's into something rather unique. Gary, now at New York's Leviticus after a series of club jobs stretching back to 1968 and his brother "Tank," who plays at the after-hours Liquid Smoke, both report playing Loggins & Messsina's long, largely instrumental "Pathway To Glory"... to strong response, mostly from Black Crowds. Loggins & Messina are hardly standard discotheque fare, but the Broaddus brothers' enthusiasm for the group has spread to their crowds and Gary says "Pathway" is now "by far the number one choice" at his club.

I'll be highlighting some other mini-reviews in the upcoming weeks as well, when I run across something worth noting.

Until then enjoy this crazy left-field disco cut!

Loggins & Messina - Pathway To Glory


UPDATE: In the comments, Bill from DJhistory.com, who worked very hard compiling these articles and publishing this book says, "You can buy the book direct from us at:
http://www.djhistory.com/books/disco-files".

So do it already!

Next Disco: Club Nouveau 2

Well, here is the latest mix!



Taking you somewhat backwards and forwards through time, from what I think of as the first Re-Edits (Black Cock) to some of my favorite Nouveau Disco out right now, backwards to some great unheard disco classics.

Hope you all enjoy.

As usual, the tracklist should show up in iPods under "lyrics", or just pop up when you touch your iPhone or iPod Touch while it plays. For others, tracklist below.

H.M.A. (Cybertramp) - Next Disco: Club Nouveau 2

1. No Way Back - Black Cock (Black Cock)
2. Stahl Rig - Petite Storm - In Flagranti (RVNG)
3. X-Factor - Patrick Cowley
4. Kuk Av Stål - Blackbelt Anderson
5. The Garden (Greg Wilson Version) - Yolanta Sy
6. Driving On Broadway - Supersonic Lovers
7. How Long - Lipps Inc.
8. My Way Or The Highway - The Beat Brokers
9. Mercurian (Main Mix) - Blackjoy
10. Are You Vegetarian? - Joakim
11. D.I.S.C.O. - Ottowan
12. Oh Missy (Extended) - Woolfy
13. Stairway To Heaven - The Wonder Band
14. My Baby's Baby - Liquid Gold
15. Black Jack - Baciotti
16. Just Take My Body - Rudy
17. Magic Bird Of Fire - Salsoul Orchestra

Tina Charles - I Love To Love

Okay, I admit it. I LOVE Tina's helium inflated vocals.


Practically unheard of here in the U.S. Tina Charles blasted onto the U.K. charts in 1976 with her version of the song "I Love To Love (But My Baby Just Loves To Dance)". What is not to like about this track? Written by French songwriters J. Robinson and J. Bolden (aka David Christie! Hello!...Awesome!) and produced by disco-lounge great Biddu the song soars into the upper register with big key change at the end. (How much do I love this track!?!? I'm learning it on my new Ukulele!)

How much do you LOVE this Gangsta pic?!?!?

Bits of the album are also quite nice! Check out her re-recorded first single, "You Set My Heart On Fire" and " Love Me LIke A Lover" (yet another Christie penned tune).

On her next LP she'd release a version of the song "I'll Go Where The Music Takes Me". Honestly I don't like the original recording of that track very much. Production-wise it's a bit all over the place. The various parts of the song don't integrate very well with each other.


So I was surprised when I came upon this remixed version from 1987. Remixed for the European market by a french producer named Thierry Rogen, it blends the different sections of the song into a much more fluid-sounding single. I love this version.

So that's what you get today, some Tina Charles tracks in various stages of her career.

Hope you enjoy!

Tina Charles - I Love To Love (But My Baby Just Loves To Dance)


Tina Charles - You Set My Heart On Fire


Tina Charles - Love Me Like A Lover


Tina Charles - I'll Go Where The Music Takes Me (1987 Remix)

Rockets - On The Road Again

This is a re-up from ages ago. But I've re-recorded the tracks and cleaned them up a bit. (one use to have a skip in it, i think!) And as a bonus I've added another track!


Last Week one of my favorite blogs, Best Foot Forward, offered Space Rock by Rockets for everyone to download. But they didn't offer much more info about the group, so here's a brief history.

In 1972 producer Claude Lemoine produced a single called Future Woman for a band called Crystal. With the single's poularity the band decided to change it's name and look, so in 1974 they became The Rocket Men (or Rocketters in France). They shaved their heads, wore matching "space age" outfits and painted themselves with silver make-up. They didn't quite have the formula right though, unitl 1976 when they changed their name to Rockets. They did a dancier, spacier remake of thier hit Future Woman which brought them, once again, popularity throughout Europe. It didn't hurt that their live shows were full of lasers, smoke, exploding cannons of fire and a tripped out light show.


In 1976 they released their self titled album which brought them to the attention of America's premier disco label, Salsoul. Salsoul signed them onto their offshoot label Tom 'n' Jerry Records for Rockets only american album, On The Road Again.

The first side of this album is amazing! The Canned Heat cover, On The Road Again, lays down the blues/funk in a propulsive chugging mix by Tom Moulton. Vocoder lyrics and talk box guitar riffs accentuate the feel of aliens out on a road trip. Surreal and special. Then there's the instrumental break down in the b-side hit Space Rock. Also mixed by Tom Moulton, this tripped out guitar inflected synth song never fails to get an ass or two shaking. Imagine Gino Soccio mixed with ZZ Top. Interstellar Rock!


The band consisted of Zeus B. Held on Vocoder, Christian Le Bartz on Vocals, "Little" G. L'Her on Bass, Alain Maratrat on Guitars and Synths, Fabrice Quagliotti on Syths and Alain Groetzinger on Drums.

Zeus B. Held would eventually go on to record a couple of sick solo albums then become Europe's uber-producer of the '80's, producing the likes of Gina X and Nina Hagen.

Producer Claude Lemoine would go on to produce on of the early '90's biggest throw-away dance hits, Jordy's Durr Durr D'etre Baby! with Rockets band member Maratrat.

Fabrice Quagliotti would join New Wave band Sal Solo in the '80's.


You should definately grab this little piece of French Disco/Rock history by the samples below!

Rockets - On The Road Again


Rockets - Space Rock


Rockets - Electro-Voice


Rockets - Cosmic Race


PS. Man, just listening through "On The Road Again" was amazing! The brass at the end... crazy exciting! Definitely grab these!

Metropolis - I Love New York

Just a simple statement today.


A lot of people ask me if I'd ever move there.

No. Fun to visit, but I'm a Pacific Northwesterner at heart.

But I do love ya NYC!

Metropolis - I Love New York


Ps. Incidentally, this is one of the many side projects of Giorgio Moroder's crew. Baldursson, Bellotte, Bjorklund..... And a "Tom Moulton Mix" to boot!

Jay Black - Love Is In The Air

This is Jay Black of the 60's group Jay And The Americans. Jay And The Americans were so popular in the early 60's, with some big pop hits, like "Cara Mia" and "Come A Little Bit Closer" that they were chosen as the opening band for The Beatles first ever tour of America.

Well, after having a falling out with the band, this Jay eventually released this single in 1978. Too bad for him John Paul Young chose the exact same time to release the same tune. Both were disco versions, but Young's was a little more "pop" and less "easy". Jay's version went nowhere as John Paul Young's version climbed the pop charts hitting the #7 spot.


Jay Black was called "The Voice" in his day because of his deep, tenor, smooth vibrato-less vocals. Sort of a rock-n-roll version of Sinatra. There's a sort of funny old New York Times interview with Jay Black in which his ego is worn clearly on his chest where his heart should be. It's all talk about how popular he is, women giving him panties, and how it's not his fault he's addicted to gambling, etc....

The man actually still performs live. He's perfoming May 2nd on Long Island as a matter of fact!

Coming from Long Island, of course he was also a hit with the mob. Members of the Gotti family and crime syndicate can be seen at his concerts. In fact Jay went and testified as to what a stand-up guy John Gotti was during his trial for MURDER!

Anyways... Just goes to show what an interesting guy this Jay Black was.

Below are the A and B-sides. The b-side is, in fact, a disco version of a Burt Bacharach song which was recently covered by Marc Almond and Mekon, with an amazing Remix/Re-edit by Royksopp. Look that one up!

Jay Black - Love Is In The Air


Jay Black - (Don't Go) Please Stay

Sarah Brightman and Hot Gossip - (I Lost My Heart To A) Starship Trooper

I'm having a camp fest here today! Listening through some corny old records as I re-organize my office (boxing up CD's to make more room for LP's....).

Came across this fun track.


Sarah Brightman would go on to create rolls in Andrew Lloyd Weber musicals that essentially make me want to vomit. I mean what an utter crap-fest "Phantom" is!

But in her own right she did also release some pretty good, if un-even, albums on her own. This, however was her first single.

With references to every space motif, film, television show of the day thrown into the lyrics how could it not be a hit!

My favorite part comes at the 3:12 where they edit the vocals to make a cut apart sex moan. Absolutely worth the price of admission to this sexed up space orgy!

Sarah Brightman And Hot Gossip - (I Lost My Heart To A) Starship Trooper


PS. Incidentally Hot Gossip's future singles would include production work by Martyn Ware and Ian Craig Marsh of Heaven 17 fame! Kooky-dooky!

PPS. Yes, every once in awhile when you get all serious in your DJ set, and you need to throw something on to air out all the sweat and intensity, a song like Starship Trooper resets the atmosphere in the room beautifully. So, corny as it is, it does come in usefull! People love to shoot fake laser guns on the dance floor at eachother.....