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REISSUE: "Party Girl" by Pattie Brooks - Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera

Pattie Brooks (Our Miss Brooks) became the #1entry on the disco charts in 1978 with he big one, "After Dark". This gave Ms. Brooks many opportunities to bring us her talents to the dance floor - including her 1979 LP "Party Girl" produced by Bunny Sigler.

I have placed the track above scenes from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" starring Audrey Hepburn and George Peppard - based on a novella by Truman Capote.

Featuring scenes from "Breakfast at Tiffany's" - RENT THE DVD!
Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera
Produced by Ken Emmons

This Disco Video Mix is dedicated Nora F. - my favorite "Party Girl"

"Gigolo" by Mary Wells - Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera

Mary Wells ("My Guy", "The One Who Really Loves You") returns in 1981 with a slick dance track called, "Gigolo". From her LP, "In And Out Of Love" comes this single.

It is one of those club tracks that will always catch your fingertips (snapping) and hips moving - a great disco number for a Motown Diva.

I have taken the 1980 Paul Schrader film, "American Gigolo" and moved onto a visual medley of Richard Gere - the "American Gigolo" himself. The film also stars Lauren Hutton. It is a "business is pleasure" montage.

Thanks to Loulou from The Netherlands for giving me the concept for this Disco Video Mix.

Featuring scenes from "American Gigolo" - RENT THE DVD!
Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera
Produced by Ken Emmons

Cuba (Gibson Brothers).1979

The Gibson Brothers are a France based musical group, who had their greatest success during the disco boom of the late 1970s. Their best known hit singles included "Cuba" and "Que Sera Mi Vida".

Career

The three brothers, Chris (born 20 June 1954) - (lead vocals, percussion), Patrick (vocals, drums) and Alex (vocals, keyboards) were born on Martinique in the West Indies. They recorded their first single "Come To America" in Paris in 1976, and both it and its follow-up "Non Stop Dance" made the charts in Europe, where they toured successfully. The following year they released "Heaven", which was picked up by TK Records in the U.S.
In 1978 they recorded "Cuba". The mix of disco beats, Latin percussion, soulful vocals and a catchy tune propelled the song to #1 in several countries, and earned them four gold records worldwide. In the UK it made #41 on its initial release, and #12 when reissued in 1980. Like their other hits, it was written and produced by Daniel Vangarde and the Belgian producer Jean Kluger, who also recorded hits by Ottawan, Sheila B. Devotion and others. Vangarde (aka Daniel Bangalter) is the father of Thomas Bangalter of Daft Punk.
The Gibson Brothers had three further big hits in 1979 and 1980, "Ooh What A Life", "Que Sera Mi Vida" (which sold over 5 million copies worldwide), and "Mariana". They have continued to record and tour worldwide.
Gibson Brothers is also the name of an unrelated, New York-based country music and bluegrass group.

I Haven’t Stopped Dancing Yet (Gonzales).1979

Gonzalez was a British R&B and funk band. They became well known as a backing band for touring R&B, funk and soul stars. Their eponymous album was released in 1974 and they recorded a total of six albums before disbanding in 1986, and are best known for their single success with their worldwide Disco hit, "I Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet.

History

The original band was formed by Godfrey McLean and Bobby Tench in 1970 and included other members of Gass, with the line-up of Tench as vocalist and guitarist, drummer Godfrey McLean, bassist Delisle Harper and percussionist Lennox Langton. Tench became a member of The Jeff Beck Group and the band formed a new core membership, with saxophonists Mick Eve, Chris Mercer, Geoffrey "Bud" Beadle, keyboardist Roy Davies, and guitarist Gordon Hunte. Later George Chandler, Glen LeFleur and Delisle Harper were included whilst simultaneously members of The Olympic Runners. Vocalist Lenny Zakatek joined in 1974 and they released their first album Gonzalez (1974), which featured a heavy funk sound.  Our Only Weapon is Our Music (1975) followed, released on EMI's sister label, Capitol.
By 1977 they had found an audience among disco enthusiasts, with the Gloria Jones song "Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet" which reached #26 on the Billboard Hot 100. A remix of the song reached #7 on the US Club Play chart and #15 in the UK Singles Chart. The band's third and fourth albums, Shipwrecked and Move It to the Music were produced by Jones. Eve and Hunte left, before the single "Ain't No Way to Treat a Lady" was released as an attempt to duplicate the wide appeal of "Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet".
In 1980 and after five years with the band Lenny Zakatek left to sing vocals with The Alan Parsons Project. The band's follow-up singles and their fifth album Watch Your Step, were not successful and the group lost its major label status. Gonzalez then worked with Pye Records and concentrated on live performances, usually backing R&B, funk and soul stars, such as Freddie King.
Roy Davies died in 1986 and Gonzalez disbanded.

Discography

• Gonzalez (EMI), (1974)
• Our Only Weapon Is Our Music (Capitol), (1975)
• Shipwrecked (Capitol), (1977)
• Haven't Stopped Dancin' (Capitol), (1979) - reissue of Shipwrecked - US #67
• Move it to the Music (Capitol), (1979)
• Watch Your Step (Capitol), (1980)

Turn The Music Up (Players Association).1979

Players Association were a New York based, Vanguard Records studio group, put together by drummer / arranger Chris Hills and Danny Weiss in 1977.
Players Association recordings brought in session musicians such as Larry Coryell, Joe Farrell, David Sanborn, James Mtume, Mike Mandel and others. Whilst writing some of their own songs, the group mainly focused on covers of soul, funk and disco tunes. They became more disco-funk with jazz overtones, although the Association occasionally detoured into instrumental jazz-pop and quiet storm music. Their two biggest hits were "Disco Inferno", a cover of The Trammps tune, and their own composition, "Turn The Music Up!"
"Disco Inferno" was an underground club hit in the US and the UK, most notable for the piercing solos from Michael and Randy Brecker. They proved infinitely more popular in the UK, where they scored three chart singles (including the Top Ten hit "Turn The Music Up") and one chart album, although after the release of five albums between 1977 and 1981, the association ended.

Albums

• The Players Association - 1977 (U.S. Jazz #39; (U.S. Black Albums #30)
• Born to Dance - 1977 (U.S. Black Albums #57)
• Turn The Music Up - 1978 (U.K. #54)
• We Got the Groove - 1980
• Let Your Body Go - 1981

The Players Association (originally released on CD in the UK as VSD 79384) and Turn the Music Up (originally released in the UK on CD as VSD 79421), were issued on one CD in 1998, by the UK based Ace Records on catalogue number CDSEWD117. Born to Dance is also available on CD on catalogue number VMD 79398

Singles

• "Love Hangover"/"Let's Groove"/"I Like It" - 1977 (U.S. Dance #24)
• "Disco Inferno" - 1979
• "Turn The Music Up!" - 1979 (UK #8; U.S. Dance #59)
• "Ride the Groove" - 1979 (UK #42)
• "We Got the Groove" - 1980 (UK #61)
• "The Get-Down Mellow Sound" - 1980 (U.S. Black Singles #59)

Standing In The Shadows Of Love (Deborah Washington).1978

In 1978 "The Letter" became a disco hit for Deborah Washington reaching #13 on the Billboard dance chart in tandem with Washington's remakes of "Standing in the Shadows of Love" and "Fire" - all three tracks were taken from Washington's Any Way You Want It album.

Can You Feel The Force (Real Thing).1979

The Real Thing is a British soul group formed in 1970. In addition to a string of British hits, the band charted internationally with their song "You to Me Are Everything", which reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart, #28 on Billboard's "R&B Singles" and #64 on Billboard's "Hot 100". By number of sales, they were the most successful black rock/soul act in England during the 1970s. The journalist, author and founder of Mojo, Paul Du Noyer credits them alongside Deaf School with restoring "Liverpool's musical reputation in the 1970s" with their success.

History

Begun in 1970 by Chris Amoo, Dave Smith, Kenny Davis and Ray Lake, The Real Thing's live, progressive soul-influenced covers of American hits attracted enough attention for them to secure a recording deal with EMI The singles they released through EMI in 1972 were not successful sellers, but the band persisted even after the departure of Kenny Davis. They did appear on New Faces (the TV talent show). The turn-around for their career began with their collaboration with David Essex and Pye Records. They toured internationally with Essex, recording with him a number of popular songs, though none were big charters. After Chris Amoo's brother Eddie joined the band, The Real Thing finally found chart success with the single "You to Me Are Everything", which reached #1 on the UK Singles Chart, #28 on Billboard's "R&B Singles" and #64 on Billboard's "Hot 100". Their follow-up, "Can't Get By Without You", did not chart in the U.S. but was still a success in England, where it reached the top 10.
In 1976, they released their first album, The Real Thing, which included both of their hit singles as well as a third UK hit, "You'll Never Know What You're Missing", which peaked at #16. They continued recording prolifically, releasing a steady stream of subsequent albums: 1977's Four from Eight (originally to have been called Liverpool 8 in honor of the racially mixed, economically depressed neighborhood in which they grew up, before Pye rejected the title), 1978's Step Into our World, 1979's Can You Feel the Force and 1982's 100 Minutes. During the time period, they accumulated eight more British hits. "Love's Such a Wonderful Thing" peaked at #33 in 1977. 1978 saw "Whenever You Want My Love" at #18, "Let's Go Disco" at #39 and "Rainin' Through My Sunshine" at #40. "Can You Feel the Force?" climbed to #5 in 1979, the same year that "Boogie Down (Get Funky Now)" hit #33. 1980's "She's a Groovy Freak" capped a successful run, at #52, coming just a few months too late to be included in the band's first compilation, a K-tel collection of their Greatest Hits released in May 1980.
Despite the band only have 1 US hot 100 hit with "You To Me Are Everything" they still made the US Dance/Disco chart with "She's a Groovy freak" No 55.
In 1986, the band enjoyed a chart resurgence with the remixing of several of their hits. "You to Me Are Everything (the Decade Remix)" charted twice in the U.K., peaking at #5 during a 12-week run in spring and returning in June for additional week at #72. "Can't Get By Without You (the Second Decade Remix)" rose almost as high to #6, remaining a consecutive 13 weeks. "Can You Feel the Forces ('86 Remix)" climbed to #24, but the band's final U.K. charter for the year, "Straight to the Heart", peaked at #71, remaining for only two weeks.

You Make Me Feel Like Dancing (Leo Sayer).1976

"You Make Me Feel Like Dancing" is a popular song by the British singer Leo Sayer, taken from his 1976 album Endless Flight. The song reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making it his first number one single in United States, and #2 on the UK Singles Chart. Songwriters Sayer and Vini Poncia won a Grammy Award for the song in 1978 in the category Best R&B Song.

Sayer performed the song on The Muppet Show, Season 3 (1978-1979), episode 2; he also performed The Show Must Go On and When I Need You.

B-side	"Magdalena"
Released	may 1 1976
Format	7" (45 rpm)
Genre	Pop, Disco, R&B
Length	3:41
Label	Chrysalis Records (UK) Warner Bros. Records (USA)
Writer(s)	Leo Sayer, Vini Poncia
Producer	Richard Perry

The Bitch (Olympic Runners). 1979

The Olympic Runners were a 1970s British funk band, put together by record producer Mike Vernon who also played percussion, and fronted by singer George Chandler. They also included multi-instrumentalist Pete Wingfield, and had a number of hit singles in both the US and UK.

History

In 1973, Mike Vernon, a British record producer and founder of Blue Horizon Records, put together a group of session musicians to play on an album with blues musician Jimmy Dawkins, to be recorded at Olympic Studios in London. The musicians included keyboard player and vocalist Pete Wingfield, singer George Chandler, guitarist Joe Jammer, bassist DeLisle Harper, and drummer Glen LeFleur, of whom Chandler, Harper and LeFleur were also members of jazz-funk band Gonzalez. When Dawkins' arrival was delayed, the musicians recorded a funk track in the spare studio time. Vernon then sold the track, "Put The Music Where Your Mouth Is", credited to The Olympic Runners, to London Records in New York, and in 1974 it became a hit on the US R&B Chart, reaching # 72.
Following its success the musicians recorded an album, including the track "Grab It" which also made the R&B charts. They recorded a second album, Out in Front, in 1975, shortly before Wingfield had his own massive solo hit single, "Eighteen With A Bullet". A third album, Don't Let Up, soon followed, together with a succession of singles. The 1976 album Hot To Trot has been cited as their finest. Wingfield described the recording process:

"Barry Hammond the engineer would always keep a 2-track quarter-inch tape running so as to catch us jamming between takes - then we'd use that jamming as the basis for the next track. It was painless, we made album after album that way, it only took a couple of weeks out of the year, and we were selling records! For the first few years the band were completely anonymous - people assumed we were a US act..."

Their commercial success diminished in the US at the same time as it grew in the UK, and their biggest successes in the UK charts came in 1978-79, with the hit singles "Get It While You Can" and "Sir Dancealot". In 1979 they also provided the music for the movie The Bitch, written by Jackie Collins and starring her sister Joan Collins.
The group split up in 1979. Vernon and Wingfield later joined Rocky Sharpe & the Replays, and the other band members continued as session musicians. Several Olympic Runners tracks have been sampled by later artists, including Everlast.

Singles

• "Do It Over" / "Put The Music Where Your Mouth Is" (1974) - US R&B #72
• "Grab It" (1975) - US R&B #73
• "Drag It Over Here" (1975) - US R&B #92
• "Sproutin' Out" (1975)
• "Party Time Is Here To Stay" (1976) - US R&B #97
• "Keep It Up (1977)
• "Whatever It Takes" (1978) - UK #61
• "Get It While You Can" (1978) - UK #35
• "Sir Dancealot" (1979) - UK #35
• "Whatever It Takes" (1979)
• "The Bitch" (1979) - UK #37

Disco Singer Loleatta Holloway Reportedly Dead At 64

New York –  Disco singer Loleatta Holloway reportedly died Monday evening after battling an illness at 64-years-old. Holloway was known for disco songs such as “Hit and Run” and “Love Sensation”.
“Holloway’s death was confirmed Monday by her manager, Ron Richardson,”  SpinningSoul.com reported early Tuesday.
Holloway was born in Chicago, Illinois in November 1946, and began her career singing gospel music with the Queen of Gospel.
Reports of Holloway’s death have spread across Twitter, Reddit, and numerous other sources.
More updates are expected as morning progresses.







Loleatta Holloway (November 5, 1946 – March 21, 2011) was an American singer, mainly known for disco songs such as "Hit and Run" and "Love Sensation", both of which have been sampled extensively.

Biography

Early career

Holloway began singing gospel with her mother in the Holloway Community Singers and recorded with Albertina Walker in the Caravans gospel group. Holloway was also a cast member of the Chicago troupe of Don't Bother Me, I Can't Cope. Around this time, she met her future producer, manager, and husband Floyd Smith, and recorded "Rainbow ’71" in 1971, a Curtis Mayfield song that Gene Chandler had recorded in 1963. It was initially released on the tiny Apache label, but shortly thereafter, it got picked up for national distribution by Galaxy Records.

1970s

In the early 1970s, Holloway signed a recording contract with the Atlanta-based soul music label Aware, part of the General Recording Corporation (GRC), owned by Michael Thevis. Holloway recorded two albums for the label, both of them produced by Floyd Smith—Loleatta (1973) and Cry to Me (1975). Holloway later married Smith. Her first single from the second album, the ballad "Cry to Me" rose to #10 Billboard R&B and #68 on the Hot 100, but before the label could really establish Holloway, it went out of business.
Top Philadelphia arranger and producer Norman Harris quickly signed Holloway in 1976 for his new label, Gold Mind, a subsidiary of New York's Salsoul Records. The first release from the album Loleatta was another Sam Dees ballad, "Worn-Out Broken Heart," which reached #25 R&B, but the B-side, "Dreaming," climbed to #72 on the pop chart and launched her as a disco act. She contributed vocals to "Re-Light My Fire" for Dan Hartman, who then wrote and produced the title track of her fourth and final album for Gold Mind, "Love Sensation" (1980). Eighteen songs of hers charted on the Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart, including four #1s. However, it was a ballad that proved to be another big R&B hit for her. "Only You" was written and produced by Bunny Sigler, who also sang with Holloway on the track, and it reached #11 in 1978.

1980s to the present

In the early 1980s, she had another dance hit with "Crash Goes Love" (#5 on the U.S. Dance chart, #86 on the US R&B Chart). She also recorded one single, "So Sweet," for the fledgling house-music label DJ International Records. In the late 1980s, her vocals from "Love Sensation" were used in the UK #1 hit "Ride on Time" by Black Box. Holloway, however, was uncredited for her vocals, and both Holloway and her attorneys successfully sued the group, which lead to an undisclosed court settlement in Holloway's favor. In 1992, she also had a hit with dance band Cappella. There she appeared billed as Cappella featuring Lolleatta Holloway on the single "Take Me Away" (UK #25). Holloway's fortunes dramatically improved, however, when she had her first US #1 hit when Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch featured her vocals in the chart-topping "Good Vibrations" (1991). Holloway also performed with Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch to promote the single, and she received full vocal credit and a share of the royalties.
More recent dance chart entries include "What Goes around Comes Around" (credited to GTS featuring Loleatta Holloway) in 2000, and "Relight My Fire" (credited to Martin featuring Loleatta Holloway), which hit #5 in 2003. While not a single, "Like a Prayer", a Madonna cover, was a track on the Madonna tribute album Virgin Voices. "Love Sensation ’06," peaked at #22 in the Dutch Top 40, and reached #37 on the UK Singles Chart as well as #49 in Australia.
Whitney Houston sampled Holloway's 1976 track "We're Getting Stronger" on her 2009 hit single "Million Dollar Bill".
Holloway died on March 21, 2011 after slipping into a coma. She was 64 years old.

Albums

• Loleatta (Aware 1973)
• Cry To Me (Aware 1975)
• Loleatta (Gold Mind 1976)
• Queen of the Night (Gold Mind 1978)
• Loleatta Holloway (Gold Mind 1979)
• Love Sensation (Gold Mind 1980)
• Greatest Hits (The Right Stuff/EMI, 1996)
• Queen of the Night: the Ultimate Club Collection (The Right Stuff/EMI, 2001)
• Loleatta Holloway: The Anthology (Salsoul, 2005)

Songs

• "Cry to Me" (#10 R&B, #68, US Billboard Hot 100)
• "Worn-out Broken Heart" (#25 R&B)
• "Only You" with Bunny Sigler (#87 US, Billboard Hot 100, #11 US R&B)
• "Dreamin'" (US #72), (US Dance #3)(1977)
• "Love Sensation" (#1 US Dance, #5 UK) (1980)
• "Vertigo/Relight My Fire" (with Dan Hartman)
• "Hit and Run" (#3 US Dance), (#56 US R&B)(1977)
• "Catch Me on the Rebound" (#16 US Dance)
• "Crash Goes Love" (#5 US Dance), (#86 US R&B)(1984)
• "Runaway" by The Salsoul Orchestra
• "All About the Paper"
• "The Greatest Performance of My Life"
• "Catch Me on the Rebound"
• "Seconds"
• "I May Not be there When You Want Me (But I'm Right on Time)"
• "Shout it to The Top", Fire Island feat Lolleata Holoway
• Black Box - "Ride On Time" (#1 UK; contains vocal samples from "Love Sensation" - Holloway's vocals are also the only vocals on the track; also Britain's best selling single of 1989)
• Gotta Be #1 (#2, US Dance)
• Marky Mark (aka Mark Wahlberg) & The Funky Bunch - "Good Vibrations" (#1 US, #14 UK; prominently features Holloway's vocals sampled from "Love Sensation." This was Holloway's only US #1 on the Billboard Hot 100)(1991)
• "Dreamin'" (remix) (#1, US Dance)(2000)
• "What Goes Around Comes Around" GTS featuring Loleatta Holloway
• "Don't Leave Me this Way - 2007" (2007 Deep Influence Mix)
• "A Better World" by AgeHa featuring Loleatta Holloway & Jocelyn Brown
• "I-N-S-I-D-E" by CJ TOBA feat Loleatta Holloway (2009 DJ Remix of "Dreamin'," which reached success in DJ/Club Charts)

It's All About Pattie Brooks! With Producer Rick Gianatos,by Alan Mercer

All Photos:  Alan Mercer    Lighting: Eric V.

Pattie Brooks is most frequently referred to as a disco diva, but she is much more of a total entertainer. She was born in Fort Riley, Kansas to a military family. Her first break came in 1968 when she auditioned for the chorus on 'The Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour.' In the next decade she became a sought-after backing singer, appearing on the Bobby Darin Show and touring with, among others Ann-Margret.

Around this time she came to the attention of disco producer Simon Soussan and her solo recording career began. Her first of four albums on the Casablanca label was 1977's 'Love Shook' and the whole album peaked at #2 on the US Dance Chart.

Pattie remained with Soussan and in 1978 recorded her biggest club hit, 'After Dark.' This cut was on the soundtrack to the film 'Thank God It's Friday' and as the soundtrack topped the club play charts, Pattie's contribution was up there with friend Donna Summer's 'Last Dance' as the most celebrated tracks.

'After Dark' was the mainstay of Pattie's second album 'Our Ms Brooks.' In 1979 Pattie released her third album 'Party Girl' produced by Bunny Sigler. The result was a far more varied album that encompasses funk, pop and a big ballad as well as pure disco.

In 1979 Pattie branched out from disco by singing "Close Enough For Love", the title song to the Vanessa Redgrave movie 'Agatha.' Pattie's fourth and last Casablanca album 'Pattie Brooks' is a pop-soul affair, produced by Michael "Love" Smith.

Today Pattie has been working with Rick Gianatos to create some new studio magic with her latest release 'It's All About The Music.' This song is amazing!

AM: Pattie, I absolutely love your new song! Do you just love it?

PB: I absolutely love it!!! I'm having so much fun! Everything that's happening with it is great. The back-up singers are the best and I told Rick, "This time it's for fun." I'm just having fun with it. We recorded this cut four or five years ago.

AM: I didn't know that.

PB: It's a work in progress. Now we're having fun putting the finishing touches on it and doing different mixes. I can't wait to perform it. It's a whole different feel for me.

AM: I'm saying it's a timeless song.

PB: I know...everybody who hears it goes away singing the chorus. It's ingrained already.

AM: Do you have any live dates scheduled?

PB: We will have some. Maybe in May.

AM: Why do you think you've had such an enduring career?

PB: I think it's staying active in the craft whether you have a record out or not. I sing back-up for people, I go and sing jazz and do rock n' roll. You just keep honing the craft.

AM: You're more of a singer than just a disco artist.

PB: Before I was signed I was singing Top 40 around LA. I was covering Aretha and Chaka Khan, whatever was around. Then I went though my jazz phase.

AM: I didn't know you ever sang jazz. I'd love to hear some.

PB: Wait till you hear some jazz. You will love it! It actually surprises people whenever I do it. Nobody knows and it's what I grew up with. Really it was jazz, opera, the full gamut, because I loved it. I loved all music!

AM: Do you consider yourself more an entertainer or a recording artist?

PB: Oh boy...I like live performances so I think entertainer. I know I can do the recording because I was a session singer and a demo singer for years, but I love the whole process of putting an act together where people can see that I do comedy and jazz, along with R&B ballads, even some country. The Pointer Sisters had a country hit! I want to do something almost like Bette Midler but on the R&B tip.

AM: Have you thought about putting this show together? It's sounds more theatrical.

PB: Yes and now I'm in a theatre production with The Pink Lady. I'm in rehearsals now for performances in March.

AM: What's the name?

PB: It's called 'Rockin' With The Ages' and a lot of the performers are way over forty. They're all talented and still doing it. It's a passion and they are very authentic about themselves and where they are at this time and what they can do. This play was written around me with 'After Dark' being a part of the play. I play a club owner who is about to be foreclosed on. I get to sing 'Midnight Train To Georgia' and 'On The Radio.'

AM: So you feel like you're in the middle of your career... you're not done?

PB: I've always kept at it but I did get out of the loop, and all of a sudden I realized there was another chapter here.

AM: Life really does run in cycles.

PB: Totally and I think the timing is right and if I get the right people to help me do an entertainment act where I can show what I can really do it would be great.

AM: When you signed with Casablanca did you have any clue that it would grow into a myth?

PB: No...I had no idea. I had no idea what disco was. I was touring with Ann-Margret and had lots of stuff going on. As I came off the road they told me my song had hit the dance charts. I said, "What's a dance chart?" The next thing I knew I was singing at 'Studio One' and 'Back Lot' and from then on it was crazy.

(At this point Rick Gianatos walks in.)

AM: Rick, tell me about 'It's All About The Music.'

RG: There is a long history to the making of the track. It feels kind of special. At first I thought I would cut several tracks with Pattie and then make a decision about what the next single would be. My gut said this was the one. I let Paul Goodyear pick and he went right to this song. A lot of DJ's liked this song.

AM: You don't normally make videos for your songs do you?

RG: This is the first concept video that I've done. I have done documentary style with my 'Dreamgirls' project. This song just lends itself to a video showing people doing things to music. It's a happy song. It has an old school kind of lyric.

AM: It could be a commercial for an i-pod.

PB: I'm telling you!

RG: It could work for i-tunes and downloading. The video is tongue in cheek with comic elements. Hopefully we will go viral. We might sell a download or two. The CD will be a collectable.

AM: That's the way to go now. This is the center song of a full album right?

RG: Yes we have a song with Kim Yarbrough and Charlo Crossley Fortier, who was formally a Harlette. We have another duet that will be with Cynthia Manley which takes a sad turn because it's my favorite song by Teena Marie, 'Behind The Groove.'

AM: Pattie you sang a lot of background for Teena didn't you?

PB: Yes I sure did.

RG: We talked about this all before she passed. This was not a tribute. Pattie's daughter was going to ask Teena to come in and do some licks. It's a party, happy song.

PB: I'll have fun with it. Teena WILL be in there with us.

RG: These ladies didn't even meet until the photo shoot but they acted like they'd already done the recordings. They're ready to record now.

AM: It won't be long will it?

PB: I think it was just the right time to get all of us together to enjoy one another and the talents of each other. It was just the best time. When we do get in the studio we are gonna really rock!

AM: I love how you've lost no passion.

PB: Not at all! I'm like a kid again.

To learn more about Pattie Brooks visit her web site http://www.pattiebrooks.net/

Visit Alan Mercers Blog http://amprofile.blogspot.com/2011/03/its-all-about-pattie-brooks.html?spref=fb

"Love Is In The Air" by John Paul Young -- Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera

John Paul Young marked the end of the 70s with an anthem that continues to bring smiles and warmth to hearts and dance floors everywhere. The track was released in 1977 and became one of the contemporary disco songs of the time.

I have taken the 1955 film "Summertime" starring Katherine Hepburn and Rossano Brazzi and blended the romance in Venice, Italy with the magic of this disco classic.

The film was directed by David Lean

Featuring scenes from "Summertime" -- RENT THE DVD!
Disco Video Mix by Glenn Rivera
Produced by Ken Emmons

Dance Yourself Dizzy - Glenn Rivera ReStructure Mix - Liquid Gold

Liquid Gold is Ellie Hope, Ray Knott, Syd Twynham, Wally Rothe and Tom Marshall - a disco group from Brackley in Northamptonshore, UK

Their 1979 disco hit, "Dance Yourself Dizzy" is one of big sounds of the disco era which has the uplifting feel that made this music a household name. It was released in the US as a single following the success of "My Baby's Baby" which was remixed by Ritchie Rivera.

The group was produced by Adrian Baker

I have ReStructured "Dance Yourself Dizzy" by scrambling the original 12" version into a few more breaks and a longer intro and fade out.

France Joli

France Joli is a Canadian singer, born 1963, who is best known for the disco classic "Come to Me."

Teen stardom

A native of Montreal, Quebec, Joli grew up in the Montreal suburb of Dorion. Her father was a hardware merchant and her mother was a teacher.
As early as age four, Joli was performing for relatives lip-synching to Barbra Streisand records while handling a skipping rope like a microphone; she had appeared on television by age six. At age 11, Joli left the public school system (her mother tutored her) to concentrate on her performing career appearing regularly in television commercials and talent shows. A mutual acquaintance suggested Joli meet up with musician Tony Green who Joli approached backstage after he'd given a concert, Joli inviting Green to be her record producer. Green didn't take the 13-year-old Joli seriously: he'd recall: "To get rid of her I [told] her to keep in touch." According to one source Joli eventually visited Green's home to sing for him; it's also reported that Green first heard Joli sing from the audience of an "end of school year show" in which she performed in the fall of 1978. Both accounts concur that Green first heard Joli singing along with a Streisand record. Green had written the song "Come to Me" for Joli by the next day.
When the producer Green originally commissioned to record Joli indicated a desire to develop Joli as a Francophone singer, Green himself took over production duties for Joli. The tracks Joli cut with Green were picked up by Prelude and released on April 17, 1979 as the album France Joli: the track "Come to Me" received a boost when Joli performed it as a last-minute replacement for Donna Summer at a concert held on Fire Island on July 7, 1979 before an estimated audience of 5000.
"Come to Me" began a three-week reign atop the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play on 22 September 1979 and the France Joli album rose to #26. On the Billboard Hot 100 "Come to Me" peaked at #15 a symptom of the increasing disenchantment of pop radio with disco music.
Joli made her network television debut on 26 October 1979 broadcast of the Midnight Special and she co-hosted the 7 December episode. Her other TV credits included episodes of the talk shows of Mike Douglas, Merv Griffin and Dinah Shore and also a Bob Hope special.
1980 saw the release of Joli's second album Tonight with the ballad "This Time (I'm Giving All I've Got)" released as a single bubbling under for two weeks pk #103: this attempt to curry favor in the mainstream market was unsuccessful with Joli receiving support only in the dance club market where the tracks "The Heart to Break the Heart" and "Feel Like Dancing" achieved a joint position of #3: Tonight was ranked on the Billboard album chart at #175.
In 1981 Joli's third album Now - produced by Ray Reid and William Anderson from Crown Heights Affair rather than Tony Green¹ - failed to generate even a low chart placing, success apparent only in another dance club smash with the track "Gonna Get Over You", which went to number two for two weeks on the American dance charts. However Joli, as evidenced by her opening for the Commodores during their American tour of 1981, was still viewed as having star potential: she departed the dance music-oriented Prelude label for mainstream music giant Epic. Prelude owner Marvin Schlachter would say of Joli: "She was a very beautiful young lady and she had a sort of magnetic appeal, which quite frankly was appealing to everybody, but in a manor [sic] of speaking - the talent was...the people behind her [who] directed her career. When she felt that she wanted to rise above the Disco market and left Prelude to sign with [Epic's owner] Columbia - her career disappeared. Because again, the talent was in the producers and the writers and so on. She again, was an instrument of their creativity."

• ¹The track: "Your Good Lovin'" was arranged and produced by Prelude regulars Eric Matthew and Darryl Payne.
• ²"Gonna Get Over You" reached #43 on the French Pop charts 

Epic albums

Joli's Epic debut Attitude (1983) was produced by Pete Bellotte; Giorgio Moroder was credited as executive producer. The album personnel included Martin Page on electric guitar, Page's Q-Feel sideman Brian Fairweather on electric bass and Richie Zito^{[dead link]} on electric bass and electric guitar: Zito also performed arranging duties. The tracks included Joli's original "Dumb Blond" (co-written with Daniel Vail) and a remake of the Four Tops' "Standing in the Shadows of Love" which featured Gladys Knight's backing group the Pips; the latter was a moderate club success in tandem with the cuts "Girl in the 80s" and "Blue Eyed Technology" but despite a performance by Joli on "Solid Gold" the single "Girl in the 80s" - written by Jay Ferguson and Deborah Neal - garnered no evident mainstream interest.
Joli's next Epic release was Witch Of Love (1985) produced by George Duke: prior to the album's release Joli had performed the Duke-penned track "Party Lights" at the Yamaha Music Festival in 1984 and had won the Grand Prix. The title cut of Witch of Love was a Joli-Vail composition as was the track "What About Me". Witch of Love featured probably the two tracks Joli ever recorded that had the strongest credentials in terms of songwriters: Billy Steinberg and Tom Kelly contributed "In the Darkness" while "Love Always Finds a Way" was courtesy of Tom Snow and Cynthia Weil. However as with Attitude the choice for single was a Ferguson-Neal composition: the rather quirky "Does He Dance", which again failed at US radio - although it did become a Canadian airplay item - while becoming a moderate club hit boosted by a remix by Shep Pettibone.
The commercial failure of both of her Epic album releases led to the label dropping Joli who spent the next ten years with her career focused on performing rather than recording.

1996 -

In 1996, Joli reunited with Tony Green for the single Touch on Popular Records. The original incarnation of the single was a CD single with eurodance/hi-nrg styled remixes intended for radio but received limited airplay. The song belatedly became a hit in clubs, reaching #24 on Hot Dance Music/Club Play, when new remixes by Darrin "Spike" Friedman were released on vinyl 12" single. There were two separate 12" singles released individually, each featuring a different Darrin Friedman remix, along with the other mixes from the CD single divided between the two records. The song became a regional hit in the New York tri-state area, as it was a favorite of DJs such as Jonathan Peters and Junior Vasquez at their weekly residencies.
The follow-up single "Breakaway" included remixes geared toward the underground clubs. Two different CD singles of "Breakaway" were released, Part 1 and Part 2. Part 1 had the Junior Vasquez and Eddie Baez mixes of "Breakaway," while part 2 included additional remixes of "Breakaway," including a remix by Andy the Lamboy, as well one of the Darrin Friedman mixes of "Touch" and a previously unreleased Junior Vasquez mix of "Touch." Both "Touch" and "Breakaway" were featured on Joli's first album in 13 years, If You Love Me (1998): as the Popular label had folded Koch Records released the album.
A reported hookup in the 2000s between Joli and Lewis Martineé evidently did not happen.
In recent years, Joli has performed at clubs and private functions primarily in the New York City area: she's appeared multiple times at the annual KTU Disco Ball at Trump Plaza in Atlantic City, NJ.
Joli has dated New York disc jockey Joe Causi - no official word on whether or not she is working on new material.

• Joli's "Come to Me" is featured in When Ocean Meets Sky (2003), a documentary detailing the 50-year history of the Fire Island Pines community. The film - which had its television premiere on June 10, 2006 - includes much previously unseen archival footage, but unfortunately Joli's electrifying July 1979 performance of "Come to Me" is presented only in still photographs with musical background, suggesting no footage of that renowned event exists. The sequence includes interviews with those who recall Joli's 1979 performance on Fire Island. When Ocean Meets Sky is seen occasionally on the Logo channel.

Discography

Albums

Year	Album	US	Label
1979	France Joli	26	Prelude
1980	Tonight	175
1981	Now!	—
1983	Attitude	—	Epic
1985	Witch of Love	—
1989	Greatest Hits	—	UniDisc
1998	If You Love Me	—	Popular
2010	Divas of Disco: Live (with CeCe Peniston, Linda Clifford, A Taste of Honey and Thelma Houston)	—	Pegasus

Singles

Year	Single	Peak chart positions				Label
		FR	US Hot 100	US R&B	US Disco
1979	"Come to Me"	—	15	36	1	Prelude
1979	"Don't Let Go"		—	—	—
1979	"Don't Stop Dancing"				1
1980	"Heart to Break the Heart"				3
1980	"Feel Like Dancing"				3
1980	"This Time"		103		—
1981	"Gonna Get over You"	43	—		2
1982	"Your Good Lovin'"	—			53
1983	"Girl in the 80's"				46	Epic
1984	"Blue Eyed Technology"				61
1985	"Does He Dance"				40
1997	"Touch"				24	Popular
1998	"Breakway				—
1998	"Save Me"				—

• "Don't Stop Dancing" charted with Come To Me on the Disco Chart
• "The Heart to Break the Heart" charted with Feel Like Dancing on the Disco Chart