Frederick Knight - Let Me Ring Your Bell Again

I can't believe I have only recently come across this rather magical moment. One Mr Knight both wrote and produced Anita Ward's 1979 disco megahit 'Ring My Bell', so what could be a better idea a couple of years later than to cut a response record under his own name in exactly the same style, syndrums and all? How could it possibly fail?

AGAIN, AGAIN 

Sister Sledge - We Are Family (1984 Remix)

So we're BACK! Here, freshly ripped on the all-new groove machine, is the 1984 Bernard Edwards remix of 'We Are Family' for your disco delight! After the success of the reissued 'Thinking Of You' in the UK, the follow-ups were a remix of 'Lost In Music' by Nile Rodgers and then this slightly more obscure remix of 'We Are Family' which got a bit lost in the Christmas rush. Wisely Bernard doesn't tamper with the original too much here! I think we may not be going to have as much disco as we used to on the blog (BOO!) because firstly the record companies have reissued so much stuff on CD recently and more importantly because people like the gang at #1 Disco Connection do it much better than I ever could and have a vastly better knowledge and range of material that I could ever hope to have!

I got all my SISTERS with ME!

Groove Revival!

The Guru has come by a new Groove Machine...could it be time for a REVIVAL?

MAYBE!

Danny Pearson - Barry White Presents Mr Danny Pearson

Now here's another entry in the Barry canon. If you look this one up anywhere it claims some silly backstory where young Mr P was camping out outside Barry's offices and was given the opportunity to record this album. Not sure I quite buy that one. Anyway, this album came out in 1978 on White's new Unlimited Gold label. It's interesting to hear the Barry White/Gene Page groove machine with such a different vocalist. The opening track What's Your Sign Girl was the closest the album came to spawning a hit, and while it's a tired concept, it's a lot better than Roberta Kelly's dreadful Zodiacs. Elsewhere, several of Barry's past glories get a good revamping - the Love Unlimited hit Walkin' In The Rain... is joined by new versions of two other of their tracks, Say It Again and Is It Really True, and Barry's own Honey Please Can't You See also gets the revival treatment. Thanks to La Magie De La Funk for this one...

1. What's Your Sign Girl
2. Is It Really True Girl
3. Walkin' In The Rain With The One I Love
4. Let's Go Dancin' (Let's Go Disco Dancin')
5. Honey Please Can't You See
6. Say It Again
7. I'm So Glad I Got You Baby
8. There's No One For Me But You

What's your SIGN?

Diana Brown & Barrie K. Sharpe - The Masterplan

Here's a vinyl I'd been meaning to rip for ages. I bought this on a Hot Tracks vinyl in a record fair in Oxford way back when as I loved this song and also Deee-Lite's 'What Is Love' which was on the same 12". It was a minor hit (#39) in the UK in mid-1990. I don't know which of the mixes the Hot Tracks mix is based on (it describes itself as 'The Master Mix by Glen Cattanach') but I've never come across a similar mix anywhere else. I didn't realise until investigating it today that the track was written and produced by one-time Dead Or Alive cohorts Tim Lever & Mike Percy. What a coincidence!

The MASTERPLAN

Pointer Sisters - So Excited

Oh no, not again! Just for the sake of completeness, and then I promise NO MORE! (probably). I don't have much more to say about this than I've already written in the post about Baby Sister, so how about we just get on with it? Oh a couple of things: Heart Beat was cowritten by one Michael Bolotin before he anglicized up his surname and became the big-haired nightmare that was Michael Bolton, but don't let that put you off, it's a decent song. Unlike American Music, which continues the tradition of the previous Black And White album of having a virtually unlistenable final track...

1. I'm So Excited
2. See How The Love Goes
3. All Of You
4. Heart Beat
5. If You Wanna Get Back Your Lady
6. I Feel For You
7. Heart To Heart
8. American Music

bonus tracks:
9. Nothing But A Heartache (b-side, original 1982 issue of I'm So Excited)
10. I'm So Excited (12" version)
11. If You Wanna Get Back Your Lady (12" version)

Let's get EXCITED!

Pamela Fernandez - Kickin' In The Beat

Here's something completely different. Someone asked me for this on a forum and it was so good to hear it again I thought I'd share it with you... Well we're getting dangerously contemporary here - this track originally came out in 1992...

Kickin' In The Beat (extended dance mix)

Normal disco service will be resumed shortly!