Space and Space Disco

Space is a French disco group that predates the Italo dance scene but embodies much of the sci-fi element that encompassed part of the themes that made up the Space Disco movement. This sound is still so relevant and watching this video you can see where Daft Punk got some of their ideas. And they are a rarity amongst their contemporaries because they actually have a web presence. The video is cosmically trippy too!



For some more Space Disco fun check out Rockets. They have a wealth of great spaced out videos from the earlier 80s. Its so hard to choose the best one!

Spanish Invasion

We already talked about Gary Low, my Spanish Italo Disco hero. But you know what's funny he didn't have to learn English to make a hit. Spanish sometimes became the lingua franca for many Italo hits. Some artists came from Spain while others just sang in Spanish.



Ivan was from Spain and sang a few super tracks back in the hey day of Italo Disco. This song has a very special place in my heart. Everytime I hear it I am brought back to a train ride through Austria and the Czech Republic. But that's my own trip...what does it do to you? Also check out Baila.



Now Righeira on the other hand sang in Spanish but were from Italy. And they are ready to go to the beach. If you plan on going to the beach you should probably throw this track on. And what is with this teletext page they have? It takes a long time to load and after a while some music comes on. I gues you type the number of where you want to go on the site. AMAZING!!!! (Oh yeah its in Italian)

There are a lot more Spanish Italo tracks. They will flow 'como agua' from this blog.

P.S. - Take note of the fact that both these videos have checkered floors.

Baby' Gang and Bonie M

Baby's Gang has a song called 'Happy Song' and its one of those tracks that puts a smile on my face every time. So I decided to try to find out some more information about them and this song. Well so far I have been having a hard time finding info on them. But I did find a near replica version with Boney M. The Brainchild of producer Frank Farian, Boney M was a German pop group with a lip-synching front band headed by former exotic dancer Bobby Farrell.



Funny thing is I bought a Boney M album years ago, and always run across it in the budget bins. Boney M had been around for years before they recorded 'Happy Song,' and in some ways it marked a short comeback streak for the group. I am not going to try to go into the story of Boney M but apparently this song was released in 1984 around the same time as another cover of 'Kalimba de Luna' by Tony Esposito.



'Kalimba de Luna' is another piece of Italo Disco genius!!! And though Boney M does it right they basically covered it piece by piece. Oh yeah, and you might be interested in knowing that Boney M's mastermind Frank Farien is also responsible for Milli Vanilli.

Valerie Dore

Give it a second the music comes in a little late. I first heard Valerie Dore on a mix cd that my buddy made me. Her haunting voice and subtle accent lures you in. But guess what? That's not her voice!!

Born Monica Stucchi in Monte Carlo, Valerie was a model before being discovered and packaged into a pop artist. 'The Night' was originally sung by Italian vocalist Dora Carofiglio who apparently was intended to be Valerie Dore until Stucchi was picked up. After becoming a surprise hit on European charts Stucchi and Carofiglio teamed up on her follow up hit 'Get Closer.''Get Closer' is almost identical to 'The Night' but was different enough to sell millions of copies in Europe.



What really sets Valerie Dore (Stucchi) upon a pedestal that separates her from the rest is her conceptual brilliance. After a trio of hits in the first half of the 1980s she set to work on her album 'The Legend' a Italo-Disco concept album based upon the legends of King Arthur. The album contained such memorable tracks as 'Lancelot,' 'King Arthur,' 'The Wizard,' 'Magic Rain,' and 'Bow and Arrow.' But my favorite has got to be 'Guinnevere.' Here is a cool video for 'Magic Rain.'

Happy 2009!

This song is ridiculous. Its one of those tracks that makes you realize how the whole "Disco Sucks" movement got people burning disco records en masse in a baseball stadium. If you can make it through the first 30 seconds there is a gratuitous "God Bless America" segment of the medley that is bone-chillingly silly. In all fairness this is the only new years disco song I could find at 3 in the morning. SalSoul Orhcestra says 'Happy New Year.'