Droids - The Force

Droids - The Force

More space disco from Germany circa 1977.

"Fabrice Cuitade was a young label manager at Barclay in the seventies. He founds Egg Records as a side project with a view to compete with Virgin (first artist signings include Heldon among others). Right after seeing "Star Wars" for the first time, he decided to make a concept album out of it." (from discogs.com)

And here's more space disco from Space who I featured earlier.

Italobot Podcast 03 - Rides a Boat to the BBQ

Italobot Podcast 03 - Rides a Boat to the BBQ
01. Buona Sera Ciao Ciao - Mauro
02. What My Heart Want to Say - Roger Meno
03. Cause You Are Young - C.C. Catch
04. I Want (remix) - Anneclaire
05. Serenade - Shah
06. Magic Symphony - Blue System
07. Shy Like an Angel - New Romantique
08. Toledo Girl - Cosa Rosa
09. Vamos a la Playa - Righeira
10. Voulez Vous Dancer - Ricchi e Poveri
11. Pile Ou Face - Corynne Charby

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Here is the next installment of the Italobot podcast. I just put some fun songs on here that I had to get out of my system. A little bit of Italo and a little bit of Euro-Pop for a fun day in the sun with some friends. Hope you enjoy.

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Casco - Cybernetic Love

Casco - Cybernetic Love

A beautiful and forward thinking track that just keeps on jamming. Casco recorded this in 1983 if you can imagine it. There is a cool interview with him on Jazz Diaries that you should peep if you want more insight into the man and the track. And why not be his friend on myspace where you can stay up to date and hear more mixes?

Also check out this mix from Casco, very Moroder-heavy. Special thanks to Jitwam Sinha at thejazzdiaries for the content.

Nadia Cassini

Nadia Cassini - Mistery of the Night (sic)

Nadia Cassini was an American born actress and model (scroll down) in Italy from the 60s onward. There are some amazing shots of her in this video from 1980. She is absolutely gorgeous and a brief cyber stalking on youtube yielded a lot of footage of her showing off her assets (

This party from 'Il Divorcio' (1969) looks like my kind of scene and don't miss her as the evil queen in Starcrash. But looks aside these tracks are pretty amazing. I featured 'Mistery of the Night' on the second podcast. The track below, 'Obsessed,' is produced by Bobby O and once again he delivers the goods.



Nadia Cassini - Obsessed

Nadia Cassini - Mistery of the Night (download)

Nadia Cassini - Obsessed (download)

Detroit, Shari Vari, and The Scene

Before Detroit techno there was Shari Vari. 'A Number of Names,' a group of friends from Detroit in the early 80s made the track that had tremendous influence on the growth of Detroit techno. Italo Disco was pretty popular in Detroit at the time and a lot of house parties revolved around DJs spinning Italo while the youngsters got glammed up in Gucci, Prada, Dolce Gabbana. The synth part in Shari Vari comes from Kraftwerk's 'Its more fun to compute."

Here is a cool article on the birth of Detroit techno by Jon Savage. The song was also the inspiration for the Happy Boys tune "In a Limo."

Muriel Dacq

Muriel Dacq - Tropique

Discogs describes Belgian born Muriel Dacq as a 1 1/2 hit wonder but I think that 'Tropique' has to count as 2 hits because I just cannot get sick of this song. I featured it on the first podcast and it just sets such a celebratory mood. I had to get it up here on its own along with her other big hit 'Là où ça'


Muriel Dacq - Là où ça

Shah - Serenade

Shah - Serenade (1985)

A beautiful song that I stumbled on a few weeks ago. Not much else from Shah as far as I can tell.

La Bionda - I Wanna Be Your Lover

La Bionda - I Wanna Be Your Lover

Another song that sounds so familiar to me that I am convinced it has already been co-opted by the indie community. Released in 1980 this song is almost thirty but sounds so fresh that it could be released today and be the summer hit. Not too much info in English on La Bionda except that is formed of Carmelo & Michelangelo La Bionda. But delving further into Italian Wikipedia shows us that these brothers are considered among the founders of disco italiano. Check out more here



La Bionda - I Wanna Be Your Lover (download)

La Bionda - I Wanna Be Your Lover

La Bionda - I Wanna Be Your Lover

Another song that sounds so familiar to me that I am convinced it has already been coop

Plustwo - Stop Fantasy

Plustwo - Stop Fantasy (1983)

This is my jam right now (at this particular moment)! Here are the A/B sides "Melody" and "Stop Fantasy" from their 1983 single.


Plustwo - Melody (1983)

Roger Meno

Roger Meno - What My Heart Wanna Say

Roger Meno did a great job of incorporating saxophone into Italo songs. Here are two great examples for yo to jam on.


Roger Meno - I Find the Way

Roger Meno - What My Heart Want to Say (download)

Den Harrow and Tom Hooker

Den Harrow - A taste of love


Den Harrow - Mad desire


Den Harrow - Future Brain

Den Harrow is a classic story of lip synching pretty boy exploited for success and thrown away. The face of Den Harrow was Italian born Stefano Zandri but the true voice of Den Harrow was American Tom Hooker. Producers used Stefano as the face of the group with Hooker singing because they hoped to reach an American audience. The project was very prolific and you can find tons of Den Harrow videos on youtube. Despite being exposed as a lip-synching act Tom Hooker continued to write for Den Harrow and also released many tracks of his own. Here are some Den Harrow tracks and Tom Hooker tracks for your enjoyment.


Tom Hooker - Atlantis


Tom Hooker - Love Attack (SUPER FUNKY)


Tom Hooker - Come Back Home

Mike Mareen - Master of Espionage

Mike Mareen - Agent of Liberty

Mike Mareen sure has a thing for espionage. Here are two tracks of his that illustrate my point. There is a pretty thorough bio of him on discogs that I have included here.

"Mike Mareen was born on November, 9th 1949 in Berlin (West Germany). First, he was a drummer, but later he was the singer of the group Cemetery Institution (non-disco) and performed in Hamburg´s legendary 'Star Club', where The Beatles used to play in their beginnings.

Then he became a sailor, went to New York and spent some years there. Back in Germany again, he released his biggest success hit "Love Spy" in 1986, followed by "Dancing In The Dark" and "Agent Of Liberty", a great disco track as well. In the same year Mike released his first album entitled: "Dance Control". After one year later in 1987 he released his second album called: "Let's Start Now". This album included his new super-hit: "Don't Talk To The Snake". Both albums were released by well-known Germany Label Zyx Records.

Apart of Mike Mareen, he also sang using pseudonyms like Amadeus Liszt with such smash hits like: "Win The Race" and "The Devil Win", but his successful career have been with the Mike Mareen releases."



Mike Mareen - Love Spy

Mike Marren - Agent of Liberty (download)

Nancy Nova ah ah ah ah

Nancy Nova - The Force

I have been listening to Nancy Nova all weekend long and now every time I end a word in a vowel I repeat the vowel sound at least 5 times. She has a classic vocal sound and it reminds me of Billy Holiday, Esthero or Dani Siciliano. Nancy, born Carol Holness in the UK, made a name for herself in UK and on the mainland for her Disco prowess. Check out her website and wikipedia for more details.


Nancy Nova - Heaven


Nancy Nova - No, No, No

Nancy Nova - The Force (download)

Telex - Raised By Snakes

Telex - Raised By Snakes

On a spree today finding tracks and have found some jewels. I have been delving into both the absurd and the eternal elements of italo. This Telex track sounds so contemporary I am sure it is making waves with the indie electronic community.

Check out this thorough bio of Telex from Discogs.

Italo Mixes Online - Dannycashcash

Check out the new "Mixes Online" section for some great mixes I have found online. If you find one please submit it so I can get it up here.

I stumbled on this mix online when I was looking for info on Nadia Cassini and its great! This is where I heard that Nasty Boys cover of Kiss' "I Was Made for Lovin You." I am not enclosing it as a podcast because I don't want to take credit for someone else's work but it inspired be to aggregate the mixes I have found and post them on italobot.

DannyCashCash - You Made Me Mix You

The Nasty Boys - I Was Made For Lovin You

Nasty Boys, The - I Was Made For Lovin You

I almost wept when I discovered this one. I heard the original Kiss version of this song in a sweet rock video bar in Prague and couldn't get it out of my head. When I found this jewel on an amazing Italo mix I felt like some perfect circle had formed in my life. Maybe its kismet, divine circumstance, or maybe its just Italo. Here is a great live version by Kiss.

Italobot Podcast 02: Goes to a Steamy Bar

Italobot Podcast 02: Goes to a Steamy Bar (53.1 MB)
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Here are some tracks that will make your clothes smell like cigarettes. I really got into the feel of the early 80s sound on this set and tried to honor that funk and steamy disco vibe. Sorry for the delay getting this out, you know how it goes...The next one won't take so long. But it will probably be sillier.

Italobot Podcast 02: Goes to a Steamy Bar
01. Tonight's the Night - Morris (1985)
02. Mistery Of The Night - Nadia Cassini (1980)
03. Go On Do It - Victor (1984)
04. Maurice McGee - Do I Do (1983)
05. Vendetta A Parigi - Gino Palatino (1982)
06. J'ai jamais dit ça - Mino (1981)
07. Give Me - Range (1981)
08. Marc Harris - Airport (1982)
09. Don't You Want My Love - Vera (1982)
10. The Hustle (Rap Version) - Talko (1983)
11. Ciao Ciao Gigolo - Lenroy (1987)

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Italo as a Form of Protest

Check out this obscure track that protests the use of tear gas in preparation for the 1988 Olympics.




South Korea Is Walking a Fine Olympic Line
By CLYDE HABERMAN
Published: Monday, September 21, 1987

FOR South Korean Olympic officials, a nightmare vision of what could go wrong at the 1988 Seoul Olympics became a dark reality last June at the height of street protests that swept across the country.

As demonstrators battled riot policemen in the heart of two southern cities, Pusan and Masan, billows of tear gas rolled across nearby sports stadiums where international soccer matches were under way. The gas became too much for the players. They coughed and gagged as they left the field, pulling jerseys over their heads to protect themselves against the noxious fumes.

The news photos of those scenes were graphic and widely distributed.

And as South Korea's civil unrest widened, sports officials in other countries suddenly began to wonder about the prospects for trouble-free Summer Games next year.

Robert H. Helmick, president of the United States Olympic Committee, happened to be visiting Seoul at the time, and said he was confident about 1988. Still, he pointedly added that he was not about to send his athletes to any place where ''tear gas is going off outside of stadiums.''

Now, three months later, South Korean sports officials insist that all their worries are behind them. Troubles? they ask. What troubles? ''Yesterday's turmoil cannot be the same one year later,'' said Park Seh Jik, a former army general who is president of the Seoul Olympic Organizing Committee. ''It may concern some people, but I can assure you that the Seoul Olympics will be safe and successful because all the complaints of the Korean people about democratization are gone.''

''As far as political matters go,'' Mr. Park said, ''there are no complaints - almost nothing to protest.''

While more than a few of his countrymen might debate him on that point, there is little doubt about South Korea's Olympic self-assurance as it begins its final countdown to the opening ceremony on Sept. 17, 1988.

On Thursday, exactly one year before the big day, the International Olympic Committee sent out formal invitations asking its 167 member countries to come to Seoul. These Games will be different, South Korean officials say. This time, unlike Moscow in 1980 and Los Angeles in 1984, there will be no major boycott, they say.

If you look closely, though, you can see their fingers crossed.

They still cannot answer conclusively the questions that have haunted them since they were awarded the Games six years ago: What are the intentions of North Korea, this country's implacable enemy? Will the North declare a boycott? And if so, will its Communist allies stay home as well?

Through years of diplomatic tug-of-war, no significant progress has been made to resolve North Korea's demand to be co-host for the Games and South Korea's refusal to even consider the idea. The most the South will accept is an I.O.C. suggestion to have a few sports events - the latest number is five - held north of the Korean demilitarized zone.

The North has insisted on more. Last week, it added a new twist, proposing that the two Koreas negotiate directly and not use the international body as a mediator, as they have thus far. It is an offer that the South is expected to refuse in a few days.

Wearily, South Korean officials dismiss the talks as a charade. They insist that North Korea is not really interested in the Games and that its leaders in Pyongyang intend only to impede Seoul's preparations. The reason they go through the exercise themselves, they add, is that they cannot afford to appear as obstructionists.

''We have no obligation to share any events with North Korea,'' said Oh Jee Chul, a senior Sports Ministry official. ''The Olympics are awarded to a city, to Seoul, not to a country. They have no right to demand any events, any more than Japan or any other country does.''

''We have to accept that the Korean peninsula is divided into two countries,'' Mr. Oh said. ''Who can ignore that fact?''

South Korea this week set a mid-January deadline for the North to accept the I.O.C. offer. More and more, officials here believe that Pyongyang will stand virtually alone if it declares a boycott. China, one of the North's principal allies, seems almost certain to come to Seoul. Soviet-bloc countries are expected, too, although it is too early to tell. They are all tired of boycotts, Mr. Oh argued, because ''their promising young athletes cannot be sacrificed anymore.''

The rest of the article can be found here:
http://www.nytimes.com/1987/09/21/sports/south-korea-is-walking-a-fine-olympic-line.html?n=Top/Reference/Times%20Topics/Subjects/O/Olympic%20Games

Fancy Pants

Fancy - Lady of Ice

Fancy has a some great tracks and these are a few of my favorites. According to Fancy's website he had a few singles make it onto the Top 10 Dance Charts in the United States, yet it neglects to say which ones. Check out the website to read up on the history of Fancy and while you are there book him for a show.


Fancy - Bolero


Fancy - L.A.D.Y.O.