TAKE ME UP HIGH the video THE LADY BUNNY

#43 on the U.S. Dance Charts this week and rising...in fact the next week it hit #29.

The funny thing is we sent the song to DJ pools all over the world and I’ve just read a feedback sheet from Lebanon and France and they don’t know what Wigstock is! They don’t know who Lady Bunny is! They just like the song. To me, that’s very encouraging because while some people might listen to it because they know me or because I am a drag queen, you know that might turn other people off. The music industry is in a tailspin and they’re not looking for the next 50-year-old, overweight transvestite. They’re looking for the next Beyonce and Britney Spears. But at the same time, in the world of dance music, sometimes they’ve overlooked a really freaky image like Kevin Aviance or Divine or RuPaul or Sylvester. So a drag queen or a freak has been able to get over occasionally in the dance market. I hope to be one of those freaks!”

– Lady Bunny, drag legend, Wigstock creator, and recording artist, who discusses her career longevity in an interview with Huffington Post’s Noah Michelson

Loving You, Losing You Phyllis Hyman

Loving You, Losing You the first track on Phyllis Hyman's self-named 1977 l.p. has become one of the definitive morning music/sleaze tracks.  I've included it in a previous mega-post about morning music.  Here I have a zip with more versions including the Lary Sanders edit.  LOVING DOWNLOAD

Written and composed by the genius Tom Bell who is responsible for so much great music, the song has more of a bittersweet feel then ever due to Phyllis Hyman's suicide on June 30, 1995.  Though the song is from her debut l.p. it's not her first single.  Tall dark and lovely Phyllis was quite the looker!  I really hate to think about the pain she was going through to have taken her own life.  She did have a difficult career.  I think she had some bitterness over the fact that no label ever really was able to give her the huge success that she deserved.  Though she did have a few R and B hits, even a #1 in the early 90's and her talent and constant touring brought her to play at some prestigious venues.  I remember when living in N.Y.C. in the 90's she seemed to play pretty often.  I regret never having gone to one of her shows as I also greatly regret never seeing Angela Bofill another songbird who I adore.  Angela too had a hard time and suffered from a paralyzing stroke, that left her hardly able to speak.

That honor goes out to the one off single on Private Stock from 1975 called Leaving the Good Life Behind.  Mixed by the master Tom Moulton it only came out on a 7" single and remains highly collectible and mostly unknown.  Her second album Sing a Song from 1978 is the most collectible Phyllis costing hundreds of dollars if you can even find it.  Expensive even as a re-issue

Of course it took until 1979 to make her disco legendary the Mtume and Lucas produced and written gem You Know How to Love Me is certainly considered one of the best records of the disco era.

You're the One is a previously unreleased track from her disco years.  It has recently seen the light of day and can even be downloaded on Amazon.  YOU'RE THE ONE

I SIGNORI DELLA GALASSIA magical PROXIMA CENTAURI seminal space disco

I Signori Della Galassia came up with some real space rock that is considered the roots of spacey italo disco.

 They were composed of Franco Delfino (keyboards, voice), Gigi Mosello (keyboards, voice), Manuel Gustavino (guitar), Bruno Govone (guitar), Sergio Babboni (bass) and Beppe Aleo (drums) and formed in Savona, Italy.  Here I include the 12" for Proxima Centauri.  All of their releases are relatively rare. 
PROXIMA

You....See by Hélicon 1983 Crash italo disco treat

Hélicon only had the one italo disco hit, but it sure was a doozy.  Released on Crash records a part of the sublime il discotto group.  It was yet another example of why 1983 was the best year for italo disco.  YOU....SEE a download

The vocals were by Elio Conti.  He had a 1982 italo disco release under the moniker Fancy called Null Null.  

X-Ray Connection, Digital Emotion, Gazuzu, Cat Music and Connector GET READY and ESCAPE FROM SPACE

X-Ray Connection is one of the aliases for Digital Emotion, Gazuzu, Cat Music, Connector and even more.

GET READY ESCAPE FROM SPACEGet Ready is a real catchy ditty and yet another dance record from 1983.  

Flood by Delanua Super Early Italo Disco Track

Delanua' is Domenico Ricci, who later achieved great italo disco success using the moniker Joe Yellow. The tracks as Delanua' are seminal early italo disco classics.  As a matter of fact Flood was only the 5th release on what was to become one of the most important italo disco labels in history, DiscoMagic.  There are some real rock style guitar licks that are reminiscent of Goblin on Flood.  In any case in 1980 italo disco hadn't become such a sensation and was still to form it's most definitive style.  This record does show however that Italy was going to be a force to be reckoned with in the field of dance music in the 80's.  DOWNLOAD FLOOD

Serving a new wave look

The tracks recorded as Joe Yellow were much more of the poppy italo disco sound that was able to cross-over onto pop charts around the world, Lover to Lover and and Take my Heart are just a couple Joe Yellow classics.  As Bob Salton he recorded the seminal spacey italo disco track Starknight which I have blogged about in the past.

GREEK ITALO DISCO GEM COMPUTER GUY by PALMER

Here's a rare one.  It's an italo disco record made in Greece.  It was released in 1986 on the Eva & L.A. label.  It's by DJ Palmer who was a successful DJ in Greece in the 80's.  COMPUTER GUY

If you've got a copy you can probably pay a nice stack of bills with it.  Here are some prices the record got in auctions recently.

Here's a little entry from Discogs.com

aristomas

 as reviewed by aristomas Feb 18, 2008

The song "Computer guy" was a huge hit in Greece circa 1986 and should have been covered more by the media! The track featured many talented Hellenic names that went on to bigger and better things! The co-producer of the project was Vassilis Dertilis, founder of Power Music Productions. The lyrics were written by the International recording artist, Aris Tomas and founder of Wizard Records who also wrote the classic Hellenic (Den boro n'antistatho) Se Thelo and International hits ie. Beautiful Lady, Goin' Up!, ect.

THE LADY BUNNY TAKE ME UP HIGH

We at Disco Vinyl never really even mention current releases.  But The Lady Bunny is channeling her disco inner self in her latest dance release and it's not to be missed.  Just in time to capitalize on her t.v. success as an essential component of Logo T.V.'s Drag University, and her 17 years organizing Wigstock and starring in the film about it.  

 

The Lady Bunny spent 17 years creating and promoting Wigstock and is now an in demand DJ.  She has been flown to Morocco, Paris, London and many other destinations to spin her mix of disco classics and crowd pleasers.  She's currently touring her dance hit TAKE ME UP HIGH on Lybra Records.  She's got a real Sylvester groove to her voice and the beat can really take you up high.

She's charting too.  If you know anyone that buys current dance music do encourage them to check Take me Up High out.  Perhaps Bunny will go to the top!

Do check out Lady Bunny stuff on you tube.  In case you haven't been introduced to her whacky sense of humor you're in for a treat!

Take me up High is being promoted by industry legendary Bobby Shaw.

Lady Bunny can turn a glamour look when she wants to.

HERE'S A SNIPPET OF THE SWEET TEAM MIX of Take me Up High.

An avid animal rights activist here is a photo of Bunny and I at a PETA benefit in Rome a few years back. I introduced Bunny to Dan Mathews in the late 80's and their collaboration the FUR is a drag! events have become legendary all over the world.  PETA has aligned itself with camp and there ain't no goin' back.

BUNNY TWEETS

Ever the jet-setter for a price you can have Bunny at your next birthday!

Most don't know that Lady Bunny had a twelve inch dance single on Maxi Records in the mid 90's.  It was her re-make of the 1975 disco hit by Sheila and Company Shame, Shame, Shame.

If you are traveling to N.Y.C. you can catch Bunny at her weekly event at XL in Hell's Kitchen.