ExpatMichael's opinion of anything relating to disco, Italo disco, funk and boogie music. Promotion for my Ebay and Discogs stores which concentrate on the sale of Disco, Funk, Italo Disco, Hi NRG, New Wave, morning music, sleaze and anything pressed on vinyl. There's a link to my Ebay store on the bottom of the page, right under the counter widget. Thanks for visiting and feel free to leave comments. Follow my twitter and join the Disco Vinyl Fan Page on Facebook.
A 1978 disco maxi single release called Punky Monkey Sound is my latest obscure treasure for your listening pleasure.
It appears that Augusto Martinelli is well known in Italy. I've lived here 20 years and I've never heard of him but at least the top picture seems to be from a t.v. show.
The guy doing the vocals Big Pierre is from Asti, you know of Asti Spumante fame. He on the other hand is an obscure figure.
I burned this record myself from my own collection. About 10 years ago I had a neighbor who had a set-up capable of burning vinyl. Last I remember they were taking him away on a stretcher. He was an eccentric one indeed!
As I've been writing this blog for almost 10 years now occasionally I go back and re-fresh old links that don't work anymore. Below are new ones for one of the best double sided Italo classics of all time.9 B.W.H. was an alias for Stefano Zito and Carlo Favili.
Stop and Livin' it Up by B.W.H. were released on House of Music Italy in 1983 and are truly the top of the genre. Makes me wanna dance! Another rare thing about this special record is that it is a double A side. If you've already downloaded this from me before, you're gonna want this new zip trust me.
This song makes me think of the Caribbean or at least people on a limbo line. It's got an infectious happy time feeling that borders on hokey.
But since italo disco puts a smile on my face this one never fails to please. Gaucho Zip The b side version of Dance Forever called the DJ version is a bit more of a serious groove. If Side A is too hokey for you then Side B should satisfy.
Gaucho is yet another Italo Disco project featuring Bruno Bergonzi, Luciano Ninzatti, and Stefano Pulga who have quite a prolific output in the genre. I think Stefano Pulga's Love Taker had more then a few spins at The Saint.
eagles in the night AN EAGLES ZIP EAGLES IN THE NIGHT HEARTBEAT FRED VENTURA LEAVE ME ALONE FRED VENTURA THE YEARS GO BY FRED VENTURA IMAGINE FRED VENTURA 1987 TIME RECORDS Body Heat Fockewulf 190 using the voice of Fred Ventura came out with Eagles in the Night by Dario Dell'Aere in 1985 on Market Records Italy. It is now one of the most coveted Italo Disco 12" in existence and in my opinion one of the very best. It is the epitome of Italo Disco kitsch. The male vocals are completely off and he seems to yell "oh wacky co-co" and then after when she sings "oh I will become an eagle that flies only in the night" and he comes back "Uh ho Uh ho." It is simply classic nonsensical Italo at it's best. Why would someone want to become an eagle that flies only in the night anyway?
I was trying to put my finger on what makes the sound of the music so unusual and then it dawned on me it sounds as if in the background they are playing a children's xylophone. Yet the synth work is top notch. Frank Tavaglione with the ultra rare 12" Tumidanda is also Fockewulf 190. Aliases in Italo Disco seem more common then they would be in a spy movie! Body Heat was their release from 1984 on Market Records. Ironically they wrote on the sleeve of the 12" that Dario Dell'Aere did the vocals but it was actually Fred Ventura (Federico Di Bonaventura).
The 12" cover art work by Tiziana Dell'Aere for Eagles in the Night is quite interesting too and probably ups the value as quite a few collectors I've come in contact with are quite partial to picture sleeves. Especially those who collect Italo Disco.
My love for Italo Disco came quite late in life. Because at the time going out in Rome in the 80's that's the music I heard in clubs and most nights it didn't seem quite so remarkable to me. But now considering how coveted and rare many of these tracks have become and then reading about how many of them had a strong influence on early house music and were staples on the legendary WBMX of Chicago, I realize that I really was quite fond of them after all. It's just that here in Italy in many cases they were simply Top 40 radio fodder so they seemed quite common.
But in the past decade I've become a rabid collector of Italo mp3's. I guess because I've already accumulated so many of the disco and morning music ones that I wanted to get. Also due to the fact that for several years Italo disco labels like il discotto, Memory, Time, Market, Baby and others were quite prolific it would be almost impossible to know the majority of the releases. Many fell by the wayside during that period and many others were licensed by ZYX records in Germany and those got promoted heavily even though in many cases they were not the best ones.
Freshened Links do you really need me K.B. Caps is the alias for Cay Hume. His first maxi single on XYZ records was released in 1986. Do you really need me? is definitely considered an italo disco classic. The zip below contains many versions including remixes and a more current take on the gem. For a German record it certainly captures the spirit of italo disco.
1986 was pretty late in the italo disco era. In fact there were less and less releases by then. Germany's ZYX came to the rescue and kept the genre going with this record.
I'm gonna bring back this old post from 2010 and again from 2013 for those of you who didn't get a chance to download this masterpiece. Gigi Vavassori, Salvatore Pileggi, Sergio Bonzanni are Sensitive. They created some of the most mysterious, melodic, synthesized, sheer Italo Disco magic of all time. I really can't be more enthusiastic about these tracks as they are for me the pinnacle of a genre I hold so dear.
I've only heard of two singles. The 1984 12" release on Gong Records Italy "Driving" and it's 1985 follow-up double A side follow-up on Sensation records Italy "Give Me" and "Don't Stop". At the risk of sounding banal I'm just going to let the music speak for itself. a Sensitive zip Driving I sold a copy of Driving for a friend of mine who happened to have two. It stopped just sort of $600.00 in Ebay. I've actually seen copies go for near a grand. Imagine if someone had a sixth sense about this record and bought a hundred copies and kept them sealed in a box somewhere just waiting to unleash them!
In 2009 a previously unreleased version was released. When I figure out which external HD I put it on I''ll refresh the link.
refreshed with a new link Phyllis Nelson is definitely one of those coulda been artists. Coulda but didn't except when gold struck twice.
In 1980 her debut single Don't Stop the Train was a hit at the seminal gay disco The Saint. Peaking at #20 on the U.S. dance chart But it didn't get any pop traction.
Then out of nowhere in early 1985 her ballad Move Closer tore up the charts in Europe hitting #1 in the U.K. Though a wonderful record it saw no play in the states.
The France based singer then rocked it in the states. Her single I Like You became one of the definitive classics of the Hi NRG disco sound. Taking it all the way to #1 on the U.S. dance charts and getting some R&B traction too. What a tune! This 20 year old used to lose his mind to this record. Shep Pettibone provided a fantastic mix and boy can I remember the joy I used to have dancing to this record. What a positive message too.
And then once again she faded into obscurity. In 1988 at the age of 47 she succumbed to breast cancer in L.A. where she had been living. Phyllis I liked you.
In 1984 Ken Laszlo burst upon the italo disco scene with the genius Hey Hey Guy. One of the catchiest italo disco songs ever. The introduction alone is legendary, so camp.
Ken also recorded under several aliases including Ric Fellini, Jaco (with the classic Spanish Run) and Artwork. Almost all of his output was on the seminal Italian italo disco label Memory.
The Follow-up to Hey Hey Guy came out the next year in 1985 and it was nearly as infectious. Another italo disco masterpiece.
The 1986 release Don't Cry didn't slow down his impact on the dance floor. But in my humble opinion it was not up to par to his first two singles.
1987 1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8 was fun and featured a campy video.
Everybody is Dancing in 1989 was pure Euro Disco. By then production of Italo Disco was on the wane as there was also house music to contend with. It was also back to a good groove and I find it to be one of his better records.
Mike Mareen (Uwe-Michael Wischhof) is one of those rare examples of an italo disco artist who is not at all Italian.
He had been singing in various genre's since 1974, and made a name for himself in his native Hamburg, Germany.
But he jumped on the genre in 1983 with the remake of Simon and Garfunkel's Cecilia.
The next year came Dancing in the Dark and it became an italo disco classic.
Then Double Trouble in 1985.
His most well known italo disco number came out in 1986 Love Spy just one the whole italo disco movement was on the decline. Agent of Liberty also came out in 1986. Mike Mareen Zip
Kano was formed in Milan in 1979. It had a rotating roster of members but the one vocalist was the main member.
Kano (Glen White) a West Indian was one of the earliest italo disco acts. Charting first in 1980 before anyone was even considering to call disco made in Italy Italo Disco. It featured excellent use of vocoders and was instantly embraced as roller disco classic.
We had the fortune of working with Luciano Ninzatti and Stefano Pulga and Matteo Monsanto. All masters of the genre. Kano non only had a deep flavourful voice but of course perfect pronunciation and some stage presence. All qualities not often seen in Italo Disco.
The first Kano album was on Full Time Records in Italy and then licensed to Emergency in the States. In the States it got to #8 with I'm Ready and #2 for 5 weeks with It's a War. Songs which became pop hits around the world, and R & B hits in the states. These Kano songs have been hugely sampled and featured in some really big hits such as Tag Teams Whoomp! (There it is).
The second album New York Cake was even more R&B based and featured the track Can't Hold Back. Baby Not Tonight was massive in Italy making it all the way to #3.
The third and final Kano album in 1983 was perhaps the most pure italo disco of the three and featured several hits including I need Love, Another Life and Dance School. Another Life was a Top 10 hit in both Germany and Switzerland.
1983's Queen of Witches was another one of my favorites.
The website Vice Italia brought this film to my attention. It's not to be missed. It may be the only film made about Italo Disco. Even stars the italo king Tom Hooker, The Creatures and Kano.
Believe in Yourself by The Creatures which is on this soundtrack is one of my all time favorite italo disco tracks. Danceable and has a great message to boot.
Various – Original Soundtrack From The Motion Picture "Jocks"
