Big Disco Crossover Hits, part 1

Today's entry will be more music and less talk. I'll try to present as many of the Disco hits that crossed over to the mainstream during the second half of the 1970s - and there were many of those. I will begin with the two acts that were almost presented separately - the reasons why they weren't can be found here: Village People. But before these two acts, let's hear from Labelle - and the first Disco song to top both the US Hot 100 and the R&B chart in 1975.

Patti LaBelle (formerly Patricia Holt), Cindy Birdsong, Nona Hendryx and Sarah Dash had been together as The Blue Belles since 1962. The first hit credited to them wasn't actually sung by them (it's a long story). They had a couple more top 40 hits in 1963-64, then the hits dried up, Cindy Birdsong left them to replace Florence Ballard in the Supremes in 1967, and the other three changed their name to Labelle in 1970. They only had one big hit, in 1975, but it's an absolute classic; it's Lady Marmalade:

Gloria Gaynor's first big crossover hit came in 1974, peaking at #1 on the US Disco chart and at #9 in the Hot 100. It was Never Can Say Goodbye, the Jackson 5 hit that also impacted the charts with Isaac Hayes - and much later with the Communards:

She followed it up with a Disco remake of the Four Tops' Soul classic Reach Out, I'll Be There, a #2 hit on the US Disco chart and a big hit in Europe and Canada:

More than 3 years passed with no significant crossover hits, although Gaynor did have big Disco hits, like Casanova Brown. However, in 1978 came I Will Survive; a #1 hit almost everywhere, a powerful empowering anthem for women and gay people both - and my favorite Disco song ever:

Florida's KC and the Sunshine Band was the other act that would have had an individual presentation, but you'll listen to all their big hits instead. In 1975, Get Down Tonight kicked things off in spectacular style; their first Hot 100 hit went all the way to #1:

The follow-up, That's the Way (I Like It), probably their definitive hit, was even bigger:

(Shake, Shake, Shake) Shake Your Booty (1976) was their third #1 in quick succession:

I'm Your Boogie Man, in early 1977, was their fourth US #1:

Keep It Comin' Love "only" made #2. It would be followed, however, by a number of failed or semi-successful singles, until the ballad Please Don't Go returned them to the top, but it was too little too late; the band would break up right after. This is Keep It Comin' Love:

The Average White Band was a mostly white band from Scotland. Their early 1975 hit, Pick Up The Pieces, hit the top of the US Pop chart and was a huge Disco favorite:

Their follow-up, Cut The Cake, was also a big hit:

Meanwhile, a few months earlier, B.T. Express from Brooklyn, NY, had two huge hits; first came Do It ('Til You're Satisfied):

... Then came the Express:

In the summer of 1975, a Soul veteran, Van McCoy, hit the top with The Hustle:

The Fatback Band gave us the Spanish Hustle:

... As well as (Are You Ready) Do the Bus Stop:

... While Van McCoy followed up The Hustle with The Shuffle:

While we're on the subject of Van McCoy, here's a little something that doesn't belong to today's story, but I love it, so I thought I'd share it anyway; it's a Van McCoy composition, sung by the great Nina Simone. It's from 1965 and is called Break Down And Let It All Out:

Labelle and Van McCoy were not Disco acts per se, they were credible R&B artists that "adjusted" their sound to fit the Disco craze of the mid-1970s. Lots of other acts did so as well; one of them was Smokey Robinson's former band, the Miracles, especially in their huge hit, Love Machine:

... So did The Four Seasons, with Who Loves You:

... Frankie Valli also had a solo hit in 1975 with Swearin' To God:

... The O'Jays did it with I Love Music:

... The Isley Brothers gave us Fight the Power:

... Earth, Wind & Fire came up with Sing a Song:

... The Stylistics had a #1 hit in the UK with Can't Give You Anything (But My Love):

... Barry White kept having hits. 1975's follow-ups to his two giant hits from 1974 (Can't Get Enough Of Your Love and You're The First, The Last, My Everything - we've heard them both) were these two big hits: First came What Am I Gonna Do with You:

... Then came Let the Music Play:

Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes had been releasing singles since 1956. Their #1 Disco hit (and #15 in the Hot 100) came in 1975 and was called Bad Luck. It holds the record for the longest-running number-one Disco hit (11 weeks):

Rufus featuring the amazing Chaka Khan had a US top 10 and #2 Disco hit with Once You Get Started:

... While Little Esther Phillips, who had her first US R&B #1 in 1950 was little no more. As just Esther Phillips, she had a big hit with What a Diff'rence a Day Made:

Then there were new acts who rode the Disco wave in a spectacular way; among them was Rhythm Heritage who had a #1 hit with the Theme from S.W.A.T.:

Shirley & Company gave us the Sylvia Robinson penned Disco classic Shame, Shame, Shame:

What a Diff'rence a Day Made was originally written in 1934. Compared to Baby Face, which was originally written in 1926, it was a baby of a song. Yet the song received the Disco treatment from the studio group Wing and a Prayer Fife and Drum Corps and became a hit:

The Ritchie Family (its members were not related) was created by the man who also created the Village People, Frenchman Jacques Morali. Brazil was their first big hit:

... A year later, The Best Disco in Town was an even bigger hit:

We've already heard Get Dancing by Disco Tex & The Sexolettes. Their follow-up hit was I Wanna Dance Wit' Choo:

More than a Woman was not Tavares' first hit. It Only Takes a Minute, however, was their first really big hit (#10 Hot 100, #1 R&B, #2 Disco):

Do It Any Way You Wanna by The People's Choice was also a big crossover hit and a Disco classic:

The Moments and the Whatnauts were both signed to Stang Records at the time. So, a joint effort was feasible; it was called Girls and it was the biggest hit in the career of both groups:

Hijack was a crossover hit by Herbie Mann:

Up in a Puff of Smoke by Polly Brown was also a crossover hit:

Now, let's listen to four hits in a row; they weren't big hits in the Hot 100, but were all top 20 hits in the UK and elsewhere. Also, all four peaked in the top 12 of the US Disco chart. First comes El Bimbo by Bimbo Jet:

... It's in His Kiss by Linda Lewis:

... Disco Stomp by Hamilton Bohannon:

... and Summer of '42 by the Biddu Orchestra:

With a few exceptions (follow-up hits and a couple from 1974) all the hits we've heard today come from 1975. There'll be more to come, of course. Also, if you want to read/listen to the other stories in this blog that deal with Disco music (the Village People link is at the beginning of today's story), here are the links for: Dalida, Sylvester (and here), Patrick Juvet, Barry Manilow (a few of his songs would qualify), Michael Jackson (also here and here), Blondie, History of Dance, Dance Music before Disco, Disco: The Origins - The Early Years, the Bee Gees (and here), Donna Summer, Euro Disco (Germany, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden) and African Disco, Euro Disco (France, Belgium, and Switzerland), Euro Disco (Italy), Alicia Bridges, Grace Jones, and Dan Hartman. You do realize that we've had so many stories and we're still halfway through, don't you? Oh, well, we'll eventually cover as much as possible - unless you get bored of reading/listening first.