Jacques Morali was a French record producer who achieved fame and fortune by creating, producing, and branding the Village People who were arguably the flash point of disco’s crossover during the mid ’70s. While working in a record store during the early ’70s, he began to hear the early records of dance and what would soon become disco, and immediately fell in love with it. He moved to the United States and found work at Sigma Sound Studios in Philadelphia so he could be near the Philly Sound he had learned about in France. While there, he co-produced or co-wrote songs for several albums by the Ritchie Family. While visiting a gay disco in New York’s Greenwich Village, Morali took note of the various manly male stereotypes, and thus the concept of the Village People was born. He put the group together and landed a deal with Casablanca Records. Between 1977 and 1979, he produced a string of hits with the Village People. That list includes such disco staples as “Macho Man,” “YMCA,” and “In The Navy.” During the late ’70s and early ’80s, he produced nearly 70 disco albums. But soon the disco craze would die as fast and as hard as it had burst on to the scene, and Morali all but disappeared from the music industry. Jacques Morali was 44 when he died of AIDS on November 15, 1991.
Norman Whitfield is best remembered as one of the musical geniuses responsible for creating the Motown Sound during the 1960s. As a house songwriter and producer, Whitfield had his hand in at least three dozen of the greatest pop songs to come out of Detroit. That list includes “Ain’t To Proud To Beg” by the Temptations, “War” by Edwin Starr, “Too Many Fish In The Sea” by the Marvelettes, and “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” by Gladys Knight & the Pips. Whitfield formed his own label in 1973 and enjoyed great success with the big disco hit, “Car Wash” by Rose Royce. Whitfield was awarded a Grammy in 1976 for the score soundtrack to the film, Car Wash. A mostly bedridden Norman Whitfield died as a result diabetes and other ailments at the age of 68.
Jerry Wexler was best known as a music producer who was responsible for some of the greatest music from the 1950s through the 1980s. He also coined the phrase “rhythm and blues” while he was editor of Billboard magazine before he became a partner of Atlantic Records in 1953. While at Atlantic he either produced or signed some of the all time greats of popular music. That list includes Wilson Pickett, Led Zeppelin, Aretha Franklin, Ray Charles, Bob Dylan and the Allman Brothers. He retired from the music business in the late ’90s, and passed away of congestive heart failure in 2008.
Thanks to the Jeff Ballenberg at Beat Marketing for the lead.
Joseph “Joe Tex” Arrington
August 8, 1933 – August 13, 1982
Joe Tex was an American soul singer and songwriter who is best remembered for his four hit singles in the ’60s and ’70s. 1965’s “Hold What You’ve Got” sold over a million copies and reached #5 on the Billboard singles chart. His “Skinny Legs And All,” released in 1967 also sold more than a million copies, while 1972’s “I Gotcha” peaked at #2 on the pop charts. And 1977, Tex released “Ain’t Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman),” his last sizable hit, which went to #12 on the charts. He had a unique style of singing at the time, a preacher-style of talking over the songs – he called it “rap” and many music historians agree that it was one of the early foundations of rap and hip hop. In the mid ’60s, Tex converted to the Muslim religion and changed his name to Yusuf Hazziez, and in the ’80s, he more or less retired from music and devoted his time to his religion. Joe Tex died of after a heart attack at the age of 48.
Isaac Hayes was a Tennessee-born musician, singer, songwriter and producer who had a hand in some of the greatest soul songs ever produced. Hayes began his music career as a session musician for Stax Records in Memphis where he began writing songs for the label’s roster of artists. With songwriting partner, David Porter, Hayes co-wrote such R&B staples as “You Don’t Know Like I Know,” and “Soul Man,” which has been called one of the most influential songs of the 20th century. By the late ’60s, Hayes started making his own albums, which included the monumental, Hot Buttered Soul, Black Moses, and most famously, the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film, Shaft!. Then title song would become one of the most beloved songs of the era. In later years, Hayes found a new audience as the voice of Chef in the popular animated series, South Park. In 1998, “Chocolate Salty Balls” as performed on the show by Chef became a #1 hit in the UK. And in 2002, Hayes was elected into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Isaac Hayes died of an apparent stroke after being found by his wife lifeless on the floor next to his treadmill which was still running. He was 65 years old.
Esther Phillips
December 23, 1935 – August 7, 1984
Esther Phillips was one of the permier female R&B singers of the 1950s. It was R&B impresario Johnny Otis, who first recognized Phillips’ talent when, at 14, she won a talent show at his night club. Otis produced her earliest recordings and put her in his traveling R&B show under the name of Little Esther. Phillips recorded several hits in the early ’50s, but an addiction to drugs slowed her ascent down and eventually sidelined her in 1954. She mounted a comeback once cleaned up in the early ’60s and began releasing hit records again. One recording in partiular, a version of the Beatles’ “And I Love Him” prompted the Fab Four to fly her to England to perform. The disco era was kind to Phillips as she was able to adapt her sound to appease a new generation of dancing fans. She had some of her biggest successes during that time. Unfortunately, she could never quite shake her addictions. She died at the age of 48 of liver and kidney failure attributed to many years of alcohol and heroin dependency.
Steve Rubell was a New York business man who teamed up with friend Ian Schrager to open Studio 54, the Brooklyn nightclub that became the epicenter of the ’70s disco phenomenon. The disco opened in April of 1977 and quickly became the late night destination of the rich and famous. It would not be unusual for one to bump into the likes of Elton John, Liza Minnelli, David Bowie, Andy Warhol, Warren Beatty, Cher, John Lennon or Steve Buckingham. On many nights, Rubell would stand at the front door and randomly decide who could enter based on their looks or wardrobe. Two years after the club opened, Rubell and Schrager were charged with tax evasion and other charges and were later convicted and sentenced to 3-1/2 years in prison. After his release from prison, Rubell opened another club and a hotel, but nothing ever matched the excitement of Studio 54. In 1985, he discovered he had AIDS which likely had a hand in his death from hepatitus on July 25, 1989.
Van McCoy was a musician, producer, arranger and prolific songwriter who has penned upwards of 700 songs during his career. But, he is perhaps best remembered for just one, “The Hustle,” which was massive disco hit of 1975 and to this day, arguably defines the era. McCoy began singing in the church choir as a child and by his early teens, he and his brother were performing as a doo wop duo. While in college, McCoy started his own record label to release his first single, “Hey Mr. DJ.” He was soon hired by Scepter Records as an A&R rep and songwriter. Over the years, he penned hits for Gladys Knight & The Pips (“Giving Up”), Barbara Lewis (“Baby, I’m Yours”), the Shirelles (“Stop The Music”) and Jackie Wilson (“I Get The Sweetest Feeling) to name just a few. Van McCoy died of a heart attack at the age of 39.
Barry White (Born Barrence Carter)
September 12, 1944 – July 4, 2003
A young Barry White was going down a wrong path when he heard Elvis Presley on the radio while serving four months in prison for burglary. He was seventeen at the time, and music became his salvation. After leaving gang life behind, White became a successful songwrither, producer, arranger and performer. In 1969, White hit gold by producing a group called Love Unlimited Orchestra. A string of hits followed, with their “Love’s Theme” hitting the top of the pop charts in 1974 becoming, arguably, the first disco hit ever. White’s rich bass voice would become synonymous with all that was sexy in the ’70s and beyond. Hits like “Can’t Get Enough Of Your Love, Baby” and “Never, Never Give You Up” followed and endeared him to fans thanks to his romantic blend of soul and orchestra. His career slowed down somewhat during the ’80s and part of the ’90s until he was introduced to a whole new generation thanks to an animated appearance in a 1993 episode of The Simpsons. A handful of hits followed throughout the ’90s, as did numerous placements of his songs on popular television shows, including Alley McBeal on which he appeared twice. He was awarded two Grammys for 1999 release, Staying Power. White was plagued with health problems in his later years due in part to high blood pressure. He suffered a stroke in May of 2003 and passed away two months later. He was 58.
Claydes “Charles” Smith
September 6, 1948 – June 20, 2006
Charles Smith was co-founder of and guitarist for the great disco/funk group, Kool & The Gang. Along with the other members of the group, Smith’s background was in jazz, but married it with funk, dance, R&B and pop to become one of the biggest acts of the ’70s thanks to such hits as “Jungle Boogie,” “Hollywood Swinging,” “Ladies Night,” and “Celebration.” Smith is credited for writing or co-writing some of the group’s biggest hits. He died after a long undisclosed illness on June 20, 2006.
Born in Queens, Barry Lederer, started his DJ career while attending college in upstate New York. It was there that began throwing parties, entertaining guests with tapes he made from the radio. Lederer moved back to New York City after college and started hanging out a club called the Firehouse. After complaining to management about the music being played, he was given a shot at putting his money where his mouth was. Before long, he was drawing crowds of as many as 1500 on weekends. He soon became a popular draw at the gay clubs throughout New York’s Fire Island. Lederer also wrote a Disco column in Billboard magazine during the hieght of the era. He passed away of heart disease on May 31, 2008.
Johnnie Taylor was one of those rare talents who could adapt his style to fit whatever the current trend was looking for. He found success with gospel, soul, blues, doo wop, and disco. Taylor’s first break came in 1957 when he replaced Sam Cooke as front man of the Soul Stirrers, the influential gospel group. In 1961, he signed to Cooke’s label, Star Records. But when Cooke was murdered in 1964, Taylor moved back to Memphis where he was signed to the legendary Stax Records where he had a string of R&B hits that primarily showcased his smooth crooning. Then came the mid ’70s, and Taylor found himself on CBS Records where in 1976, he delivered one of disco’s biggest smashes, “Disco Lady.” That song would become the very first single to be certified Platinum by the RIAA. It went on to sell more than two million copies. By the ’80s, disco was dead and so was Taylor’s ascension to the top, so he went back to where it all began and signed with Malaco Records, a label that let him revisit the sound of his early career, the blues. His career stayed active through the late ’90s, but on May 31, 2000, Johnnie Taylor suffered a fatal heart attack.
Viola Wills (Born Viola Wilkerson)
December 30, 1939 – May 6, 2009
Viola Wills was already a mother of six when she was discovered by Barry White in 1965. In her early career, Wills mostly worked as a back up singer for White as well as Joe Cocker and Smokey Robinson. In 1979, Wills began a streak of disco hits that included “Dare To Dream,” “Gonna Get Along Without You Now,” and “Stormy Weather.” Her chart success lead to her being dubbed “Disco Diva,” and that was during a time when “diva” wasn’t thrown around as much as it is these days. For disco, she was a bit of an anomaly in that she wrote many of her own songs. Wills passed away after a long illness on May 6, 2009. She was 69.
Vicki Sue Robinson had many accomplishments in music, theater and film, but it would be her smash it “Turn The Beat Around” that would forever make her a disco queen. Her life as an entertainer began at age six when she joined her mother on stage at the storied Philadelphia Folk Festival. At sixteen she was on Broadway as a cast member of Hair. She landed a couple film roles, most notably Going Home and To Find A Man and by 1973, she was performing in the Broadway production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Then in 1975, while singing backing vocals on a friend’s album, she was offered a contract with RCA Records. 1976 saw the release of her debut, Never Gonna Let You Go, that included the smash hit, “Turn The Beat Around.” The album went to number one on the Billboard pop charts and earned Robinson a Grammy nomination. Robinson’s career continued to flourish through early 2000, but she never matched the success of that first album. Besides making her own records, her later years found her doing plenty of session work as well as acting on film and stage. And of course, “Turn The Beat Around,” continued to find new audiences thanks to a popular cover by Gloria Estefan and from Robinson’s live appearances on the disco revival circuit. Robinson died from cancer on April 27, 2000 at just 46.
As one of disco’s family-group, the Sylvers, Edmund Sylvers scored a huge hit with “Boogie Fever” in 1976. He was also the voice of the Marlon Jackson character in the popular Jackson 5 cartoon. After the disco fever died off, Sylvers continued to work as a percussionist and a producer with such artists as Jackson 5, the Whispers, Gladys Knight and Janet Jackson. He succumbed to cancer on March 11, 2004.
Although Andy Gibb was the baby brother of Maurice, Barry and Robin Gibb, the Bee Gees, he never lived in their shadow. In fact their fame likely helped him launch his own career as he was signed by Robert Stigwood to hisRSO Records label, then home to the Bee Gees as well. Brother Barry wrote for and co-produced Andy’s debut. Flowing Rivers, included three consecutive #1 singles on Billboard magazine’s Hot 100, a first for a solo male artist. As was the case with many artists from the disco era, Gibb’s career took a steady downturn throughout the eighties at about the same pace as his addiction to cocaine was growing. Although he had several guest-starring roles on television and a successful tour of Asia, he found himself in serious financial trouble, so he decided to join forces with Barry and Maurice to revive his career. But sadly, his habits caught up with him in the form of an inflammatory heart virus allegedly caused by his strong addiction to cocaine.
Glenn M. Hughes was the original “Biker” character in the disco group Village People from 1977 to 1996. He graduated Class of 1968 from Chaminade High School, then attending Manhattan College, where he was initiated as a member of Phi Mu Alpha Sinfonia music fraternity in 1969. He was interested in motorcycles, and was working as a toll collector at the Brooklyn-Battery Tunnel when he responded to an advertisement by composer Jacques Morali seeking “macho” singers and dancers. Hughes and other members of the band were given a crash course in the synchronized dance choreography that later typified the group’s live performances. Glenn’s powerful bass voice played an important part in the background lyrics of almost all Village People’s most known hits, such as In The Navy. He sported an extravagant handlebar mustache (or more correctly a horseshoe mustache) and wore his trademark leather outfit on stage and off. As he was the band’s “biker” and a real life fanatic, he kept his motorcycle parked inside his home. With Village People gaining fame, Hughes became one of the icons of the disco era, even appearing in a special television broadcast in Playboy Mansion with Hugh Hefner. In 1996 he retired from dancing and launched his own successful New York cabaret act, which kept him busy until lung cancer was diagnosed. He was replaced by Eric Anzalone as the Biker character. However, Hughes continued with management of the band. During his later years, he was known for storming the streets of New York with his Custom Harley-Davidson motorcycle. Hughes, who was also referred to by the masses as “Leatherman”, was named on People Magazine’s 1979 list of most beautiful people. He died in March 2001 at age 50 in his apartment in Manhattan from lung cancer. – From wikipedia
Joe Tex was an American soul singer and songwriter who is best remembered for his four hit singles in the ’60s and ’70s. 1965’s “Hold What You’ve Got” sold over a million copies and reached #5 on the Billboard singles chart. His “Skinny Legs And All,” released in 1967 also sold more than a million copies, while 1972’s “I Gotcha” peaked at #2 on the pop charts. And 1977, Tex released “Ain’t Gonna Bump No More (With No Big Fat Woman),” his last sizable hit, which went to #12 on the charts. He had a unique style of singing at the time, a preacher-style of talking over the songs – he called it “rap” and many music historians agree that it was one of the early foundations of rap and hip hop. In the mid ’60s, Tex converted to the Muslim religion and changed his name to Yusuf Hazziez, and in the ’80s, he more or less retired from music and devoted his time to his religion. Joe Tex died of after a heart attack at the age of 48.
Isaac Hayes was a Tennessee-born musician, singer, songwriter and producer who had a hand in some of the greatest soul songs ever produced. Hayes began his music career as a session musician for Stax Records in Memphis where he began writing songs for the label’s roster of artists. With songwriting partner, David Porter, Hayes co-wrote such R&B staples as “You Don’t Know Like I Know,” and “Soul Man,” which has been called one of the most influential songs of the 20th century. By the late ’60s, Hayes started making his own albums, which included the monumental, Hot Buttered Soul, Black Moses, and most famously, the soundtrack to the blaxploitation film, Shaft!. Then title song would become one of the most beloved songs of the era. In later years, Hayes found a new audience as the voice of Chef in the popular animated series, South Park. In 1998, “Chocolate Salty Balls” as performed on the show by Chef became a #1 hit in the UK. And in 2002, Hayes was elected into the Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame. Isaac Hayes died of an apparent stroke after being found by his wife lifeless on the floor next to his treadmill which was still running. He was 65 years old.
Esther Phillips was one of the permier female R&B singers of the 1950s. It was R&B impresario Johnny Otis, who first recognized Phillips’ talent when, at 14, she won a talent show at his night club. Otis produced her earliest recordings and put her in his traveling R&B show under the name of Little Esther. Phillips recorded several hits in the early ’50s, but an addiction to drugs slowed her ascent down and eventually sidelined her in 1954. She mounted a comeback once cleaned up in the early ’60s and began releasing hit records again. One recording in partiular, a version of the Beatles’ “And I Love Him” prompted the Fab Four to fly her to England to perform. The disco era was kind to Phillips as she was able to adapt her sound to appease a new generation of dancing fans. She had some of her biggest successes during that time. Unfortunately, she could never quite shake her addictions. She died at the age of 48 of liver and kidney failure attributed to many years of alcohol and heroin dependency.
Van McCoy was a musician, producer, arranger and prolific songwriter who has penned upwards of 700 songs during his career. But, he is perhaps best remembered for just one, “The Hustle,” which was massive disco hit of 1975 and to this day, arguably defines the era. McCoy began singing in the church choir as a child and by his early teens, he and his brother were performing as a doo wop duo. While in college, McCoy started his own record label to release his first single, “Hey Mr. DJ.” He was soon hired by Scepter Records as an A&R rep and songwriter. Over the years, he penned hits for Gladys Knight & The Pips (“Giving Up”), Barbara Lewis (“Baby, I’m Yours”), the Shirelles (“Stop The Music”) and Jackie Wilson (“I Get The Sweetest Feeling) to name just a few. Van McCoy died of a heart attack at the age of 39.
Charles Smith was co-founder of and guitarist for the great disco/funk group, Kool & The Gang. Along with the other members of the group, Smith’s background was in jazz, but married it with funk, dance, R&B and pop to become one of the biggest acts of the ’70s thanks to such hits as “Jungle Boogie,” “Hollywood Swinging,” “Ladies Night,” and “Celebration.” Smith is credited for writing or co-writing some of the group’s biggest hits. He died after a long undisclosed illness on June 20, 2006.
Vicki Sue Robinson had many accomplishments in music, theater and film, but it would be her smash it “Turn The Beat Around” that would forever make her a disco queen. Her life as an entertainer began at age six when she joined her mother on stage at the storied Philadelphia Folk Festival. At sixteen she was on Broadway as a cast member of Hair. She landed a couple film roles, most notably Going Home and To Find A Man and by 1973, she was performing in the Broadway production of Jesus Christ Superstar. Then in 1975, while singing backing vocals on a friend’s album, she was offered a contract with RCA Records. 1976 saw the release of her debut, Never Gonna Let You Go, that included the smash hit, “Turn The Beat Around.” The album went to number one on the Billboard pop charts and earned Robinson a Grammy nomination. Robinson’s career continued to flourish through early 2000, but she never matched the success of that first album. Besides making her own records, her later years found her doing plenty of session work as well as acting on film and stage. And of course, “Turn The Beat Around,” continued to find new audiences thanks to a popular cover by Gloria Estefan and from Robinson’s live appearances on the disco revival circuit. Robinson died from cancer on April 27, 2000 at just 46.
