I’m sure you’ll remember this song from the soundtrack of any film that’s set during the 70s. I’ll always associate with John C. Reilly showing Don Cheadle a card trick in Boogie Nights. I guess that’s appropriate since it’s Boogie Shoes and Boogie Nights. “Don’t you worry about the evil spirits?” Cheadle asks Reilly shortly before Reilly runs off to help Dirk Diggler launch his musical career.
Apparently, this band was started in a record store. The man who would eventually be known as KC worked at the store and I guess the band was made up with either his customers or his co-workers. Either way, they came together to form The Sunshine Band and they spread happiness and cheer all throughout the cocaine-heavy 70s. They’re still doing it, playing the nostalgia circuit. Good for them. Disco is forever.
(That said, the best band to form in a record store remains the Empire Records band. SUGAR HIGH!)
This is another one of those videos that was originally a performance for a television show. In this case, the show was American Bandstand.
The fourth episode of The Frank Sinatra Timex Show was officially called It’s Nice To Go Trav’ling but it’s unofficial name was Welcome Home Elvis. That’s because this special, which aired on May 12th, 1960, also marked Elvis Presley’s first appearance on television after his release from the U.S. Army.
It was a 30-minute special, sponsored by Timex. Elvis only appeared in 8 of those minutes. The rest of the show’s running time was made up of Frank Sinatra hanging out with his Rat Pack pals. Still, in those 8 minutes, Elvis performed with Sinatra and television history was made. (Elvis even wore a tuxedo for the occasion, so he would fit in with Frank and the pack.) This special was the highest rating program of the week and it proved that being away in Germany hadn’t diminished Elvis’s popularity one bit.
Elvis, who was born 87 years ago on this day, would later go on to star with Nancy Sinatra in 1968’s Speedway.
Based on Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony, Walter Murphy’s A Fifth of Beethoven …. oh, wait a minute. I just got that. Fifth Symphony …. A Fifth of Beethoven. That’s clever. How would Beethoven have felt about a disco version of his symphony? I imagine Beethoven would probably sue for royalties. The music business is cutthroat.
Anyway, this song is best known for appearing on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. When Tony Manero and his friends step into the club, this is the song that’s playing in the background and it fits in perfectly with Tony’s view of himself as being a God among men.
The song was composed by Walter Murphy, who had previously been a jazz musician. He played all of the instruments himself on the original recording but the song was still credited to Walter Murphy and The Big Apple Band because it was apparently felt that it was better to be known as a member of a band than a solo artist.
This video is from 1976. Is that the Big Apple Band that Murphy’s performing with? I don’t know. It’s a good song, though. For the longest time, I thought it was also the theme music for Judge Judy but then I did some research at the University of Google and I discovered that Judge Judy’s theme song was actually the Fifth Symphony. I also discovered that Judge Judy was still alive so it was a productive session.
I kid you not when I say that this song was supposedly written after a viewing of the 1974 Best Picture nominee, The Towering Inferno.Now, of course, the song is also about the heat that rises from the dance floor while everyone’s out there moving and apparently, there are some who think that the song was meant to be a reference to the counter-culture’s cry of “burn, baby burn!” Myself, though, I will always assume that this song is all about Paul Newman, Faye Dunaway, William Holden, Steve McQueen, OJ Simpson, and a cast of thousands trying to survive that towering inferno.
“You keep building them,” McQueen said to Newman, “and I’ll keep putting them out.”
Disco Inferno became a hit when it was included on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. More recently, it’s become a hit-of-a-different-sort because of the Bernie Sanders presidential campaigns. It turns out that “Burn, Baby, Burn” can also be heard as “Bern, Baby, Bern.” I mean, no wonder he won Iowa.
(Did Bernie win Iowa? I can’t recall. Hey, remember when I said that I was going to vote for Marianne Williamson and everyone thought that I was being serious? What was that all about?)
Anyway, The Trammps is one of those bands that actually had a few hits in their heyday but will probably always be associated with just this one song. The Trammps are still performing, though they’ve split into two different groups, each one using the Trammps name. The fires of the disco inferno will never be extinguished.
I have long been of the opinion that everything that happened in the world of entertainment during the 70s was the result of cocaine. If you doubt me, then I dare you to explain this to me:
Now, I’m not making the argument that the song Disco Duck was necessarily written while anyone was high, though it probably was. However, I am arguing that a lot of people probably first heard the song while they were high and perhaps trying to talk to a duck and that explains why Disco Duck became a hit. Apparently, it also won the 1977 People’s Choice Award for Best New Song and again, everyone knows that the People’s Choice Awards were determined by people who spent most of their spare time with a credit card, a mirror, and rolled-up twenty. That’s just the truth of the matter.
Anyway, Rick Dees was a DJ and Disco Duck was a novelty record. The song is officially credited to Rick Dee and His Cast of Idiots but, personally, I think the band was being a bit too self-critical with that name. I mean, it takes a certain amount of intelligence to turn a song called Disco Duck into a number one hit. The song, itself, is not actually about a duck but about a man who dances like a duck …. wait a minute, what? How do you dance like a duck? (“With great difficulty! Ha ha ha!” Thank you, hack comedian.) It doesn’t matter. The song was a hit.
This performance was from a show called Midnight Special. It aired on October 29th, 1976, just a few days before Halloween. According to the imdb, ABBA, KC & The Sunshine Band, and the Bay City Rollers also appeared on this episode but none of them performed with a guy in a duck costume.
Seeing as how I’ve spent the first few days of 2022 sharing music videos for danceable hits of the 70s, you had to know that I was eventually going to get to this one. The name of the song is Night Fever and not, as is often incorrectly assumed, Saturday Night Fever. Saturday Night Fever was the movie for which this song was recorded. Night Fever indicates that the fever can hit any night, not just on a Saturday.
This video was apparently shot in 1978 but the Bee Gees didn’t release it until 2004. I’m not sure why that is. Perhaps all of the seedy motels gave the wrong impression about what the band was singing about. Or maybe they just decided that John Travolta in that white suit was a better visual representation for what the Bee Gees were all about. I will note that the same year this video was produced, the Bee Gees appeared in Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band so, obviously, they weren’t too concerned with looking slightly silly.
The video was shot in Sunny Isles Beach, Florida. Supposedly, most of these motels have since been torn down. That’s a shame as I think every resort town needs to have at least one strong row of seedy motels. When my family lived in Colorado, we lived just a block away from some of the seediest motels known to man and whenever we would go back to visit our cousins in Colorado, I would always make it a point to see if the motels were still there. They were. They probably still are. It’s been a while since I’ve been to Colorado.
Anyway, it’s a good song. If it doesn’t make you want to dance, I don’t know what to say. You may just not be a dancer. But it’s never too late to learn!
Hey, remember this song from the soundtrack of every single film that’s ever been made about the 70s?
You Sexy Thing is one of those songs that pretty much just epitomizes an era. I’ve heard it used in so many films that I like that I can’t help but smile whenever I hear the song, even though I find real-life catcallers to be totally creepy. Of course, the song itself is not actually about catcalling, no matter how much one might be tempted to go with that interpretation. Instead, singer Errol Brown wrote the song about his wife and how she made him feel. Supposedly, this was the first “happy” song that he ever wrote.
As I mentioned earlier, You Sexy Thing has become a soundtrack mainstay. During The Dundees episode of The Office, Michael played “You Sexy Thing” after announcing that Ryan the Temp had won “Hottest in the Office.” (I agree, by the way. BJ Novak’s adorable. Timothy Olyphant is adorable as well but there’s still no way Danny Cordray should have taken hottest in the office away from Ryan Howard.) It’s also appeared in films like Boogie Nights, Reservoir Dogs, Legally Blonde, Nick and Nora’s Infinite Playlist, and Duke Marvin’s All 70s Dance Party. Admittedly, the Duke Marvin film was never actually released but it’s still a classic to those of us who have seen it.
Why are the kids from the Brady Bunch dressed up like characters from the Wizard of Oz and singing the classic 1976 song, Car Wash?
Look, your guess is probably as good as mine but I’m going to assume that cocaine played a role in all of this. I mean, let’s consider the facts. This is from 1977. Everyone in Hollywood was using cocaine by 1977. This was also filmed for the infamous Brady Bunch Hour, which was a show that probably only existed due to cocaine. Well, cocaine and a love for the good wholesome values that were epitomized by The Brady Bunch.
This is from the second episode of The Brady Bunch Hour. It originally aired on January 23rd, 1977. All of the episodes are on YouTube. I watched the first episode last year and I meant to get right on to watching the second episode but …. eh. There’s only so much of the Bradys that you can take. In the show, Mike Brady decided to quit his job and move the family to Los Angeles so that they could star on a musical variety program. That was a decision that I’m sure a lot of families were forced to make in the 70s. Carol and the kids were okay with it and, of course, Alice came along because she apparently belonged to the Bradys or something. According to Wikipedia, the second episode featured The Bradys getting used to their new home with the help of special guest stars Farrah Fawcett and her then-husband, Lee Majors. I’m not how exactly this would lead to Ann B. Davis dressing up like the Wicked Witch of the West and then watching the Brady kids perform Car Wash in a crystal ball. Maybe I should watch the episode and find out. If I do, I’m demanding hazard pay.
Technically, this song is only being performed by half of the Brady Bunch. Maureen McCormick, Barry Williams, and Christopher Knight are there but Fake Jan, Mike Lookinland, and Susan Olsen are nowhere to be seen. That’s a shame, as Fake Jan had the best singing voice of the entire cast. Incidentally, when he was first approached to appear on the show, Barry was promised that he would be the center of most of the performances. According to an interview I saw with him, he was really looking forward to becoming a musical sensation until he actually watched the first episode of the series. Give the Brady kids some credit — they eventually understood the mess they had gotten themselves into.
As for this performance of Car Wash, it might not be good but it’s also kind of brilliant in its badness. You’ll never forget it after you watch it and there’s something to be said for that. The Brady kids are trying so hard that it’s difficult not to kind of hope that they’ll manage to succeed. The audiences sounds like they’re enjoying it so there’s always that.
Car Wash itself is a good song — just try to not get it stuck in your head after listening. It, of course, was written and recorded for the 1976 film, Car Wash. It was originally performed by Rose Royce. Christina Aguilera and Missy Elliott covered the song in 2004 and it was something of a minor hit. Unfortunately, the same can’t be said of the Brady Bunch version.
To be honest, this is the second video that I’ve shared for this song. Back in 2020, I shared a clip of Yvonne Elliman performed If I Can’t Have You on the UK’s Top of the Pops. This, however, is apparently the official video.
(Sidenote: If you’re looking for good music videos that came out before the era of MTV, Top of the Pops is always a good place to look.)
This is one of my favorite songs of all time. It is certainly my favorite song from the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack. (Yes, even more than Stayin’ Alive.) The song was originally written by the Bee Gees and the plan was for them to perform it on the soundtrack while Yvonne Elliman would perform How Deep Is Your Love, which was actually written to be more of a pop ballad than a disco song. However, Robert Stigwood decided to switch things up by having the Bee Gees perform How Deep Is Your Love while If I Can’t Have You was given to Elliman. The result was that the Bee Gees gave a disco twist to a ballad while Elliman gave a ballad twist to a disco song. In other words, it was a pretty good idea. If I Can’t Have You may be my favorite song on the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack but How Deep Is Your Love is a close second.
Incidentally, Yvonne Elliman also played Mary Magdalene in the film version of Jesus Christ Superstar and gave one of the best musical performances ever captured on film.
Enjoy!
Don’t know why I’m survivin’ ev’ry lonely day When there’s got to be no chance for me My life would end And it doesn’t matter how I cry My tears, so far, are a waste of time If I turn away Am I strong enough to see it through Go crazy is what I will do If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-huh, oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-ho, oh oh oh Can’t let go and it doesn’t matter how I try I gave it up So easily To you my love To dreams that never will come true Am I strong enough to see it through Go crazy is what I will do If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-huh, oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-ho, oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-huh, oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-ho oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-huh, oh If I can’t have you I don’t want nobody baby If I can’t have you, uh-ho oh If I can’t have you
Well, it’s a new year and what better way to ring it in than by dancing and celebrating the Hustle? Van McCoy’s The Hustle is a song that’s been heard by anyone who has ever watched a movie about the disco era. It’s pretty much appeared on almost every soundtrack ever compiled. If it’s a disco film, you’re going to hear The Hustle. It’s a song that just makes you think about dancing, disco balls, and cocaine. Lots and lots of a cocaine. From what I understand, copies of this song were originally sold with their own souvenir coke spoons. That may or may not be true but you get the idea.
Interestingly enough, the dance came before the song. Van McCoy was at Adam’s Apple, a New York City nightclub, in 1975 when he saw that the patrons were dancing a new dance that they called The Hustle. He was so taken with the dance that he wrote a song about it. He had three lyrics and a beat you could dance to and that was all he needed to create the soundtrack of the late 70s. The Hustle was a hit and it came to define an era. Sadly, it was an era that McCoy himself would not survive. He died of a heart attack in 1979, while in New Jersey. He was only 39 years old.
The video below was released in 2010 and, as you can tell, it was made up by clips of McCoy performing the song on various shows. You can debate whether this is a legitimate music video or just a compilation. That’s fine, though. We’re all about debate here at the Shattered Lens! Ultimately, what is truly important is that it’s a good song and it’s a new year! It’s 2022! Get out there and dance! Get out there and do the hustle! And you know what!? Don’t be afraid to use exclamation points! You’ve earned them and you’ve earned the right to use them as much as you want!
Personally, I think the attitudes of the 1920 and the 1970s are about to make a comeback. (Actually, the comeback has already started but only a few people are willing to acknowledge it. That will change soon.) After the past few years, people want to have a good time. They want to dance. They want to move to wherever the music takes them. The past few years have been dominated by people demanding that everyone else be as miserable as they are. You may not know it from reading twitter. You may not know it from watching the news. But most people want to enjoy themselves. Most people want to pursue their own pleasures and their own happiness in their own way. The 2020s are going to have a lot more in common with the 1920s and the 1970s than there are with the 1960s and the 2010s. Old Joe and Young Greta and the moralistic social media scolds can wag their fingers all they want. People are ready to do the hustle.
Through the Shattered Lens 