Disco music. What a lark! The energetic genre that rose to fame and popularity in the 1970s helped get about a billion people on the dance floor (roller skates optional). Glittery disco balls met giant grins as a whole generation boogied down to the sounds of the popular, albeit short-lived, style. But some songs from the era have actually lived on today.
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Some of disco’s best tunes are still around, and many come from one-hit wonders. You know, those artists whose songs raced up the charts but who never quite had the same success again. Here, we wanted to explore three such examples. Indeed, these are three one-hit wonders from the 1970s that got disco-loving people out of their seats and shaking their hips.
“Funkytown” by Lipps Inc. from ‘Mouth To Mouth’ (1979)
Who wasn’t transported to the far-off land of Funktown upon hearing this song? With a heavy beat and bright, relentless guitars, this song from the Minneapolis, Minnesota-born group Lipps Inc. (clever wordplay!) got a whole generation off the couch and onto the dance floor. Buoyed by swaying strings and vocals that compel you to move your butt, this song was a disco smash, hitting No. 1 on the vaunted Billboard Hot 100 chart.
“Turn The Beat Around” by Vicki Sue Robinson from ‘Never Gonna Let You Go’ (1976)
This lively track, which hit No. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100, has thrilled the souls of many a music fan. It’s one of those songs that seems handed down from on high. How did the world live without this song? Or was it, in fact, part of the ether and something we all just kind of knew in the back of our minds? Either way, Vicki Sue Robinson breathed real life into the track and pushed many to get all dressed up and dancing on a Saturday night!
“Ring My Bell” by Anita Ward from ‘Songs Of Love’ (1979)
Never has the world wanted to ring so many bells as when Anita Ward was singing about it. Her famed disco track, which hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, should be used in Taco Bell commercials today. She could go from selling the disco movement to selling cheap food for up-and-coming touring acts! But business ventures aside, this terrific tune is so simple that it’s genius. Ding-dong, we’re in love! So, let’s dance!
Photo by Eric BOUVET/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
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