VOLUME 1 · NUMBER 10
Hank Morgan has seven new releases for you.
Who is Hank Morgan? He's DISCONET's first Guest DJ, and lives in Greenville, South Carolina. More on Hank later. Let's get to the two very hot sets of music he's created for you!
I'm Burnin' Up / Elvin Shaad. Elvin is from Egypt, and recorded this very upbeat floor burner in France. It will be out on Elvin's new LP for Goody (Italy), with U.S. release sure to follow. Fred Petrus produce, and Tom Savarese did the mix at Sigma Sound in New York. There are more great dancing and listening numbers on the LP, and we'll keep you posted as to when and where it's coming.
Put The Funk Back / Blackwell. Blackwell has arrived on the new Butterfly LP, "Boogie Down!/Blackwell." Charles Blackwell wrote and arranged the songs, and David Baker and Larry Page produced at Village Recorders in West Los Angeles. As usual, Butterfly's packaging is immaculate, and if your staff was as attractive as Butterfly's, why not put the VP/Business Affairs and Chief Counsel on the cover?
Whistle Bump / Deodato. Eumir Deodato wrote, arranged and conducted this very upbeat dance number, and co-produced with Tommy Lipuma. It's on the new Warner Brothers LP, "Deodato/Love Island." Unlike many of today's disco songs, made by a few people setting down multiple tracks, Deodato used a literal orchestra of 33 musicians to bring a very refreshing musical sound to your dance floor.
Music Fever / The Michael Zager Band. Hank ends the set on a very upbeat and super fun song written by Mike Zager and Barbara Soehner. It is from the new Private Stock LP, "The Michael Zager Band/Let's All Chant." The title song made its DISCONET premiere on Volume I, Number 6, and shot up to #1 on all the major disco playlists. "Music Fever" is now following, thanks to a very talented production team, the singing expertise of Alvin Fields, Dollette McDonald and Billy Baker, and executive producer Jerry Love.
SPECIAL NOTE TO DJs: Side A runs 19:04, and builds from 116 BPM (beats per minute) to 122.
Boogie To The Top / Idris Muhammad. The man who plays music with his drums brings a very strong, jazz/r&b number to your dance floor. It's the title song from the new CTI/KUDU LP, "Idris Muhammad/Boogie To The Top." Jeremy Steig plays the flute solo, with David Matthews and Tony Sarafino producing. Idris was born in New Orleans, and has been making records for over 20 years. He played with several groups, and then had a surprise gig as the drummer in "Hair" for four years at the Biltmore Theatre in New York. After six months in India, he came back to the U.S. and toured with Emerson, Lake and Palmer and later played with Roberta Flack's band. "Boogie To The Top" is Idris' fourth LP for Creed Taylor's Kudu label… the first three are "Power of Soul", "House of the Rising Sun" and "Turn This Mutha Out." Idris sounds quite a bit like disco DJs when he expresses his philosophy: "I play to please people. I can always please myself - all I have to is stay at home and play, and I'll be happy. But when I reach out and please someone else, then it becomes a whole different trip. This is the way I like it. I play for the people, and when they're satisfied, then I'm satisfied."
Crusader / Trax. Trax new Polydor LP is called "Trax/Dancing In The Street", and was produced by Pete Bellotte at Musicland Studios. There are six nice upbeat numbers on it, and Hank picked a very melodic cut called "Crusader." Pete and Keith Forsey wrote it, and perform it as well. Pete's writing and producing talents have been instrumental in Donna Summer's success, and it's nice to have him in front of the microphone as well as in the producer's chair.
Theme From Livin' Proof / Livin' Proof. Vernon Bullock wrote, conducted, and produced this title cut from Livin' Proofs first LP for Ju-Par. Stan, Sterling and Steven got together in the summer of 1976 to form Livin' Proof (just about the time that everyone else was watching the tall ships sail into New York harbor.) With over a year's hard work, their ship is now coming in. With no lead singer, the group emphasizes the whole, rather than each part, and yet each member has a definite identity within the group. The seven songs on "Livin' Proof" demonstrate the group's talents, which they attribute to Louise (Mrs. Bunky) Sheppard for making Bunky listen to them.
SPECIAL NOTE TO DJs: Side B runs 18:58, and descends slightly from 128 BPM to 122 BPM.
Forum IV Fever. If you haven't registered yet for Billboard's Disco IV Forum, do it now. The four day convention runs from June 22-25, based at the New York Hilton. The $200 DJ registration fee is an excellent investment in immersing yourself in every aspect of the disco industry. Contact Diane Kirkland for info at Billboard, phone 213/273-7040. The New York Hilton's number for room reservations is 212/586-7000. Tom, Bobby DJ and the entire DISCONET crew look forward to seeing you there.
Breaking new releases with DISCONET. There is no simple formula for breaking new releases in your club. It's something that takes work and planning on your part. And beyond the personal satisfaction you'll receive from actually creating and shaping the music preference of your audience, you'll also be doing your disco a big favor by creating a desire in your customers to come back for more of those great new sounds which you provide.
DISCONET challenges you more than just about anything else, because with each new program, you're confronted with quite a bit of material which you may not be familar with. Everyone is more comfortable with a room full of old friends instead of total strangers. So how should you handle it? First, after you've previewed a new program, try out just one or two songs on each side on your audience. "Light rotation", as they say in the radio business. Work them in with your audience's current favorites. Continue to expand their minds while you exercise their bodies, and by the time the next program arrives, you'll probably have made quite a few friends out of strangers.
And while it's tempting for DISCONET to pick already familiar hits, we're always looking months and months ahead to give your programs real lasting power. For example, you can play Volume I, Number 1 today and keep your floor full and screaming. Chic's "Dance, Dance, Dance" continues to work wonders, and Sheila B. Devotion's "Love Me Baby" is now starting to catch on via its U.S. release. "Jack and Jill" on side 2 of our first program has just now gone gold, and may even get better acceptance on your floor today than when DISCONET programmed it first last October.
By nature of your DISCONET subscription, you've demonstrated your serious desire to have access to a good variety of the best new releases, and as you live with DISCONET and the continuing challenges of being a disco DJ, you'll develop the best ways for you and your club to keep ahead of the pack. And just remember that once in a while, some things are impossible for even the best of us. Even Bobby DJ couldn't break "Happy Birthday" at Studio 54!
Hank Morgan / Disconet Guest DJ. Hank has been a DISCONET subscriber since Volume 1, Number 6, and sent us an excellent tape of his own work a few weeks ago. Tom Savarese and the crew flew down to Greenville, South Carolina to see, in person, how disco was developing in the northern tier of the sunbelt, and fly Hank back to New York for his program's recording session. (Hank is the one on the left without the mustache, and yes, Tom is actually smiling. See what happens when you get out of New York!)
Hank grew up in Marblehead, Massachusetts, where he attended North Shore Community College. He started mixing records in 1972 with two turntables and a Realistic stereo microphone mixer, and further developed his interest as an Air Force officer in the Armed Forces Radio & Television Service. In addition to clubs in the Boston area, Hank has played at Blueberry Hill in Chapel Hill and Nicky's Express in Charlotte, North Carolina. Hank now works at the Executive Sportsman Lounge in Greenville. He's interested in classical as well as disco music, and did 18 months of volunteer work for WUNC FM, a classical music station in Chapel Hill.
Hank felt right at home in the DISCONET Mooney 201 airplane as he did behind our turntables because he's a licensed pilot, working on an instructor's rating during the day. He was as excited and nervous as you may be from the time we called him until the session was just right, and we think you'll agree with Tom and Bobby DJ that I lank came through with flying colors. Hank's musical taste is quite diverse, somewhat like Bobby's, and he spins the way he flies… nice and s-m-o-o-t-h. Thanks, Hank, for being our guest, and for regularly having Tom and Bobby DJ as your "guest DJs."
Bob Viteritti wins the LCD chronograph. Bob sent in his feedback card from Volume I , Number 8, and the pressing serial number shown on the upper lefthand corner of the DISCONET record jacket (this time it was #214) matched our secret winning number. Bob manages over 60 hours of great disco entertainment each week at the Lower Deck Disco in Fort Lauderdale, with Frank Hebar and Robby Leslie taking their turns at the turntables so Bob can occasionally keep up on his reading.
Bob was voted Billboard's Southern Florida Disco DJ of the Year for both his talent and his abilities to work with the club's owners to insure that the proper investment and attention was given to making it a profitable, enjoyable experience. Congratulations, Bob. You can time anything with the elasped timer, anu leave it by the window to recharge those solar cells!
Next Program: Bobby DJ brings you his first special two-record program, breaking this coming summer's top disco hits with more DISCONET world and U.S. premieres. Stay tuned!