A Tom Moulton Mix

Various Artists

album cover

The Origins of the Dance Remix

The brainstorm hit Tom Moulton, a music-biz promotion exec turned male model, at a nightclub on Fire Island, New York, in the early '70s. Wouldn't it be great if somebody extended disco songs for dancers? At that time, DJs played the three-minute single version of a song; when one hit finished, they'd just start another one. This created lots of "churn" on the dance floor, as patrons fled songs they didn't like. "I just thought it was a shame that the records weren't longer, so people could really start getting off," Moulton recalls in the liner notes of this two-disc set, which chronicles what happened after that brainstorm. Moulton, the father of the dance remix, created a new way to experience music.

As disco crested in the mid-'70s, Moulton convinced several labels to give him access to the master tapes of singles. He took the songs apart, emphasizing percussion breaks and recurring guitar and keyboard riffs over the "hooks" from the radio versions. (Gloria Gaynor's response after hearing Moulton's mix of an early single: "I don't sing much.") His next innovation had to do with delivery: He and engineer José Rodriguez put the remixes on twelve-inch vinyl singles, which allowed for longer tracks and better fidelity, particularly in the bass frequencies.

Those developments helped accelerate the growth of disco—and much subsequent urban music, including hip-hop. Moulton's mixes are fascinating musical expansions that show how an initial inspiration can be reassembled into countless alternate ones. The collection includes several dazzlingly reborn hits (Eddie Kendricks's 1973 hit "Keep On Truckin'") and at least as many underappreciated gems—including BT Express's "Peace Pipe" and Orlando Riva Sound's super-funky 1977 "Moonboots." This isn't a definitive history of disco—it's more a time-trip back to Studio 54 during the frenzied years, when you didn't have a prayer of getting on the floor. These mixes are a big reason why.

Genre: R&B
Released: 2006, Soul Jazz
Key Tracks: Eddie Kendricks: "Keep On Truckin'." MFSB: "Love Is the Message." BT Express: "Peace Pipe." Orlando Riva Sound: "Moonboots"
Next Stop: Various Artists: Journey into Paradise: The Larry Levan Story
After That: Various Artists: Salsoul Presents: Disco Trance and Cosmic Flavas
Book Pages: 823–824

Buy this Recording

Share this page:

Comments:

#1 from Fuxi, Oxford, UK - 07/30/2009 4:57

Hi,

I really enjoyed your book. It is exciting and amazingly well-written, and I believe your choice cannot be faulted.

There’s only one thing that jarred with me. Why did you allow the great Haydn, one of my favorite composers, only one entry under his own name, when lesser lights get three (Giuseppe Verdi, for example), four (Richard Strauss) or even six (the Beatles)?

You could at least have found some space for Haydn’s string quartets (e.g. by Quatuor Mosaiques), his so-called “Sturm und Drang” symphonies (by Trevor Pinnock and the English Concert) or his oratorio “The Creation” (by Paul McCreesh and the Gabrieli Consort and Players).

All the same, your book is a wonderful achievement, and I’m sure I’ll keep reading and consulting it over and over again.

1000 Recordings To Hear Before You Die

A Tom Moulton Mix

Various Artists

The Origins of the Dance Remix

Comments:

Post a Comment:

Browse the List

Browse by Genre

About 1,000 Recordings