Your thoughts and memories are needed:
Thanks!
In my opinion, disco sucked for the same reason most musical genres sucked - it became too popular. When a musical genre is just a niche market, the artists performing in it are doing so because they love the genre and are inspired by it. But once a genre becomes commercially successful, it attracts hack musicians who crank out substandard songs to cash in on its popularity.
Moved from GQ to IMHO.
samclem GQ moderator
In my opinion, that is an excellent answer!
I turned 18 in ‘78, the absolute height of the disco era (and the drinking age, meaning I could legally get into discos). Disco was fun, and the sexual revolution was awsome. But the airwaves became so saturated with disco music that it started to make everyone want to puke! Even Paul McCartney & Wings tried to cash in on it for Gawds’ sake! Too much of a good thing WILL make anyone sick!
Once the Rolling Stones got into the act (“Miss You”), the party was over. Hell, even ELO (Discovery aka “Disco Very”) and ABBA (Voulez-Vous) couldn’t resist.
Disco sucked because it wasn’t hard rock. There were a lot of heschers around back then who thought if it didn’t have fuzzy guitars, it sucked.
Can you point me to a non-sucky disco song for reference? I personally don’t know of any.
The problem was that disco was mindless dance music, so ultimately it only appelled to those who like to mindlessly dance. It was clearly a dead end as a genre, since it really had nowhere to go. And it was especially discouraging to see it replacing progressive rock on the air; it was as though music was regressing to tribal chants. Luckily, punk and the New Wave came along and put an end to the nonsense.
In some areas, the hatred of disco also had a homophobic component. While this wasn’t the case in small cities and towns, in places like New York and LA, disco attracted a lot of gay men, which did cause a backlash.
Yeah, but that was a dead cat bounce. Rap came along and made tribal chants sound like high art.
Shadow Dancin’ by Andy Gibb. 
I LIKE disco music. Not that I hadn’t heard enough of it by '79 though.
I rather liked Miss You; it was a good mix of the Stones’ usual style with the disco that was going on.
I was all for hard rock then, and I’ve always found that easier to dance to. Disco was really the beginning of the “thump-thump-thump” trend that now dominates dance clubs (or did last I looked, which was a long time ago).
Having said that, I’m now pretty curmudgeonly about most of the rock from that era as well. I almost can’t stand listening to classic rock anymore, having got my fill of the usual suspects by now. I now think that much of the rock music back then–at least what got the most airplay–had a pedestrian, plodding feel to it.
I personally have 3 and only 3 disco songs in my collection:
Bee Gees – Stayin’ Alive andMore Than a Woman
Donna Summer – I Feel Love
The big problem with disco was that almost all the artists were interchangable. A producer could bring in a talented (or even not-very-talented) backup singer, record 12 tracks, and bet one of them would be a hit. If the singer caused any type of trouble, the producer would bring in the next would-be star, slap out another 12 tracks, and go for a hit off that batch.
Kind of like boy bands in the 90s.
The publicly profligate lifestyle of the rich n’ famous also had something to do with it. Going to the sterile, suburban discos was one thing, but reading about the people at Studio 54 and their, ah, unorthodox lifestyles is a different thing entirely.
Robin
Pick Up the Pieces - Average White Band
Off the Wall (album) - Michael Jackson
(I’d give you some more suggestions, but we’re packing & my music’s inaccessible. However, check out the soundtrack to the film Paris is Burning)
I remember John Lennon praising early Disco on Tom Snyder’s show sometime in the early 70’s, but don’t recall if it was called Disco yet, or if it was still this great scene that NYC’s Puerto Ricans were developing by combining their traditional music, Rock (more specifically Funk) and electronics.
But yes, by 1979 Disco was bland background music on The Love Boat.
Either way, my distaste for Disco is tempered by the understanding that the height of the Disco era coincided with my high school years; the worst of my life, while the birth of Punk/New Wave occurred while I was in college, both of which were a blast of new ideas.
I’m no snob about it though. Ultimately, people look back and evaluate the merits of any genre of popular music on the basis of its having helped them get laid.
“I Feel Love,” “Last Dance,” and “On the Radio” – Donna Summer
“Got to Be Real” - Cheryl Lynn
“You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real),” Sylvester
“Go West” and “San Francisco (You Got Me)” - The Villiage People
“He’s the Greatest Dancer” and “We Are Family” - Sister Sledge
“Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)”, “Good Times,” and “I Need Your Love” - Chic
“The Boss” and “Love Hangover” - Diana Ross
“Don’t Leave Me This Way” - Thelma Houston
“Stayin’ Alive,” “You Should Be Dancin’” and “Jive Talkin’” - The Bee Gees
“Shame” - Evelyn ‘Champagne’ King
“There But for the Grace of God” - Machine
“Don’t Stop Til You Get Enough” - Michael Jackson
“Dancing Machine” - The Jackson 5
“Heart of Glass” - Blondie
“Never Can Say Goodbye” - Gloria Gaynor
“Heaven Must Be Missing An Angel” - Tavares
“Turm the Beat Around” - Vicki Sue Robinson
“Young Hearts Run Free” - Candi Staton
“Keep On Truckin’” - Eddie Kendricks
“Relight My Fire” - Dan Hartman
“Contact” - Edwin Starr
“HeavenMust Have Sent You” - Bonnie Pointer
“Take Your Time (Do It Right)” - The SOS Band
“Whispering/Cherchez La Femme/Se Si Bon” - Dr Buzzard’s Original Savannah Band
“Please Don’t Let Me Be Misunderstood” - Santa Esmerelda
“Found a Cure” - Ashford & Simpson
“The Player” and “Doctor Love” - First Choice
“Free Man” - The South Shore Commission
“Rock the Boat” - The Hues Corporation
“Nice N Nasty” - The Salsoul Orchestra
“This Time Baby” - Jackie Moore
“Boogie Wonderland” - Earth Wind & Fire with the Emotions
“Full of Fire” - Al Green
“Got to Give It Up” - Marvin Gaye
Just for a start…
ExACTly. Disco was sucky when it started, it was sucky when it ended.
It was sort of funk-lite. Along the lines of Pat Boone singing Enter, Sandman. I love funk. I looooooaaaathe disco.
fessie, AWB is NOT disco. It’s funk.
Whoa! Whoa! Disco never did and never will suck. You gotta remember, seriously, disco wasn’t just the music - the music was a small part of the whole “disco” thing, or thang. Disco was the pulse of life, your raison d’ete, it was why you got out of bed in the morning, wiggle into those tight tight pants and strutted through the day. Oh yeah. There are small pockets in the darkest corners of the world where disco will live forever.
Disco didn’t suck in 1979. 1979 was the year the world lost a little bit of it’s groove.
mm
The Comiskey Park riot couldn’t have helped any.
Like, y’know, aural herpes.
Sorry. Substance over style, tight jeans and ac/dc tshirt over bell bottoms and funk over disco. We shall not even discuss the hideousness that was the polyester shirts with those nasty wide collars. shudder