Archives for August 2009

The Village People, those crazy 1970’s concept band kidz, are still at it today. Songs like YMCA, Macho Man or We Want You to some music lovers, is the soundtrack to their youth! They, to some music lovers dismay, are still dancing well into the new millennium after 30 years. After a reported 85 million records sold, they must be onto something?

Ok, I have something to admit to you all on this post. Yes, I did dance to a few of their songs at a high school dance, but in my defense, it was because everyone else was!

The village People’s music was everywhere way back in the day. Of coarse there was still folk and rock styles playing on the airwaves but, this music had that catchy beat to it to appealed to most of the general public.

The one thing that I want to know is, did any of them play an instruments? Actually, I don’t really care, it’s just a general question. Not that I hated these gentleman’s style of songs but, their music(the structure/configuration and level of difficulty to play live, a band in the background that is) but, sometimes it just rubbed me the wrong way. This is just me, I always look for this quality in a song while listening to any form of music.

The history of the band was always something of a mystery to me in my youth. Of coarse we did have the internet back then. When I was in high school, I remember writing very basis computer functions on a piece of cardboard that you placed into some sort of device that was attached to this OLD, HUGE computer! This was how information back then, besides from books, was read.

During the bands hay days, I had an old buddy of mine who was really big in the disco scene. His name was Sal, and in his parents basement, they paid homage to this genre of music.

They made this very elaborate bar they had to entertain their house guests. At first Sal had his folks buy him this MASSIVE stereo system. Now here is where it gets both bizarre and wonderful.

Once disco started to gain more common acceptance throughout the world, he had them open up their wallet and install a disco dance floor about 1/4 the size of the one that they had in the movie Saturday Night Fever!

The lights and how they interacted with the music that went through his stereo underneath their dance floor was a real wonder to the eyes. This device that he had was called a Light Organ. It made the lights turn on and off to the beat of the music!

When you heard the bass, mid range or the treble sound in a song, certain lights would light up on the floor. It was really neat as a kid. (Note: this is for Chris Noto and other Rickenbacker lovers out there, in 1971 they made a guitar with this light organ technology in it!)

The Village People’s popularity went up and down over the years, yet their songs still stay alive in the back of our subconscious … until it comes up in conversation. We may hear one of these songs being played at a wedding and we just think about the old days when we boogied on down and maybe what we wore during those times … am I right?!

Now the question that I have for you is, did you dance to any of the Village People’s hits when you were young AND are you still proud of yourself after all these years? (LOL!)

Keep on Jammin’