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Disco Lady

"Disco Lady" is a 1976 single by American singer Johnnie Taylor that went on to become his biggest hit. It spent all four weeks of April 1976 at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 and six weeks atop the Billboard R&B chart in the U.S.[3] It was also the first single to be certified platinum by the RIAA;[4] ultimately it sold over 2.5 million copies.[5] Billboard ranked it as the No. 3 song for 1976; Cash Box had it the year's No. 1 song[6]

"Disco Lady"
Single by Johnnie Taylor
from the album Eargasm
B-side"You're the Best Girl in the World"
ReleasedJanuary 1976
Recorded1975
Genre
Length4:02 (Promo Version) 4:28 (Album Version)
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Harvey Scales, Albert Vance, Don Davis
Producer(s)Don Davis
Johnnie Taylor singles chronology
"Try Me Tonight"
(1975) 		"Disco Lady"
(1976) 		"Somebody's Gettin' It"
(1976)

The single was Taylor's first for Columbia Records, where he signed after his long-time label, Stax Records, went bankrupt. The song was produced by Taylor's long-time producer, Don Davis.[7] Among the guests on the song were four members of Parliament-Funkadelic: bassist Bootsy Collins, keyboardist Bernie Worrell, guitarist Glenn Goins, drummer Tiki Fulwood, and background vocals by BRANDYE (Cynthia Douglas, Donna Davis, Pamela Vincent).

"Disco Lady" was the first Hot 100 No. 1 hit with the word "disco" in the title (though the song was a ballad and not a disco record). The single also reached No. 25 on the UK Singles Chart.[8]

In the finale of The Paul Lynde Halloween Special, broadcast in October 1976, Paul Lynde and the entire cast sing Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady" (gender-neutralized to "Disco Baby").[9]

It earned Taylor his second Grammy Award nomination for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance.

In 1998, a remake of the song "Disco Lady 2000" (along with a "radio slam" remix) can be heard on the album Taylored to Please released by Malaco Records.

Chart history

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Certifications

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Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[21] Gold 75,000^
United States (RIAA)[22] Platinum 2,000,000^

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

References

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  1. ^ Breihan, Tom (August 26, 2019). "The Number Ones: Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady"". Stereogum. Retrieved June 28, 2023. But Johnnie Taylor's "Disco Lady" wasn't a disco song. Instead, it was a sweaty, swampy soul-groove.
  2. ^ Breithaupt, Don; Breithaupt, Jeff (October 15, 1996). "Boogie Down: The Dawn of Disco". Precious and Few - Pop Music in the Early '70s. St. Martin's Griffin. p. 183. ISBN 031214704X.
  3. ^ Billboard Hot 100, Week of April 24, 1976 – Billboard.com. Retrieved May 13, 2023.
  4. ^ "History Of The Awards". RIAA.com. Archived from the original on July 1, 2007. Retrieved 2008-12-11.
  5. ^ George, Nelson (1988). The Death of Rhythm & Blues. New York, NY: Pantheon Books. p. 150. ISBN 0142004081. Retrieved 2015-06-10.
  6. ^ Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1976
  7. ^ Disco Lady song review, Allmusic.com
  8. ^ "Official Charts - Johnnie Taylor". officialcharts.com. Official Charts Company. 1976-04-24. Retrieved 2014-06-14.
  9. ^ "Disco Baby - Paul Lynde Halloween Special". YouTube. 27 October 2015.
  10. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 305. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  11. ^ "Item Display - RPM - Library and Archives Canada". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. 1976-06-12. Retrieved 2020-04-02.
  12. ^ Flavour of New Zealand, 16 July 1976
  13. ^ "Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. 1976-04-24. Retrieved 2020-04-06.
  14. ^ a b Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
  15. ^ Cash Box Top 100 Singles, April 17, 1976
  16. ^ "Top Singles – Volume 26, No. 14 & 15, January 08 1977". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved January 22, 2016.
  17. ^ New Zealand End Of Year Charts 1976
  18. ^ Musicoutfitters.com
  19. ^ Cash Box Year-End Charts: Top 100 Pop Singles, December 25, 1976
  20. ^ "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 10 December 2018.
  21. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Johnnie Taylor – Disco Lady". Music Canada. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
  22. ^ "American single certifications – Johnnie Taylor – Disco Lady". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 16, 2023.
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