Café Society was a South African group from the 1980s best known for their two cover songs " Somebody to Love" and "

Woodpeckers from Space "Woodpeckers from Space" is a song by the The Netherlands, Dutch Eurodisco/Italo disco duo VideoKids. A synth-pop cover of "Woody Woodpecker#The Woody Woodpecker Song, The Woody Woodpecker Song", it was released in 1984 by Boni Records through th ...

Early years

The band was formed in Johannesburg in 1984. Café Society consisted of various artists singing cover versions and original songs under the watchful eye of multi-instrumentalist and producer Costa Anadiotis. Costa Anadiotis was also the synthesizer player in the disco-rock South African group Buffalo with Peter Vee during the late 1970s as well as the group Fantasy.

"Somebody to Love"

The first song to be produced was a cover of

Jefferson Airplane Jefferson Airplane was an American rock band based in San Francisco, California, that became one of the pioneering bands of psychedelic rock. Formed in 1965, the group defined the San Francisco Sound and was the first from the Bay Area to ac ...

's " Somebody to Love" in 1984, using the vocals of Julia Jade Aston. Aston was also a member of Working Girls, Face To Face and Wizard with Rob Russell Davies. The song was received well internationally because of its

Hi-NRG Hi-NRG (pronounced "high energy") is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated in the United States during the late 1970s and early 1980s. As a music genre, typified by fast tempo, staccato hi-hat rhythms (and the ...

-driven bassline popular at the time.

"Relight My Fire"

Next up was the

Dan Hartman Daniel Earl Hartman (December 8, 1950 – March 22, 1994) was an American rock musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and songwriter. Among songs he wrote and recorded were " Free Ride" as a member of the Edgar Winter Group, and the solo hits ...

song "

Relight My Fire "Relight My Fire" is a popular disco song written and released by American musician, singer, songwriter, and record producer Dan Hartman as the title track from his 1979 album of the same name. It was also performed by Costa Anadiotis' band Caf ...

", which utilized the vocals of Lolly Peterson and Anneline Malebo. Malebo was the singer in the Patrick van Blerk outfit

Joy The word joy refers to the emotion evoked by well-being, success, or good fortune, and is typically associated with feelings of intense, long lasting happiness. Dictionary definitions Dictionary definitions of joy typically include a sense of ...

, who had an international hit with "Paradise Road" in 1980. Sadly, Anneline Malebo died of Aids-related complications in 2002. The song received a mediocre response and featured on some compilation albums, including South African ''High-Energy Double Dance Vol.3''.

"Woodpeckers from Space" and the album

Then in 1985 when the

VideoKids VideoKids were a 1980s Euro disco/Italo disco duo from the Netherlands, formed in 1984 and consisting of Peter Slaghuis (1961-1991) and Bianca Bonelli (1963-1995). The band's members also had solo careers on their own, such as Peter being a famous ...

refused to release their song "

Woodpeckers From Space "Woodpeckers from Space" is a song by the The Netherlands, Dutch Eurodisco/Italo disco duo VideoKids. A synth-pop cover of "Woody Woodpecker#The Woody Woodpecker Song, The Woody Woodpecker Song", it was released in 1984 by Boni Records through th ...

" in South Africa due to the political situation in the country at that time, Costa Anadiotis decided to release his own version of the song under the banner of Café Society. "Woodpeckers from Space" was a Number 1 hit in South Africa in July 1985 and stayed on the Top 20 for 19 weeks, of which 8 were at the Number 1 position. The album ''Relight My Fire'' was released in 1985 but could not help this mainly studio outfit to reach a higher level and soon everybody went their separate ways.

Albums

''Relight My Fire'' – 1985

Side 1 #"Relight My Fire" #"Take Me" #"I'm on the Loose" Side 2 #"Woodpeckers from Space" #"Somebody to Love" #"Night Rider" #"So-o-much in Love"

References

External links

Discogs listing

Album Information 1

Hi-NRG groups South African musical groups {{authority control