"Disco Dancer" is a song by the American
new wave band
Devo
Devo (, originally ) is an American rock band from Akron, Ohio, formed in 1973. Their classic line-up consisted of two sets of brothers, the Mothersbaughs (Mark and Bob) and the Casales (Gerald and Bob), along with Alan Myers. The band had a ...
, written by
Mark Mothersbaugh and
Gerald Casale. It was the first Devo single that was released without their most prominent drummer,
Alan Myers, who was replaced by former
Sparks
Sparks may refer to:
Places
*Sparks, Georgia
* Sparks, Kansas
*Sparks, Kentucky
*Sparks, Maryland
* Sparks, Nebraska
*Sparks, Nevada
*Sparks, Oklahoma
*Sparks, Texas
* Sparks, Bell County, Texas
* Sparks, West Virginia
Books
* ''Sparks'' (Raffi ...
drummer
David Kendrick. It was released in 1988 as the first single from their seventh studio album, ''
Total Devo''.
Composition
According to Devo bassist and co-songwriter
Gerald Casale, he and
Mark Mothersbaugh came up with the idea of a character in the vein of
John Travolta
John Joseph Travolta (born February 18, 1954) is an American actor. He came to public attention during the 1970s, appearing on the television sitcom ''Welcome Back, Kotter'' (1975–1979) and starring in the box office successes ''Carrie'' (19 ...
's from ''
Saturday Night Fever
''Saturday Night Fever'' is a 1977 American dance drama film directed by John Badham and produced by Robert Stigwood. It stars John Travolta as Tony Manero, a young Italian-American man from the Brooklyn borough of New York. Manero spends his ...
'' (1977) falling "into a
Rip Van Winkle sleep", and then waking up 15 years later to
culture shock. In the commentary for their video anthology ''
The Complete Truth About De-Evolution'' (1993), Mothersbaugh stated that the original inspiration for the song came from Indian films and music videos.
He elaborated further in a 2020 interview with ''
Pitchfork''
:
Music video
Two videos were made for "Disco Dancer", using remixed versions of the track by producer Ivan Ivan. Both videos are similar, but the 12-inch mix video has additional footage, including a topless woman, and was only on promotional
VHS tapes distributed to nightclubs. The video footage was recorded from two parties that the band threw, one in
New York City and the other one in
Los Angeles. The NYC footage was recorded in black and white, while the L.A. footage was shot in colour, with scenes from both parties being intercut in the video. According to Casale, the video failed to receive airplay after first being aired on
MTV
MTV (Originally an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable channel that launched on August 1, 1981. Based in New York City, it serves as the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group, part of Paramount Media Networks, a di ...
's "Smash or Trash?," in which a video was aired and viewers would call in and vote on it. The video was "trashed" and MTV refused to air it after that.
Track listing
* 12-inch single (Enigma V-75511)
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (12-inch Version) – 6:30
# "Disco Dancer" (Bonus Beats) – 4:20
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (12-inch Version) – 6:30
# "Disco Dancer" (Bonus Beats) – 4:20
* 7-inch single (Enigma 7 75023-7)
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (Karaoke TV Version) – 4:15
* CD single (Enigma D3-75511, 7 75511-3)
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (12-inch Version) – 6:32
# "Disco Dancer" (Bonus Beats) – 4:26
# "Disco Dancer" (Karaoke Version) – 4:26
* Cassette single (Enigma 4V-75511)
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (12-inch Version) – 6:30
# "Disco Dancer" (Bonus Beats) – 4:20
# "Disco Dancer" (7-inch Version) – 4:15
# "Disco Dancer" (12-inch Version) – 6:30
# "Disco Dancer" (Bonus Beats) – 4:20
Chart performance
References
External links
*
{{authority control
1998 singles
1998 songs
Devo songs
Songs written by Gerald Casale
Songs written by Mark Mothersbaugh
Enigma Records singles