"Disco Lady" is a 1976 single by American singer

Johnnie Taylor Johnnie Harrison Taylor (May 5, 1934 – May 31, 2000) was an American recording artist and songwriter who performed a wide variety of genres, from blues, rhythm and blues, soul, and gospel to pop, doo-wop, and disco. In 2022, Taylor ...

that went on to become his biggest hit. It spent four weeks at No. 1 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and six weeks on the ''Billboard''

R&B chart The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

in the U.S. It was also the first single to be certified platinum by the RIAA; ultimately it sold over 2.5 million copies. ''Billboard'' ranked it as the No. 3 song for 1976. The single was Taylor's first for Columbia Records, where he signed after his long-time label,

Stax Records Stax Records is an American record company, originally based in Memphis, Tennessee. Founded in 1957 as Satellite Records, the label changed its name to Stax Records in 1961. It also shared its operations with sister label Volt Records. Stax was ...

, went bankrupt. The song was produced by Taylor's long-time producer, Don Davis. Among the guests on the song were four members of

Parliament-Funkadelic Parliament-Funkadelic (abbreviated as P-Funk) is an American music collective of rotating musicians headed by George Clinton, primarily consisting of the funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic, both active since the 1960s. Their distinctive ...

: bassist Bootsy Collins, keyboardist

Bernie Worrell George Bernard Worrell, Jr. (April 19, 1944 – June 24, 2016) was an American keyboardist and record producer best known as a founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic and for his work with Talking Heads. He is a member of the Rock and Rol ...

, guitarist

Glenn Goins Glenn Lamonte Goins (January 2, 1954 – July 29, 1978), also known as Glen Goins, was a singer and guitarist for Parliament-Funkadelic in the mid-1970s. Goins is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, posthumously inducted in 1997 with fift ...

, drummer

Tiki Fulwood Ramon "Tiki" Fulwood (May 23, 1944 – October 29, 1979) was an American musician. He was the drummer for the funk bands Parliament and Funkadelic, as well as a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with fifteen other membe ...

, 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 its title, although it is not a disco song. The single also reached No. 25 on the UK Singles Chart. It earned Taylor his second

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

nomination for

Best Male R&B Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance was awarded between 1968 and 2011. The award has had several minor name changes: *In 1968 it was awarded as Best R&B Solo Vocal Performance, Male *From 1969 to 1994 it was awarded as Best R&B V ...

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

Malaco Records Malaco Records is an American independent record label based in Jackson, Mississippi, United States, that has been the home of various major blues and gospel acts, such as Johnnie Taylor, Bobby Bland, Mel Waiters, Z. Z. Hill, Denise LaSalle, ...

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

References

External links

Lyrics of this song
* Songs about disco 1976 singles Johnnie Taylor songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles Songs written by Don Davis (record producer) 1976 songs Songs written by Harvey Scales Columbia Records singles Song recordings produced by Don Davis (record producer) {{1970s-pop-song-stub