Lost in Music: Serious Disco & Synthesized Funk

Sister Sledge

With three disco classics in the middle, the mix flows slowly from electro pop into some serious disco and synthesized funk, built upon heavy electro beats. Electro (short for either electro-funk or electro-boogie) is a genre of electronic music and early hip hop directly influenced by the use of TR-808 drum machines, and funk sampling. Records in the genre typically feature drum machines and heavy electronic sounds, usually without vocals, although if vocals are present they are delivered in a deadpan manner, often through electronic distortion such as vocoding and talkboxing. Electro started around 1980 with bands like Zapp and ended by the end of the decade, when it split into swingbeat, house and hip hop, but the sound is still used in popular music (Ronika, Miami Horror).

About electro origins dj pioneer Greg Wilson says:

“It was all about stretching the boundaries that had begun to stifle black music, and its influences lay not only with German technopop wizards Kraftwerk, the acknowledged forefathers of pure electro, plus British futurist acts like the Human League and Gary Numan, but also with a number of pioneering black musicians. Major artists like Miles Davis, Sly Stone, Herbie Hancock, Stevie Wonder, legendary producer Norman Whitfield and, of course, George Clinton and his P Funk brigade, would all play their part in shaping this new sound via their innovative use of electronic instruments during the 70’s.”

Tracklist:

Wally Badarou – Endless Race (1984)
Miami Horror – Wild Motion [Pete Herbert Remix] (2014)
Ronika – Marathon (2014)
The Human League ‎– The Things That Dreams Are Made Of [Eddy's Edit] (1982)
Crazy P – Something More [Hot Toddy Disco Redux] (2015)
Lipps Inc – Funkytown (1979)
Bohannon Feat. Dr. Perri Johnson – Let’s Start II Dance Again (1981)
Sister Sledge ‎– Lost In Music [KarmaK & Grev Axel Re-Edit] (1984)
Soft Cell – What (1982)
Lio ‎– Amoureux Solitaires (1980)
Felix Da Housecat w/Miss Kittin – Madame Hollywood (2001)
Warp 9 – Skips A Beat (1986)
Saucy Lady – Sparkle And Shine (2015)

Lost in Music: Serious Disco & Synthesized Funk by Professor Eddy on Mixcloud