Profile of an originator: Giorgio Moroder

Maybe six or seven years ago I was becoming interested in early electronic music but I did not know where to look to get my fix. Sure, I knew about Kraftwerk. Everyone tells you how they were so instrumental and so groundbreaking and most certainly they were. Let’s admit though, most of their shit was undanceable other than a few tracks here and there (try dancing in a non-interpretive dance way to anything from Trans-Europe Express or Radio-Activity, just try). Then I stumbled into the wonderful world of Giorgio Moroder. I was already familiar with much of his work but not his name. I knew the ground-breaking Donna Summer song “I Feel Love”. I was a fan of the soundtrack for the movie “Scarface”. As I more deeply explored these works, I began seeing that same production credit reappear again and again: Moroder. So I decided to search and download songs under that name and it began. If you like electro and electro sounding house and disco well this is the father of it all. This guy was doing that stuff at least a decade before anyone else and well too. For those of you who are like me, musical archaeologists who enjoy peeling back the layers of sampled tracks and influences always delving deeper looking for the genesis of a sound, this man is an bona fide originator. Giorgio Moroder is important because he is the first “star producer” with a recognizable sound. I am willing to make the claim that without his work there would be no Italo Disco, no house, no electro and many other musical genres would have evolved in vastly different ways. It may appear as if I am overstating this man’s influence but a cursory listen to the songs provided below will make you understand that his influence cannot be overstated. If you want to understand why club music sounds the way it does, listen to the tracks below which span his work as a solo artist and producer of others:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4M0SU6alig

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5i3fQwL1EQM

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ap_2lkdRKF0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k8TBmeK9Abg

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d_maPJx0xt8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s0FiS5e72ws&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=24ip9f-WjxA

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0OU7Hka_–U

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoWYRPui-X0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Cae4l5t20SA&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mCifo0wCAeI

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1eO0atYnZUU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jGAJh5MB3CU&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gJ6uegvAY6Q

And that isn’t even most of it.

Tags: disco, donna summer, electro, electro house, Italo Disco, kraftwerk, moroder, scarface