Before I talk about Cerrone, let me show you his album covers which are examples of 1970’s genius:
Alright then. To start off I have covered Cerrone before. You will find on this blog a review of the song “Hooked on You” which is in my opinion his greatest achievement. It has been a long time coming for Cerrone to be covered here. He was indisputably fundamental to laying a foundation for later electronic club music. Listen to the song “Supernature”. That shit came out in 1977 and it is so forward looking. The crazy thing about it too is that it touches on themes of environmentaldegradation and genetic engineering. Listen to the song “Got to Have Lovin’” he produced for Don Ray. That song may contain what is the greatest breakdown and buildup in Disco history. Listen to the song “Gimme Love”. When I hear that song I feel like hopping on a plane to a Mediterranean island and partying on the beach ’til the break of dawn. What I love the most about Cerrone is how he shows that a little Frenchman with a bit of talent can be a sex machine. That gives me hope.
Cerrone has made some awesome straight up Disco songs as well. “Midnight Lady” comes to mind. It starts off as just pure sweetness. Builds so sublimely with this two note thing from I don’t know what instrument. There is also the much recognized “Love in C Minor”. Some straight up epic disco clocking in at around 15 minutes. Like Moroder, Cerrone is really well recognized in certain circles but not by the wider electronic listening audience as a whole. I think he deserves props, not just for his more electronicky work, but for his more discoesque offerings as well. His disco work has a structure that can be unmistakeably linked to later music. The way he works his buildups and breakdowns must have caught the ear of later producers. There is so much attention to layering; adding things and taking them away. Music critics who think they know say disco is coming back (once again) and if that’s the case then we need to hear some Cerrone.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PDBG91hgW4Q
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V112pTo–Js
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CiDjqpGHIzI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2IGJVH2_80&feature=related
