FlinterFile: Chris Montez- Let’s Dance

The sixties saw a great deal of dances which were popular.

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FlinterFile: Lonnie Gordon- Gonna Catch You

In 1991, Lonnie Gordon had a dance hit. She is from the Bronx in New York, but had more success out of the USA than in it…

FlinterFile: Joe Smooth- Promised Land

In 1987, Joe Smooth released his biggest hit. The DJ and producer helped to develop the House genre with this song.

Is Uptown Funk plagiarism and what else was ‘stolen’ (borrowed!) in disco

This week the message came that Uptown Funk would be plagiarism. The Sequence, a rap group from the eighties (with no hits on their name) claimed the song would be quite like their song Funk You Up. I think the simularities are very very very little, but there are several cases where it is more obvious.

FlinterFile: S’Express- Theme From S’Express

In 1989, the S’Express made their way out of the station, ready to ride! In the US number 91, in the UK number 1… The man behind the hit was a DJ, Mark Moore. He had the idea to make an eighties disco record. So what do you do?

FlinterFile: Paula Abdul- Straight Up

In 1988, Paula Abdul released her third single and breakthrough hit. She started her career as a cheerleader and dancer, worked with Janet Jackson on some dances for MTV (such as Nasty and What Have You Done For Me Lately), went on to work for ZZ Top and Duran Duran, and then started her own singing career.

FlinterFile: The Weeknd- Can’t Feel My Face

In 2015, The Weeknd (real name Abel Tesfaye) scored a big hit with a dance track. The song, about a man who is in love with a woman who is absolutely no good for him, was musically written by Max Martin, who previously worked with famous artists like Taylor Swift and Katy Perry. There are some rumours the song is about cocaine, since the title comes from a movie, when it is said after taking cocaine. However, it really is about love. Number 3 in the UK, number 1 in the US. Enjoy

The Weeknd- Can’t Feel My Face

FlinterFile: Rob ‘N’ Raz & Leila K.- Got To Get

In 1989, Leila K was introduced to the music scene. She was discovered by the duo Rob ‘n’ Raz (Robert Watz and Rasmus Lindwall), who offered her a contract. Together they made several songs, until Leila K decided to go solo in 1991 and then she had a hit with Open Sesame. Together they scored a number 8 hit in the UK and even number 2 in the Netherlands. Enjoy

Rob ‘N’ Raz & Leila K- Got To Get

Song of the day: Mark Morrison- Return Of The Mack

In 1996, Mark Morrison hit the charts with a dance classic. Mark had been in prison, and wanted to change his life from negative to positive. So he did by coming back as a singer, nicknamed the Mack. It was a good idea: the song was number 2 in the US and number 1 in the UK. Enjoy

Mark Morrison- Return Of The Mack

Song of the day: Jenny Burton- Bad Habits

In 1985, Jenny Burton released her second solo album. The year before, she had had some top 20 hits with her first solo singles, but now she had a number 1 hit in the US dance chart with the song Bad Habits. After this song, she released one other dance single, which did not chart that high, and the last years she has been releasing gospel albums. Enjoy

Jenny Burton- Bad Habits

Song of the day: Simply Red- Sunrise

In 2003, Simply Red released the first single from their new album. Based on a sample of Hall & Oates’ I Can’t Go For That (No Can Do) and with some of the same lyrics, it brought Simply Red to the dance charts again. In the UK it was number 7, and in the US Dance chart it even was number 1! Enjoy

Simply Red- Sunrise

Song of the day: Bomfunk MC’s- Freestyler

In 1999, the Bomfunk MC’s released their single Freestyler in their native country Finland. In 2000, the song was released internationally. It took dance, hip hop and drum & bass together in one song. Apart from the music, the song also references to songs, like Karma Cameleon and singers like Celine Dion. The song was number 1 in lots of countries, number 2 in the UK and number 47 in the US dance music chart. Enjoy

Bomfunk MC’s- Freestyler

Song of the day: Snap!- The Power

In 1990, Snap! released their third single The Power. The song starts with a Russian line, which says an American compagny has started the production of a voice-controlled computer for blind people. Originally, the complete song vocals were made up of samples, but for a US release, they couldn’t use those, since they were not authorized to do that. Instead, they re-recorded the song with different vocals and still used some samples. The result: number 1 in the UK, Canada, the Netherlands and several other countries, number 2 in the US. Enjoy

Snap!- The Power

Song of the day: The Beloved- Sweet Harmony

In 1993, the Beloved scored their biggest hit. The story of the Beloved started in 1983, when Jon Marsh placed an advertisement in which he told he had founded the Beloved. If you wished to join the band, you had to come to a certain place, three years after.  Two people turned up, and later someone else joined. Starting with indie hits, they had their biggest success with dance music, of which Sweet Harmony peaked at number 8 in the UK. Enjoy

The Beloved- Sweet Harmony

Song of the day: Paul Hardcastle- Don’t Waste My Time

In 1986, Paul Hardcastle brought a new dance hit to the charts. A year earlier, he had had his biggest success with the song 19, but now he asked Carol Kenyon (famous for the lead vocals in Temptation by Heaven 17) to sing the lyrics for his newest song. Together they scored a number 8 hit in the UK. Enjoy

Paul Hardcastle- Don’t Waste My Time

Song of the day: Shania Twain- That Don’t Impress Me Much

The album Come On Over was a successalbum for Shania Twain: this song was the sixth country single from that album! Later it would become a dance single. It would become number 7 in the US and number 3 in the UK! Enjoy

Shania Twain- That Don’t Impress Me Much

Song of the day: Mark Ronson featuring Bruno Mars- Uptown Funk!

A few weeks ago, Mark Ronson (famous from the remix of Valerie by Amy Winehouse) and Bruno Mars released their new single. The song is the single of Mark Ronson’s new album, which will be released next year. It was an instant hit: number 1 in the UK, number 3 in the US. The song sounds like the good disco from the seventies/eighties, and is very danceable! Enjoy and dance to

Mark Ronson & Bruno Mars- Uptown Funk

Song of the day: Kiesza- Hideaway

Also a Canadian debute this year, by the singer Kiesza. She made a deep house single, which sounds very good. It was made in 90 minutes and makes you think about the good nineties dance music. The song reached number 1 in the UK and 51 in the US normal chart, so quite good. I hope we’ll hear more hits of her in the next year! Enjoy and dance to

Kiesza- Hideaway

Song of the day: Alle Farben- She Moves

Talking about 2014, this must be one of the stranger (but therefore nicer) records. It was the debute of the German DJ Alle Farben, with the vocals of Graham Candy. It has not reached the charts in the UK or the US, but did reach the Dutch charts on number 15! A good hit, enjoy

Alle Farben & Graham Candy- She Moves (Far Away)

Song of the day: Spiller- Groove Jet

A dance/house song from the beginning of the zeroes: 2000! Spiller, an Italian producer, joined forces with Sophie Ellis-Baxtor for this song and together they hit number 1 in the UK! Originally, this song was made as an instrumental song, but to make it more suitable for the radio, Spiller decided to ask Sophie Ellis-Baxtor to record some lyrics. The song would be a huge hit and probably the first song that ever was played on an iPod! Enjoy

Spiller- Groove Jet (If This Ain’t Love)

Song of the day: Kristine W.- Feel What You Want

In the nineties, while house still was going strong, Kristine W. had a big hit. In 1994, the song Feel What You Want ended up on number one in the US and the UK, both on the club tracks chart. She has an amazing voice, so that might be one of the causes that it was number one… And still it´s one of the best songs to dance on from the nineties. Enjoy

Kristine W.- Feel What You Want

Song of the day: Beckie Bell- Steppin’ Out Tonight

In the nineties, 1992, Beckie Bell had a big hit with the song Steppin’ Out Tonight. There’s just one problem for me: this great dance track did not chart in the US or UK, only did number 4 in the Netherlands. There’s no information to be found, but it’s a great track! Enjoy and dance to

Beckie Bell- Steppin’ Out Tonight

Song of the day: Van McCoy- The Hustle

Seventies and disco… they go perfectly together. Another example is this song from 1975, which would be a number one in the US and a number three in the UK. With over one million copies sold, it probably is one of the most popular disco songs. It all started in a nightclub in New York City, where the musical partner of Van McCoy saw patrons do the hustle. Van McCoy wrote the song and recorded it with quite some musicians. A few years later, in 1979, Van McCoy wanted to make a 12 inch single out of the song. He died before it was finished… enjoy

Van McCoy & the Soul City Symphony- The Hustle

Song of the day: Chubby Checker- The Twist

In 1959, Hank Ballard & The Midnighters recorded a B-side for their song Teardrops on Your Letter. The song was a small hit in 1960, but it never broke through. Till Chubby Checker, and he covered the song in 1960. He started the Twist dance craze, and his song hit number one on the Billboard Chart! However, the twist is older than the two records we just discussed. In 1844, there was a song in mininstrelsy, called Grape Vine Twist. Via several ways, the song came to Chubby Checker, who made the twist popular. He had a lot of success with the song, not in the last place because he kept recording it in new versions. He even got the fever started again when he recorded Let’s Twist Again! In the UK, this song even got more popular than the original, which never really got there… Enjoy the first version:

Chubby Checker- The Twist

Song of the day: Edward Maya- Stereo Love

In 2009, the Romanian artist Edward Maya worked together with the Russian-Romanian Vika Jigulina. They put together a dance record, which makes use of the song Bayatilar in the refrain. This became a bit of a problem, since the composer of this tune was not mentioned as co-writer. Later this was changed, though Edward Maya kept saying they tried to contact the composer, but that this was not possible due to the busy schedule of the composer. The keyboard riff also comes from another song, namely the theme to “Zalim”. However, it’s a great song to dance to. Enjoy

Edward Maya & Vika Jigulina- Stereo Love

Song of the day: Junior Senior- Move Your Feet

The summer of 2003 sees the rise of a Danish dance duo called Junior Senior. They made several records, but this has proven to be their biggest hit. It was their debute single, and immediately they hit number 3 in the UK and number 25 on the US dance chart. After that, almost none of the singles made it to the charts, and none did make it to the top of the chart. However, this happy song makes people still move their feet, and that’s why it’s the song of this saturday night. Get dancing to

Junior Senior- Move Your Feet

Song of the day: Melanie C- I Turn To You

This is probably the only Spice Girl who had great successes after the period of the Spice Girls. I will not talk about the (horrible) cover of It’s Raining Men by Geri Halliwell, and also not about Victoria Beckham. Today it’s about the woman who recorded Never Be The Same Again, which is on the same album as the song of the day, namely Northern Star. The song would be the second number one hit in the UK. It was and is a great dance hit, and it’s great to dance on it. Also, it is a genuine summer hit, so enjoy

Melanie C- I Turn To You

Song of the day: Ultra Naté- Free

A nineties song which has the best of almost everything in dance music: disco, house, and the nineties sound. It was a single of her third album, and it managed to become a hit in a lot of countries. For some people, this song is one of the best songs of the nineties, regarding dance music. I think I could agree on that one. The voice of Ultra Naté is great, and it’s a shame she did not have a lot of hits. So get dancing to this hit! Enjoy

Ultra Naté- Free

Song of the day: The Bucketheads- The Bomb

Tonight it’s party time! That’s another song, but let’s talk about the nineties house classic, made by the Bucketheads, which actually was one Buckethead, better known as Kenny “Dope” Gonzalez. He made this song, used a sample of the Chicago song Street Player. For the ones who want to know: it’s the lyrics, Street sounds swirling through my mind. I have misunderstood those, because I’m always singing “Beat time rolling through my mind”, which does not make sense, I know. But most songs do not make sense, especially house songs. However, a great song, enjoy

The Bucketheads- The Bomb (These Sounds Fall Into My Mind)

Song of the day: Energy 52- Café Del Mar

Saturday night! Dance night! And today it’s a song from the nineties, 1993 to be precise. The name is derived from a bar on Ibiza, of course with the same name. The song has become a dance classic, instantly recognizable and remixed many, many, many times. None of them have been as good as the original song, that is, in my eyes. Dance to and enjoy

Energy 52- Café Del Mar

Song of the day: Sunclub- Fiesta

A Dutch danceformation from the nineties today. In 1997 they had a big summerhit with Fiësta, which would be their only hit. Until they decided to remix the thing, together with another group, in 2003 and name it differently: Summer Jam 2003. Again they rose in the charts, having another summerhit. Today we are going to have a little party with this hit. Enjoy

The Sunclub- Fiësta

Song of the day: Jovanotti- L’Ombelico Del Mundo

An Italian singer-songwriter, who had his breakthrough in the nineties. This song was one of his biggest hits, it charted in 1995. It especially does good in the summer, because it has the sound of summer in it. His name, Jovanotti, is derived from the plural form of giovanotto, which is giovanotti. The word itself means young man. This man has done almost everything in the musical world, ranging from classical music to funk. This song is one of my favourites. Enjoy

Jovanotti- L’Ombelico Del Mondo

Song of the day: East Side Beat- Ride Like The Wind

Oh dear! It’s Saturday again! That means putting on your dancing clothes and start dancing to the record I selected. Today, I’ve got a cover for you. It was written and recorded by Christopher Cross in 1980. This version went up in the American chart, but was kept from the first spot by Blondie’s Call Me. This meant it stuck to a second place. The single was dedicated to Lowell George, who died in 1979. The song itself is about a Mexican man, running to the border. He is sentenced to dead, and if he doesn’t run that fast, he will die. A kind of Western, where the bad guy is trying to survive… The song was picked up by some Italians in 1991, who made a typical nineties dance version of the song. Once more it went up in the charts, but it didn’t reach the highest position. Get dancing to

East Side Beat- Ride Like The Wind

Song of the day: M- Pop Muzik

Saturday night: disco night. And therefore we have our disco records from the eighties, the eurodance from the nineties and everything which is danceable. Today, we can enjoy and dance to a record from the late seventies.  The song was recorded by M, which was a sort of band, lead by Robin Scott. He wanted to have a record which made 25 years of pop music come together. Using disco music, he did it. As he himself said: rock ‘n roll created a generation gap, disco made people come together. It had to be a simple statement: everyone is talking about pop music. Well, he certainly made his statement in several clubs, because the single went up in the charts, almost everywhere peaking in the top 5, and in a lot of countries even making it to number one! Enjoy dancing to

M- Pop Muzik

Song of the day: Suzanne Vega- Tom’s Diner

A few days ago, I heard a song on the radio which made me think of another song. Sounds a bit strange, but I knew the text, however, the music did not sound right. Luckily my laptop was on, so I googled the lyrics. And then I found out this song the radio was playing was a remix of the eighties song by Suzanne Vega. To me, it seemed useless, since the real original was good, and the dance version was worse than dance versions normally are. This song was written in 1981 by Suzanne Vega, then it was released by a magazine in 1984, but three years later, in 1987, it was featured on her debute album as the first track. So I was thinking: Tom’s Diner? What’s that? Well, it’s a restaurant in New York, Tom’s Restaurant. To find out the date of writing, a sort of puzzle has to be solved. Some people have done this for me, but I’ll guide you through.

An actor has died of drinking, as Suzanne Vega reads in the newspaper on the front page. She then turns to the backside, to read the funnies. This means she is reading the New York Post, which has both of the conditions. The actor is William Holden (Bridge Over The River Kwai). The article about his death was published on the 18th of November in 1981, which is believed to be the writing day.

Enough information. A beautiful song, both in composition and in clever (short) lines. Enjoy

Suzanne Vega- Tom’s Diner

Song of the day: Yazoo- Don’t Go

What’s better for the weekend than a nice disco song from the eighties? That’s what I mean: nothing. Therefore, I looked for a song from the beginning of the eighties with a nice synthesizer in it. And I found one from 1982! It was the second single from their debute album, the first one (Situation) already was number one, and this one went to number one in the American dance chart too. Enjoy

Yazoo- Don’t Go

Song of the day: Viola Wills- Gonna Get Along Without You Now

Some disco classics are just awesome. And of some, you can sing along with every word. This record has both of them. I just heard it again on the radio, and since it hasn’t been featured yet, I thought: let’s do so now. Actually, there’s not a lot to tell about this record. It’s a big classic, you can dance perfectly on it (I just did, why not?) and the text is not too difficult. Enjoy and dance to

Viola Wills- Gonna Get Along Without You Now

Song of the day: Alesha Dixon- The Boy Does Nothing

Let’s do a song about a completely inactive person, they must have thought. And I think it was a good thought. A very nice, swinging beat, completed by a female voice (which is logical with such a title), and a text which rocks! Swing and dance to this amazing track:

Alesha Dixon- The Boy Does Nothing

Song of the day: Gala- Freed From Desire

Let’s talk about the nineties! A great time period in which I was born. I sometimes find that a shame, since there is a lot of good music coming from the nineties. However, most good music stays, just like the song of the day. It was an Italian artist, she released the single and went to the top of the hit charts. And today? We play it as song of the day! Enjoy

Gala- Freed From Desire

Song of the day: Leo Sayer- Long Tall Glasses

It’s a crazy story about someone who goes to a party, he sees lots of food and long tall glasses, but before he can eat, he has to dance. I really don’t know any party like that, but it was good for a great song. I came to this song, because it popped up last night before I went to bed. I was putting on my pyjamas and then I thought: “You know I can dance, you know I can dance, I can dance!”. And now it is song of the day. Enjoy

Leo Sayer- Long Tall Glasses (I Can Dance)

Song of the day: Black Box- Strike It Up

Some nineties today. And I don’t know what about you, but I’m getting very irritated by this picture. Therefore, I will not type a lot. I can say it is a great dance track, 1990. Enjoy

Black Box- Strike It Up

Song of the day: Frankie Knuckles- The Whistle Song

I was shocked to hear that Frankie Knuckles, the Godfather of House, had died yesterday at the age of 59. Of course, this is much too young to die, and on top of that, he made great music. One of his biggest hits was The Whistle Song, which is just sublime. You can hear that he mixed disco with the thing that later would become house. Great music, great dance beats. Enjoy

Frankie Knuckles- The Whistle Song

Rest In Peace- Frankie Knuckles (59)

Song of the day: Marcia Hines- Your Love Still Brings Me To My Knees

An early eighties disco hit. It’s Saturday, so we may dance in the evening. Therefore, I wanted one of my favourite disco records to be song of the day, and that’s this song. Everything seems to be right in this song. The voice, music, it all matches. Enjoy and dance to

Marcia Hines- Your Love Still Brings Me To My Knees

Song of the day: Sash!- Ecuador

Oh, how this band fooled me! They are a great band, made lots of great dance music, and I always thought: they are French. I mostly made this up, because of the single Encore Une Fois. How French can it be? But nothing like French is in there. They are German, like lots of great dance artists are. And they made a great song in my birth year, 1997. Enjoy

Sash!- Ecuador

Song of the day: Simply Red- Fairground

What’s better than a record which makes you happy, which has a nice beat to dance to, and a band which is good? I would say nothing. In 1995, Simply Red (where did that name come from…) had a big hit with a song which belongs to their best. Although Stars is very good, too. I can’t choose, but enjoy

Simply Red- Fairground

Song of the day: Ace Of Base- The Sign

More dance coming to you! In 1994, Ace of Base had another hit, after All That She Wants in 1993. This time, the hit was slightly smaller, but for me, the song is better! The nice thing is that they came from Sweden. After the nineties, it seemed there was a wall around Sweden, since we didn’t hear a lot from there. But now they are back! Enjoy

Ace Of Base- The Sign

Song of the day: Urban Cookie Collective- The Key The Secret

Some names stay in your mind forever, since they are so strange… This is the case for the song from 1993. Urban Cookie Collective… The person that made up that name should get a prize, how do you think of that? And I have to say that it’s good dance too.! Dance with a smile, because who isn’t happy when they hear this? Enjoy

Urban Cookie Collective- The Key, The Secret

Song of the day: The Pasadenas- Tribute (Right On)

Yes! 1988! And one of the hits in this year is one of my favourite dance tracks, since there are lots of references to old music in there, and because I’ve got the single (found it in some box, I said: I keep it!). It’s one of the records I have to hear if I’m down to get happy again. Enjoy

The Pasadenas- Tribute

Song of the day: Sheila E.- Glamorous Life

We’re in 1984! And I really love this song. It’s disco and everything a record needs! A good singer, nice music, maybe this is such a record that is quite perfect! But okay, you know I’m a big discofan, so that’s maybe a bit biased… Throw the furniture to the side of the room, and dance to

Sheila E.- The Glamorous Life

Song of the day: New Order- Blue Monday

Lately, I’ve been watching a programme, where they told where New Order came from. I must confess: I fell of the couch (almost) when they told what origin they had. Punk, Joy Division to be exact. A PUNK group, who decided to make synthesizer music and dance after the suicide of their frontman Ian Curtis. I wasn’t expecting that, I can tell you that much. But what does it matter? As New Order, they had one big hit which I find very good, and it was a big hit in 1983! Enjoy

New Order- Blue Monday (full 7 minutes!)