“Mighty REAL: Showstoppers” by CANDYSTORECORDS
This month’s CD from Centaur Music is a dance floor retrospective of the period between 1980 and 1988. Disco had been declared dead at this time, but meanwhile artists were busy modernizing it to into dance music. The popularity of this new breed of music was frequently incited by the Gay Community, which is why this compilation will bring back fond memories for some.
In my case, I was born in 1981 and didn’t really take notice of this style of music as I grew up. I got into the groove of listening to tapes of James Last performing live, and I was probably the only kid on the block – nay, the continent – whose favorite song was the instrumental version of “When the Saints Go Marching In.” No wonder my taste in music is so…unique.
By the time I crawled out from under the rock, I had missed this era. Although my recent attempts at getting caught up on popular music have lead me to discover a number of favorites from the 80’s, sadly there wasn’t a single track on this CD that I recognized. The reason for that may also be that many of these songs have never been ported to CD until now – CANDYSTORECORDS had to dig up the original vinyls to put this album together. Who knows, maybe they revived an old favorite of yours!
These days, dance music is mostly made of electronic instruments, electronic percussion, human vocals (sometimes electronically modified), and the occasional sampling of real instruments. Showstoppers reminded me that not too long ago music was the exact opposite: the beat, melodies, and vocals were all natural instrument, with only the novel (and sometimes cheesy) samples of electronic instruments. Strings, trumpets, pianos and flutes all made frequent appearances, giving the music an almost classical air at times.
Lyrical content was also greatly different from today: instead of “It’s getting hot in here so take off all your clothes” they would say “love is in the air, in the whisper of the trees”. It’s poetic and charming rather than crass and sexual. Hey, it’s possible to like both, I do.
Track List:
1) Take Off ?????
2) I Can Fly ?????
3) That’s Love, That It Is ?????
4) Into the Fire ?????
5) Souvenirs ?????
6) Love Is in the Air ?????
7) Shine on Silver Moon ?????
8) Can We Try Again ?????
9) Don’t Turn Around ?????
10) What a Night ?????
11) Manhattan Shuffle ?????
Mighty REAL: Showstoppers is available online at www.centaurmusic.com, where visitors can listen to samples of every track on the album. The CD is available in all Priape stores across Canada, and online at www.priape.com.
