Right about when John Travolta’s film “Saturday Night Fever” went big, people were taking off their shoes to boogie and getting ready for a new way to get down. Straight from The Warehouse, a nightclub in Chicago that existed from 1977 to 1982, came the soulful and euphoric sounds now known as House.
It was born once the underground scene had already stepped off Disco at the end of the 70s, and was beginning to develop a new style of music that was deeper, rawer and designed to make people dance. It blended soul, R&B, funk, with celebratory messages about dancing, love, and sexuality, all underpinned with repetitive arrangements and a steady bass drum beat.
House relayed the message of freedom to those who didn’t fit into the mainstream of society. It concerned the sensuality of the body and setting oneself free—without the worry of outside barriers.
The music was still essentially Disco until the early 1980s, however. When the first stand-alone drum machines were invented a new revolution of House music emerged. House DJs started to get more creative with their sound, performing in ways never imagined before. A new era of music was born and House was there to stay.
We encourage you today to go back to the House roots and check out our recommendations: 20 All-Time House Classics:
1. Frankie Knuckles – Your Love
2. Bucketheads – The Bomb
3. Farley Jackmaster Funk – Love Can’t Turn Around
4. Gusto – Disco’s Revenge
5. Lil’ Mo’ Ying Yang – Reach
6. Raze – Break 4 Love
7. The Nightwriters – Let The Music Use You
8. Robin S – Show Me Love
9. Armand Van Helden – The Funk Phenomena
10. DJ Sneak – Show Me The Way
11. X-Press 2 – Muzik Xpress
12. Todd Terry – Jumpin
13. Fast Eddie – Let’s Go
14. The Mole People – Break Night
15. Inner City – Good Life
16. Marhall Jefferson – Move Your Body
17. Armand Van Helden – Work Me Godammit
18. DJ Sneak – Keep On Groovin’
19. 95 North – Who’s Hoo
20. George Morel – Let’s Groove
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Additionally if you are interested to learn more about the history of House make sure to watch the film below – a very interesting documentary concerning the origin and development of House music originally broadcast on BBC Channel 4. The film has not been published in DVD, unfortunately.
Below Part 1 – enjoy on video and sound what simple text cannot portray!
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Podcast
[...] House music and Techno had already become popular in Europe by this time. Most of the Dance music being produced at the start of the decade was sampler-based, since sampling technology was relatively new at the time, and had become affordable enough to become main stream. By the middle of the decade Dance pioneers were looking to take their sounds in a new direction, which led to the reappearance of the synthesizer – the very same one that had been overlooked since the dance music revolution of the late 1980s. (Check out more info our: “What every House fan should know”) [...]