Search - Various Artists :: 54, Volume 2

E. L. from MELBOURNE, FL
Reviewed on 8/12/2019...

The music on this CD is great though they should have used the full long version of Heart Of Glass (Disco Version) instead of the edited version, (the last 2/3 of the song is the best part-which the company should not have used.) Overall, great music from the 70's.

The Blue Disc is just as groovin'

Daniel J. Hamlow | Narita, Japan | 12/02/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"While Volume II of the 54 soundtrack falls within the 1977-1979 era, there are two tunes that go outside that boundary, plus the new song that starts off the blue disc, a neo-disco cover of Gordon Lightfoot's "If You Could Read My Mind" sung by Ultra Nate, Amber, and Jocelyn Enriquez, played at the end of the movie. The rest of the CD is vintage disco not found on Pure Disco, save maybe two.Gonzalez's "Haven't Stopped Dancing Yet" follows, and it's one of the most engaging selections here. There is a midsection featuring only congas, whistles, and vocals, but afterwards, it goes back to overdrive.The inspirational Bonnie Pointer's "Heaven Must Have Sent You", penned by the Holland/Dozier/Holland team, comes next, being one of her best solo numbers after leaving the Pointer Sisters. Those bells and Bonnie's little sighs really do it for me here.Brainstorm's "Loving Is Really My Game" has an intense galloping rhythm. Another overdrive disco classic!The slower tempo "Disco Nights (Rock-Freak) by GQ relies more on sounds and bass. Listening to some elements here makes me realize where Prince got "Let's Work", particularly the "Rock-Freak" chant.With "Found A Cure" I bet the husband-and-wife team of Ashford and Simpson were glad to have a hit for themselves instead of giving hits to the likes of Ronnie Milsap, the Shirelles, and Ray Charles. Ashford's falsetto and Simpson's bright and smooth vocals work wonders together. Their composition "The Boss" for Diana Ross is on 54, Volume I, BTW.Thelma Houston's rework of "Don't Leave Me This Way" is another necessary disco classic, and is the earliest track on this volume (1976). This song was later taken to the UK #1 in the 80's by the Communards.Weird, heavy, and insistent electronic funk provides the backbeat for the S.O.S. Band's late entry (1980) "Take Your Time (Do It Right)."Then comes the Latin-tinged "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood", by Santa Esmeralda, with the well-known refrain, "I'm just a poor boy who's intentions are good/se, please don't let me be misunderstood." Alabina later did this on their Alabina II album."SPANK...ooh ooh ooh ooh", huh? Kind of in the same vein as Bowie's "Fame" but Jimmy "Bo" Horne's "Spank", complete with handclaps, humming bassline, and sax refrains isn't as jam-packed as the other tunes.
Shimmering space age sounds dot War's funky "Galaxy" and is a wish to get away from the rat race and hit the stars.Three songs need no introduction here. They are Grace Jones' "I Need A Man", Blondie's "Heart Of Glass" (disco remix clocking in at 3:19), and Silver Convention's "Fly Robin Fly."Not a bad compilation of material, as good as its companion red disc."

Loving Is Really My Game

DJ | Kingston Springs, TN United States | 12/22/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I`ve been addicted to the disco music of the late 70`s early 80`s for a few years now. (I`m 18 by the way) I continue to be surprised by the beauty of disco, and boy did song #4 on this cd surprise me! "Loving Is Really My Game" has become one of my all time favorites. It`s a disco diamond from `77.
The other songs on the CD aren`t too shabby either. Classy disco, funky disco, it`s all here."