Other Female Singers

Amii Stewart and her producer did disco well.

‘Knock on Wood’ was a huge Number One in the US at the beginning of 1979 but the follow-ups, ‘Light my Fire’ and ‘Jealousy’, made little impact there.

You can see the level of energy, determination and promotion to make a song a success, (at the time, the special effects for the ‘Knock on Wood’ promo video were ground-breaking and state-of-the-art).

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Knock On Wood is my 2nd favorite disco tune after a fairly unrecognizable Bryan Adams’ singing Let Me Take You Dancing on A&M. Great song for the era. They sped up his vocal. Still hasn’t been released in its full version on cd. Haven’t checked iTunes. Semi rare 12” and 45.
 
Knock On Wood is my 2nd favorite disco tune after a fairly unrecognizable Bryan Adams’ singing Let Me Take You Dancing on A&M. Great song for the era. They sped up his vocal. Still hasn’t been released in its full version on cd. Haven’t checked iTunes. Semi rare 12” and 45.

You'll never see it on CD either. Bryan absolutely hates it and it gets blocked anytime someone attempts to put it up on YouTube. Further hampering its release is that the master was burned up in the Universal fire.

Ed
 
Knock On Wood is my 2nd favorite disco tune after a fairly unrecognizable Bryan Adams’ singing Let Me Take You Dancing on A&M. Great song for the era. They sped up his vocal. Still hasn’t been released in its full version on cd. Haven’t checked iTunes. Semi rare 12” and 45.
Although ‘Knock on Wood’ by Amii Stewart was her only big hit in the US, ‘Light My Fire’ was Top 5 in the UK where ‘Friends’ also reached the Top 12 and she had a couple of other lesser Top 40 hits. ‘Knock on Wood’ reached the Top 10 in the UK twice; once in 1979 and a second time in 1985. In Australia, I heard ‘Light my Fire’ on the radio quite a bit and it reached the National Top 15. ‘Knock on Wood’ reached Number 2 and was on the charts for six months. Those early songs were very disco.
 
Ami’s version of Knock On Wood has the perfect tempo for dancing the East Coast Swing. We still play it at dances today. Packs the floor! Light My Fire got a bit of airplay here, but that was about it in the states. It just tried too hard to sound like Knock On Wood to be a big hit here. Bonnie Pointer did the same thing. Great remix hit with Heaven Must Have Sent You, followed by the kind of lame follow up, Sugar Pie Honey Bunch. It just didn’t work the 2nd time around. As for Bryan Adams, Let Me Take You Dancing did appear on a wimpy long various artists dance mix cd. It’s only a couple of minutes of the song, not worth the money. I did a needle drop of the 12” single in the 90’s, and then put it on my computer too. I like the sound of the vinyl, pops and all. Classic!
 
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Amii Stewart and her producer did disco well.

‘Knock on Wood’ was a huge Number One in the US at the beginning of 1979 but the follow-ups, ‘Light my Fire’ and ‘Jealousy’, made little impact there.

You can see the level of energy, determination and promotion to make a song a success, (at the time, the special effects for the ‘Knock on Wood’ promo video were ground-breaking and state-of-the-art).

😁









Great track!
 
It is kind of funny, yet I totally understand how much he hates the track. It must have sold enough copies to warrant an album. A&M so great about supporting their artists. I have to admit that I was disappointed that the track wasn’t on it. In fact, one listen to his debut album was all I ever gave it. Nothing special. Could that really be the same artist? Then the next album exploded, and he’s a big success. It’s fun to play the track for people and try to have them guess who it is. Pretty unrecognizable at that speed. BTW Stephen, that mix you posted is different than the American 12” single most people know. Thank you!
 
NewvilleFan sent a link to play it above. It’s the British mix I guess? It slows down at 4:19 for about 10 seconds, where the U.S. version never does. The intro is different too. It’s definitely a different mix than the one I have on vinyl. Still my favorite disco song of all time. Lol. It was a product of it’s time for sure.
 
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Bryan Adams said the song "Let Me Take You Dancing" he wants to forget (said the late Casey Kasem on "American Top 40" back in 1983)!!!
I just listened to that Bryan Adams song. Did they speed it up a lot to remix it or what? He sounds like a kid of 13 or 14. Sounds like his voice hasn’t broken yet but info says he was 19 when it was released. It’s a bit unsettling. 😬
 
I just listened to that Bryan Adams song. Did they speed it up a lot to remix it or what? He sounds like a kid of 13 or 14. Sounds like his voice hasn’t broken yet but info says he was 19 when it was released. It’s a bit unsettling. 😬

Yeah, it was sped up in an attempt to make it a dance hit. It didn't work...LOL!

Ed
 
I just listened to that Bryan Adams song. Did they speed it up a lot to remix it or what? He sounds like a kid of 13 or 14. Sounds like his voice hasn’t broken yet but info says he was 19 when it was released. It’s a bit unsettling. 😬
The original 7" radio mix is just as sped up as the remix.

A bit of background is in order... there was a Canadian band by the name of "Sweeney Todd", with lead singer Nick Gilder. Nick was known for his very high singing voice. When I first heard their hit song, "Roxy Roller", on the radio, I thought it was a woman singing. When Nick left the band to go solo, then 16-year-old Bryan Adams was hired to replace him, because he could do a convincing Nick Gilder impression, and sing the band's repertoire, high notes and all. I attended two Sweeney Todd concerts, one with Nick, and one with Bryan, and I can say that Bryan did an amazing job as replacement singer.

Because of his time fronting Sweeney Todd, Bryan was known by the public as having a high-pitched voice. I suspect that A&M wanted him to sound recognizable to his Sweeney Todd fans, but by 19, he may not have been able to do that high falsetto, Nick Gilder impression anymore. So, they sped up the tape machine.
 
It was a club hit. Sold enough to get a real record deal. Thanks for that background story. That explains a lot, whether you like the song or not.
 
Singer & saxophonist Rindy Ross (along with her husband Marv Ross) were first called Seafood Mama in 1980 & did "Harden My Heart". Then Geffen Records signed them & decided to call them Quarterflash. Their debut album from late 1981 is a great album. The last song on side 2 "Williams Avenue" (which is near 8 minutes long) is a great song!! The title track from the movie "Night Shift" (1982) got few airplay. The 1991 CD "Girl In The Wind" was only released in Australia & Japan & not in the U.S.. The 2008 "Goodbye Uncle Buzz" (NOT on iTunes) & their last from 2013 "Love Is A Road" are also great CD's. I did see them perform on TV's "American Bandstand" when in 1985 they did the song "Talk To Me" (from 1985 "Back Into Blue") BUT that album did not do well & the group broke up in early 1986. The only one I do not have is 1983 second album "Take Another Picture" (also on iTunes) but it is my least favorite. The Best of CD (1998) has a few B 45 singles which did not made it on their albums.
 
As a casual listener from way back, I have learned a lot on this forum about the music of the Carpenters; Karen being it's heart and soul. So I was wondering . . .
Since Karen's passing, are there other female singers whose style you appreciate and tend to listen to? They don't necessarily need to compare to her sound or style (who could, really). I am open to suggestions of different singers to listen to and thought since we all already have a love for Karen's voice in common, we could offer suggestions for further listening.

I am a HUGE Basia fan, from the beginning of her international career in the 80's. I also like other artists who really make you listen to the lyrics, like Carly Simon, Fleetwood Mac's Christine McVie, and Heart's Nancy Wilson.

Who do you listen to? :whistle:

I have more female artists on LP and CD than male artists.
My favorites: Carole King, Carly Simon, Joni Mitchell, Enya, Melissa Manchester, Judy Collins, Donna Summer, Diana Ross, Laura Nyro, Dusty Springfield, Olivia Newton-John, and special kudos to Lani Hall of Brasil'66, Marilyn McCoo and Florence LaRue of The 5th Dimension, Frida and Agnethe of ABBA. These are the women that I listen to the most.
 
I probably mentioned Susan Jacks many pages back. She deserves another mention for newcomers.

While hubby Terry Jacks had that much maligned song "Seasons In The Sun", whenever Susan was the lead on the Poppy Family albums, the songs were magically much better. And if you're into collecting everything, the Poppy Family only had two albums and a few singles.

Here's one where she's overdubbed with her own harmony - "Good Friends".

 
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