dance hall days (redux)

this is a repost. i was looking at my stats and saw that quite a few people are hitting on this post. the vid (a documentary about house music in chicago) has evidently expired and is deleted now from youtube. i added a new remix from the brains and soul of frankie knuckles. the song definitely takes me back to my dance hall days and captures a specific flavor of 1978-1981. you could easily say that "it's not over" rang through my head on many mornings after leaving the innerworkings of dancehalls and stumbling out into the morning sun just as a displaced vampire or other creature of the night would do. hava listen and hava fantastic sunday.... i see yardwork in my immediate future. oh and i had already posted a lighthearted vid to make everyone smile.

House music is a style of electronic dance music that was developed by dance club DJs in Chicago in the early to mid-1980s. House music is strongly influenced by elements of the late 1970s soul- and funk-infused dance music style of disco. House music takes disco's use of a prominent bass drum on every beat and developed a new style by mixing in a heavy electronic synthesizer bassline, electronic drums, electronic effects, funk and pop samples, and reverb- or delay-enhanced vocals.

i came across this partial documentary about life very close to my heart in late 70's chicago. this is a good portion of our(chicagoans) soundtrack for 78,79. and its afterlife affirms yet again how influential gay tastes can be.

i remember visiting the warehouse about that time for the very 1st time. one of the things i remember vividly is being one of the few white persons and being aware of it. it caused me to feel uncomfortable and it also raised my awareness of how others in the same position(only opposite) might feel most of the time. that alone was worth the cover charge. but beyond that, i also remember dancing with a freedom that i hadn't felt before. this dancing thing was already becoming truly tribal for me. the body heat alone made for a sauna and the rhythms coming from the turntables as well as the revellers adding their harmonic additions and rhythmic subtexts created a surround sound that was hard to resist.

and of course then there was frankie knuckles. my friend medusa had befriended frankie over the previous couple of years and had developed a true respect for the man and a love for his art form. i was introduced to him while he was in the booth (working 3 turntables i might add) and i immediately was a fan. he was softspoken, he was attentive, he was thoughtful, and after listening for a few minutes and watching these record playing machines transformed into musical instruments right before my eyes, i knew i was hooked. i was never gonna be the same. i met a star that night, and knew it. and i am overjoyed at his continued success and never surprised that he has won another award. and i am always eager to hear another recording of his mastery.

my world was rocked on that visit to the warehouse. and my world has expanded greatly because of the influence of these dance hall days. my views of a culture and of its people were shifted into a more perfect balance then. and i learned to love to dance and celebrate the spirit(both mine and the spirit of all those around me) in a more holistic way. i grew up in a major way that night at the warehouse, and i don't regret one minute. and here is what frankie is up to these days.