Ain't Nothin But A Party: Black Music Moves The Crowd by Sheldon Taylor

Dig deep in the archives of Black music’s creative continuum and you’ll find a wealth of utility. Protest songs and get-money anthems mobilized and motivated. Certain records leveled us up and lamented our dead homies. We received messages in music and absorbed the power of love. Just as impactful were celebratory uptempo songs that gave us life that captured the rhythm of the night. Here's a partial playlist:

Headsprung (2003) LL Cool J

Momentarily stepping away from his signature love songs and chest-beating rhymes, LL Cool J lobs a curveball courtesyTimbaland-crafted club banger (Timbaland/Ladies Love on the track”). Welcome to the spot where the champagne’s plentiful and the women get in for free ("just have ID"). You'll find L posted up in the back holding court. He's an equal-opportunity party rocker so ladies---no need to get your hair done and fellas---no need to throw down once---the GOAT’s got you covered.

Family Affair (2001): Mary J. Blige

Circular bass and synth riffs power MJB’s drama-free plea ("come on baby/and party with me/let loose and set your body free"). Just beyond the velvet rope, the vibe's free of stress and strife ("leave your situations at the door").  Family Affair's title is MIA but have no fear: faux-Rasta talk (“hateration and holleration”) and a shoe-horned nonsensical ("dancerie") combine for an irresistible hook of a millennial dance classic.                          

Chic

Everybody Dance (1977)

Dance, Dance, Dance (1978)

Le' Freak (1978)

If you didn’t know yet from the titles---the dance is Chic's recurring compositional cornerstone. Cotton Club cool---they name-check Fred and Ginger ("spinning all around the floor/just like Rogers and Astaire/who found love without a care"), Duke Ellington ("it don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing"), relive "days and nights/stompin’ at the Savoy" and revive jazz-age slanguage  ("yowsah, yowsah, yowsah"). They rhumba, tango and latin hustle too. True to the band's name---they transform a hot dance of the moment into elegant Haute Hedonism: Le’ freak, ce’st Chic.

Good Times (1979) 

Beneath Chic’s catchy cadence, laconic songwriting, and lockstep rhythms lurks an anthem that’s retro ("clams on a half shell/and rollerskate!") ("happy days are here again") ("let’s cut the rug/ little jive and jitterbug") ("I think I want to live the sporting life"), realist ("time marches on/just can’t wait") and escapist ("leave your cares of behind") all at once. Celebratory ("our new state of mind") and communal ("don’t be a drag/participate"), the band's clipped code is more than disco ear candy: understand while you dance.

All Night Long (1998): Faith Evans featuring Puff Daddy

Momentarily moving away from her moody blues--- Faith and producer Ron Lawrence craft a jam built around the bassline Unlimited Touch’s 1980 "I Hear Music In The Street". Chic's fingerprints are everywhere---the hook bats lead-off and check the clipped-and-shorn lyrics ala "Good Times" ("happy days are here again/so leave your cares behind"). Faith rides Lawrence's rhythms ("relax your mind/get your groove on/it’s nothing but a party.") while-Bad Boy ringmaster Puff Daddy checks in as usual ("whether hip hop or R&B/featuring Faith Evans/co-starring me") to ride shotgun.

 

From 9 Until (1979): Lakeside

Best known for their string of hits (including 1980’s "Fantastic Voyage") quirky album covers and upstaging Super Fest headliner Rick James----Lakeside was one of R&B’s ultimate party bands during the late 70s/early 80s. Masterfully importing a party-rocking vibe to wax---they provide funky grooves, a panoramic storyline, call-and-response ("say what? say what, say what?"), and catchy lyrics ("police will be there early/looking high and low for drugs/ we won’t be high on dope ya’ll/we’ll be getting high fun"). 

Wanna know how your grannies and great-aunties used to get lit? Look no further.

Honorable mention: "All The Way Live" (1978) and "Raid" (1984)

Weekend Thing (2001) Koffee Brown

Resurrecting 80s Black music's feel-good vibe New Jersey producer Kay Gee constructed a mini-empire in the process. Fueled by his interpolation of Herb Alpert’s "Rotation" (1979)---"Weekend Thing" winds down the 9-to-5 grind ("tired of the bs/tripped bosses talkin' threats/but I can care less") offering syncopated scenes of fresh haircuts, hair salons, shiny whips, good smoke and Remy Martin shots ("cuz it's on at the club!"): TGIF.

Zhane

Hey Mr. DJ (1994)

Request Line (1997)

Saturday Night (1997)

It’s Friday night, the weekend’s here and Zhane pays homage to radio DJs (courtesy of a sample of Michael Wycoff’s ’82 gem "Looking Up To You") Their irresistible hooks ("hey Mr. DJ/keep playin’ that song") and catchy lyrics ("I’m dialin’ 5-5-5/0-4-29")  compliment bumping tracks feature interpolations of classic hits from the World Famous Supreme Team (1984’s "Hey DJ") Rock Master Scott and the Dynamic Three (1984’s "Request Line") and Ashford and Simpson ("1978's It Seems To Hang On").

 Riding a bassline plucked from Herbie Hancock’s 1980 "Stars In Your Eyes" Zhane ("I’m tellin’ you/there’s nothing like a Saturday night.”) rise early ("Saturday morning/I’m rising with the sun") and hang out late ("lets put the night in motion/time seems to fly by easily"). Putting a new spin on an age-old conceptual theme----Zhane’s airy harmonies elevate it to epic proportions.

A decade and change before Zhane---Indeep put out a live-saving SOS to their DJ. Remnants of Chic still remain in '82 (check the female umbilical leads and the bass-and-guitar tandem) but curveball rap ("there's not a problem that I can't fix/cuz I can do it in the mix") switches things up and away goes trouble down the drain.  

Break My Soul (2022): Beyonce

 Like Donna Summer, Bey works hard for the money. In search of renewed salvation, vibration, and motivation----she ditches her gig ("I just quit my job/I’m gon’ find new drive/they work my nerves/damn they work me so hard") and reclaims her sanity on the dancefloor  ("Bey is back/and I’m sleepin’ at night"). while Robin S ("Show Me Love") and Big Freedia ("Explode") percolate in the background. Back outside Bey reminds us that self-care is the best care.

Church Girl (2022): Beyonce

Clutch your pearls if you want to. If you knew your Black music history you'd recognize Beyonce's Church Girl's a send of steamy juke-joint romps of old. Moving mountains while her girls "cry fountains," Capsized by pain (“in the oceans of tears we cried”)  they return to shore courtesy of the beacon-like bounce and rapid-fire cadence plucked from NOLA DJ Jimi's 1992 Where They At ("it must be the cash 'cuz it ain't ya face"). Sunday morning service (the Clark Sisters' 1981 "Center Thy Will hovers) beckons but for now,---it’s about Saturday night. Fanning flames like a risque’ ringmaster, Bey cools things off with a diva-fied disclaimer: "I ain’t trynna hurt nobody/tryin’ to bring that life up out your body."   

Get Ya Bodied Extended (2004): Beyonce

 Bey's dressed to the nines and ready to party. The club's on speed dial ("tell'em get the bottles poppin' when they hear my song") and the vintage Rolls is parked outside. Strutting to the front of the line---her hair's laid as she throws shade ("gotta check these chicks/cuz you know they gon' block/when I take these flicks"). As the handclaps and drum track reaches a fever pitch, she leads a dance floor altar call ("why ya'll standin' on the wall?") complete with chants lifted from NOLA DJ Jubillee's 1997 classic "Get Ready Ready."

Living For The Weekend (1975): The O’Jays

No Black music hugged the curb of commonality back in the 70s like the Sound of Philadelphia. The OJay's cinematic working-class anthem find them shaking off the week’s residue ("from Monday to Thursday/I’m dead on my feet") like dirt off their shoulder. House band MFSB's bluesy basslines and jazzy grooves provide a soulful soundtrack as the‘Jays party down and paint the town in their glad rags before limping back to work on Monday.

Once upon a rhyme, rap revolved around its own orbit on a planet world where party-rocking was worth its weight in platinum and gold (plaques):

Freedom (1980): Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five 

Peek under this seminal rap classic and you’ll find something old, something borrowed, and something true: the groove’s a reboot of Freedom’s "Get Up and Dance."Hear the Black radio jock in the origins of the Furious Five’s fly party-rock. Their dazzling round-robin vocals sparkle with Sly, the Temptations, and the Jackson Five's glint. 

Weaving through horns and kazoos like rush hour traffic, the Furious “write rhymes on a dime and make the world twice” and whip the crowd into a frenzy with invitational altar calls ("we're givin' a party/and you got to come/because you're the one!") high-energy call and response, and zodiac sign shout-outs. The bass is in your face and the highs will make your nature rise: it's an offer you can't refuse---just clap your hands, do the freak dance and become a victim of circumstance. 

Escape (1984): Whodini

Trapped in a manic world of one-sided relationships ("my girl’s half-mad/she drives me wild/all she cares about is rippin’ the styles")  and occupational woes ("sometimes I wonder what they hired me for/to operate computers/or run to the store"), Jalil ("somebody tell the DJ to play my song!") and Ecstasy ("there’s only way for me to have peace/and that’s for me to go out and rock the beat") escape to a place where music soothes their ravaged peace.

The Freaks Come Out At Night (1984) Whodini

Swirling synths weave in and out of Jail and Ecstasy’s tales of New York nightlife where packed "discos don’t open til after dark"and "freaks come in all shapes, sizes, and colors." Combining Rod Temperton’s laser-eyed gift of narrative and Marvin Gaye’s voyeurism ( see: 1977’s "Got To Give It Up") they bemoan curfews ("I always had to be home by ten/right before the fun was about to begin") and marvel at the sexy scene ("they don’t walk/when they step they strut/nine times out of ten/they’ll simply drive you nuts!").

Magic’s Wand (1982)

As DJs jam in the street and people dance to the beat, Jalil runs down his bio ("in no time at all/a star was born") and rap’s resume ("the record world was in for a smash/ Sugar Hill/Kurtis Blow and Grandmaster Flash"). He pays tribute to NYC’s early king of the airwaves and salutes "Rapture" (1981), "Do I Do" (1982) and "Square Biz’s "(1981) rap flirtations ("Blondie/Stevie Wonder/ Teena Marie"). Tag-teaming with partner Ecstasy---Jalil leads a call-and-response that’s both a sexual entendre and a play on Mr. Magic’s nickname ("what's that word when you’re bustin’ loose? Juice ! Juice!").  

 Let The Music Play: Barry White (1978)

Wandering the streets nursing a broken heart, The Maestro finds solace in the disco. His lady's MIA ("he got his woman with him...mines is at home") but Love Unlimited Orchestra’s plush symphony softens the blow of his fractured romance. As BW tries to make it through the night ("let the music play on/til this misery is gone”) a cinematic intro ("one ticket please") and vivid lyrics ("I know its make-believe/but it's the only hope for me") make for a moving motion picture: Manic On The Dancefloor.

You Don't Have To Call: Usher (2001)

An elusive lover doesn't damper Usher's club turn-up. Embracing newfound single-man status with a Biggie-ish fervor ("don't leave your girl/around me"), he laments lost moments ("celebrations with the guys/I sacrificed") and lost love ("should of cherished me/listened to friends/now it's the end"). At the bridge, Usher floats into MJ territory ("gonna boogie tonight") unleashing a falsetto that's a nod and wink to 1980s "Don't Stop Til You Get Enough." 

Disco Nights (1979): GQ

Welcome to a world where the music’s tight and the feelings right. Electric (“let the spirit flow all through your body”) and intoxicating (“you said you wanna reach the sky? then get up!”)---the vibe's telegraphic. GQ are master R&B /disco pied pipers ("involve yourself/you are free to follow/and we'll take you there") who beckon party people to the dancefloor with a tribal chant (“ rock…..freak!”) that's potent as a mating call. 

Caught in the rubble of disco’s demolition---Chic’s reign is waning but their sounds live on in NYC concept bands keeping Black dance music in rotation:

On The Beat (1981): The BBQ Band

A pulsating track accented by Chic-ish guitar provides the backdrop for Ike Floyd’s genteel invitation (“how about your company this evening?”) to a local spot ("are you ready or not?/its only up the street!") where everybody dances and is on the beat.  

A Loves Holiday (1981): Change  

In Pitch Black City, glimmers of Chic’s signature minimalism peek through the darkness. Their lockstep vocals ("holiday/celebrate"), off-kilter lyrics ("let’s disco down/in a roller skating rink/in Alaska town") retro-romance ("let’s have lunch/picnic or a brunch/ in the wintertime") and syncopated rhythm combine to may be the best song Nile and ‘Nard never made.

 Songwriter Hot Rod Temperton is R&B’s resident roving reporter. Whether churning out songs for his own band Heatwave or as Quincy Jones's lyrical point man the outcome’s always the same: his nocturnal narratives become monster hits and radio staples.

Boogie Nights (1976)

Jazzy intros, multi-tracked vocal harmonies, and nimble rhythms give way to Keith Wilder’s emphatic declaration ("ain’t no doubt/we are here to party!") and bassy refrain ("got keep on dancin’/keep on dancin") while Brother Johnnie’s falsetto ("dance with the boogie/get down") provides a counterpoint to bandmate Temperton’s get-down anthem.

The Groove Line (1978): Heatwave

Back for the second time around---Heatwave plays conductor taking the party people on a rhythmic ride. No tokens or fares are required---just "leave your worries behind.” It’s standing room only ("ain’t no seats just dancin’ feet") and that’s just fine 'cause the band’s in the pocket and Temperton’s signature synth riffs keep the Groove Line on track.

Posin’ Til Closin’(1980): Heatwave

Quincy’s calling but Hot Rod has enough gas in the tank for his mates. His lyrics profile the party people "posin' til closin’ and livin' the life" while Johnnie and Keith Wilder wax poetic on TV stars and fly cars ("he’s got a white-walled ride/the hottest ride in town"), gangsters and sultry fashion queens ("so hot you’ll want to toast her"). Plus there's a pinch of Temperton's Brit wit ("got a face like Farrah Fawcett/since they corrected her nose"). 

Stomp! (1980): The Brothers Johnson

Party-hunting, the Brothers Johnson turn up ("slap me five/it’s the place we’ve arrived/ it’s alive") at a hot spot where they stomp all night and party til the morning light. Quincy Jones’s slick production provides the canvas for Temperton's lyrics. As usual, his sharp night-life commentary ("the set is hot/ there’s people wall to wall") is dead on.   

Give Me The Night (1980): George Benson

George Benson’s utopian world "where there’s music everywhere/and lots of lovin’ everywhere" is anchored by Quincy's slick sounds while Temperton sets the tone: "until the day is dawnin’/you can throw out all your blues/and hit the city lights."  En route to R&B superstardom, Benson slides in tasty guitar licks a la Wes Montgomery reminding you of his jazz pedigree while  he "dances in the street/until the morning light."

Off The Wall (1979): Michael Jackson

Hovering at the cusp of solo superstardom, MJ narrates songwriter Hot Rod Temperton’s nocturnal tale of escapism ("we’re the party people/ night and day/living crazy/ that’s the only way") that checks life’s mundane ("gotta leave that 9 to 5 up on the shelf") at the door. 

Kool and the Gang

Hanging Out, (1979)

Steppin’ Out (1979)

Get Down On It (1981)

Ladies Night (1979)

 Celebration (1980)

Early/mid-70s-foot stompers (Jungle Boogie; Hollywood Swinging) made Kool and the Gang a staple among DJs and the party-whistle crowd. Retooled for ’79---they’re a little more smooth but still maintain the groove. It's ladies' night plus the feelings right: KTG step out, celebrate good times and the joys of hanging out. Funky George's drums, Kool's bass, and the Gang's horns section keep the beat as lead singer JT Taylor gets down on it with a range that moves from baritone growl to floating falsetto in a New Jersey minute.

Shake (1979): The Gap Band

For Charlie, Ronnie, and Robert Wilson it's a hard-knock life ("ain’t got no car/gotta ride the bus") cuz their money’s funny, the rent is due and the loan didn’t come through. What’s the remedy? Nothing a couple dollars and a night at the disco wouldn’t cure.

Honorable mention: Party Lights (1979) 

 Livin’ It Up (Friday Night) 1978: Bell and James

 Just Got Paid (1988): Johnny Kemp

Bell and James punch the clock ("day after day/slavin’ away") and pine for the weekend ("I count the hours/minutes too/so glad it’s Friday"). Primped ("check the mirror/looking fly") and paid, Kemp’s in party-hunting mode ("round up the posse/jump in my ride") and he's ready to get down. Released a decade apart these records are joined at the musical/conceptual hip (listen them to both back-to-back)---Welcome to Friday Night Fever. 

One Of Them Nights (“I Feel Like Getting Down’):1981 Billy Ocean

It’s one of those nights. Billy Ocean’s got money but nobody to call his own. Lonely and tired----he heads for the city lights and dances away the blues of life (“gotta put out this fire/there’s no time to lose”). In a couple of years the Caribbean King will become an MTV icon but for now--- check the funky calm before the pop crossover storm.

Party Lights (1981): Slave

Slave’s hooks are right ("no doubt about it/gonna scream and shout it") and the bass is tight. Party Light's bicycle horn is a nod to their breakout hit (‘77’s Slide). It’s the perfect bookend to a four-year run of hits. They’re at their zenith plus lead singer Steve Arrington’s out the door to sing for the Lord.  But for tonight---enjoy his parting gift just “party while til the dawn comes."

Got To  Give It Up (1977): Marvin Gaye 

Searchin' (1980): Change featuring Luther Vandross

When Marvin Gaye and Luther Vandross turn up at disco's door--Marvin's purged of his wallflower status ("no more standin' on the wall/now I got myself together/now I'm havin' a ball") and is ready for anything ("I know what you thinkin' baby/ you wanna turn me out/think I'm gonna let you do it babe"). Rebuffing a hedonistic come-on ("what was I doin there/far away from nowhere) Luther retreats into the cold of night lamenting his experience ("I just wanted to dance!") Reviving "What's Goin On's " party-hearty intro, Gaye's loose-and-easy track is a disco dream while ominous synths turn Vandross' night-on-the town into a nocturnal nightmare. 

He's The Greatest Dancer: (1979) Sister Sledge 

During an evening at a "disco out in Frisco" Sister Sledge becomes transfixed by a sharp-dressed man ("Halston...Gucci..Fiorucci") with the body of Adonis strutting his stuff on the dance floor. As the lyrical couplets come quick and fast ("champion of dance/he'll leave you in a trance" and "he looks like a still/that man is dressed to kill") Chic keeps the beat and Kathy Sledge can barely contain herself ("he's the creme de la creme/please take me home").

Blame It On The Boogie (1978): The Jacksons 

Lamenting a lady lost in music----the Jacksons have a change of heart thanks to a nasty boogie" and spell-bounding rhythms ("I've changed my life completely/I've seen the lightning leave me"). Fluid grooves, a harmonic hook ("sunshine...moonlight...good times....boogie!") and MJ 's syncopated serenade find the brothers charting a path to a new musical destiny.

Get Ready, Ready (1997): DJ Jubilee

20 Minute Work Out (1993): DJ Kool

The Music Ain't Loud Enuff (1988): DJ Kool

Let Me Clear My Throat (1996): DJ Kool 

Love Like This Remix (1998): Faith Evans featuring Fat Man Scoop

Like Rakim said----it ain't where you from, It's where you at. Whether it's Brooklyn, the Bayou or the Beltway---- the party-rock is the same. Fat Man Scoop, DJ Jubille and DJ Kool's steamroll through school-yard chants ("if you ready and you know it/clap ya hands!") regional roll-calls, obscure dance ("money on a stick!/ walk it like a dog!"), and telegraphic call-and-response set to Go-Go, New Jack Swing and snippets of legendary rap songs. Jubillee ("come on come on come on!") and Kool's ("hold up---wait a minute") intro hit you from the jump while Scoop flips Faith Evans' 1998 Love Like This (set to Chic's 1978 "Chic Cheer") and resurrects the ghost of DJ Hollywood. Together they're tribal and trance-like: one nation under a groove.

Maze featuring Frankie Beverly

Before I Let Go featuring Woody Wood (1989) 

Maze gives 1980's evergreen Before I Let Go a makeover. It's a nod to the song's popularity during rap's party-rocking days---while a  (studio) crowd parties down while early rapper Woody Wood rocks the house with call-and-response ("let's rock and ROLL!"; "get the bone out ya back girl!") and cribs '70s rap godfather DJ Hollywood's routines for good measure ("corporation give'em some word the wise/keep some pep in your step!") while the song's signature flourishes---Beverly's throaty vocals, the blaring intro and chugging groove----all provide the anthemic anchor.