we like to throw our bodies around

It’s Friday night, a perfect time to cut loose and go crazy. The question is whether to rock out or boogie down. Both are worthy courses of action, which makes for a really tough call.

Then again, who said it has to be an either/or proposition? Not these folks.

Electric Light Orchestra – Shine a Little Love (from Discovery, 1979) – It seems natural that a rock outfit renowned for its string section would dabble in disco, although said section was dropped from the band at the time of Discovery’s release. Dig the use of sound effects lifted from the Galaxian video game, always a plus in my book.

The song feels like it could have been commissioned by NBC to promote its 1979 fall lineup, and I can’t listen to the instrumental parts without envisioning Eric Estrada and Larry Wilcox using their motorcycles to pull a chain of Peacock Dancers on rollerskates across a soundstage while Conrad Bain gives a big “thumbs up” to the camera.

As a side note, ELO frontman Jeff Lynne reminds me of one of my dad’s old fishing buddies. The line “Hey kid, fetch me a beer from the cooler in my van, ok?” would have made the basis of a superb sci-fi concept album.

Uriah Heep - Whad' Ya Say (from Fallen Angel, 1978) – They once roamed the land like magnificent denim- and fringe-bedecked dinosaurs, the hard rock bands of the Polyester Era, and when the opportunity arose to trade credibility for a chance at megaplatinium “crossover” success, they came a’running, visions of tax exile status dancing through their heads.

Their time has passed. Their few remaining acolytes hunker down in basement apartments, putting the finishing touches on their SCA apparel and next weekend’s Dungeons and Dragons scenario while lambasting the sorry state of modern (i.e. post-1980) music.

Alice Cooper – You Gotta Dance (from Goes to Hell, 1976) – Check out this skeleton I found in a certain shock rocker’s closet. It’s wearing a lovely peach leisure suit and a gold chain, and is that Jovan Sex Appeal I smell?

Alice does disco... only a year after the release of Welcome to My Nightmare and a good year before the runaway success of Saturday Night Fever convinced other rock acts to hop on the bandwagon. The man’s a true pioneer.