FRANCE: SEVENTIES LEGEND GLORIA GAYNOR TEAMS UP WITH KOOL AND THE GANG TO HERALD THE RETURN OF DISCO, TO DISNEYLAND PARIS ANYWAY, AT A CONCERT LAST WEEK

Record ID: 278108

  • Title: FRANCE: SEVENTIES LEGEND GLORIA GAYNOR TEAMS UP WITH KOOL AND THE GANG TO HERALD THE RETURN OF DISCO, TO DISNEYLAND PARIS ANYWAY, AT A CONCERT LAST WEEK
  • Date: 6th August 1997
  • Summary: KOOL AND THE GANG SINGING "LADIES NIGHT"
  • Embargoed: 21st August 1997 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: PARIS, FRANCE
  • Country: France
  • Topics: Entertainment
  • Reuters ID: LVA646E4WXANASCC020JLCUKLZKW
  • Story Text: Get out your platform shoes, sequin halters and white, flared, three-piece suits. Disco is back.

    Two of the icons of the disco era -- Gloria Gaynor and Kool and the Gang -- thrilled 8,000 fans at Disneyland Paris last Wednesday (August 6) -- the first stop on their summer-long European Tour.

    Gaynor bolted to stardom in 1973, with the release of "Never Can Say Goodbye".

    She was dubbed "the Queen of Disco" and released an album a year from 1973 to 1981, all of them in the top of the U.S. charts.

    But it was her massive hit "I Will Survive" for which Gaynor will be immortalised in music history.

    The song sold more than 14 million copies and was translated into 20 languages. Today, it remains an anthem and is the most-requested song in Karaoke bars around the world.

    Gaynor's life wasn't all smooth-sailing. After a struggle with drug addiction, Gaynor released another album in 1984 called "I Am What I Am".

    The nostalgia for the Disco Age rekindled interest in Gaynor, leading her to the 1997 release "Oh What A Life".

    Now she has just finished a new album and is working on an autobiography, aptly called "I Will Survive". The book will be published in the United States in September.

    Another name synonymous with disco was Kool and the Gang.

    The band, which headlines this tour, was formed in 1964 as a Jazz group and continued using that influence in their horn-driven funk.

    Leader of the Band, bassist Robert "Kool" Bell and his "gang" grew up in Jersey City, New Jersey. Their long history is evident in the many party chants and group soundsthey produce.

    In the 1970's, Kool and the Gang produced a number of top-20 hits, including "Funky Stuff", "Jungle Boogie", "Hollywood Swinging" and "Love and Understanding". Another hit, "Open Sesame" appeared on the soundtrack for "Saturday Night Fever".

    In the late 1970's the band went through what it called its "spritual phase". Bell converted to Islam and changed his name to Amir Bayyan. In the early 1980's the band released their biggest selling album, fronted by new lead singer James "J.T." Taylor. The number one hits included "Celebration", "Ladies Night", plus other top-10 numbers like "Get Down On It" and "Let's Go Dancing".

    Taylor left the band in 1986 but was re-recruited a decade later. This tour is the first with JT back in the gang.

    In Kool's own words, "we've come full circle".
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