Donna Summer’s recent death from cancer at 63 brought to an end a tumultuous life of the Queen of Disco. I always enjoyed Donna Summer’s music. When Summer linked up with producer Giorgio Moroder, her career took off like a rocket. Her later years were plagued with health problems. I remember hearing Donna Summer’s first hit, “Love to Love You Baby,” and thinking “Wow!” Then came a string of hits from “Bad Girls” to “She Works Hard For the Money.” Once the disco craze died, much of Donna Summer’s popularity died with it although at its height, Donna Summer was “hot stuff” indeed. From time to time over the years, I’d play her music and it would make me happy.
TRACK LIST:
DISC ONE:
1. Love To Love You Baby 4:57
2. Could It Be Magic 3:55
3. Try Me, I Know We Can Make It 4:46
4. Spring Affair 4:01
5. Love’s Unkind 4:26
6. I Feel Love 5:52
7. I Love You 4:41
8. Last Dance 4:58
9. MacArthur Park 6:28
10. Heaven Knows 3:38
11. Hot Stuff 6:47
12. Bad Girls 4:56
13. Dim All The Lights 4:35
14. Sunset People 6:27
15. No More Tears (Enough Is Enough) 4:48
16. On The Radio 4:05
DISC TWO:
1. The Wanderer 3:46
2. Love Is In Control (Finger On The Trigger) 4:19
3. State Of Independence 5:49
4. She Works Hard For The Money 5:19
5. Unconditional Love 4:42
6. There Goes My Baby 4:04
7. Supernatural Love 3:34
8. Dinner With Gershwin 4:38
9. All Systems Go 4:12
10. This Time I Know It’s For Real 3:37
11. I Don’t Wanna Get Hurt 3:26
12. Love’s About To Change My Heart 3:45
13. When Love Cries 4:30
14. Carry On 3:41
15. Melody Of Love (Wanna Be Loved) 4:14
16. I Will Go With You (Con Te Partiro) 4:08
17. Dream-A-Lot’s Theme (I Will Live For Love) 4:51
18. You’re So Beautiful 4:06
Interesting trivia of the day:
In 1978, while working on the hit track, “Heaven Knows” which featured Brooklyn Dreams member Joe “Bean” Esposito on vocals, Summer met fellow member Bruce Sudano. Within a few months, Summer and Sudano became a couple. They married on July 16, 1980. In 1981, Summer gave birth to another daughter (her first child with Sudano), Brooklyn Sudano, named after Sudano’s group. In 1982, Summer and Sudano had their second child, Amanda Sudano. (Brooklyn would grow up to star in the hit ABC production My Wife and Kids.)
Once again, you impart cool information, Jeff!
Before he was in Brookltyn Dreams, by the way, Sudano was a member of Alive N Kickin’ – a group that had a top 10, million selling hit “Tighter, Tighter” produced by Tommy James (which you might easily mistake for a TOmmy James & the Shondells song).
/end daily trivia
I always thought that was Tommy James singing on “Tighter & Tighter.”
My favorite Donna Summer songs are “Try Me” (especially the extended remix; oh, we Disco Dollies could really move on the dance floor then), “Could This Be the Magic?” (Donna does Barry Manilow–what could be more perfect?), and “Heaven Knows.” My husband is in a Church praise band and they have sung “Unconditional Love” many times. I don’t know if it was originally a religious-themed song, but the words easily adapt it to such.
Donna Summer grew up singing in the Church, Deb. After the Disco era, she went back to singing gospel music. In interviews I’ve heard, Donna Summer comes off as a spiritual person so it doesn’t surprise me that many of her songs would have that religious dimension.
Well, yeah, Deb…at least, it’s definitely a song about agape, no?
Todd, oh yes, I agree. The praise band does a lot of “spiritual” as opposed to overtly religious songs (although they do those too), such as Springsteen’s “Human Touch.” They’ve even done a U2-charist (an entire service with U2 songs).
I always say that this is the story of my life: In the 1970s, I was a Disco Dolly. In the 1980s, I was a Reagan-era go-go girl; and then one day I woke up and it was 1999 and I’d been married for over 10 years, had three kids, and was teaching Sunday School! And I said to myself, “Gee, when did this happen?”
I’ll bet there is a one-CD greatest hits that is cheaper. I like a few of her songs, but after disco, the only disco era singer / group I continued to listed to was the Bee Gees, whom I had liked and bought from their first album on.
You know I prefer the comprehensive collections, Rick. You’re right, there are single CD GREATEST HITS collections for Donna Summer’s work. I’m a big fan of the Bee Gees, too. I almost chose some of Robin Gibb’s work to honor him after his recent death at 62.
I did listen to the Bee Gees’ Greatest Hits after Robin Gibb’s death too.
I even like the pre-Disco Bee Gee music, Jeff.