Montreal's Days Of Disco

"Montreal is the second most important disco market on the continent, outside New York."

It was 1979 when the above claim was made -- by no less than Billboard magazine. And while the disco-sucks legacy may poo poo, it's true that Montreal was a disco destination for the international jetset in the late 1970s.

This Saturday on Inside The Music Saturday Edition (12:00 p.m., 1:00 AT, 1:30 NT) you can hear a documentary called Funkytown: The Montreal Disco Era that explores that time period. A colleague of mine who heard the documentary over the holidays told me that it just bowled him over, it was so good.

Here's the backstory:

In 1977, radio producer Colin MacKenzie (who has worked with The Signal) moved to the suburbs of Montreal and watched disco explode from a distance. Sometimes he joined in while circling a roller-rink, despite the fact that Led Zeppelin was scribbled across the back of his jean jacket. He had to admit it, he thought Earth Wind and Fire had some great moves -- and some great threads. (Editorial Aside: How come no one has resurrected that phrase? Great threads indeed.)

Recently MacKenzie moved back to Montreal and noticed that a lot of disco-era players were still alive and living in the city, either making music or involved in the entertainment business. He decided he needed to find out why Montreal had been such a major player in the world of Disco.

Early 1970’s Montreal was chaotic: bombs went off, people were kidnapped and killed, the War Measures Act was put into effect and the English-French conflict had escalated to what many felt was the precipice of a full on revolution. By 1976 things had completely turned around. The Olympics came to town; Montreal was officially a world-recognized cosmopolitan city.

And by 1979 Hollywood stars, New York glitterati, politicians, royalty and the jet set were all beating a path to Montreal’s legendary disco clubs to dance the night away. What happened? Suddenly Montreal had platinum status admission to the VIP lounge of coolest of the cool disco cities right alongside Paris, New York, Berlin and LA. For a brief moment in time, the remnants of a cultural revolution, new wealth, and corruption were joined by sex and drugs and the pounding beats of disco for never ending nights let loose on Montreal’s dance floors.

So tune into Inside The Music Saturday Edition (12:00 p.m., 1:00 AT, 1:30 NT) for "a thumping radio documentary as seen and heard all through the eyes and ears of those who experienced the scene as it blew up around them," hosted by Patti Schmidt.