Breakdancers from the future! No wait, it’s the early 80’s…
Like Casey Kasum in that big studio in the sky, The Nest keeps counting ’em down. These are the songs that ring the joy bells of my heart… the Top 30 Songs We Just Feel Like Playing countdown! We’re into the Top 3 now, and it’s time for me to show my undying appreciation for a song that helped launch one of the most reviled movements in popular music history…
#3. “You Should Be Dancing” – The Bee Gees
People are very passionate about their music, and that passion swings both ways. For all of the fans of each type of music, you’ll also find a lot of people who can’t stand rap, or country, or easy listening, or even the iconic rock and roll. But if there’s one genre that has come to represent the universal whipping boy of American Top 40 radio, it’s disco. It was the predominant music of the late 70’s, and its uptempo beats and eye searing fashion sense took over the pop culture of that era…
You don’t want to know how many unicorns had to be slaughtered to make these…
The backlash was quick, forceful, and permanent. While a few disco songs have survived to still be played on radio today, even forty years after disco was demolished by an embarrassed public, you’re more likely to see someone sporting a Hitler mustache than wearing a leisure suit. Among the fallout from the great disco smackdown was the reputation of the group that became the poster boys of the movement… a British born, Australian raised trio of brothers known as The Bee Gees.
This was apparently sexy 45 years ago.
Already stars on adult contemporary radio, the brothers Gibb were among the very first non-disco musicians to dabble in the up and coming new style. In 1976, two years before they would cement their disco legacy and infamy in the movie Saturday Night Fever, the Bee Gees recorded their first song, “You Should Be Dancing.” And while it’s not their best known disco classic… as far as I’m concerned, it’s far and away their best.
Featuring Barry Gibb’s iconic falsetto vocal, an awesome guitar solo, and an amazing bongo drum beat all backed up with the 1970’s signature horn section… this is a musical masterpiece and one of the greatest dance songs ever. And if you don’t agree with that…. well, that’s too bad! Long live disco, and long live this song!!!
Thank goodness I don’t have a record collection that can be destroyed by angry mobs…
Come back next Monday for number two! No, not THAT kind of number two… I mean, another kickass song!
Evil Squirrel's Nest 
love it!!! and I loved to watch my older cow-sins how they failed while dancing around the kitchen table, yeah!
Better than failing while dancing ON the kitchen table…
I was a big Bee Gees fan until they turned to disco. I collected all their records including some (not stellar) solo efforts. When they went to disco, they lost me. I hated Barry’s falsetto. In my opinion, his normal voice was so much better and pleasing to the ear. Sadly, when they returned to normal singing, I’d moved on and never returned. My hubby did. He was a huge fan of the song One from their later years. The Gibb family – there’s a family with a lot of grief. It’s hard to believe out of four brothers who sang, only one remains.
I was surprised later on in life to learn how long they’d been around before the disco days, because growing up, all I knew the Bee Gees for was their disco songs. I don’t really like a lot of their non-disco material. Just hearing the opening notes of “Too Much Heaven” still gives me an involuntary cringe because at one time that song got played on the PA at work every single Saturday night…
I didn’t like the cheesy/schmaltzy stuff either. I was more into their 1970’s stuff. I was 14 when Life in a Tin Can came out. I loved Saw a New Morning.
That is a totally iconic disco song and I can remember (way back when) being in clubs and when that song was played EVERYONE got up to dance. This is my kind of ear worm for a rainy Monday morning…………..thanks!
Pam
I told you you’d need your dancing shoes! And dancing in the rain…. even better! Rainy would like to join you…
Shimmery satin with ‘tan in a can’ always get me out on the dance floor. What a great way to smile and sweat. 🕺🏻
That tan in a can and shimmery satin can get a little fugly when you add sweat, though….
I’ve never been a fan of disco but this song is pretty okay! The video reminds me of 70s TV. I can’t believe I used to sit and watch American Bandstand.
I remember watching Bandstand, Dance Fever (the show I referenced in the title) and Solid Gold. There were a lot of dance shows with current music on TV back in the early 80’s!
Ah, disco, the golden age of music. The Bee Gees are certainly the “sound of disco” to me.
At least a few of us can appreciate them for that…
This song inspired me to break out my polyester maxi dress and go boogeying. Since there is an unspoken law for people with an acute sense of manners that we must ALL stay at least 6 feet from one another, my jerky movements and failed high kicks proved no problem. As to those outfits the (former) Brother Gibbs had on? The incredible tightness of the crotch area in the pants portion of Barry and Maurice’s gear was the most appealing. Trust me. I was 16 when this song aired (although I might have been 18 – Utah being so far behind everything and all) and even though I was a late bloomer, I NOTICED the crotch. Yeah… um. Where was I? Oh yeah. Robyn I notice wore a jumpsuit. He was classy. I miss Maurice and Robyn and am dismayed (greatly) to realize that was FORTY FIVE years ago! Excuse me now while I go to wipe some nostalgia from my eye…
The incredible tightness in the crotch area could not have been good for the Gibb boys’ health. Girls can get away with that…. but for us guys, those many hours of cramped jewels have to take their toll!
There should have been a trigger warning.
You couldn’t move a muscle without hearing this, uh, stuff, back then. I miss it never.
I am interested in what the top two are. Now all I have to do is turn on some music to get the chorus of THIS song out of my head!
Who knows, you might pick two last songs that aren’t from SNF and might even not be too bad. Hope springs eternal.
As hard as it may be to believe, this is the only true disco song to appear in the countdown! I don’t know what you’ll think of the Top 2, but I can assure you, neither of them are disco…
Can’t wait!
I laughed at the unicorn uniform photo, not because of the hideousness but the body language and the look on that girl’s face! Someone was about to get a hurtin’
She’s just jealous that her pants aren’t as pretty as his…
Ok. Glad it wasn’t the ass grab!
Saturday Night Fever is still a great soundtrack though:-)