Customer Reviews

Casablanca Records Story

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Finally,the most important tracks from the 'disco' label Casablanca are available together. Most tracks are the 12" version. This gives the listener the opportunity to enjoy the famous orchestration in the tracks of Donna Summer. Although most tracks can be classified as 'pure 70's disco', you can also find nice (p)funk tracks from Parliament, Starpoint and Cameo. This box proves the importance of (euro)disco for the genesis of house music, just listen to the works of Giorgo Moroder, Donna Summer and Lipps. Inc.

The 4 cd's are packed in a nice box and accompanied by a booklet with photo's and informative text.

This CD is worth every penny. It includes the PROMO ONLY of Donna Summer's On The Radio, a short but more potent version of Pleasure Island and the gorgeous -- Music, Harmony and Rhythm by Brooklyn Dreams. The only problem I have with the CRS Box Set is that two of the most gorgeous and technically advanced songs where cut to less then half. The two songs are Romeo and Juliet and I've Found Love. These two songs alone, in full length versions, would be worth the price. Romeo and Juliet was the first record to use 48 tracks. Alec R. did this by attaching two 24 track modules. I've Found Love has the most over-the-top 7 minute brake of any disco song. Of course they are out of print.

A Four Disc(o) Casablanca Collection. Sure, you get the standard, "Funkytown" by Lipps, "Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof off the Sucker)" by Parliament and pretty much EVERY hit that Donna Summer and The Village People recorded.

You also get some hard to find/rarity selections like:

Ain't Nothin' Gonna Keep Me from You - Teri DeSario
Let's Go All the Way (Down) - Brenda & the Tabulations
Like an Eagle - Dennis Parker
You Ought to Be Dancing - People's Choice
Medicine Song - Stephanie Mills
When She Was My Girl - The Four Tops
Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band - Meco
Do That to Me One More Time - Captain & Tennille
Yes, I'm Ready - Teri DeSario

Depending on your age, this great box set will take you back to doing "The Hustle" on the lighted dancefloor with the disco ball spinning 'round and 'round. It might transport you back to your childhood roller rink while these disco greats played ALL NIGHT, along with the very popular "Hokey Pokey". Regardless of your age or sex, it will remind you of your TOTAL CRUSH on hip, cool and suave John Travolta, a la Saturday Night Fever! It might make you remember your first torn sweatshirt and first pair of legwarmers with the songs from "Flashdance". "Maniac" with Michael Sembello and "Flashdance, What A Feeling", with Irene Cara.

Spanning several decades, this four disc set ends with the VERY HIGHLY appropriate song, "Last Dance" with disco diva, Donna Summer.

Happy Listening!

CASABLANCA RECORDS was the brainchild of Neil Bogart, a man who parlayed his good taste and dark good looks into a position of personal fame and charisma seldom enjoyed by any record mogul, who are generally troll like and genuinely ugly. But Bogart had something extra. Some thought he was Humphrey Bogart's son. Like the elder Bogart, he radiated sheer magnetism everywhere he went, and when you went into his inner sanctum it was like paying a visit to Kubla Khan. There's a single disc with Casablanca's greatest hits on it-mostly Donna Summer records like HOT STUFF and BAD GIRLS, but this boxed set actually brings you a variety of rarities some of them for the first time on CD.

Casablanca was originally thought of as a sort of bubblegum disco, due to Bogart's previous involvement with Cameo Parkway Records and especially with Buddah, which had made hits out of a wide range of unlikely material, mostly by white artists but with the occasional black masterpiece like "Oo-o-h Child." When dance music threatened to become big in the early 1970s, Bogart was right in there, directing the attention of his fan base to the likes of Donna Summer. When disco hit, everyone wanted a piece of the Casablanca pie and he found himself stretched in many directions, some of them pretty dire! You can get a good sampling of the glory years in this boxed set, which boasts everything from LOVE TO LOVE YOU BABY and FUNKY TOWN to more offbeat selections. Bogart signed everyone from Cher to George Clinton and matched them with house producers, and signed also a longterm contract with the enigmatic king of Eurodisco, Giorgio Moroder, the man whose dark, noir visions of dance music sometimes clashed with Bogart's more lighthearted, "Thank God It's Friday" philosophy. That was OK, it was like having Lennon and McCartney in the same band, there was dynamism going on.

The "Star Wars" theme by MECO was another monster hit, and Casablanca briefly became a house where instrumentals were given a new chance to dominate the charts. However it is for the vocals, often insufferably bad and sweetened by production, that Casablanca's great hits are known. Dennis Parker, for example, sang adequately, but fans bought up LIKE AN EAGLE primarily because he was so hot in his porn incarnation: as Wade Nichols he was one of porn's leading men of the 1970s, and Casablanca was doing their part during the first wave of porn-star chic. You can't go wrong with this package.

I am very happy to own this Box-Set with rare Casablanca Disco Classics as extended versions.
A second Box-Set to continue the Casablanca Disco-History would be great, because I am still missing other songs and artists, like KISS with "I WAS MADE FOR LOVING YOU" Extended Version... C. D. BAND... SHEILA & B. DEVOTION... BROADWAY...

Why there are no possible to release the original albums by ALEC R. COSTANDINOS or other Casablanca Disco acts from the 70's on CDs.

This Box-Set is a great idea, but there are lot of missings from the Casablanca Labels.

This set any of you DJ's will find is Promo Copies that are pressed on Cd - Great recording & editing ..as far as the Buck ? Donna Summer screams all over the collection , Village People , Liquid Gold - a rare track .. enjoy - sit back - and listen to " Love to Love you baby " its 16 min .. Enough said !!

Although most of the music can be found in different greatest
hits collection of some of the artists featured; is wonderful to have them all in one box. I'm still hoping and waiting for a part
two. Casablanca had one of the biggest acts and singers signed under their different affiliated labels. Missing in this collec-
tion are many hits or well known songs. Like Cher's "Hell on Whe-
els", Teri De Sario's "Moonlight Madness", Giorgio Moroder's "Ba-
by Blue" and "I wanna rock you", Santa Esmeralda's "Don't let me
be Misunderstood", "You are my Everything" and "Another Cha-Cha".
Captain and Tennille's "Happy Together", Roberta Kelly's "Zodi-
acs", Pattie Brooks "Girl don't make me wait and "Party Girl",
Duncan Sisters "Boys will be boys", Alma Faye's "Don't fall in Love", Paul Jabara's "Honeymoon in Puerto Rico", Ritchie Family's
"Give me a break", "Bad reputation" and "It's a man's world", Stephanie Mills "Pilot error" and "Last night", Love and Kisses
"You'll never know how much I love you" and "You must be love".
Plus many others hits and misses by Munich Machine, Sylvers, Starpoint, Ultimate, Deliverance etc. I hope Polydor people is
taking notes and consider another box of hits. The story continues and is going to be told over and over. This set highly recommended.

A great collection of commercial disco hits, and club rarities. Donna Summer / Village People / Irene Cara need no introduction. But the treats here are the tracks that stayed in the clubs, and have been hard to find since. Teri De Sario's "Aint Nothing Gonna Keep Me" , Dennis Parker "Like An Eagle", Skatt Brothers "Walk The Night" are real treasures, here in their full length glory. We can only hope for a "part two" including the Duncan Sisters "Boys Will Be Boys" / Dennis Parker "New York At Night" / Stephanie Mills "You Can get Over". Bring it on !!

This beautifully packaged set tells the story of a little record company that could. Casablanca embraced the disco craze early and ended up representing some of the genre's brightest stars.

At only 10 to 13 tracks per disc, you might think you're not getting your money's worth here, but the majority of disco classics are presented in rare extended versions otherwise unavailable. The fourth disc includes some pop/adult contemporary tracks culminating in the fantastic dance mix of 'Flashdance..What A Feeling' which includes an extra line of lyrics and frankly makes the original mix sound like a demo.

This is an awesome collection.

This compilation of disco hit songs by the Casablanca label is jam packed with the hits that made disco the star of the late 70's and early 80's. LOVE TO LOVE YOU, BABY begins the entire journey, and goes thru FUNKYTOWN (Lipps,Inc.), TAKE ME HOME (Cher), MACARTHUR PARK SUITE (Donna Summer), SAN FRANCISCO/HOLLYWOOD (Village People), PLEASURE ISLAND (Paul Jabara), LIKE AN EAGLE (Dennis Parker), FLASHLIGHT (Parliament), HOT STUFF/BAD GIRLS (Donna Summer), CHASE (Giorgio Moroder), WALK THE NIGHT (Skatt Bros.), YOU OUGHT TO BE DANCING (Peoples Choice), DANCE, FREAK, AND BOOGIE (Nitelife Unlimited), and many, many more. . .including FLASHDANCE, STAR WARS/CANTINA by Meco, ON THE RADIO, AFTER DARK, I LOVE AMERICA, I FOUND LOVE, and other selections by The Village People.
True, some cuts are definitely not full length, but most are and available all on one grand collection set! A must. . .