Customer Reviews

No Parking on the Dance Floor

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This Album bumps from start to finish.No Parking on the dance floor is still the Jam.SLow Jam is still tight it was Co-written by Babyface.Night-Rider was tight sounding like Billie Jean.Wet My WHistle was a Cool Laid-Back cut.The Synths work really strong here.these cuts all Sizzle.a Great 80's album that still sound strong to this day.

I've had this album for about a year now, and I just had to add my five-star rating to the chorus of approval. I was a wee tiny child when this album was originally released, and I might have never discovered it if it wasn't for a really cool dance/disco radio station (that I can barely pick up!) playing "No Parking on the Dance Floor" (the single) one day when I was driving my car. I swear, my pupils must have dilated and my jaw dropped! I couldn't believe this totally awsome song -- I just HAD to own it. Thanks to the wonder of the internet, I found out that it was by Midnight Star, and based on the positive reviews for the band I decided to order the album, instead of trying to find just the single on an old-school compilation by various artists.

I am SOOO happy that I ordered this!! I listen to it all the time, and nothing makes people get up and shake their [thing] like the more up-tempo songs from this album blasting on your system! As soon as I heard "Electricity," I knew that this album ROCKED. The style is very electro, and many of the tracks feature the "computerized" vocals that only seemed to thrive in the early to mid 80s (which is a crying shame, if you ask me!) If you're one of those people who hates "overly synthesized" funk or R&B, needless to say this album isn't for you. (In addition to the nine members of Midnight Star, a tenth person, Wes Boatman, is credited in the liner notes exclusively for "synthesizer programming.") But trust me, this isn't the ... Debbie Gibson/New Kids On The Block "over produced" synth that was the bane of the late 80s (which I remember all too well.) This album is electro-funk to the core, full of fat beats and innovative funkiness. Of course, since it's so old-school, it's also a happy, positive album, with no swear words or the really juvenile "thug" [stuff] that pollutes the urban music of today. I feel really happy every time I hear this, and the songs are all about 5+ minutes long, real club music, so you can party on and on!

While "Freak-a-zoid" is probably its best known track, "No Parking On The Dance Floor" is an album that smacks of class from start to finish. Undoubtedly Midnight Star was a group with a lot of talent. Containing what I believe are three of the most underrated RnB singers of their time (Watson, Gentry, and Lipscomb), Midnight Star was able to produce an album with all key ingredients in abundance; grinding-groovin'-sweetness. For example, the dance numbers, "Freak-a-zoid" "Electricity" and the title track, are simple in construction, yet wickedly hypnotic with a decidedly "electro" flavour and thudding Zapp-like basslines. The mid-tempo songs are upbeat and thoroughly melodic, "Wet My Whistle" is a great example of laid back Eighties groove.
However, the 'piece de resistance' on this album has got to be "Slow Jam," possibly my favourite duet ever. The chemistry between Lipscomb and Watson is palpable and features the two fantastic vocalists at the top of their game; the melody is unmistakeable, unforgettable, and elevates an already great album into the lofty realms where "classics" dwell.
Only very rarely do groups produce an album where all the ingredients synergise to create something great. No Parking On The Dance Floor was "it" for Midnight Star; awesome vocals, great songs, banging grooves.

This is the track listing on the cd I received:

1. Freak-A-Zoid 8:01
2. Electricity 6:54
3. Night Rider 4:36
4. Feels So Good 4:21
5. Wet My Whistle 5:06
6. No Parking (On the Dance Floor) (12" version) 7:59
7. Slow Jam 4:14
8. Playmates 4:10
9. Freak-A-Zoid (Extended Mix) 8:25
10. Freak-A-Zoid (Dub Mix) 9:15
11. Freak-A-Zoid (Bonus Beats) 2:51
12. Freak-A-Zoid (Radio Edit) 3:57
13. No Parking (On the Dance Floor) (Radio Version) 4:24

Hearing this after 25 years, I realized I bought this strictly for nostalgic reasons. It is still fun to listen to, but parts of it haven't aged well, such as the conversation in Freak-A-Zoid (Z-O-I-D-S. By Jove, I think I've got it!). I do not care for the remixes, but the original versions of the hits I bought this for are all here.

Michael Jackson's "Thriller" and Prince's "Purple Rain" enjoyed massive crossover success, but this may have been the best soul music album of the decade. The fusion of synthesizers, grooving melodies and catchy hooks made virtually every cut on "No Parking" a radio success.

The lead single "Freak-A-Zoid" is basically a Roger Troutman-inspired jam that still throws down. The pulsating bassline in "Night Rider" gives the song its urgency, which contrasts the pop overtures in "Wet My Whistle." The romantic ballad "Slow Jam" -- the first published song by Kenny "Babyface" Edmonds -- is still a Quiet Storm staple, and the energetic "Electricity" and the catchy title track still get lots of airplay at old-school parties.

While Midnight Star obviously picked up on the current styles in music of the time, they more than added enough of their own style so as not to come off as uninspired or ripoffs. And moreover, nearly every song was good enough to have become a single -- which in fact, may have hurt the released singles, because every song was on soul radio stations constantly from summer 1983 to spring 1984. A must-have if you like 1980s soul music.

I find that this album is of the hook. when I bought their anniversary edition nightrider and electricity were missing plus engine number 9 so thats why i bought the slamming album. they still play slow jam on the radio but you should listen to slow jam live. the way he hits the high notes is amazing. so but this one and get all their other stuff too.

Is the best album the Midnighstar, I will like to receive a letter of sing. Can you send me? Thank's. Greattings. Happy Christmas and a new year 2000.

GREAT CD!!!! It really takes you back to the REAL GOOD OLD DAYS!!!!! This is MUSIC!!!!

One of the most innovative Funk/R&B albums of the '80s, Midnight Star soars high with this multi-platinum disc. The hits just keep coming. From the energetic "Electricity" to the Babyface penned classic ballad "Slow Jam," it's no wonder why this album still raids dancefloors. This is one definite classic that puts the icing on the cake.

This is definitely an album that catches the care free footloose feel of the eighties. And although it didn't catapult Midnight Starr to superstardom, still they made a resounding splash on the dance floor that still echoes to this day.