‘Music Madness’: How Beckie Bell brought the disco revolution to France
Love it or loathe it, disco was one of the most important and influential music genres of the 20th century. Though purists often viewed the style as being nothing more than empty commercialism, there were countless gifted disco artists who used their music to influence society in a positive way.
Just because the music was generally more upbeat than other styles does not mean that disco was any less revolutionary than movements like punk or metal. Perhaps that is why disco rose from the nightclubs of New York to infect the global musical landscape, finding a particularly welcoming audience in mainland Europe.
France has always fostered a notably vibrant and pioneering music scene. From the pop optimism of the yé-yé years to the defiant experimentalism of musique concrète composers in Paris, the nation has repeatedly shown an ability to foster an incredibly cultural and artistic landscape. However, the nation was at risk of being left behind during the disco years of the late 1970s. America seemed to have a monopoly on the disco market, and France struggled to find its own unique take on the genre. The answer to this quandary came in the form of Beckie Ball, an incredible vocalist hailing from the disco ground zero of New York City.
Relocating from the ‘Big Apple’ to ‘La Ville de L’amour’ during the late 1970s, Bell immediately established a unique take on disco, specifically for the European market. The earliest examples of this came with the release of singles like the appropriately named ‘In The Right Place’ and ‘Super Queen’ in 1979 and 1980, respectively. Blending the distinctive tones of New York disco with her own unique style and utterly captivating vocals.
These early singles soon gave way to the full-length album, In Need Of… which, without a hint of hyperbole, remains one of the greatest disco releases of the period. Awash with infectious grooves, excellent lyricism and an array of incredible vocal performances by Bell, the album represented everything that a great disco LP should. Furthermore, its initial run, pressed by Trema in both France and Greece, helped to establish this new wave of European disco music.
No revolution can be completed in solitude, of course, and In Need Of… was certainly helped along by its producer, Pierre Jaubert. Arguably France’s defining music producer, Jaubert, worked alongside such icons as John Lee Hooker and jazz star Mal Waldron. During the 1970s, the producer was also instrumental in discovering and fostering acts like the legendary funk outfit Lafayette Afro Rock Band. In other words, Jaubert knew how to craft a perfectly captivating and danceable disco record, which he did to great effect on Beckie Bell’s debut.
In the following years, countless acts across mainland Europe began to create disco music or incorporate disco into other existing scenes, leading to a diverse landscape of musical experimentation and exploration. Think back to the music of 1980s Europe, and you will hear disco in everything from the synth-pop that dominated the singles charts to the obscure post-punk that permeated underground music scenes in multiple cities across the continent.
Although Bell remained a fairly obscure figure in her hometown of New York, the vocalist became something of a cult figure in the funk and disco scene of France. Due to the inventive nature of the music, and the timeless appeal of Bell’s voice, her music remains as fresh and endearing today as it was when it was first recorded. The vocalist continued to release material until the late 1990s and her eponymous sophomore album, released in 1994, saw the singer embrace Eurodance.
While this change in sound perhaps has not aged as well as her earlier material, it does go to show a consistent push for originality and innovation within her work. After all, it was the trailblazing quality of In Need Of… which first earned her a place in the European disco scene.
