The genre Linda Ronstadt considered too shallow: “It should be wiped out”
Few musical genres have had quite as hard a time as disco down the years.
Despite its glamorous and glossy persona, in the 1970s, it was almost treated like the ugly duckling of music. While rock, punk and soul all had one hand on the crown of music supremacy in that decade, they were using the other to swat away any interest from this burgeoning new genre.
To their more complex ideals, disco felt too chirpy, too optimistic and pristine, and thus had no place in the gritty, authentic worlds of 1970s music. Underground clubs where people could dance were continuously mocked, and instead, the dingy bars that fostered the vital live scene of ‘70s music were continued to be celebrated.
This air of musical superiority was somewhat harmless for most of the decade. But in 1979, with patience running thin and the future of rock music seemingly in peril, it took a dark twist. At the Chicago White Sox stadium, on July 12th, radio DJ Steve Dahl hosted what was dubbed the ‘Disco Demolition Night‘. Thousands of blood thirsty rockers would descend upon the stadium and dump disco records into a blazing skip, in the hopes that this booming new subculture would cease to exist.
Thankfully, for culture, disco didn’t crumble under the brutal intimidation of rock fans, proving that artistic communities thrive best under oppression. The flames that burned on that fateful night only fuelled the fire of motivation for disco fans, and the genre continued to develop, resulting in a modern pop landscape that is largely influenced by its music.
But why was it so detested? Despite the obvious reality of homophobia and sexism, it was clearly laced with elitism. The sort of elitism that still exists now in the arts, where certain traditions and tropes are held in higher esteem, and so anything that remotely challenges them is quickly dismissed.
Fans of traditional rock were looking to their idols for influence, and so when they publicly stated their distaste for disco, it fanned the flames of hatred that it had unjustly faced. While the Ramones largely led the hateful charge in disco’s spiritual home, New York, other artists like Linda Ronstadt expressed their distaste, albeit in a more diplomatic manner.
“What I mainly believe is that the music should be very democratic,” she explained. “Disco is a good example. I don’t really care for it myself, and I hate to dance to it. I’d rather dance to Latin music or rock ‘n’ roll. Disco brings lots of people together, but in a rather shallow way. I don’t feel it should be wiped out, though, because there are a lot of people who like it and need to go out and dance to it.”
Shallow was certainly the keyword that critics attached to the genre, and I can understand where they may have been coming from. It’s the same word many of us would use today towards pop or certain electronic genres. But ultimately, all that word seeks to do is remove the crucial sense of nuance that exists at the heart of understanding the genre and, more importantly, its fans.
