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Bobby Orlando | |
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| Also known as | Bobby O |
| Born | January 10, 1958 |
| Origin | New York City |
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Robert Philip Orlando also known as Bobby Orlando or just Bobby O, is an American record producer, [2] indie record label owner, [2] songwriter, and musician. He is regarded as an innovator in the hi-NRG genre for developing his signature sound, using a "powerful beat" and "new wave-style" vocals with the help of synthesizers, piano, guitars, cowbells and a "heavy [synthesizer] bass". [2]
The son of a suburban New York schoolteacher, Orlando declined a classical music scholarship to pursue his then current musical interest, glam rock. [1] [4] In the late 1970s, his professional interests turned to disco and shortly thereafter, he established his own record label, "O" Records.
Bobby Orlando has been active as music producer, songwriter, musician, and record label impresario.
Orlando is credited [5] as one of the founding fathers of Hi-NRG dance music. His productions are easily identifiable by their dense synthesizers, rolling bass lines, and resounding percussion. [2] He has played multiple instruments on his tracks including electronic keyboards, guitars, bass, synthesizers, drums, piano, assorted percussion, trumpet and saxophone. The ringing cowbell percussion lines and robotic sequencers heard in "She Has a Way", "The Best Part of Breakin' Up" and "Native Love (Step by Step)" have been described as defining his trademark sound. [2]
As a solo artist, Bobby O scored hits with tracks "She Has a Way", "How to Pick Up Girls", "Suspicious Minds", and "I'm So Hot for You". He created his project concept The Flirts, to further front his performances as an artist, musician and songwriter. With an ever revolving roster of female session singers and models, Orlando churned out the hits "Passion", "Danger", and "Helpless". His association with underground film star Divine resulted in classic club anthems "Native Love (Step by Step)" (featuring Orlando's voice in the chorus), "Love Reaction", and "Shoot Your Shot". Orlando also produced The Fast, later to be known as Man 2 Man.
When Neil Tennant, then an assistant editor at Smash Hits , and later a member of Pet Shop Boys, was sent to interview the Police in 1983 in New York, he sought out Orlando.[ citation needed ] Both Tennant and fellow Pet Shop Boy Chris Lowe admired Orlando's sound and productions – "Passion" by the Flirts, being a particular favorite.[ citation needed ] Orlando decided to produce a Pet Shop Boys album and released their first two earliest 12-inch singles including the original 1984 version of "West End Girls" and "One More Chance". Orlando and the Pet Shop Boys recorded twelve tracks together, most of which never saw release, including the original versions of "It's a Sin", "Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)", and "I Get Excited".
Orlando's songs frequently deal with philosophical themes such as "Try It (I'm in Love with a Married Man)", which was given a contemporary twist when it was re-recorded by Pet Shop Boys in 2003 (see Disco 3 ). Many of Orlando's lyrics describe unrequited love, private despair, personal angst and a truth-seeking perspective. Orlando frequently etched philosophical maxims into vinyl records featuring his songs; these adages being literally cut into the grooves near the "lead out" and "lock grooves" of the vinyl.[ citation needed ]
His music has appeared in numerous motion pictures, including A Nightmare on Elm Street 2: Freddy's Revenge , Wigstock: The Movie , Kiss Kiss Bang Bang , Valley Girl , Dark Mirror, Flying, High Risk, Rappin, Underground,'This Is The Night and Eric.
French electroclash duo Miss Kittin & the Hacker mention Orlando in their song "Walking in the Sunshine" from their 2001 release, First Album ("I love men like Bobby Orlando / The Flirts composer a long time ago / It makes me laugh a lot, you know / But I don't want to show").[ citation needed ]
Orlando has influenced various Eurodisco, tropical house, techno, Italo disco, electronic dance music ("EDM") and hi-NRG releases. [6] [7] He has been cited by music historians[ who? ] for his contribution to dance music. [8] [9]
Bobby Orlando productions:
| Year | Title | Artist(s) | Notes |
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| 1981 | "Desire" | Roni Griffith | |
| 1981 | "Street Music" | The Bang Gang | |
| 1982 | "Passion" | The Flirts | Covered by multiple artists, including Steve Murano |
| 1982 | "Bring on the Men" | Wow | |
| 1982 | "Native Love (Step by Step)" | Divine | |
| 1982 | "Who's Your Boyfriend?" | Eric | |
| 1982 | "Calling All Boys" | The Flirts | |
| 1982 | "(The Best Part of) Breakin' Up" | Roni Griffith | |
| 1982 | "Shoot Your Shot" | Divine | |
| 1983 | "Danger" | The Flirts | |
| 1983 | "Shake It Up" | Divine | |
| 1983 | "Take a Chance on Me" | Waterfront Home | |
| 1983 | "Love Reaction" | Divine | |
| 1984 | "Einstein" | The Beat Box Boys | |
| 1984 | "Helpless (You Took My Love)" | The Flirts | |
| 1984 | "West End Girls" | Pet Shop Boys | |
| 1985 | "You & Me" | The Flirts | |
Oh Romeo, was a concept group created by Bobby Orlando. Each release featured different session singers.
| Year | Song title | Label |
|---|---|---|
| 1983 | "Try It (I'm in Love with a Married Man)" / "Lookin' Out" | Bobcat Records |
| 1983 | "These Memories" | Bobcat Records |
| 1984 | "Once Is Not Enough" / "Light of Love" | Oh My! Records |
| 1985 | "One More Shot" | Memo Records |
| 1987 | "Living Out a Fantasy" |
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Pet Shop Boys are an English synth-pop duo formed in London in 1981. Consisting of primary vocalist Neil Tennant and keyboardist Chris Lowe, they have sold more than 100 million records worldwide and were listed as the most successful duo in UK music history in the 1999 edition of The Guinness Book of Records.
Hi-NRG is a genre of uptempo disco or electronic dance music (EDM) that originated during the late 1970s and early 1980s.
Please is the debut studio album by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released on 24 March 1986 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom and by EMI America Records in the United States. According to the duo, the album's title was chosen so that people had to go into a record shop and say "Can I have the Pet Shop Boys album, 'Please'?". Please spawned four singles: "West End Girls", "Opportunities ", "Suburbia", and "Love Comes Quickly"; "West End Girls" reached number one in both the UK and the US.
Italo disco is a music genre which originated in Italy in the late 1970s and was mainly produced in the 1980s. Italo disco evolved from the then-current underground dance, pop, and electronic music, both domestic and foreign and developed into a diverse genre. The genre employs electronic drums, drum machines, synthesizers, and occasionally vocoders. It is usually sung in English, and to a lesser extent in Italian and Spanish.
"West End Girls" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys. Written by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, the song was released twice as a single. The song's lyrics are concerned with class and the pressures of inner-city life in London which were inspired partly by T. S. Eliot's poem The Waste Land. It was generally well received by contemporary music critics and has been frequently cited as a highlight in the duo's career.
The Flirts are a project concept group formed by Bobby "O" Orlando to front his performances as an artist, musician and songwriter. The group consisted of Orlando and featured a revolving roster of female session singers and models. Under The Flirts name, Orlando churned out hits "Passion", "Danger", "Helpless" and "Jukebox ". While many of the girls were just models for the group, Andrea Del Conte, Rebecca Sullivan, Debra Gaynor, Tricia Wygal, and Christina Criscione used their real vocals. Today, the group features a relatively stable trio that performs at 80s music festivals and other venues mainly in the U.S. with some international appearances.
Claudja Barry is a Jamaican-born Canadian singer. Her successful songs were "Down and Counting", "Boogie Woogie Dancin' Shoes", "Dancing Fever", and others. As an actress, she is known for appearing in the European versions of stage musicals AC/DC and Catch My Soul.
Man 2 Man was an American hi-NRG band from New York City, that formed in the early 1980s. It was best known for their hit singles "Male Stripper", "Energy Is Eurobeat" and "I Need a Man".
"Opportunities (Let's Make Lots of Money)" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their debut studio album, Please (1986). It was released as a single in 1985 and re-recorded and reissued in 1986, gaining greater popularity in both the United Kingdom and United States with its second release, reaching number 11 on the UK Singles Chart and number 10 on the US Billboard Hot 100. After the song was featured in a Super Bowl ad in February 2021, it re-entered the charts, claiming the number one spot on Billboard's Dance/Electronic Digital Song Sales.
"Love Comes Quickly" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released as the second single from their debut studio album, Please (1986). It peaked at number 19 on the UK Singles Chart in March 1986.
Drama is the ninth studio album by English musical duo Bananarama, released on 14 November 2005 by A&G Records. It features eleven newly recorded tracks, along with a remix of their 1986 single "Venus" and a 2005 remix of their 1982 single "Really Saying Something", an underground bootleg club hit produced by Solasso.
"It's a Sin" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their second studio album, Actually (1987). Written by Chris Lowe and Neil Tennant, the song was released on 15 June 1987 as the album's lead single. It became the duo's second number-one single on the UK Singles Chart, spending three weeks atop the chart. Additionally, the single topped the charts in Austria, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Ireland, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland, while reaching number nine on the US Billboard Hot 100. It remains one of Pet Shop Boys' most popular songs with 40 million streams in the UK.
"Heart" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their second studio album, Actually (1987). It was released as the album's fourth and final single on 21 March 1988 by Parlophone. The song topped the UK Singles Chart for three weeks in April 1988, becoming the duo's fourth and final chart-topper to date in the United Kingdom. Its music video was directed by Jack Bond and filmed in Yugoslavia. The group had initially written the song for Madonna, though they never asked her to record it, instead keeping it for themselves.
Post-disco is a term and genre to describe an aftermath in popular music history circa 1979–1986, imprecisely beginning with the backlash against disco music in the United States, leading to civil unrest and a riot in Chicago known as the Disco Demolition Night on July 12, 1979, and indistinctly ending with the mainstream appearance of new wave in 1980. During its dying stage, disco displayed an increasingly electronic character that soon served as a stepping stone to new wave, old-school hip-hop, Euro disco, and was succeeded by an underground club music called hi-NRG, which was its direct continuation.
Oh Romeo was a Hi-NRG concept group created by the Hi-NRG mogul Bobby "O" Orlando in 1982.
"Was it Worth it?" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys from their first greatest hits album, Discography: The Complete Singles Collection (1991). It was released on 9 December 1991 as the album's second and final single, peaking at number 24 on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the group's first single to not reach the top 20 since they signed to Parlophone in 1984. This was the main reason why the song was not included on their later hits compilation PopArt: The Hits, however it was featured on the DVD edition and Moby’s remix of the single’s b-side "Miserablism" was included on the three disc special edition.
"Yesterday, When I Was Mad" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, released as the fifth and final single from their fifth studio album, Very (1993), on 29 August 1994 by Parlophone. The single, both written and produced by Neil Tennant and Chris Lowe, peaked at number 13 on the UK Singles Chart and number four on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. The song was remixed by Jam & Spoon for its single release, among other things removing a compression effect applied to Tennant's voice during the verses. Its music video was directed by Howard Greenhalgh. One of the B-sides is a cover of the Noël Coward song "If Love Were All".
"One More Chance" is a song by English synth-pop duo Pet Shop Boys, first released as their second single in 1984 and re-recorded for their second album Actually in 1987. The track was originally credited to Neil Tennant and producer Bobby Orlando, before Chris Lowe wrote additional music for the album version.
Mark S. Berry is an American music and film producer, and the chairman of AMG. He has worked with Grammy and Juno nominated artists such as Carly Simon, Paul McCartney, David Bowie, Duran Duran, Billy Idol, Boy George, Yes, Joan Jett, Cameo, Voivod and Kool & The Gang.
