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D.C. LaRue (born David Charles L'Heureux; April 26, 1948 in Meriden, Connecticut) is an American singer, songwriter and producer. His music was successful in clubs and on dance music charts worldwide during the 1970s and early 1980s.
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D.C. LaRue (born David Charles L'Heureux; April 26, 1948 in Meriden, Connecticut) is an American singer, songwriter and producer. His music was successful in clubs and on dance music charts worldwide during the 1970s and early 1980s.
LaRue's first recording was the 1974 Kirshner Records single "Honey Bear (The Good Time's Right Here)." [1] A second one-off single, 1975's "Move In Closer," [2] was on the Claridge Records imprint. Neither single charted. However the following year his luck changed with the 1976 album Ca-the-drals. The Pyramid Records album rose to #-123 on "Billboard's Hot 200" [3] The double A-side 12" single of "Ca-the-drals" (backed with fellow artist/drummer Pat Lundy's "Day By Day/My Sweet Lord") was one of the earliest commercially available 12" singles. [4] "Ca-the-drals/Deep Dark Delicious Night" would hit #-1 on "Billboard's Dance Music/Club Play Singles" chart. [5] "Ca-the-drals" would also hit #-2 on "Billboard's Disco Singles" chart. [5] and #-94 on "Billboard's Hot 100" chart. [5]
In less than a year he began work on his second album, The Tea Dance. The 1977 concept album capturing the essence and feel of a Broadway show featured such notable background singers as Lani Groves and Sharon Redd. It also included a duet with 1960s rock/pop icon Lou Christie on "Don't Keep It In The Shadows." The tracks: "Face Of Love," "Overture," "O Ba Ba (No Reino Da Mae Do Ouro)," "Indiscreet" and "Don't Keep It In The Shadows" would all chart at #-2 on "Billboard's Dance Music Club Play Singles" chart. [6] "Indiscreet" would go one to become one of the more important and influential hip hop break tracks of the old skool hip hop eras.
Despite the brisk sales of both of LaRue's albums Pyramid Records folded operations in the USA in 1978. With the success of those albums, he was signed (and these albums licensed) to Casablanca Records & Filmworks in 1978. His first release on his new label was "Do You Want The Real Thing?" The single was included on the platinum selling soundtrack album for the movie Thank God It's Friday . That same year saw LaRue release his third album Confessions. Once again he scored a hit with "Let Them Dance" which hit #-12 on "Billboard's Dance Music/Club Play Singles" chart. [5] Also in 1978 LaRue had a cameo in the ill-fated movie Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band .
In 1979 he released his fourth album Forces Of The Night. The singles "On With The Dance" (a duet with Michelle Aller) and "Hot Jungle Drums And Voodoo Rhythm" were released and the album charted at #-72 on "Billboard's Dance Music/Club Play Singles" chart. [5] The album also featured a duet with Rita Moreno on "Have A Good Time." "Hot Jungle Drums And Voodoo Rhythm" was also included on the platinum selling compilation A Night at Studio 54 .
In 1980 he released his fifth and final album Star Baby. The album retained the spark and ingenuity that had been prevalent in his earlier releases but with the end of the disco era it failed to chart. The album featured another duet with Lou Christie "Into The Ozone" and the 12" single of "So Much For L.A."/"Boys Can't Fake It."
In 2006 his "Ca-the-drals" was sampled in England on the track "3 AM" by Moto Blanco (Bobby Blanco & Miki Moto.) The highly successful track would introduce LaRue and his music to a whole new generation. That same year LaRue released Wicked Youth (Selected Performances 1976-1984) from his own website. Besides rare edits of his previous hits the disc also included the previously mentioned "3 AM," "Good Morning, My Love" (with The Boys Choir Of Harlem), "Love Can Make You Strong" (another duet with Lou Christie previously unreleased) and "Edge Of The Night" (with Adam Goldstone.) [7]
In 2010, LaRue recorded the new track "Crash And Burn" for the Ian Levine produced compilation album Northern Soul: 2010. [8]
In February 2012, LaRue returned with "More Things Change." A Nu Disco genre track he did with artist/producer Jimmy Michaels. [9] As of 2012 LaRue has been the host of his own radio show "Disco Juice" [10] on Newtown Radio. Tributes, themed shows as well as interviews of famed disco artists are his format on the Saturday night show.
Donna Adrian Gaines, known professionally as Donna Summer, was an American singer and songwriter. She gained prominence during the disco era of the 1970s and became known as the "Queen of Disco", while her music gained a global following.
Vicki Sue Robinson was an American singer, closely associated with the disco era of late 1970s pop music; she is most famous for her 1976 hit, "Turn the Beat Around".
The Trammps are an American disco and soul band, who were based in Philadelphia and were one of the first disco bands.
"California Dreamin'" is a song written by John Phillips and Michelle Phillips and first recorded by Barry McGuire. The best-known version is by the Mamas & the Papas, who sang backup on the original version and released it as a single in 1965. The lyrics express the narrator's longing for the warmth of Los Angeles during a cold winter in New York City. It is recorded in the key of C-sharp minor.
Casablanca Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Republic Records. Under its founder Neil Bogart, Casablanca was most successful during the disco era of the mid to late 1970s. The label currently focuses on dance and electronic music under the direction of Brett Alperowitz.
Judith Kay "Juice" Newton is an American pop and country singer, songwriter, and musician. Newton has received five Grammy Award nominations in the Pop and Country Best Female Vocalist categories – winning once in 1983 – as well as an ACM Award for Top New Female Artist and two consecutive Billboard Female Album Artist of the Year awards. Newton's other awards include a People's Choice Award for "Best Female Vocalist" and the Australian Music Media's "Number One International Country Artist".
The Sylvers were an American R&B family vocal group from Watts, Los Angeles, California. The Sylvers were a popular act during the 1970s, recording the hit singles "Fool's Paradise", "Boogie Fever", and "Hot Line". Prior to becoming the Sylvers, the four eldest members recorded as the Little Angels, appearing on shows such as You Bet Your Life and Make Room for Daddy, and opening for such acts as Johnny Mathis and Ray Charles. During this time, they released two singles: "Santa Claus Parade" b/w "I'll Be a Little Angel" on Warwick Records and "Says You" b/w "Olympia" on Capitol Records.
Roberta Kelly is an American disco and urban contemporary gospel singer who scored three hits on the US Billboard Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart between 1976 and 1978. Her most successful US hit single, "Trouble-Maker", spent two weeks at No. 1.
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Paul Jabara, also known as Paul Frederick Jabara, was an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He was born to a Lebanese family in Brooklyn, New York. He wrote Donna Summer's Oscar-winning "Last Dance" from Thank God It's Friday (1978) as well as "No More Tears " her international hit duet with Barbra Streisand. He also cowrote The Weather Girls iconic hit "It's Raining Men".
The Brooklyn Dreams were an American singing group of the late 1970s, mixing R&B harmonies with contemporary dance/disco music and best known for a number of collaborations with singer Donna Summer. The band consisted of Joe "Bean" Esposito, Eddie Hokenson and Bruce Sudano. Esposito provided lead vocals for the band and played guitar, while Sudano played keyboards and Hokenson played drums and occasionally sang lead vocals.
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"Always and Forever" is an R&B song written by Rod Temperton and produced by Barry Blue. It was first recorded by the British-based multinational funk-disco band Heatwave in 1976. Released as a single on December 3, 1977, the song is included on Heatwave's debut album Too Hot to Handle (1976) and has been covered by numerous artists, becoming something of a standard.
"Last Nite" is a song by American rock band the Strokes. It was released on October 23, 2001, as the second single from their debut album, Is This It (2001). It was a moderate hit for the group on the UK Singles Chart in 2001.
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