Village People (album)

Village People
Studio album by Village People
Released July 11, 1977
Genre Disco
Length 22:16
Label Casablanca
Producer Jacques Morali
Village People chronology
Village People
(1977)		 Macho Man
(1978)Macho Man1978
German cover
Original German issue, titled
"San Francisco (You've Got Me)"[2]
Singles from Village People
  1. "San Francisco (You've Got Me)"
    Released: 1977
  2. "Village People"
    Released: 1977
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[3]

Village People is the self-titled first studio album by Village People, released on July 11, 1977. Its hit song "San Francisco (You've Got Me)" was a top 50 hit in the UK, peaking at #45.

History

Village People was the creation of Jacques Morali, a French composer. He had written a few dance tunes when he was given a demo tape recorded by singer/actor Victor Willis. Morali approached Willis and told him, "I had a dream that you sang lead on my album and it went very, very big". Willis agreed.[4]

The album was a success, and demand for live appearances soon followed. Morali and his business partner, Henri Belolo (under the collaboration Can't Stop Productions), hastily built a group of dancers around Willis to perform in clubs and on Dick Clark's American Bandstand. As Village People's popularity grew, Morali, Belolo and Willis saw the need for a permanent 'group.' They took out an ad in a music trade magazine which read: "Macho Types Wanted: Must Dance And Have A Moustache."[4]

Morali literally bumped into the first recruit, Felipe Rose (Indian), on the streets of Greenwich Village. Rose was a bartender who wore jingle bells on his boots. He was invited to take part in the sessions for the first album. Alex Briley (who started as an athlete, but eventually took on the soldier persona) was a friend of Willis'. The other three, Mark Mussler (construction worker), Dave Forrest (cowboy) and Lee Mouton (leatherman) were replaced, respectively, by David Hodo, Randy Jones and Glenn Hughes, who all had more experience as actors/singers/dancers. Hughes had first been spotted as a toll collector at the Brooklyn Battery Tunnel.[5] Early on, one of the group's songwriters, Peter Whitehead, performed with the group for a brief time.

Although the composers were French, the lyrics were all in English as Morali and Belolo used American lyricists. On the first album, they brought in songwriters Phil Hurtt and the aforementioned Peter Whitehead.

The band's name references New York City's Greenwich Village neighborhood, at the time known for having a substantial gay population.[6] Morali and Belolo got the inspiration for creating an assembly of American man archetypes based on the gay men of The Village who frequently dressed in various fantasy attire.

Track listing

No.TitleLength
1."San Francisco (You've Got Me)"5:19
2."In Hollywood (Everybody Is a Star)"5:27
3."Fire Island"5:49
4."Village People"5:41
Total length:22:16

Charts and certifications

References

  1. ↑ Original German issue, titled "San Francisco (You've Got Me) Discogs.com. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  2. ↑ Original German issue, titled "San Francisco (You've Got Me) Discogs.com. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  3. ↑ Hamilton, Andrew. "The Village People – Village People (AllMusic revie)". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  4. 1 2 "Village People", Rolling Stone Magazine Vol. 289, April 19, 1979.
  5. ↑ Uhelszki, Jaan (March 13, 2001) Village People's Hughes Dead Rollingstone.com. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  6. ↑ Martha K. Baker. "KDHX Film Review - Gay Sex in the 70s". KDHX. Double Helix Corporation. Archived from the original on December 20, 2008. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  7. ↑ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (doc)|format= requires |url= (help). Australian Chart Book, St Ives, NSW. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  8. ↑ "Top Albums/CDs - Volume 29, No. 8, May 20 1978". Collectionscanada.gc.ca. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Oricon Archive - Village People".
  10. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Village People – Village People". Hung Medien. Retrieved September 3, 2016.
  11. 1 2 "The Village People – Awards". AllMusic. All Media Network. Archived from the original on October 5, 2012. Retrieved September 24, 2016.
  12. ↑ "Canadian album certifications – Village People – Village People". Music Canada.
  13. ↑ "American album certifications – Village People – Village People". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 
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