Cerrone: Disco Revivals, Giorgio Moroder & Studio 54 (interview)
“The balcony was the place where people were partying very often with their pants (or more) out. But actually, Studio 54 was really the 'preparation' phase’ the most physical and intense part of the night was always afterwards at after-parties in the City. I have really intense memories of Andy Warhol’s after-parties at his apartment . . .”
As a 20 something world famous sex symbol and acknowledged pioneer and co-inventor of disco, French producer Jean-Marc Cerrone was well used to partying with New York’s nghtlife 70s elite, so much so that 20 years on he remains circumspect.
“Sure I was a regular at Studio 54, but I have to say my memories are really not for telling there is a parental advisory sticker on them,” he chuckles.
“All I will say is that I didn’t write very many songs when I was there, I was too busy learning about other things connected to sex and other things that were illegal,” he smiles.
The songs he was most famous for then and now, are seminal disco classics Love In C Minor’ and ‘Supernature’ his futuristic tour de force that sold 8 million albums when it came out in 1977. Chatting to IHOUSEU this week about his latest album ‘Cerrone by Jamie Lewis’ however, he’s quick to point out that he lives very much in the present rather than the past. And is equally prompt to distance himself from London’s latest ‘new disco’ trend of the moment.
“I have never been interested in so called ‘disco revivals’, I have been performing live for 35 years, playing my own music whenever I like, and I consider disco to be timeless,” he snorts.
“Ever since I was 35 years old, people have always asked me this question and I always answer the same: if this music is still alive, throughout the years and the generations that have passed and it’s always covered, copied and sampled , then this should prove- beyond a doubt- that disco is eternal and is not dependent on short term trends.”
Now 57, he’s impressively web 2,0 savvy too, so much so that he decided to release the new album as an entirely free download, attracting 50,000 downloads in its first week when he launched it last month.
“I was thinking about how I was going to release the album and it became evident to me that this was the right move to make now,” he says.
“I used to sell huge quantities of records in the past, but I don’t any more and releases like this album, which is also a compilation, don’t sell representative quantities anyway.”
“The scale of sales are changing and also priorities are too, in the way you manage a musical career,” he continues.
“So now my internet promotion and all the events I can present through new media are far more important, and relevant, than traditional channels, such as physical sales and radio.
By releasing it for free it’s also a way for young people to discover me and my music, whilst showing my fans that I trust them, and want to thank them too.”
IHOUSEU: You say on your website that ‘music is condemned to be free and that it is necessary to find other solutions to make revenues’: is it doomed as we know it?
Cerrone: “Yes it is, but this is not a problem for me; I would suggest that this situation is even an opportunity. The music industry has been speculating for years and years about fashion and short term artists strategies, without defending musical creativity and quality. During these years big radio stations developed an incredible power, and sometimes when they decided not to broadcast a track, the label simply decided not to release it, however good or even brilliant it might be. The Internet has broken down all these old-fashioned rules and enabled many artists to ‘re-birth’, even the most forgotten ones. Therefore this also gives hopes for new talents.
So yes I'm convinced artists, authors, producers must look for new sources of revenue, because music will no longer be sold like it was before. That's why we have to develop all the other sources, such as; concerts, merchandising, synchronization, and with real branding and publishing strategies: this is for me the new ‘nerf de la guerre’ (tactic of war).”
IHOUSEU: In the late 70s, there was a massive Disco Sucks backlash in the States, what impact did it have on your record sales and public profile?
Cerrone: “I have never been considered as part of the "Disco Sucks" backlash since it was targeting primarily dull pop song productions arranged in a disco way, for clear commercial reasons. Disco music was about far more than that tiny part of dance music of the era, it was about a real philosophy and way of life alongside the music. In comparison to that, those third hand copy-cat copies of disco that were made back then could only suck.”
IHOUSEU: The music business is full of tales of artists selling millions of records and being left penniless, did you go through any tough periods from being ripped off?
Cerrone: “No, never. I have been always very careful to stay the entire owner of all my masters and my publishing rights, audio and video; I'm also very lucky because my entire catalogue is still very much alive, all over the world, and I also never stopped touring and give concerts for 35 years So I never felt penniless. But I do know that many artists less cautious than me have been ripped off by their own labels or major companies, this is a shame.”
IHOUSEU: People frequently name check you alongside Giorgio Moroder: how much were the two of you in competition back in the day?
Cerrone: “Actually, there has never been a real competition between us, in fact, our productions were always really different: Moroder's were really more ‘song’ oriented (e.g. Donna Summer) while mine were more ‘dance floor’ oriented. Our main similarity was that we were two Europeans producers selling so many records in the world and imposing this new style; music for discothèques.”
IHOUSEU: Going back to the 70s; you worked as an A&R scout for Club Med as a teenager: it must have been a dream job back then (Club Med was the French predecessor of Club 18-30): how did you manage to concentrate on music without being distracted by all the opportunities for leisure (and sex?)
Cerrone: “This is something I didn't really manage actually! That's why I quit the job after eighteen months. But after having tasted and even abused all opportunities (sea, sex and sun), I realized they were not compatible with my true passion; music. And I created (my first group) Kongas right after this experience.”
IHOUSEU: How much were you more driven by others around you to achieve success?
Cerrone: “I realized that I mainly drove myself, but two men really changed my life because they believed in me and gave me a chance: Eddie Barclay, founder of Barclay Label, who signed me with Kongas for the fist time, and Ahmet Ertegün, Head of Atlantic Records at the time of my first solo album, Love In C Minor. For them I also did my best and gave the best I could deliver.”
IHOUSEU: What’s been the happiest period of your career? How much has happiness coincided with success: with money? With fame?
Cerrone: “I don't want to be too pretentious, but I can say I have been happy all my life with music, because she became my best friend very early on and she has stayed my passion all my life, in a very happy relationship. I even felt some orgasms on stage, that's why I never left her.”
‘Cerrone by Jamie Lewis’ is out now on Cerrone’s own label Malligator Records.
