Born in Italy in 1940, Giorgio Moroder is one of the primary architects of the sound of Disco. His proficiency as producer of electronic keyboards, quick Hi-NRG beats, and dramatic vocals topped Disco and Dance charts numerous times in the late 1970's and early 1980's. Giorgio Moroder's music continues to be revived any time a resurgence of interest in electronic Disco takes place.
Giorgio Moroder's recording career began with the opening of his studio Musicland in Munich, Germany in the late 1960's. His debut single as an artist, Looky Looky, was released in 1969. Around the release of his first album, Son Of My Father, in 1972, Giorgio met Pete Bellotte and began one of the most productive production partnerships in the history of Dance music.
In 1973, an American woman, originally from Boston, answered an ad placed by Moroder and Bellotte for female back-up vocalists. Her name was Donna Summer. She got the job and eventually she was persuaded to sing a song titled The Hostage. It was a hit in 1974 in France and Holland, but the song and its album Lady Of the Night bore little resemblance to what was to come. To follow this quick success with Donna Summer, Moroder put together the breathy, seductive Love To Love You, Baby. Audiences in Europe were unimpressed but Giorgio Moroder received a sympathetic ear from Neil Bogart, a former general manager at Buddha Records who had just formed a new record label, Casablanca. The initial American release of Love To Love You, Baby as a single was unimpressive. However, after Neil Bogart asked Giorgio Moroder to expand the recording to a full album side, the reaction changed. Moroder created the full 17-minute mix of Love To Love You, Baby and dance clubs embraced the record. New York DJs were entranced and Moroder's Disco machine was on its way.
Giorgio Moroder began a very prolific period in his musical career. In 1976 he not only continued his successful production of music by Donna Summer, but also created hits with Roberta Kelly (Love Power and Trouble Maker) and as a solo artist (Knights in White Satin). The 1977 album I Remember Yesterday by Donna Summer closed with I Feel Love, one of the key landmarks for all Dance music to come. Harder-edged than most previous Disco and completely electronic except for the vocal, I Feel Love foreshadowed Techno, House, and Hi-NRG.
In addition to work with individual recording artists, Giorgio Moroder also garnered great success creating music for films. His first soundtrack project was Midnight Express in 1979 which won him an Academy Award for Best Film Score. For the 1980 soundtrack to American Gigolo, Moroder hired the Punk-Pop group Blondie which resulted in the Rock-Disco smash hit Call Me. The producers of the movie Flashdance hired Moroder to put together their soundtrack and the title song Flashdance (What a Feeling), sung by Irene Cara, became a national phenomenon in 1983 on the radio and in clubs. Later soundtrack work included Limahl's hit The Never Ending Story from the film of the same name, Together In Electric Dreams from Electric Dreams with Phil Oakey of Human League on vocals, Freddie Mercury's Love Kills from the all-new 1984 soundtrack for Metropolis, and Pop hits by Berlin and Kenny Loggins from Top Gun in 1986.
Over the next several years Giorgio Moroder indulged in a number of interests beyond the world of popular music. These included computer artwork, automobile design, and film production. He began a return to the world of Dance music in 1992 working once again with Donna Summer on a new track titled Carry On. Then in 1993 he recorded a duet by Elton John and RuPaul on Elton's classic Don't Go Breaking My Heart for Elton's Duets album. In 1997, Moroder remixed the Carry On recording and it was released to dramatic club success culminating in the first Grammy Award for Best Dance Recording awarded in 1998. Moroder's remix of the single Disco Science by French artist Mirwais caught Madonna's attention in 1999 and ultimately led to Mirwais collaboration with Madonna on her album Music. In 2000 a Giorgio Moroder tribute album was released, and he mixed the song Last Night recorded by Gloria Gaynor. Among Moroder's latest work has been remixing the number one Dance hit Escape for Enrique Iglesias in 2002 and new remixing for Blondie on Good Boys in 2003. The electronic Hi-NRG sound of Giorgio Moroder is alive and well.