They were funky right? Also, aren't they from minneapolis?

Wasnt Funky Town supposed 2 b about Minneapolis?????

Gold319 said:

was it? oh, i guess i never really paid attention. that means they put minni on the map before the purple one?!

dancerella said:

www.lyricsvault.net
www.discomuseum.com


Biography by Steve Huey :


" Before hard funksters like Prince and the Time hit the national stage, before groundbreaking alternative rockers Hüsker Dü and the Replacements, Minneapolis was barely a blip on America's musical radar — that is until Lipps Inc. broke out with one of disco's most monumental singles, the number one smash "Funkytown." The brainchild of producer/songwriter Steven Greenberg, Lipps Inc. (meant to be pronounced as a pun on "lip sync") wound up as one-hit wonders, but that one hit still stands as one of disco's all-time classics; its computerized feel and lean, spare arrangement contrasted sharply with the perceived excesses of most disco music, yet its longing for escape (specifically, from Minneapolis, whose music scene was still in its infancy) fit the spirit of the era perfectly, sending it to the top of the charts for a full month in 1980. A multi-instrumentalist, Greenberg had played in several bands and had been trying for some time to secure a production deal. He finally caught the Casablanca label's interest with a disco track called "Rock It," which became something of a hit locally. Casablanca asked Greenberg for a full album, and he gathered a cast of session players that initially included guitarists David Rivkin and Tom Riopelle, keyboardist Ivan Rafowitz, and bassist Terry Grant. Most importantly, he recruited lead vocalist Cynthia Johnson, the 1976 Miss Black Minnesota, who had been performing with an early version of the Time. Released nationally in late 1979, "Rock It" failed to catch on; the group's debut album, Mouth Music, was released in early 1980 and when "Funkytown" was pulled as a second single, it was an instant hit, climbing to number one just a couple months later and spending four weeks on top. In the wake of its success, "Rock It" was re-released, but flopped again. The six-song release Pucker Up followed, featuring a disco remake of the British pub rock group Ace's hit ballad "How Long." It didn't attract much attention, however; neither did the next Lipps Inc. full-length, Designer Music. Johnson was already decreasing her involvement with the group, with Melanie Rosales picking up some of the slack; Johnson left for good in 1983. By the time Lipps Inc. threw in the towel, though, they'd begun to open things up on the Minneapolis music scene, not to mention giving valuable early experience to several future members of Prince's band the Revolution. Greenberg eventually moved into web design, and owns a profitable company still based in Minneapolis ."

http://www.allmusic.com/c...k1k5m3v~T1

_____



Lipps Inc's " Funky Town " appeared on the Dutch 70's/80's tv-show TOPPOP .
It was lip-synched and choreographed by the group Doris D & The Pins ( Dolly Dots kinda-group ). So for a few years i thought that they were Lipps , until they released their own material .


www.nnbh.com
www.chiyoga.nl

Debbie " Doris " Jenner from the Pins has now one of the world best reknowns Pilatus-academies , meant for professional instructors .
[Edited 10/16/05 5:36am]

Hell Naw !!!!
[Edited 10/16/05 8:38am]

i did like Funky Town.

Their debut album 'Mouth To Mouth' is one of the most vibrant disco albums of all time.Contains only four songs.The second track "All Night Dancing" is the highlight...


when you get the feeling,deep inside your bones
dancing is the thing that you do...
waiting all day long just to hear your favorite song
then dancing to the beat that you love

Oddly enough,their album was a hit in the summer of 1980---at a time when people were (prematurely) declaring that disco was "dead",lol.

I love that entire album even though it is only four songs. These days, that would be considered a maxi-single. My favorite is "Rockit".

I do remember seeing another Lipps, Inc. album. I don't know if it came before or after "Mouth To Mouth". I have never heard it though. I've only seen it a few times in the record stores years back.

vainandy said:

Oddly enough,"Rock It" bombed as a single.It was their first single,released in late 1979.When the second single "Funkytown" became a smash,the song "Rock It" was re-released as a single,but it bombed again.What's wrong with the record-buying public? That song is FIERCE!

I never knew "Rockit" was a single. It never got an ounce of radio airplay in my area. If other areas of the country weren't playing it also, that may be why it bombed because it's definately a great jam.

Before I bought the album, the only way I knew "Rockit" existed was from seeing Deney Terrio and his two back-up girls dancing to it on the TV show, "Dance Fever", a few times.

vainandy said:

what do you think of "All Night Dancing"? If that song had come out just a few years earlier (say,1978...smack dab in the disco era),it would have been a Number One smash.

That's a good one too. It was the B Side to the "Funkytown" 45. It's great to hear the long version of these songs after you've heard the edited versions. "All Night Dancing" is definately the most disco sounding song on the album so it would have done much better a few years earlier.

In 1982,they released the single "Designer Music",which is a decent dance track.You remember that one?

I've never heard that one. That might be the other album I saw in the stores.

vainandy said:

So they have other good songs? Maybe I should get the cd.

dancerella said:

I suggest you get their 'best of' CD.

Funkytown
All Night Dancing
Rock It
How Long
Tight Pair
Jazzy
Designer Music
Hold Me Down
Addicted To The Night
Choir Practice
Does Anybody Know Me
Hit The Deck


interestingly,by the mid-80s,the group hired a new lead singer: Margie Cox.Yes,this is the same Margie Cox who became Tamara of Tamara and The Seen (produced by Jesse Johnson),and later recorded Prince's "Standing At The Altar".On the Lipps Inc. compilation,she can be heard on the 1985 track "Does Anybody Know Me".