Amii Stewart

Amii Stewart is a singer of Disco. She was born with Washington with the the United States in 1956 with the Amy first name. It is a professional dancer since the 16 years age, that one could see in many televised spectacles (“Dinah! ”, “The soap factory”, “Merv Griffin”, “Drunk train” and “special Midnight”) but also with the cinema (in King Kong , The greatest , the return of the pink panther ). She also played in Bubblin' brown sugar with Broadway and it is by playing this musical comedy with London that she was noticed by Barry Leng and Simon May. They will make him record the disco music “You really touched my heart” and the slow fox trot “Closest thing to heaven”, whose success involves the signing of a contract of beautiful at Hansa Records. It records a fine album 1978 and explodes with its individual following, the resumption disco music of “Knock one Wood”. This enormous hit outstanding left in January to the United States then became pop n°1 on February 24th, n°5 disco music and n° 6 R &B; Disc of platinum, classified during fourteen weeks and sold with more than six million specimens, it is one of the examples of the tidal wave which was the disco music. Eddie Floyd, author of “Knock one Wood” will acknowledge besides that it touched more money with the resumption of Stewart on this song than with his own interpretation or that which Otis Redding had done in duet with Carla Thomas. This explosive recovery is supported by appearances of the singer in costumes égypto-disco music emphasizing it particularly. She repeats then with another recovery, “Light my fire”, decorated from “137 disco music heaven” (pop n°69). These two hits accompany the two songs by the beginnings on the album, heading Knock one Wood (n°19 pop in March, classified 23 weeks, gold disc). On the other hand face 2 of the simple “Knock one Wood”, “When you are beautiful”, remains new. Beside the large cavalry disco music, this disc proposes ballades which aim at the adult market. Against any waiting it is rather the style which it will develop thereafter, declaring quickly with the press which fortunately that all the songs which one hears do not resemble “Knock one Wood”. They is nevertheless with the disco music that it must be launched, while becoming one of representing euro-disco music.

“Knock one Wood” knew many remixes: that of the European album (intro short and disco music station-wagon), that of the album North-American (intro and final long), that of the 45 turns (intro with synthetic effect) and of the additional versions for later compilations (without fading).

It reapplic besides the same receipt with its LP according to, always of 1979, Paradise bird , which contains the hit “Jealousy”, followed of another individual, the resumption of “The letter”, two clones of “Knock one Wood”. Like “Knock one Wood”, “Jealousy” knows many versions: European, North-American and short. Face 2 of individual is pleasant “the Step into the coils line”.

Amii Stewart is a heiress of the tradition drunk of Stax, given to the last style: its powerful voice with the pleasant stamp superbly serves recoveries which go as far as making forget the original versions. One would do without dreadful simply (and long!) solos of guitar of “Light my fire” and “The letter”. Thereafter, the disco music losing of its impact, its interpretations will also lose they of their force. In 1981, it leaves nevertheless an album on the same diagram, Images , which contain individual the motowniens “Where did our coils go”, excellently carried out by Narada Michael Walden and “My Guy, my girl” (duet with Johnny Bristol left fine 1980 with opposite 2 “Now” not-included on the album). One finds there even a sympathetic nerve taken again of “Great balls off fire”. As previously, the remainder of the album is only very fairly convincing, if one excludes the soft ballade “Coils is bad for your health”. This album is called I' m gonna get your coils in the United States while the list of the songs and the small pocket are different. Indeed, on Images Stewart raised a make-up of Kabuki, therefore white, which would have attracted unfavourable remarks in the United States to him (one would have shown it to want “to bleach”, charge to which Donna Summer does not have escaped in 1989 with Another places and time ). The American album, left to Handshake, contains ten songs as that left in Europe but it is not a question of same: “Great balls off fire” and “Coils is bad for your health” were replaced by two songs carried out by Crown Heights Affair, “I' m gonna get your coils” and “Calling for your coils” while “Why' D you cuts to Be sexy so” and “DIGITAL coils” were remixées. These four songs will be published besides in maxis.

This same year 1981 she forsakes her British production and is produced in France by Vangarde with which she makes “Rocky woman”. Maximum German in 1982 follows: “Lay back in the groove/Has the world run out”.

Will follow then rather successful Italian productions. She gives up her small pockets where she raised a look of the more Broadway iens for a more sober elegance. Its first Italian album is entitled Amii Stewart and is carried out by Simon Boswell in 1983. The title introducer, “Working late tonight” is published into individual (n°23 in Italy) but the success is “Take has heart” at the rate/rhythm raised by “goldens delicious fingers”. One also finds on this album two survivors of the album of Donna Summer which should have left in 1981: “Sweet emotion” and “You to me”.

In 1983 it also sings “perched Grazie”, an Italian duet with Gianni Morandi (singer with success of the Sixties). Face 2 of the 45 turns is “Magari”. It is classified n°3 in Italy.

The following year leaves Try coils , a very good album well in the tradition of the Italian synthetic varieties which meets a great success. It is supervised by Mike Francis and Stewart there Co-writing two songs. Hit which of it is drawn is “Friends” (which will be remixé in 1991), song resembling much those which Mike Francis written for him. The sound of this album is considered “very disco music 1978” by criticisms of rock'n'roll, but it is in fact of the pleasant variety, sufficiently smooth to like all. “Friends” is classified n°1 in Italy.

The year 1985 sees the exploitation of “Friends”, helped in that by the publication of remixes of the hits disco music by Barry Leng and Alan Coulthard. New versions are drawn from “Knock one Wood”, “Light my fire” (superb), “You really touched my heart” and “Jealousy” (average). These remixes will be republished besides in 1992. An album leaves with ten titles in 1986 under the title The hits . On a disco music basis was grafted a mixing funk of more involving.

Always in 1985, Amii Stewart leaves a duet with Mike Francis, “Together” (n°17 Italian) before new a LP in 1986, Amii . The first face is produced by it by Moroder, which makes morodereries pointing out all its productions of the moment (France Pretty, Berlin, Irene Cara,…). Face 2, more personal and pleasant, is designed with the Netherlands and culminates with the piece of dance “Station-wagon thesis chains” and the slow fox trot “The mystery off coils”. Nevertheless this disc, project unites RCA SpA and TELDEC GMBH is conceived for the public FM, which in limit originality. For the first time even, the contents of the words are enough confusing.

As from this moment, the albums of Stewart are hardly available than in Italy. Distributed to the dropper in the other countries, it is nevertheless possible to find them in the vats imports. After Amii makes variety for adults, without much resemblance to the music of discotheque which had launched it and maintained with flood. In 1988 it leaves Time for fantasy , an album carried out in England by Greg Walsh. The song-title, “It' S time for fantasy” is successful with a resumption of “You are in my system”. Amii Stewart sings Ennio Morricone pearls in 1990 follows. Association between the singer and the musician gave to the album surely most distant from Knock one the Wood , and thus most disappointing for its truths fans. She begins again herself in 1992 with Magic , which she Co-carries out. She joins again with the music of dance and the rates/rhythms more in logic of the discotheques, particularly with regard to very succeeded “I can' T give up”. In 1994 it launches two complementary albums, Lady to ladies and The men I coils . The first is a disc of resumptions of singers and the second a disc of resumptions of singers. Lady to ladies with the characteristic to be an album directly recorded since the studio, without mixing. It takes again hits R&B and disco music there whose “McArthur park”, copies version of Summer. The men I coils is less filling with enthusiasm, because made pop recoveries which are appropriate less for the image than one makes of it.

In 1996 it launches Love to affair carried out by K & B. Foreman and R. Musumarra. It is followed in 1999 of Unstoppable , album made of resumptions of hits to it or others, with some true innovations. The simple one is an actualization of “Knock one Wood”, available in three versions on the album. Maximum-Cd proposes four versions (including two available on the album, a lengthened third and fourth new) and simple Cd proposes three shortened versions (available on the two other formats). The Italian and French production is sometimes cheap but the simple guard qualities which one awaits from a resumption of “Knock one Wood”.

Shortly after this compilation, it played Marie-madeleine in an Italian version of Jesus Christ Superstar . Although on the poster, she played only half of the representations and was then replaced.

In 1995 is appeared a compilation, All off me , which takes again its successes of 1983 to 1990, with in premium “Knock one Wood” in his short version remix of 1985, “Jealousy”, in remix long of 1985 and “perched Grazie”. In 1996 Knock one leaves Wood: the best off Amii Stewart in the United States on which one finds his successes of 1979 to 1984 with some characteristics (“Knock one Wood” and “Jealousy” in North-American version, “My Guy, my girl”, “Why' D you cuts to Be sexy so” and “Friends” in remixée version). In 1997 double English compilation Amii Stewart leaves: the hits and the remixe S with titles of 1979-1981 and their remixes of 1985 (long original versions and remixes short except that of “Jealousy” in integral version).

With all its discs of unequal quality, Amii Stewart had great difficulty to be detached from “Knock one Wood”, and its course resembles that of many other stars of the disco music. It was saved by Italy, last refuge of the “disco music divas” in years 80-90, which enabled him to be other thing that a “one-hit-wonder”. Far from making a synthetic variety like many its congeneric, it courageously turned the back on the music of dance for a more adult music, orientation which its public of origin does not have in fact not really suiviet.

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