The Night The Lights Went Out

Here is a brilliant disco gem by The Trammps that has been re-worked by Mr. Dimitri from Paris.  "The Night The Lights Went Out" was originally released in 1977 to commemorate the electrical blackout that affected New York City on July 13 of that same year and caused havoc to the city.  It is worth noting here that the looting of electronics stores during this blackout allowed a number of looters to steal DJ equipment and as a result of these thefts, the Hip Hop genre, barely known outside of the Bronx, grew at an astounding rate from 1977 onwards.  The instrumentation of this song with its gorgeous strings and heavy bass with its classic elegant Philly sound orchestration could not disappoint any dance floor but  it's also the message of "where where you...".  It made me think of where were you when meaningful events happen to someone.  Events of a personal nature, happy or sad, struggles and milestones or an a  historical one that could illicit  a strong memory. Is this memory attached with a song?  As far as this LP, I am truly enjoying this whole compilation devoted to the Philly sound.  A smart collection of songs in their original form and the "re-worked" versions done brilliantly by Mr. Dimitri.   This is a beautiful time capsule that captures the feeling, uniqueness and magical time when Disco was done properly and merged beautifully with Soul. Here is to the Philly sound! Where were you?

The Night The Lights Went Out (Dimitri from Paris Disco Re-Edit) - The Trammps