Burning The Ground Exclusive 1983
Patrick Cowley was one of disco’s most mysterious figures.
His life was cut short in 1982 when he died of Aids at age 32. He was a key presence in the gay San Francisco disco scene; in the 1970s and early 1980s, when the city had one of the best disco scenes in the world.
Sylvester was San Francisco’s biggest star and Cowley’s muse – a larger-than-life presence around town, dressed to the nines and often carrying multiple shopping bags as he walked down Castro Street. Cowley most famously worked with Sylvester on the ecstatic mega-hit You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real) and was a pioneer of the genre known as Hi-NRG, a relentlessly uptempo variant of disco that gained serious traction, especially in the UK and Europe.
Cowley was a good deal quieter than Sylvester, and more of a tech boffin, experimenting with music in an apartment in the Castro crammed with electronics, with cables hanging everywhere. “It was a mess of wires,” recalls John Hedges, who ran Megatone Records for many years, the now-legendary record label that Cowley originally started with Marty Blecman in the 1970s.
“It certainly didn’t look very safe,” he adds. “He was always experimenting to get the sounds. They would wire everything in and have tape machines, and the tape would go from one tape machine to another about 10 feet away to create the echo they wanted, or delay.”
Sylvester known as “The Queen Of Disco” died six years after Cowley, of Aids-related complications in 1988. Patrick Cowley and Sylvester were iconic trailblazers not just for queer and androgynous people, but for disco music as a whole, overcoming trauma, prejudice, and stigma to achieve their dreams.
“Do Ya Wanna Funk” is a 1982 dance song recorded by American recording artists Sylvester and Patrick Cowley. It was produced by Cowley, who incidentally died the same year. The song was most successful in Europe, especially in Belgium, Finland, and Norway, where it became a top-10 hit. It also reached the top 20 in the Netherlands and Switzerland and made it to the top 30 in West Germany and Australia, and the top 40 in the United Kingdom. The song was inspired by “I’m Your Jeanie”, a single by Jeanie Tracy, who was a background vocalist for Sylvester. It was also featured in the film Trading Places (1983). In 2022, Rolling Stone ranked “Do Ya Wanna Funk” number 179 in their list of 200 Greatest Dance Songs of All Time.
“Mind Warp” was the title track from Patrick Cowley’s third and final album.
SIDE A:
Do Ya Wanna Funk (Long Version) 6:57
Performer – Sylvester With Patrick Cowley
Vocals – Sylvester
Written-By – Patrick Cowley, Sylvester
SIDE B:
Mind Warp (Long Version) 6:36
Performer – Patrick Cowley
Vocals – Patrick Cowley
Written-By – Patrick Cowley
VINYL GRADE:
Vinyl: Near Mint
Sleeve: Near Mint
OBI Strip: Near Mint
U.S. CHART HISTORY:
| Year | Single | Chart | Position |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1982 | Do Ya wanna Funk | U.S. Billboard Hot Dance/Disco songs | #4 |
RELEASE INFORMATION:
Label: Victor – VIL-1002
Format: Vinyl, 12″, 45 RPM, Maxi-Single
Country: Japan
Released: 1983
Genre: Electronic
Style: Hi-NRG
CREDITS:
- Producer – Patrick Cowley
NOTES:
Comes with an OBI strip
Buy the 12″ at DISCOGS
VINYL TRANSFER & AUDIO RESTORATION:
-DjPaulT
burningtheground.net
THE GEAR:
Turntable: Technics SL-1200MK7
Cartridge/Stylus: Ortofon 2M Black PnP MkII
Turntable Isolation Platform: ISO-Tone™ Turntable Isolation Platform
Platter: Pro Spin Acrylic Mat
Stabilizer: Pro-Ject Record Puck
Phono Pre-amp: Pro-Jec Tube Box DS2
Tubes: Genalex Gold Lion 12AX7 ECC83/B759 Gold Pins Vacuum Tube – Matched Pair
DAC: Alpha Design Labs GT40a USB DAC
Record Cleaning: VPI HW 16.5 Record Cleaning Machine
Artwork Scans: Epson Workforce WF-7610 Professional Printer/Scanner
SOFTWARE:
Recording/Editing: Adobe Audition 3.0 (Recording)
Down Sampling/Dither: iZotope RX Advanced 2
Artwork Editor: Adobe Photoshop CS5
Click Removal: Manual
FLAC/MP3 Conversion: dBpoweramp
M3U Playlist: Playlist Creator
RESTORATION NOTES:
All vinyl rips are recorded @ 32bit/float
FLAC (Level Eight)
Artwork scanned at 600dpi
**24bit FLAC Only Available For Seven Days!
Password: burningtheground
You can help show your support for this blog by making a donation using PayPal. Thank you for your help.
Hi Paul, Dear All,
This post is another smash hit on the head of the nail.
I am most happy to remember the days these hits came out and the power they grabbed me with. Different compared to what I knew and loved from Sylvester by the end of the ’70s, still astonishingly great.
Under the circumstances I did’t fully understand HNRG, the news that both stars passed couldn’t reach me.
Sylvester was such an icon and that falsetto voice was one of the best.
Thanks Paul 🙂
You’re welcome, Marco 🙂
Many Thanks…again!
You’re welcome, Steven 🙂
Oh man, do I love this song! Brings back great 80s memories. Thanks a bunch, Paul!
You’re welcome, Mike 🙂
This post is simply funky fabulous, Dj Paul T.
Thank you, Chad 🙂
An anthem! Thank you, Paul.
You’re welcome, Will 🙂
Wow thank you Paul!! Patrick Cowley and Sylvester were such innovators. Of course I was introduced to Do You Wanna Funk from Trading Places. One of those songs that immediately takes you back to that period in time… What a time to be alive!
Loved that scene in the movie 🙂 That time period in music was really creative and so much fun.
Patrick Cowley meant the world to me! Discovering his music created such elation in me that I’ll never forget the moment I first heard his “Menergy” on Disco 92 WKTU out of New York City. I loved Disco music, especially Giorgio Moroder’s electronic records such as “From Here To Eternity”, “Chase”, and his magnum opus with Donna Summer, “I Feel Love.” It kind of ended there though. Cue in Mr. Patrick Cowley. This man really continued Moroder’s wild electronic music. I bought his “Mega-tron Man” album and was blown away. Then, it was, “Mind Warp” which was equally thrilling. I… Read more »
I adore Patrick as well recently Dark Entries Records has been releasing some of Patrick’s lost work really fantastic stuff. Really my introduction to dance music in the clubs was HI NRG, one of my favorite genres. 🙂
This may not have been the most successful song on the charts, but when I think of “disco” this song is one that comes to mind. Captures the genre perfectly.
I agree, Raymond 🙂
Oh how I love ya love ya love ya love ya love ya for this one! thank you many millions of times, Paul!
You are so very welcome 🙂