Disco legend Donna Summer died on Thursday morning at age 63. The Grammy-winning singer had been battling cancer.
Though she was best known for her edited-down pop-disco radio songs, Summer’s enduring contribution to American dance music came with her creative collaboration with Italian producer and disco pioneer Giorgio Moroder. Their extended versions of tracks like the ultra-sensual “I Feel Love” and “Love to Love You Baby” – as well as Summer’s playful overhaul of songwriter Jimmy Webb’s overwrought “MacArthur Park” – were button-pushing highlights for the singer.
Summer won five Grammys and recording numerous hits in the 1970s and ’80s including “Last Dance,” “She Works Hard for the Money” and “Bad Girls.”
This article appears in May 15-22, 2012.
I guess that makes it official, Disco is dead. *sigh