The Time Between

Chic were to the 70’s what Cream were to the 60’s. By far the most influential trio of the past 30 years Nile, Bernard and Tony were THE power trio casually bringing new sounds and rhythms to the world – they were truly a global phenomenon. They provided the soundtrack for the disco years, the architecture of rap, the foundation of Brit pop-soul, they were the blueprint for a huge amount of popular music of the past few decades (hello David Bowie) – and yet people dismiss them as “some disco band’ like it was something terrible, a blight on the landscape. Disco – before every white act tried it – had a purity of vision much like the purity of vision of early punk or rockabilly. It was about escape, about the beat, about movement. It took guitar, bass and drums to another place. And while it was deceptively simple (a straight 4/4 beat) it left so much room for the bass and in Chic’s case Nile’s fab guitar – he reinvented the Strat for me. And it also had soul. Listen to At Last I Am Free – either by Chic or Robert Wyatt and tell me it’s not a soul song. It was aspirational – look at the clothes they’re wearing on Risque, listen to the name dropping of fashion icons (Halston, Gucci, Fiorucci indeed). It was about a new, black middle class. Nile was the guy who carried Jimi’s guitar around NYC, who hooked up with o ne of the best rhythm sections ever (really these guys were monsters – and I love the MG’s and Motown guys who were great no doubt but….these check these guys out – is there a more danceable bass line than Good Times EVER?). Listen to Savoir Faire and you’ll hear some brilliant Nile – it’s a shame he didn’t solo more – but that’s his beauty; it’s all rhythm and space. Listen to the Diana album – try and find the long version of I’m Coming Out for a sampling of what Tony Thompson had to offer (there’s a reason he was Zeppelin’s drummer at Live Aid). But please don’t pass them by, don’t put them in the same bucket as the Bee Gees, these guys were (are) significant.