The summer months typically bring out some of the year’s hottest tracks to coincide with festivals, DJ club gigs, private events, and even your own pool parties! We all look forward to when the weather heats up, the parties are plentiful, vacation is in sight and love is in the air!
The May chart is full of big-name artists like Lizzo, Purple Disco Machine, Kylie Minogue, Peggy Gou, Chromeo, Bootsy Collins, and Nile Rodgers. We also have chart favorites Roosevelt, Anoraak, Yuksek, Villanis, Dr Packer, Igor Gonya, and the list keeps going!
The rule holds true, now more than ever, that disco and funk music help us experience joy despite the traumas and heartaches the world continues to throw our way. Let’s celebrate the hard work and dedication this month’s artists have given to music and the world!
See Past Disco and Funk Charts Here
Lizzo‘s “About Damn Time” original version was already lush with disco vibes, so it only made sense to let Purple Disco Machine have a crack at the remix. Tino Piontek aka PDM pulls the disco thread that was begging to be stretched out and marries the modern disco vibe with some classic sounds to create the perfect version of this song. I suspect you will be hearing this at all of your summer parties!
“Get Up Girl!” takes off like a car peeling out and you had better just hold on for the ride! Rome-based Fabio Villanis has leaned a little more nu-disco on this jam and it is hot and ready to be played at all of your summer events!
Roosevelt and Nile Rodgers spent the last two years working remotely via phone calls and email (old school) to create the basic structure of “Passion” and ultimately met in Los Angeles to complete the final version of this breezy nu-disco track. Rogers’s signature sound is all over the track, but this still has the classic Roosevelt sound we’ve come to love over the last decade. This is a great example of when meeting your heroes is a good thing!
Let’s face it, there are few DJ/Producers in the world that are as in demand as Peggy Gou right now. Magnum ice cream thought so too, and the result is an ad campaign based on Gou’s remix of the classic Kylie Minogue track “Can’t Get You Out of My Head”. This version is called Peggy Gou’s Midnight Remix, and Gou’s modernization of the now 21-year-old track just proves that the right song can be updated for every generation.
Lettuce is a great funk jam band and Bootsy Collins is funk royalty, so together they have created a slow, grinding funk masterpiece that you can’t help but sink your teeth into! Bootsy has been performing “Keep That Funk Alive” for years in varying forms, but this is the tightest version yet. Enjoy!
Blu DeTiger brings the sweet pop vocals to “Blutooth” and also lays down the killer funk bass lines. Chromeo‘s P-Thugg and Dave 1 complete the track with their brand of guitar and synth magic. This is the first of two collaborative songs for these artists and hopefully, this is just the beginning of their partnership. Make sure to check out the super funky second track “enough 4 u” as well. It’s pure fire!
All artists should be so lucky to find a bunch of unfinished edits/sample-based tracks on their hard drives during the production of their new album. That is exactly what happened to Yuksek, and the result is a killer dance track “Roulette”. Yuksek cleaned up the rough version he used to play during shows and created a proper floor-filling banger. You can find this and 4 more edits on Bandcamp now!
Kano came back with their first album in 30 years in 2021. It was a classic Italo Disco experience through and through. Enter Dr Packer, one of Australia’s finest disco DJ/producers with his remix of “Unconditional Lover”. Stripped away is a bit of the Italo in favor of a classic disco feel. This version is perfect for all of your summertime listening!
The Niceguys‘ “Thrill” is an excellent track in all of its versions, but Shaka Loves You have added the disco gloss that we expect here on the disco/funk chart! Leo Napier’s vocals are smooth and sexy, the rhythm guitars keep the pace going strong, and that bass keeps the funk moving and grooving! Try not to be thrilled with this remix!
Hand me the sunscreen, please, because I’m going to need it while I listen to Kokoro Disco San‘s “Sunshine”! Razor-N-Tape’s head honcho JKriv‘s SPF 76 Mix is poolside ready, and as advertised, is bringing the heat! Grab your sunnies, flip flops, and a cool beverage, and turn this one up!
Whether Mark Lower is producing music under his own professional name or as Barry & Gibbs, you can be guaranteed to get a ridiculously hot disco track! “Magnifique” is just that, magnificent! The lyrics are cheeky and fun, wrapped in a soundscape that is pure disco. Turn on the disco ball and let’s dance!
We in the disco community can always count on Igor Gonya to produce top-notch disco tracks, and “Mirdza’s Love” fits right in that category. This has a breezy summer vibe that fits perfectly on the beach or on the dancefloor. With each additional instrument, the song gets sexier and sexier. Very spicy indeed!
Let’s let Anoraak tell us about his latest track: “Bye Now” is a rather intimate song, sort of a pop ballad wearing disco pants. I’m not really about getting into the personal details and the themes behind my lyrics, what I can tell here is what is done can not be undone, so let’s focus on the future. Now it’s open for interpretation.”
Whomever this track was written about, the yacht-disco community thanks you.
Paco Versailles‘ “Black and White” first graced our ears two years ago, so it was especially nice to hear this excellent remix by Will ADLR just in time for summer 2022. ADLR is a young, talented multi-instrumentalist who was able to lay some fresh funk on top of an already classic track. Enjoy this hot take while we wait for the new Paco Versailles album.
Check out the SoundCloud playlist below:
Do you love our Disco and Funk playlists and are hungry for more groove-heavy disco and bass-slapping funk? If so, look below!
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Well, I hope you enjoyed listening to our 15 best Disco and Funk records of May 2022, and I hope you’ve enjoyed the selections.
As always, remember that this is a sampling of the incredible amount of disco and funk music that is in the world right now, so do yourself a favor and explore your favorite streaming services to hear more of this brilliant music! You will be so glad you did!
Dance music lover, Mid-Century Vintage Shop Owner, Magnetic Magazine Disco & Funk Chart Editor.
