AUTHORITATIVE | CURATED | First 500 words Free

Personalities | Chic | Seventies | Rock

(Vocal/instrumental group, 1976–83, 1990–92, 1996, 1998–present)

Chic were a disco outfit built around the songwriting and production team of Nile Rodgers (guitar) and Bernard Edwards (bass), who were originally part of a New York rock band but changed direction when unable to secure a record deal. Chic evolved from demos recorded by the pair that formed the basis of their first album Chic (1977), for which drummer Tony Thompson and singer Norma Jean Wright were drafted in. Lead-off single ‘Dance, Dance, Dance (Yowsah, Yowsah, Yowsah)’ was a smash. Additional vocalist Luci Martin was added as Chic went on tour.

C’est Chic (1978) and Risqué (1979) were textbook examples of disco, spawning massive hit singles in ‘Le Freak’, ‘I Want Your Love’ and ‘Good Times’. The latter became the rhythmic base for the early rap/hip hop song ‘Rapper’s Delight’ by the Sugarhill Gang. Chic drifted apart in the early 1980s but reformed in 1990. Edwards died in 1996.

Source: The Definitive Illustrated Encyclopedia of Rock, general editor Michael Heatley

AUTHORITATIVE

An extensive music information resource, bringing together the talents and expertise of a wide range of editors and musicologists, including Stanley Sadie, Charles Wilson, Paul Du Noyer, Tony Byworth, Bob Allen, Howard Mandel, Cliff Douse, William Schafer, John Wilson...

CURATED

Classical, Rock, Blues, Jazz, Country and more. Flame Tree has been making encyclopaedias and guides about music for over 20 years. Now Flame Tree Pro brings together a huge canon of carefully curated information on genres, styles, artists and instruments. It's a perfect tool for study, and entertaining too, a great companion to our music books.