Thanks Bob, for unearthing Isaac Hayes' Theme from The Men. I had completely forgotten about it, and then I started thinkin'. When pop experts start debating about why disco arose in the mid-'70s, most of them will mention two major influences: (1) the music played in New York's gay nightclubs and (2) the increasing orchestration in R&B tunes during the early '70s. But another big source--often overlooked--comes from the slick, action-packed soundtracks of police/detective TV shows and blaxploitation flicks of the era. And Isaac's music amply covers the two latter influences. If anyone pioneered what would become known as disco, it was Mr. Hayes. You can easily hear it in the Theme from Shaft, and even more so in this follow-up. In many ways his records are several years ahead of their time and are the earliest resemblance and the closest thing to disco before disco. J
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