Laura Branigan

Let's celebrate the music of Laura Branigan.

I admit to shaking my ass with two hundred other gyrating gays when this was playing in the clubs. You just can't sit still when this is playing.

Cocktail in one hand,poppers in the other,disco fog and colored laser lights .Spinning,spinning,feeling so young,so alive .

Fabulous!! All a guaranteed dance-floor filler......yes disco fog......twirling lights.....

If everybody wants you - why isn't anybody calling?

'Gloria' is one of the best songs of the 80s. I was just a kid at the time, but I remember that song being played everywhere. Laura Branigan was pretty big for a while, then she just seemed to disappear. And then she died, some years ago.

Solitaire was always my favorite

Interesting article about Laura.

I always liked the beginning of Self-Control.

Oh the night, is my world

City lights, painted girls

This was never a big hit for her in the USA, but one of my absolute favourites. Her voice here is amazing.

Self Control is flawless.

I love Stevie Nicks but Laura's version of 'Cry Wolf' is better.

Self Control and Gloria were covers of continental hits by Italian artists. Without that, she would've been remembered as a girl with the shoulders of a waterpolo player and in need of a pair of tweezers for her eyebrows and the pubescent boy moustache.

Hmmm, I bet you dont get invited to many parties R12.

Self-control was the story of my life at one time.

I always thought that she sounded like Donna Summer.

Speaking of Donna Summer, the story goes that she was originally offered Gloria, but she turned it down because this was during the time she became a Born Again Christian and didn't want to sing the sexy songs anymore. So they offered it to Laura. I have no idea if this is true, that's just the story.

There were two or three other songs during this period that I've heard were first offered to Donna but she turned them down, and they became big hits for other artists. I think Call Me (Blondie) was one of them.

I think "I Found Someone" is one of Cher's best songs, but only found out recently that Laura sang it first.

R16 Based on the info about Gloria on Wikipedia (I know, not the most respected source) I'm not sure about that.

But I can "hear" Donna in both songs, totally.

Too bad Donna never covered Gloria, she would've sang the shit out of that song.

I heard her perform it live, at the MTC. I sat still.

Call Me was written by Giorgio Moroder and Debbie Harry. He approached her to write a song as the theme to American Gigilo. He may have asked Donna to write the theme before Debbie, but Donna was never offered Call Me.

She came on the scene about three years too late. She would've easily given Donna a run as the disco queen, she was perfect. Loud, great voice, excellent projection and could sing plus Diane Warren and Michael Bolton to write for her.

Wasn't her husband some rich guy that backed her till she got a hit?

I wonder how many of you I've crossed paths with. We were there listening to the same music going to the same clubs Danceteria Mudd Club Saint Area Private Eyes Pyramid Tunnel Limelight ... Maybe I saw you and thought, Cute! Maybe you danced next to me. Maybe we even fucked.

I miss the 80s and 90s.

She was back up singer to Leonard Cohen in the 70s.

I guess late 70s/early 80s disco-pop (Umberto Tozzi, Giancarlo Bigazzi, Giorgio Moroder) is where it was at then.

I know disco was over by '82, but Gloria seems like the last big pop song that sounded like it was from the disco era.

Huh. I never knew she sang that song first either, r18. You learn something new every day. lol I actually like her version of it better than Cher's. Thanks for posting it. :)

My lesbian gym teacher in elementary school loved Laura Branigan. She would have us do aerobics to Gloria.

Donna had a more powerful voice and was a much better live singer; however, Laura had a smoky/sultry quality to her singing which I really enjoyed. I appreciate and miss them both.

Laura was the first concert I ever attended. It was right when "Branigan 2" was coming out. She came out in a glittery silver top and spandex and I was in heaven.

And it was at the Chateaux de Ville in Framingham, which I thought was the height of elegance at the time.

I still listen to her fairly frequently.

Gloria is my favorite song of all time.

If Brannigan had been a little more attractive, she could have been a bigger star.

I think Gloria is a nice blending of singer and song. Yes, I could hear Donna singing it, but Laura really does the song justice.

My favorite is the excellent, underrated "Moonlight On Water". Can't figure out why it wasn't a hit.

I remember seeing her on "The Tonight Show" during her heyday; I was expecting a raucous extrovert, but she was very shy and timid. Johnny Carson seemed charmed by her.

Laura was in the last bridge over from the 70s, (though she didn't have a hit) which saw the end of singers like ONJ, Diana Ross, Dolly Parton, Juice Newton, Anne Murray, the Pointer Sisters draw to a close for newer singers like Madonna, Whitney, Janet Jackson to take over. Even oldies like the Carpenters and Lulu managed to pull off top 20 hits in the early 80s. Only Sheena Easton managed to span the entire 80s of female singers and then she was gone by the early 90s.

Laura's big early hits were reworks by Diane Warren and others of European songs, which they wrote English lyrics too, like Ti Amo and Solitare.

Laura also had a #11 hit with How Am I Supposed to Live Without You, which writer Michael Bolton took to #1 for himself later on as well as had a top 40 hit with "The Power of Love" which Celine took to #1 in the 90s. So she picked some good songs.

[quote]Only Sheena Easton managed to span the entire 80s of female singers and then she was gone by the early 90s.

Excuse me, bitch?

"Take Me Home" - 1979

"Dead Ringer for Love" - 1981

"I Found Someone" - 1987

"We All Sleep Alone" - 1988

"After All" - 1989

"If I Could Turn Back Time" - 1989

"Just Like Jesse James" - 1989

The American lyrics of Gloria were about a fucked-out old whore and that, along with Laura's voice, made me think she was in her 40s. I was surprised to learn her real age.

The only woman to ever make me doubt my homosexuality. I really thought she was sexy.

She was really awesome in the 80s.

Self Control is a fucking fantastic song. Still love it.

I wanted to see the face of the hot masked guy in Self Control.

I want Kelly clarkson to cover Solitaire.

Love, love,love SOLITAIRE!!!

R31--she was my first concert, too. That same tour as well. I remember the red sparkly top!

It's quite surprising just how her covers of Gloria and Self Control are almost exact re-recordings of the original Italian songs, just with the lyrics reworked. You could almost have used the same instrumental tracks as in the Italian version, with just her voice recorded over them.

Here's the original Gloria by Umberto Tozzi for comparison.

"Don't Cry For Me Argentina"

Spanish Eddie was a personal favorite. The video is so 80s!

She was plenty attractive but her 80s styling wasn't great and she wasn't always at camera ready weight. I can't say that I'm a fan of her tone when belting but "Self Control" is a pop classic. It's much more timeless than the bombastic "Gloria."

Laura Benanti could play her in something.

So many nights ago, I still remember being grabbed by a guy who loved "Gloria" and had to dance. He was quite sexy and he kissed me to say thanks. I've spent many evenings in an altered state since that, but 38 years later I can still remember that thrilling 4 minutes.

Always loved the rich guy in this one....

[Quote] So she picked some good songs.

She took a lot of other people's hits, though. Jennifer Rush had a massive with "The Power of Love" outside the US. Those songs were tried and tested.

Wasn't her SNL appearance supposed to have been a vocal disaster?

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