Instant Disco History #8 – Disco Lucy

I’m sorry to do this to you, but history is sometimes ugly.

Cheesy and annoyingly catchy, the discofied theme song from I Love Lucy reached #24 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1976. A one-off hit from a group of studio musicans that dubbed themselves Wilton Street Place Band, Disco Lucy was produced by Trevor Lawrence, who recruited Lynda Lawrence (his wife) and Sandray Tucker to perform the vocals. (Yes, vocals. But not the lyrics that Desi Arnaz used that time he sang I Love Lucy And She Loves Me on the show.) Lydna was a Supreme for about 10 minutes during the 70’s and at the time of this recording she and Sandray were touring as Stevie Wonder’s backup singers, “Wonderlove”.

According to legend, Lucille Ball herself heard Disco Lucy while at Studio 54 and reportedly loved it. Desi Arnaz was so pleased to have the copyright income, he made plans to record an entire album of disco versions of other songs from the show, such as Babalu, but this thankfully never came to pass. File Disco Lucy under “Disco/Funny/Mistakes.”

Disco Lucy, Island Records, 1976.
Download Disco Lucy here.

Trivia I: The 12″ single of Disco Lucy was the first 12″ from Island Records.

Triva II: Lynda Lawrence currently performs with FLOS, Former Ladies Of the Supremes, whose website notes that they are “graciously endorsed by Diana Ross.” I love it.