Chic was considered one of the most famous bands of the Disco genre. Even though they worked in a field that was heavily dominated by producers and other various administrators, they were still considered a band. Disco was already heading towards mainstream saturation and an inevitable downfall when Chic appeared in the late ’70s. Chic resisted Disco’s downfall by stripping down Disco to its most basic elements. Their sound was anchored by several different elements such as the scratchy “chunking”-style rhythm guitar of Nile Rodgers, the unforgettable and widely imitated baselines of Bernard Edwards, and the amazing drum skills of Tony Thompson (Jisi). Chic’s new and unique approach resulted in some of the era’s finest singles such as “Le Freak” and “Good Times”. These are only two of several classics from notable albums like C’est Chic (1978) and Risqué (1979). Chic paved the way for the creation of a template for funk, dance-pop, and hip-hop in the post disco era (Huey). By the early 1980’s the Disco phase was beginning to die out, and Chic’s newest album, Real People, failed to “go gold” despite an obviously outstanding performance by the band. While Rodgers and Edwards’ outside production work grew far more lucrative; the changing times and tastes put an end to the road of success the band was on. Several more Chic LP’s followed in the early ’80s; however, Rodgers and Edwards disbanded Chic after completing the album Believer in 1983. Later, Rodgers and Edwards reformed Chic in 1992 with new vocalists Sylver Logan Sharp and Jenn Thomas and several assorted drummers to replace Thompson. They toured around and released a new album, Chic-ism, in 1996. They toured in Japan, but sadly Edwards passed away on April 18th in his hotel room in Tokyo. After the death of Edwards, Rodgers continued to tour with the newly formed band and created several pieces in honor of his fallen friend. Later on, Rodgers collaborated on a series of pieces with Duran Duran and Daft Punk among others (Huey). He later published a memoir, beat cancer, and above all else-kept the Chic name alive. In 2016, Rodgers and Edwards were inducted into the Songwriters Hall of Fame. In 2018, Rodgers completed and released an album, after a very long-in-the-works effort, titled “It’s About Time”.

 

 

Picture: Nile Rodgers Presents The Chic Organization. Amazon, 26 Oct. 2010.