Date: Jan 15, 1977
Weeks: 1
This song is steeped in that 70s disco sound. It includes just about every 70s trope that bugs me.
The worst part for sure is the falsetto singing. I don't understand the popularity. I went to do some research on why it was so popular in the 70s and just came away with a list of male vocalists who employed falsetto in songs I enjoyed, Prince being the most notable example. So maybe it's not the falsetto itself but its application that bugs me. Certainly, this song is at its best during the brief moments when Sayer drops the falsetto and sings in his normal range. I still don't know why it was so popular in the 70s, though. Is it merely about 70s nostalgia for the 50s (as evidenced by Grease and Happy Days)?
The music is similarly mixed. Oddly, at the exact same moments that Sayer is singing in falsetto, the music is light and uninteresting, with very slight guitar, bass, and drums. But when he drops to his normal range the bass and drums kick into gear. That part of the song is really enjoyable. Specifically, the bits just before the chorus and just at the end of the chorus are really entertaining. That part of the song really works, and I almost fool myself into thinking I like the song overall. Unfortunately, they are far too few and far between.
The bridge is where the song could have saved itself, but instead they just have Sayer sing "doot do doo" over the same dull instrumentation that is otherwise terrible throughout. Late in the song they tack on some strings, too. I think it's supposed to make the song feel grander, but really it just makes it sound like every other disco-influenced song from the 70s.
The lyrics are basically an Usher-style falling-in-love-in-a-dance-club premise, about 30 years before Usher started making them. Leo Sayer doesn't use the words "dance club," but he does say "I don't want to go home" and "I can't get off of the floor." So he's clearly dancing at a disco. And why doesn't he want to stop? "You really slipped me a potion" and, of course, the title, "You make me feel like dancing." He's in love at the dance club, although admittedly the song could just as easily be about the person he came with, rather than someone he just met. So, I suppose the meaning is clear, but the lyrics aren't particularly clever or deep or interesting.
My verdict: Don't like it. I'd like to hear the part of the song where Sayer drops the falsetto and the music picks up expanded, but the rest of the song doesn't work for me.
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