One of the characteristics of early disco was the album-length dance track. Some of them became hugely successful.

The classic story says DJs would play these long tracks in their entirety to give themselves time to go to the toilet… etc. But in my experience, dancefloor crowds tend to get bored if the same record runs for too long.

So one of the questions that fascinates me is: how long did DJs actually leave them on?

And if they only played part of it, which part exactly?

One of those deeper questions about the genre and nightclub practice that keeps a disco head like me curious 😁

One of the best examples is the Romeo & Juliet album by Alec R. Costandinos — the classic story told as a 30+ minute disco symphony, spread across two album sides.

It was side one that became the most popular on dancefloors.

And on this day in 1979 the album reached #1 on the Billboard Dance chart.

Did you know this one?