![]() Santa Esmeralda may be remembered as nothing more than a novelty band - a product of its generation at a time when outrageousness ruled - but at least the band took a stab at creating something different. The closing 'Hey! Gip,' covering one of Donovan's most hallowed oldies, is probably best forgotten. 'Dance You Down Tonight' is pure disco, but pulls out a few funk stops on the way, while the ballad 'Nothing Else Matters' takes the preceding frenzy down a notch. That song segues into the accompanying 'Quasimodo Suite,' making up a luxurious first side that completely overshadows the three tracks on the flip. Odd, but oddly compelling at the same time. And, although the strains of the aforementioned 'Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' do percolate up from the depths at times, 'Rising Sun' ultimately comes off like a spaghetti Western crossed with Saturday Night Fever. Keeping the crunch of the guitar and adding a disco beat and a horn section that crosses the border, the performance is anything but another tired old cover. 'The House of the Rising Sun,' the same band's first international smash, certainly reinvented the classic sound. Having already assumed the onerous task of revamping the Animals' classic 'Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood' for the disco market - and making a success of it - Santa Esmeralda once again tackled the classics within this novel set. ![]() Don't Be Shy Tonight, Hush and Green Talisman marked the band's foray into experimentation with a wider variety of sounds including reggae. In 1981, Skorsky produced Hush and 1982's Green Talisman. In 1980, the group released Don't Be Shy Tonight as internal conflict started to form between the producers of the group, this time scoring a hit with 'C'est Magnifique'. The album featured extensive writing from Goings which would continue for the rest of the band's existence. Following the success of their first two albums, they had a minor club hit with their 1978 album Beauty, and returned to the disco Top 20 with 'Another Cha-Cha/Cha-Cha Suite', which peaked at #16 in 1979. In addition to their contribution to that hit soundtrack, their album The House of the Rising Sun also appeared on the pop and black charts that year. In 1978 they recorded the song 'Sevilla Nights' for the Thank God It's Friday soundtrack. ![]() In late 1977 Santa Esmeralda scored a top 20 disco hit with a dance version of another song made famous by The Animals, 'The House of the Rising Sun'. After the band's first album, singer Jimmy Goings was brought in to replace Leroy Gomez. ![]()
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