Gat Decor
| Gat Decor | |
|---|---|
| Genres | Progressive house |
| Years active | 1992–1997 |
| Website | www |
| Members | Simon Slater, Lawrence Nelson, Simon Hanson |
Gat Decor (or Gat Décor) is the a house music production team best known for the 1992 song "Passion". The song is considered to be one of the best-known works of the early progressive house genre.
The main contributor of the team is the British DJ and producer, Simon Slater with Lawrence Nelson and Simon Hanson.[1] The name 'Gat Decor' was derived from an anagram of 'Tag Records', a record store based in Soho, London.
Although Gat Decor does not have an extensive catalog (two proper singles and a handful of remixes), the act and "Passion" are widely considered influential to dance music in the early 1990s;[citation needed] and Slater still operates a Gat Decor website and continues to license "Passion".
"Passion"
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"Passion" is Gat Decor's best-known work. Originally released in 1992 on Effective Records, the 12-inch single contained the original, instrumental version (The Naked Mix) along with Darren Emerson's remix on the B-side. This was Emerson's first remix. The 1992 release was an immediate success in underground dance clubs, and eventually became a hit on the UK Singles Chart, peaking at number 29.[2] "Passion" is notably one of the first songs to be referred to as "progressive house", utilizing a heavy bassline and a distinctive "piano-house" progression in its second half.[citation needed] The piano line was played by a session musician.[1] The Roland TB-303 is also used. Nick Warren has described the single as one of the first to create a distinctive British house sound.[1]
Since its original release, "Passion" has been officially and unofficially re-issued several times. Remixed by East London DJ Mervyn Victor[citation needed] after playing it live in the mix for several years he finally put out a few DJ only copies in 1994 on vinyl calling it "Degrees of Passion". This was a version of the 1992 seven-minute instrumental with a mixed in vocal from "Do You Want It Right Now?" by Degrees of Motion featuring Biti. The vocal used from Degrees of Motion was sang by Biti Strauchn[3] At the time nearly every major DJ in the UK jumped on it making it a cult hit.[citation needed] In 1996 a four-minute version subtitled the "Do You Want It Right Now Mix", featured a new version of the "Do You Want It Right Now" vocal recorded by Beverley Skeete peaked at number six in the UK.[2]
As of 2008, countless bootlegs have been released, consisting of remixes and other mash-ups. The track has appeared on an abundance of compilation albums and DJ-mix sets (both official and unofficial). Other producers who have mixed the song throughout the years include Junior Vasquez and DJ Chus.
In 1996, Mixmag magazine ranked the 1992 single number 33 on their list of the "50 Most Influential Records of All Time". In addition, Mixmag (and their readers) ranked "Passion" number 22 on Mixmag's list of "100 Best Dance Singles of All Time".
The track, in both its original and various bootleg forms, is still widely played in nightclubs to this day.
Discography
Singles
- 1992 "Passion" (#29 UK)
- 1996 "Passion" (remix) (#6 UK)
- 1996 "In the Head" / "Barefoot in the Head"[2]
Remixes
- 1992 Euphoria "Love You Right"
- 1992 The Odd Company "Swing in Trance"
- 1992 D'lusion "Take You There"
- 1993 Latitude "Building a Bridge"
- 1993 JFK "Here They Come Again"
- 1993 Country & Western "Positive Energy"
- 1994 Jean Michel Jarre "Chronologie"
- 1994 The Good Strawberries "Eyes on a Summer Day"
