In 1977, in a small Atlanta studio, two songwriters created something they never intended to be a disco classic. Alicia Bridges and her writing partner Susan Hutcheson penned a song called "Disco 'Round"—an R&B number about telling off a man and heading out to dance away the frustration. They imagined it as something soulful, maybe even something Al Green might sing.
The universe had other plans.
Bridges had been performing since she was a child in Lawndale, North Carolina. At just twelve years old, she hosted her own radio show. By thirteen, she was fronting bands in rough local clubs, learning to survive in tough environments while honing her craft. She recorded a couple of singles in 1973 that went nowhere, but her talent caught the attention of Bill Lowery, a legendary Atlanta music producer who would become her manager.
When Lowery heard the song Bridges and Hutcheson had written, he heard something different than they did. Where they heard Memphis soul, he heard disco gold. Producer Steve Buckingham suggested retitling it "I Love the Nightlife," keeping "Disco 'Round" as a subtitle. They reworked the arrangement, adding that distinctive organ sound and a driving backbeat that would make club DJs go wild.
Bridges later admitted she had hoped for a soul hit, not a disco phenomenon. Hutcheson was even blunter, telling a music magazine that she didn't actually care for discos at all—the nightlife they loved was the quiet creativity of working late at night, not the throbbing dance floor.
Released in 1978 on Polydor Records, "I Love the Nightlife" became what's known in the industry as a "sleeper hit." It didn't explode immediately but built momentum through dance club support. The twelve-inch remix by Jim Burgess turned it into a worldwide club sensation. The song spent an impressive twenty-seven weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, eventually peaking at number five. It also climbed the disco charts, the soul charts, and even got airplay on country stations—a true crossover phenomenon.
The success was bittersweet for Bridges, who actively resisted being labeled a disco artist. She refused to record a full disco album, insisting her artistic vision was rooted in R&B, rock, and blues. Her follow-up single "Body Heat" was a rock song with heavy guitar, reflecting her true musical identity. It stalled at number eighty-six. The music industry wanted disco Alicia Bridges; she wanted to be anything but.
After two unsuccessful albums, Bridges left major label recording and eventually took a job as a DJ at Atlanta dance clubs. The irony was inescapable—the woman who detested disco, spinning records at the Atlanta Eagle on Ponce de Leon Avenue.
Then came 1994 and "The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert." The Australian film featured "I Love the Nightlife" prominently on its soundtrack, introducing the song to a new generation. The movie's celebration of drag culture and LGBTQ+ identity gave the song new meaning. Bridges, an openly lesbian artist, found her disco anthem had become beloved in gay culture, where it remains a fixture today.
The renewed interest brought Bridges back to performing, appearing at retro disco shows throughout the late nineties. The song found the charts again—reaching number four in New Zealand and number five in Iceland on its re-release. It has been featured in countless films and TV shows, from "Love at First Bite" to "The Simpsons."
One of the stranger footnotes to the story: in 1983, a woman was arrested in Nashville for impersonating Bridges at a country music convention. Bridges had to drive from Atlanta to testify, revealing she'd been plagued by imposters for five years. Even people pretending to be her couldn't escape the shadow of that one massive hit.
Today, "I Love the Nightlife" stands as a perfect example of art transcending its creator's intentions. Bridges wrote a soul song that became a disco classic. She wanted artistic credibility and got a party anthem. She disliked discos but created one of disco's most enduring anthems. The song found its truest home not in the genre or demographic its creators intended, but in the hearts of a community that embraced its message of liberation and joy.
Alicia Bridges eventually retired to Charlotte, North Carolina, and founded her own music publishing company in 2006. She never duplicated the success of "I Love the Nightlife," joining the ranks of legendary one-hit wonders whose single song touched more lives than most artists' entire careers.
Sometimes the greatest art happens when the universe overrides your intentions, when a song finds its own destiny beyond what you imagined. Alicia Bridges wanted to make soul music. Instead, she made something that made the whole world dance—whether she liked it or not.
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