Big in India

Last weekend when I was running around my apartment all crazy looking for a suitably dry white wine to throw in the fondue pot, my pal Tyler did me the favor of putting on a new record. He picked at random and on popped Boney M Night Flight to Venus, and all the kids wanted to know who it was

In the late 70's Boney M were like super-mega-ultra stars in Europe and the Soviet Union and Southeast Asia and all over the world really, but relatively unknown in the states. So while your average foreigner knows and loves Boney M (they are the featured act to wrap up this years International Film Festival of India), their kitschy retro-futuristic pan-continental discofunk is new territory for many. Some superfun tracks from Night Flight to Venus(1978):

Boney M - Night Flight to Venus
Boney M - Rasputin
Boney M - Painter Man
Boney M - By the Rivers of Babylon

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Bonerus:

Boney M was put together in 1975 by German producer Frank Farian after his song "Baby do you Wanna Bump" became a hit in parts of Europe - he needed a group to present to the media and perform live etc, so rounded up some West Indian dancers and called them Boney M. Interestingly, this wasn't the only time this guy ghostwrote - he was also the mastermind behind the whole Milli Vanilli controversy. Can't really blame the guy - he presaged the wildly successful forumula that is a staple of (bad) pop music today - get talented people to write and record music for a marketable performer type who takes all the credit.

Boney M - Baby do you Wanna Bump