A highlight of Eurovision 2022's first semi-final was the interval act paying tribute to Italian disco. Featured were Italian songwriter and producer Dardust (Dario Faini), Italian DJ Benny Benassi (Marco Benassi) and British group Sophie and the Giants.
Whilst some of the songs featured were instantly recognisable to those of us over a certain age, for the benefit of our younger viewers here is a complete list of the songs in the order they featured -
'Horizon In Your Eyes' - Dardust
The most recent single release from Dardust especially for this Eurovision performance. Dardust has worked with some of Italian music's biggest names and was the co-writer of Mahmood's 2019 Eurovision runner-up 'Soldi'.
'Chase' - Giorgio Moroder
Featuring on the soundtrack of 1978 film 'The Midnight Express', 'Chase' reached a peak of Number 26 on the Australian charts in 1979.
It is difficult to summarise Italian producer Moroder's contribution to music in just a few sentences. He has won three Academy Awards, four Grammy Awards and four Golden Globe Awards for his film scores and original soundtracks and is behind some of the world's most recognisable songs including -
'On The Radio' - Donna Summer (1979)
'Call Me' - Blondie (1980)
'Together in Electric Dreams' - Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder (1984)
'The NeverEnding Story' - Limahl (1984)
'Danger Zone' - Kenny Loggins (1986)
'Take My Breath Away' - Berlin (1986)
He has even collaborated with our very own Kylie Minogue and Sia and is still co-writing and producing today at the age of 82.
'Tenebre' - Goblin
Made up of Claudio Simonetti, Fabio Pignatelli, and Massimo Morante, Goblin was an Italian progressive rock band known for their film scores. 'Tenebre' is from the soundtrack to Dario Argento's thriller of the same name, first released as an album in 1982.
'Blue (Da Ba Dee)' - Eiffel 65/Gabry Ponte
Italian group Eiffel 65 had a massive worldwide hit with 'Blue (Da Ba Dee)' in 1999. It reached Number 1 in 18 countries including Australia and was our third highest selling single of that year. Amazingly the song never topped the charts in Italy, where it peaked at Number 2. Eiffel 65 also composed 'Living In My City', the official song of the 2006 Winter Olympics which were held in our Eurovision host city of Torino!
'L'amour toujours' - Gigi D'Agostino
Released in 2000 by Italian DJ Gigi D'Agostino (Luigino Celestino di Agostino), 'L'amour toujours' reached Number 1 in Denmark, The Netherlands and Romania and peaked at Number 6 in Italy. In 2018, D'Agostino partnered with Lithuanian DJ Dynoro on a cover of 'In My Mind' by Australian house music producers Ivan Gough and Feenixpawl which sampled 'L'amour toujours'. Dynoro and D'Agostino's version peaked at Number 7 on the Australian ARIA chart in 2018.
'Children' - Robert Miles
'Children' from the 'Dreamland' album was a massive hit for Italian record producer Robert Miles (Roberto Concina) in 1996. The single achieved Gold certification status in Australia and peaked at Number 5 on the Australian ARIA chart. It reached Number 1 in more than 12 countries and was the highest selling single in Europe in 1996. Miles went on to release four more albums but sadly passed away in 2017 after battling cancer.
'Satisfaction' - Benny Benassi
'Satisfaction' was Benassi's debut single release and reached Number 10 on the Australian ARIA chart in 2003 achieving Gold certification status. It charted in multiple countries around the world and reached Number 1 on the Australian and UK Dance charts. It remains his most successful single and has been used in several advertisements and video games including 'Just Dance 2'.
Apart from being successful in his own right, Benassi has worked with some of music's biggest names and is known for his remixes of popular club tracks. He even produced Eurovision host Mika's duet with Chiara, 'Stardust' from 'The Origin of Love' album in 2012.
'Golden Nights' - Sophie and the Giants, Benny Benassi, Dardust, Astrality
Released in November of 2021, 'Golden Nights' is all about getting lost in the moment with someone special. Sophie and the Giants lead singer Sophie Scott told The Groove Cartel -
"I wanted this song to help people forget the world around them. It’s about those moments when the only thing that matters is you and them."
In 2020 Sophie and the Giants had a massive hit in Europe with 'Hypnotized', their Italian disco inspired collaboration with German DJ Purple Disco Machine. The track was particularly successful in Italy where it went triple platinum. In 2021 they collaborated with Italian singer Michele Bravi on 'Falene' which even features Sophie singing in Italian.
Joining Sophie and the Giants, Benny Benassi and Dardust on 'Golden Nights' is Italian electronic music artist Astrality (Daniele Cataneo) who has released several singles since 2020.
If you loved Dance of Beauty you can watch it again below -