is a concept Disco group formed in the late 1970s. The group is as well known for its on-stage Costume s as for its catchy tunes and suggestive lyrics. The members each dress as a Police Officer , an American Indian chief, a Construction Worker , a member of The Military , a Leatherman ( Biker ), and a Cowboy ; after the release of " In The Navy ", both Victor Willis and Alex Briley appeared temporarily as sailors.
Village People scored a number of Disco and Dance hits, including their trademark " Macho Man ", " Go West ", the classic club medley of "San Francisco (You've got me) / In Hollywood (Everybody is a star)", " In The Navy ", " Can't Stop The Music ", " Sex Over The Phone " and their biggest hit, " Y.M.C.A. ".
Collectively, the Village People have sold 85 million albums and singles. The group also recorded new materials under the name "The Amazing Veepers".
The band was assembled in 1977 by Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo , specifically to showcase and perform their disco music creations.
The original ad for recruiting the group was "Macho Types Wanted: Must Have Moustache" and was placed by Jacques Morali in 1976. Much like Frank Farian 's Boney M or The Spice Girls , the group was manufactured. Despite the French songwriters, the songs were all in English .
The band's name references New York City's Greenwich Village neighborhood, at the time known for having a substantial gay population. Jacques Morali and Henri Belolo got the inspiration for creating an assembly of ''American man'' archetypes based on the gay men of The Village who frequently dressed in various fantasy ways.
Their 1978 song " Y.M.C.A. " made them one of the most successful disco groups.
In 1979, the United States Navy considered using " In The Navy ," another Village People hit, in a recruiting advertising campaign on television and radio. They contacted Belolo, who decided to give the rights for free on the condition that the Navy help them shoot the music video. Less than a month later, Village People arrived at the San Diego Naval base. The Navy provided them with a warship, several aircraft, and hundreds of Navy men. When the video started showing and the Navy started the planned ad campaign, some newspapers protested using taxpayers' money to fund music videos (especially for a group considered by some to be "morally dubious" ). The Navy quickly cancelled the campaign. The scandal tremendously boosted the popularity of the song.
Their fame reached its peak in 1979. The Village People were featured on the cover of '' Rolling Stone '', Vol. 289, April 19 , 1979 .
Victor Willis left the group at the end of 1979, and the group's downfall began. It is debated why he left the group and his drug use at that time was well known. However, in a recent interview with the author of Victor's forthcoming book, Henri Belolo (Jacques Morali's business partner) insists that Victor was not fired. Rather, that he Belolo, and Morali, had big plans for Victor to go solo and that Victor did not care to participate in the movie, ''Can't Stop the Music''. They convinced Victor to at least write a few songs for the movie, which he did before officially leaving the group. Moreover, Victor's website concurs with Henri Belolo's recollection.
The group also appeared in its 1980 feature film '' Can't Stop The Music '', directed by Nancy Walker , written by Allan Carr and Bronte Woodard , music and lyrics by Jacques Morali and starring Steve Guttenberg , Valerie Perrine , Jean-Claude Billmaer , Bruce Jenner , and the Village People. The movie "won" the Worst Picture and Worst Screenplay prizes at the 1980 Golden Raspberry Awards in March 1981 and was nominated in almost all the other categories. Despite that, the song, "Can't Stop The Music" became a Club Play chart hit and moderate radio hit. The soundtrack also featured the talents of "David London," who under his real name Dennis "Fergie" Frederiksen went on to become the future lead singer of Toto and one of the main contributors to the Village People's next album.
In 1981, with the popularity of disco waning and New Wave Music on the rise, Village People replaced its on-stage costumes with a new look inspired by the New Romantic movement, and released the New Wave album '' Renaissance ''; it was a minor success.
Victor Willis returned to the group again in late 1981 for the albums '' Fox On The Box '' and '' In The Street ''.
Although their last album containing new material, the 1985 Dance / Hi-NRG release '' Sex Over The Phone '', was not a huge commercial success, it fared better in sales and club play than their "Renaissance" album. The "Sex Over The Phone" music video, due to the rise of video on the Internet, has become a Viral Video phenomenon.
The Village People took a leave of absence in 1986. They reunited the following year with the line-up of Randy Jones, David Hodo, Felipe Rose, Glenn Hughes, Alex Briley, and Ray Simpson.
- A now rare remix album of their 1970s & early 1980s hits was released in 1989.
- The Village People had a comeback and toured in 1993.
- In 1994, Village People joined the German national football team to sing its official World Cup '94 theme Far Away In America .
- From July 18 to July 20 2004 , Village People performed in Berlin for three shows as an opening act for the German punk band Die Ärzte .
- In 1994, the indie punk rock label Go Kart Records wanted the Village People to release an all Sex Pistols cover album. The group declined. Instead, The Cowboy (Randy Jones) from the group sang Greg Brady 's part on a punk cover of The Brady Bunch classic 'Time To Change'.
- Starting in 2004, Village People performed as the opening act for until it ended in April 2005. It was a highly successful tour for both artists.
- On June 6 2006 Village People were scheduled to be the headline act at Asbury Park 's famous Gay Pride parade and festival.
- On June 20 2006 , Victor Willis, original lead singer, made his first direct statement to the media in over 25 years indicating that the "nightmare of drug abuse" is being lifted from his life and that he looked forward to being released into a residential drug treatment program. Moreover, he apologized to Village People fans for refusing to perform live concerts since leaving Village People. In that same press statement, Victor Willis revealed that a book based on his life as lead singer of Village People is due for release in 2007 and that he plans to return to the stage in mid-2007. On September 5 2006 , Victor Willis was ordered released from custody and into the Betty Ford Center . He was given 3 years probation and ordered to abstain from further use of drugs.
- On July 4 2006 Village People opened for Los Lonely Boys at the Chevy Freedom Over Texas Fourth of July extravaganza.
- On September 4 , 2006 , Village People performed at The 2006 Jerry Lewis MDA Telethon.
- On September 30 , 2006 , Village People performed at Hard Rock Cafe in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic.
- On July 1 , 2007 , Victor Willis announced his first live concert in 28 years, in Las Vegas on August 31 , 2007 .
- In a Mad TV skit featuring Nicole Sullivan as the Vancome Lady, she says to two homosexual parents raising their own children: "It takes a village to raise a child, yes. Not the Village People."
- Anal Cunt has made many references to the Village People in their music, most notably in the song "If You Don't Like The Village People, You're Fucking Gay."
- After being chased into a gay nightclub, the cast of Waynes World get up on stage and perform the song YMCA whilst wearing the costumes.
- U2 pays an ironic homage to Village People by dressing up in similar costumes in the Video for " Discothèque ".
- In the video game '''' in Club Malibu, five men dressed in similar costumes to the Village People are dancing on stage.
- In the early 1990s, British pop group Pet Shop Boys released a successful cover of Village People's ''Go West'' and the song has now become a popular anthem at English football games.
- A parody of Village People (the "Small Town Binomes") made an appearance in the animated series ReBoot , performing a YMCA-style song called BS&P.
- In the television show " 8 Simple Rules "(For Dating My Teenage Daughter), the episode 'Halloween' (Season 3), C.J. has a recurring bad memory of a Halloween party where he was dressed as a cowboy, and seen standing with other kids dressed up in costumes such as a police officer, etc. and is made fun of (quote: "Look! It's the Village People!"). Also, C.J. (now in the present) was hired as a security guard at Bridget, Kerry, and Rory Hennessy's Halloween dance. He was tricked into going on-stage (dressed as a police man) along with four other men who were dressed in the Village People costumes. Rory then loudly announces "Look! It's the Village People!".
- In the Mel Brooks musical movie "The Producers," residents of Roger Debris' home, dressed as the Village People join in the dancing during the song "Keep It Gay"
- In the musical " Spamalot " the lyrics and gay culture association of the song "YMCA" are parodied in the song "His Name is Lancelot" "You can all find him/pumping at the gym/ at the Camelot YMCA!" and "He can finally/come out and say/ that he is G-A-Y...M-C-A!"
- In a "You Can Learn a Lot from a Dummy" PSA from the 1990s, Vince and Larry are driving at night and run into a cardboard cutouts of things like a deer, but also the Village People.
- In the movie "Down Periscope" starring Kelsey Grammar and Lauren Holly as part of a misfit submarine crew, the Village People appear singing "In The Navy" during the closing credits.
- In the movie, '' Elvira's Haunted Hills '', a character tells Elvira that "The village people say this castle is evil.", to which Elvira responds "Eh, who listens to the Village People anymore?".
- In Episode 16 Of Season 3 of House, M.D. , Wilson accuses House of "longing for a new relationship with one of the Village People," and then inadvertently reveals his own in-depth knowledge of the group, saying of the army guy "he's only in the Navy when they sing 'In The Navy.' The rest of the time he's just in generic fatigues."
- Radio shock jock The Greaseman used to joke that he was a member of the group (the construction worker, to be specific) as one of his sketches. The sketch was so believable that the Village People had to post a notice on their Web site, which still remains today:
- ---''"And for the record- NO, The Greaseman was never a member! End of discussion."''
- WMS Gaming produces a Village People themed slot machine called "Village People Party."
- In '' The Simpsons '' episode Simpson Tide , the Village People are depicted dancing on the deck of a submarine as it heads out to sea, while "In The Navy" plays. When the submarine submerges, several of the members' costumes float to the surface.
- When Nacho Novo of Rangers FC scores at Ibrox the chorus ''Macho, Macho Man'' is played over the PA system.
- In Destroy All Humans , when you read one of the townspeople's minds they say they want to start a band with an Indian, a biker, a police officer, a construction worker, and a soldier. Then he goes on by thinking of calling them either the Village Men or the Town People.
- In , during the Opera, Michel Perron playing the role of Luciano Pavarotti sings a rendition of "In the Navy" along with two other singers.
- '''' (1984)
- ''Greatest Hits'' (1988)
- ''Greatest Hits '89 Remixes'' (1989)
- ''The Best Of Village People'' (1994)
- ''The Very Best Of'' (1998)
- ''20th Century Masters, The Millennium Collection...The Best Of Village People'' (2001)
- below are in the current lineup.
- Eric Anzalone --- - the Leatherman/Biker, replacement, since 1995
- G. Jeff Olson --- - the Cowboy, replacement, 1981-1985, 1991- present.
- Ray Simpson --- - the Policeman, replacement, 1979-1982; 1987-present. He was the lead vocalist for '' Can't Stop The Music '' and Its Soundtrack , '' Renaissance '', and select tracks on '' Live And Sleazy '' and '' Fox On The Box '' / '' In The Street ''.
- .
- Ray Stephens - the Policeman, replacement, 1985. He was the lead vocalist on '' Sex Over The Phone ''. He died in 1990.
- Py Douglas - The Policeman. Briefly replaced Ray Stephens in some TV appearances during their ' 85 European tour promoting album '' Sex Over The Phone ''...
- , and '' Sex Over The Phone ''
- Bill Whitefield - the Construction Worker. Made some concert appearances in 2002 and 2003.
- Alex Timmerman - the G.I. Made some concert appearances in 2002.
When performing in other parts of the world the band will open with "Go West" instead of "We're an American Band". In Australia and parts of Asia, "Milkshake" and "Can't Stop The Music" are frequently performed. In Italy the band is asked to perform " 5 O'Clock in The Morning." and "Sex Over The Phone" due to the success over there. Other selections include "Fire Island", "Hot Cop", "Key West", "Rock n Roll is Back", "Ready For The 80's", "Save Me" (done as a ballad with Alexander Briley (G.I.) doing a solo), "Magic Night" and a cover of "Gimmie Some Lovin".
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