In 1983 the group Big Ben Tribe releases a cover of David Bowie's “Heroes” (1977) on Zanza Records. The same year Hipnosis covers Vangelis's “Pulstar” (1976) on Memory Records, and Cockroach covers The Beatles' “Get Back” (1969) on the Out label. Three covers in one year - all on Italian labels. Covers of 80s songs - or more precisely, of songs from the late 60s, 70s and early 80s - became one of the most frequent directions in italo-disco production. The Discogs list “Italo-disco cover versions” contains 500 entries. Why this repertoire was so convenient for reworking is a question not of taste but of technique: harmony, tempo and recognisability.
Simple harmony: four chords and done
Most songs covered in italo-disco are built on simple harmonic progressions. Am-F-C-G - the progression at the heart of dozens of 80s hits, which the article on italo-disco harmony calls one of the genre's fundamentals. Minor keys, four or five chords for the whole song, verse and chorus on one harmonic grid - this description fits both the originals and the covers.
When a producer takes a song with simple harmony and moves it into italo-disco, there is no need to rewrite the chord sequence. It is enough to change the rhythm section: four-on-the-floor beat, eighth-note bass, synth pad. The melody and harmony stay; only the texture changes. This fundamentally simplifies the work: a cover of a song with 12 chords and modulations requires arranging from scratch, a cover of a four-chord song - a rhythm-section reassembly.
Detail: “Bette Davis Eyes” by Jackie DeShannon (1975), which China Town covered in 1983 on the Crash label (DS 005), is a song with minimal chords. “Souvenir” by OMD (1981), which Saxophone covered in 1984 (FDT, FDT 009), is also a simple harmonic cell. “Heroes” by Bowie (1977), covered by Big Ben Tribe (Zanza Records, ZR 120), - two chords in the chorus. The simplicity of the original is the permission to rework.
Tempo 118-128: the dancefloor zone
The classic tempo corridor for disco and italo-disco sits between 110 and 130 beats per minute - explained in detail in the breakdown of the italo-disco chorus and the tempo map. Songs of the 80s that fell into this range were ready for the dancefloor without tempo reworking. Songs outside it - ballads at 70 BPM or fast new wave at 160 BPM - required slowing or speeding, which changed the original's character.
“Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood (1983) - around 120 BPM. “Big In Japan” by Alphaville (1984) - around 126. Both ended up in The Cover Band's medley (Sensation Records, SNS 8002, 1984) without tempo reworking: their original tempo already lay in the dancefloor zone. On the other hand, “Get Back” by The Beatles (1969) - around 120 BPM in the original, but Cockroach (Out, OUT 3001, 1983) added a four-on-the-floor kick-bass, turning rock-and-roll into a disco track. The tempo stayed; the groove changed.
Why exactly 120 is convenient
120 BPM is two beats per second. The resting human pulse is 60-80 beats, with light movement 90-110, walking around 100. 120 BPM corresponds to brisk walking or a light jog: the body feels this tempo as natural. A DJ puts on 120 and the floor starts moving without explanation. 80s songs written in this corridor do not resist transfer to a dance context: their rhythmic physiology matches the physiology of the dancefloor.
A recognisable riff: the first seconds decide
A cover works only when the listener recognises the original in the first seconds. In italo-disco this means the main melodic riff of the original is carried into the new arrangement unchanged. “Pulstar” by Vangelis (1976) - a synth riff that Hipnosis kept in the 1983 cover (Memory Records, MEMIX 002). “Popcorn” by Gershon Kingsley (1969) - a five-note riff that Kuwait carried into italo-disco (Jumbo Records, JU 12008, 1983). “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” by Pink Floyd (1975) - a guitar phrase that Floyd Parson moved into a synth register (Crash, DS 020, 1984).
A riff is an anchor. Without it the cover turns into a standalone song that does not reference the original. With it - into a reworking that the listener identifies. That is why cover producers of the 80s left the riff untouched and changed everything around it: rhythm, bass, timbre, vocals. The structure stayed the same; the texture changed completely.
Original release dates: from 1967 to 1984
The songs Italian producers covered in 1983-1985 span 17 years of pop-music history. “Flash” by Marquis Of Kensington, which Duke Of Burlington reworked in 1983 (Proto Records, NSMIX 2004), was written in 1967 - authors Mike Leander and Robert Wace. “Get Back” by The Beatles, which Cockroach covered in 1983 (Out, OUT 3001), came out in 1969. “Profondo Rosso” by Goblin, which City Center reworked in 1984 (Discomagic Records, MIX 129), is the soundtrack to Dario Argento's film of the same year, written by Giorgio Gaslini. Goblin was an Italian progressive-rock group writing music for horror films; their “Profondo Rosso” theme became one of the most recognisable film scores in Italian music. Moving it into italo-disco is not just a cover but a translation from one Italian genre to another: from giallo-horror to dance music. City Center kept Gaslini's melody and added a four-on-the-floor beat, turning a horror soundtrack into a dancefloor track. “Heroes” by Bowie - 1977. “Souvenir” by OMD, per iTunes, was released on 8 November 1981 on the album “Architecture & Morality”. “Relax” by Frankie Goes to Hollywood - 24 October 1983, album “Welcome to the Pleasuredome”. “Big In Japan” by Alphaville - 5 January 1984, album “Forever Young”.
The closer the original to the moment of the cover, the easier it was to get rights and the higher the recognisability. A cover of a hit two or three years old (Relax 1983 → The Cover Band 1984) is using current material. A cover of a 14-year-old song (Flash 1967 → Duke Of Burlington 1983) is archaeology: the producer brings back something forgotten and gives it new life on the dancefloor.
The cover-label economy
Italian labels of the 80s used covers as a way to fill the catalogue with inexpensive product. A familiar melody required no marketing spend: the DJ picked up the record because he knew the song. Mechanical licence rights cost a fixed royalty, and the production work was one or two studio sessions. The Crash label (a sub-label of Il Discotto) released covers under the DS series: China Town “Bette Davis Eyes” (DS 005, 1983) and Floyd Parson “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” (DS 020, 1984). Time Records - through the Farina-Crivellente-Maiolini team - did the same: Atrium “Legion / Nodisco” (TRD 1017, 1985) packed two covers onto one single. A cover was economically more efficient than an original composition, because recognisability was built into the product in advance.
Which originals were covered most often
According to the Discogs list “Italo-disco cover versions”, the most frequent targets for covers in Italian disco of the 80s:
- David Bowie. “Heroes” (1977) - Big Ben Tribe (1983, Zanza Records, ZR 120). “Starman” (1972) - Loopside (1984).
- Vangelis. “Pulstar” (1976) - Hipnosis (1983, Memory Records, MEMIX 002). “End Title (Blade Runner)” (1982) - on the B-side of the same single.
- Pink Floyd. “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” (1975) - Floyd Parson (1984, Crash, DS 020).
- The Beatles. “Get Back” (1969) - Cockroach (1983, Out, OUT 3001).
- Depeche Mode. “Nodisco” (1981) - Atrium (1985, Time Records, TRD 1017).
- OMD. “Souvenir” (1981) - Saxophone (1984, FDT, FDT 009).
- Goblin. “Profondo Rosso” (1975) - City Center (1984, Discomagic Records, MIX 129).
- Frankie Goes to Hollywood. “Relax” (1983) - The Cover Band (1984, Sensation Records, SNS 8002).
- Alphaville. “Big In Japan” (1984) - The Cover Band (1984, Sensation Records, SNS 8002).
The common feature of these originals: a bright riff, simple harmony, tempo in or close to the 110-130 BPM range. Songs with complex harmonic structure or tempo outside the dancefloor zone almost never appear on the list.
What was not covered
No less telling is the list of what Italian disco did NOT cover. Progressive rock with 15-minute suites, jazz fusion with shifting time signatures, punk at 180 BPM, ballads at 70 BPM - all outside the genre. A cover requires the original to already have traits that can be amplified: dance potential, a recognisable melody, a simple structure. If these traits are absent, the cover is not made - not because the original is bad, but because there is nothing to rework. “Shine On You Crazy Diamond” is a rare exception: Pink Floyd is not a dancefloor band, but Floyd Parson took only the opening riff and turned it into a seven-minute synth track, discarding the middle section with solos and modulations. Of the 13-minute original, a third made it into the cover - the most recognisable part.
For a concrete example, see Disco Magic’s cover of Masterboy’s Feel the Fire. The principle stayed the same - a simple harmonic riff, tempo in the dancefloor zone, recognisability of the first seconds. The material changed; the method did not.
500 entries on the Discogs list “Italo-disco cover versions” are not 500 random choices. They are 500 confirmations that songs of the 70s and 80s with simple harmony, a riff and a tempo of 110-130 are more convenient for reworking than any other repertoire. A cover is not just a new version. It is a structural-strength test of the original: if a song survives a rhythm-section reassembly without losing recognisability, its melody and harmony work independently of the arrangement. And 80s songs pass this test more often than others.