Record Mirror Disco Charts

Mike Atkinson

Greg Wilson, Mike Atkinson and a special guest discuss a randomly selected Record Mirror Disco Top 20, from any week between 1975 and 1989. These charts were compiled by dancefloor reaction reports, sent in by DJs from across the UK. We'll also look at how they were reviewed at the time by Record Mirror's legendary James Hamilton, whose columns from this period have been published in book form as James Hamilton’s Disco Pages 1975-1982 and James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989. Each episode comes with its own playlist, so that you can listen to all the tracks continuously.

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19 episodes
Updated Thursday

Episodes19

Newest first

Thursday · 2 hr 20 min
23rd November 1985, with Luke Una
By late 1985, Luke Una had started to immerse himself in dance music and club culture – initially in his native Sheffield, just ahead of a move to Manchester – and so many of the tunes in this chart served to lay the foundations for his pioneering and influential DJ career. At the end of a year largely dominated by glossy, polished, but still fairly orthodox soul/funk productions (some of which appear here), new shoots were emerging that would grow into street soul, garage and house, while hip hop was on the brink of a commercial rebirth, and Washington DC go go influences were seeping into other areas. Social commentary “message songs” were popular with some, while others were seeking out a more elemental, stripped-down sound, via fully instrumental tracks and dub remixes. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: * other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) * random monthly megamixes, 1975-1989 Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Record Mirror Disco Charts mugs and T-shirts are available from our merchandise store. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
June 29 · 2 hr 21 min
11th February 1984, with Kerri Chandler
As the son of a New Jersey DJ, Kerri Chandler started mixing records in public in his early teens, and so many of the tunes in this chart – published when he was 14 years old – are part of the soundtrack of his formative years. Then again, as we discover, there was often a disparity between the UK and the USA in terms of which tunes became successful: a high-charting track on the Record Mirror chart was sometimes only a minor entry on the Billboard chart, and some of the biggest tunes in New York were ignored by British DJs. In this chart, more traditional post-disco soul/funk material was being challenged by the continuing wave of electro-funk releases, with breakdancing becoming so popular that even our future king tried joining in. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: * other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) * random monthly megamixes, 1975-1989 Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Record Mirror Disco Charts mugs and T-shirts are available from our merchandise store. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 29 · 1 hr 45 min
9th May 1987, with Mark Moore
A year before his first single "Theme From S-Express" topped the UK charts, Mark Moore was DJ-ing at Philip Sallon's Mud Club, and at Pyramid (formerly Asylum), Heaven's midweek alternative gay night. He joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson to take a look at a Record Mirror Disco Top 20 from May 1987: a time where London was still "rap city", while the rest of the country was becoming a "house nation". You can see both factions in this chart, as old school hip hop mingles with Chicago jack tracks, and "rare groove" funk rubs shoulders with modern funk. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: * other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) * random monthly megamixes, 1975-1989 Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Record Mirror Disco Charts mugs and T-shirts are available from our merchandise store. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
April 30 · 2 hr 21 min
18th March 1989, with Simon Dunmore
Before co-founding Defected Records in 1999 and Glitterbox in 2014, Simon Dunmore was working behind the counter at Rayners Lane’s Record & Disco Centre in 1989, where James Hamilton was one of his regular weekly customers. In this Club Chart Top 20 from March 1989, you'll hear about some of the tunes that opened Simon's ears to soulful garage house, which was in the ascendancy in the aftermath of 1988's acid house explosion. Hip house was also exploding around this time, while hip hop and street soul tunes were also charting. Simon was in the thick of it all, receiving all the hot new imports and serving DJs and dance music specialists alike, so he is able to speak with authority on the records, and with passion for the music. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. NEW: Record Mirror Disco Charts Merchandise Store Further listening: * other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) * random monthly megamixes, 1975-1989 Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
March 31 · 2 hr 6 min
8th January 1983, with Colin Curtis
Colin Curtis joins Greg WIlson and Mike Atkinson for a countdown of the first Disco Top 20 of 1983: a time when electro-funk was in the ascendant, and even long-established soul/funk acts were incorporating electronic elements. Scratching was this month's new thing; jazz-funk was on the wane, club hits weren't always guaranteed pop crossover hits, a superstar's follow-up was briefly struggling, and a couple of formative underground classics from the 1970s were being repurposed to new audiences. In the vanguard as ever, as he had been since starting his career in 1967, Colin was breaking new tunes at places like Manchester Ritz, Birmingham Powerhouse and Nottingham Rock Citty, and embracing the changes as eagerly as he had done at Blackpool Mecca with Ian Levine, before pivoting to jazz dance, electro and eventually early Chicago house. Always a tastemaker and never a follower, he casts an expert eye on a chart that reflects an ever-changing scene, at a particularly transitional time. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
February 26 · 2 hr 49 min
4th October 1986, with Graeme Park
Graeme Park joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a look at the dance music of October 1986: a time when Graeme was the resident weekend DJ at The Garage in Nottingham, blending Chicago house with hip hop, soul/funk and Washington DC go go. Listed in James Hamilton's columns as the first British DJ to routinely feature house music in his sets, Graeme provides us with expert guidance through this eclectic era, with stories to tell and memories to share. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
January 29 · 2 hr 47 min
10th September 1988, with Lisa Loud
Having spent all of summer 1987 in Ibiza, dancing to Alfredo at Amnesia and experiencing an epiphany, Lisa Loud returned to London with a new-found determination to break into the music industry. By the time of this chart, she was DJ-ing at major venues and working in promotions for Virgin Records, where she was responsible for breaking acts such as Neneh Cherry, Massive Attack, Soul II Soul, and the act at Number One on this particular Club Chart. While the first wave of acid house was reaching its peak, Lisa was also travelling around the UK, delivering acetates to tastemaker DJs and generally "having the time of my life". Joining Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for our first episode based on the second volume of James Hamilton's columns, Lisa guides us through a pivotal time for UK club culture, where acid house, hip hop, soul, funk and Balearic beats intermingled, and sampling was rife, as yet unburdened by copyright concerns. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode (YouTube) Further reading: * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Dec 30, 2025 · 1 hr 37 min
26th May 1979, with Bill Brewster
Bill Brewster – DJ, writer, music consultant and dance music historian – joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a look at the Record Mirror Disco Chart of 26th May 1979. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: * Other tracks mentioned in this episode (Spotify) * James Hamilton at Gullivers, 18 August 1979 Further reading: * James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) * James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) * Bill Brewster on Patreon Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Nov 28, 2025 · 2 hr 25 min
12th April 1980, with John Morales
John Morales - remixer, producer, DJ, and best known in the 1980s for his M&M mixes with the late Sergio Munzibai - joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a look at the Record Mirror Disco Chart of 12th April 1980. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode. Further reading:James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Coming soon: James Hamilton's Dance Pages 1983-1989 (800 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Oct 31, 2025 · 2 hr 6 min
17th July 1976, with Peter Hook
Peter Hook (Joy Division, New Order, The Light) joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a countdown of a Record Mirror Disco Top 20 from the fabled long hot summer of 1976. As the country sweltered, Peter was finding his true path, having witnessed the Sex Pistols at Manchester’s Lesser Free Trade Hall a month earlier. Meanwhile, this chart mixes pop and rock crossover hits with disco classics, funk tracks, three slowies and a couple of obscurities. But can we persuade Greg to bring back the “erection section”? The campaign starts here… To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode. Further reading:James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Sep 29, 2025 · 1 hr 54 min
8th May 1982, with Arthur Baker
For our second visit to 1982, Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson are joined by Arthur Baker: producer, remixer, songwriter, DJ, and one of the prime architects of electro-funk (Planet Rock, Walking On Sunshine, Play At Your Own Risk, Confusion, IOU etc). In this Top 20 countdown, we can see these electronic elements starting to emerge, with some well-established funk acts already embracing the changes. Elsewhere, jazz-funk and Britfunk rub shoulders with pop crossovers, in a typically diverse snapshot of the times. Along the way, Arthur shares memories of the Paradise Garage, Better Days, a pre-fame Madonna, and collaborations with Tee Scott, Leee John, New Order and many more key figures of the era. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode. Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Greg Wilson's interview with Arthur Baker (2022) Arthur Baker: Looking For The Perfect Beat (Faber, 2025) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Aug 28, 2025 · 2 hr 24 min
25th April 1981 Futurist/Electro-Disco, with DJ Paulette
DJ Paulette joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a detailed look at the last of James Hamilton's short-lived Futurist/Electro-Disco charts, from April 1981. Not only an award-winning DJ, but also a writer and broadcaster, Paulette's earliest clubbing roots lie within the Futurist/New Romantic scene, in which she was an active and enthusiastic participant. This gives her a unique personal insight into an era when electronics, fashion and politics combined in radical new ways, and when our future fascinated us more than our past. To accompany our discussion, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode.(Spotify) Further reading 1) Welcome To the Club: The Life and Lessons of a Black Woman DJ (DJ Paulette, 2024) Further reading 2) James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982.(550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jul 31, 2025 · 1 hr 37 min
2nd September 1978, with Irvine Welsh
Irvine Welsh joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson to take a look at a Disco Chart from September 1978: a time when, in the wake of Saturday Night Fever's enormous success, certain UK DJs were starting to plot a different way forwards, with jazz-funk in particular emerging as a significant new force. As we discover, many of these US tunes, although huge on British dancefloors, did not enjoy the same success in their home country. Dividing his time between London punk clubs and Saturday night discos, Irvine straddled both worlds, at ease with their supposed cultural contradictions. To accompany his new book Men In Love - which picks up where Trainspotting left off, charting its central characters' progress through the late 1980s - Irvine has released a soundtrack album, accompanied by his Sci-Fi Soul Orchestra, which sets the characters' stories to lushly orchestrated soulful disco, inspired by the classic sound of Chic and Philadelphia International. During the episode, you'll also get to hear more about how this musical project came together. To accompany our discussion, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode.(Spotify) Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982.(550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jun 25, 2025 · 1 hr 47 min
28th June 1975, with Alexis Petridis
To mark the 50th anniversary of James Hamilton's first Disco Page in Record Mirror, Alexis Petridis (head rock & pop critic for The Guardian) joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a countdown of the first ever Disco Chart that James compiled, based on DJ returns from around the UK. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode.(Spotify) // Bob Stanley's Hot Chocolate playlist (Spotify) Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982.(550 page hardback book) // Guardian feature on James Hamilton, by Alexis Petridis Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
May 29, 2025 · 1 hr 53 min
25th July 1981, with Leee John
Leee John joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a Disco Chart Top 20 countdown from July 1981. Already a committed clubber and an active member of the Britfunk community, Leee had just started to find success with his band Imagination, who had been signed to Morgan Khan’s R&B label, and so he has vivid memories of this particular period: a transitional time, when the disco era had ended, the electronic era had yet to emerge, but the beat went on, with a focus on skilled musicianship and carefully crafted production. And as always, you'll also get to hear what Record Mirror's James Hamilton thought of each track that we discuss. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982 (550 page hardback book) Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Apr 23, 2025 · 1 hr 50 min
8th December 1979, with Morgan Khan
Morgan Khan joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson for a countdown of the biggest dance tracks of December 1979. As the disco backlash was taking hold in the USA, British dancefloors were experiencing a shift in styles, as dance music started to prepare itself tor the 1980s. Already a key figure in the UK music industry, well ahead of his success with the Street Sounds compilations that cemented his reputation, Morgan provides us with a unique first hand account of the era. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode; Street Sounds Radio. Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982; Greg Wilson interviews Morgan Khan. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Mar 26, 2025 · 1 hr 22 min
24th September 1977, with Jeff Young
Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson are joined by Jeff Young: "funk mafia" DJ, presenter of BBC Radio One's first ever specialist dance music show, remixer, studio owner and music industry professional. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode. Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Feb 27, 2025 · 1 hr 52 min
20th September 1980, with Dave Lee
Dave Lee joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson, for a look at the biggest UK dance tunes of September 1980. To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Further listening: other tracks mentioned in this episode. Further reading: James Hamilton's Disco Pages 1975-1982. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
Jan 29, 2025 · 1 hr 25 min
28th August 1982, with Norman Cook
Norman Cook joins Greg Wilson and Mike Atkinson, as we take a detailed look at what was happening on UK dancefloors in August 1982: a time of significant change, as the dominant post-disco sounds (retrospectively known as "boogie") were starting to make way for groundbreaking - and divisive - electronic innovations. With underground import tracks rubbing shoulders with crossover pop hits, this particular Record Mirror Disco Top 20 offers a fascinating snapshot of the period. Along the way, you'll also hear about Norman's beginnings as a DJ, and about the early influences that shaped his future career as Fatboy Slim. Meanwhile, as someone who was playing these tunes at the time, at major venues such as Wigan Pier and Legend in Manchester, Greg draws on his own experience and knowledge to place this music in its proper historical context. You'll also hear how these records were reviewed in Record Mirror at the time by Mike's stepfather, the legendary James Hamilton, whose columns from this period have recently been published in book form as James Hamilton’s Disco Pages 1975-1982. . To accompany this episode, you can listen to this entire Top 20 in full, or alternatively as a shorter medley of snippets. Mike also hosts the podcast Which Decade Is Tops For Pops? Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.