It’s Friday so we’re listening to something more upbeat. Today we’re listening to Patrick Cowley, an American electronic musician from Buffalo, NY. Born in 1950, he grew up playing the drums in local bands and then moved to San Francisco when he was 21.1 He was fascinated by newfangled machines called synthesizers and in the City College learned to play Moogs and Buchlas. At clubs and bathhouses he heard Donna Summer, Giorgio Moroder, Kraftwerk, Tangerine Dream, and more.2 Across the ‘70s he developed his own style of synth-driven dance music, collaborating with the singer Sylvester on several hits. We’re playing two of Cowley’s solo records, which were released after he passed away of AIDS-related illness in 1982. Afternooners from 2017 collects instrumentals he recorded between 1979 and 1982 primarily for adult film soundtracks. Hard Ware, just released last year, collects ten tracks which in the words of the label are “sultry, psychedelic, sarcastic, and just a bit sleazy.”3

Afternooners - Patrick Cowley (69m, no vocals)
Bandcamp / Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Tidal

Hard Ware - Patrick Cowley (55m, vocals on tracks 3, 4, 6 and 10)
Bandcamp / Spotify / Apple Music / YouTube Music / Amazon Music / Tidal

Have a wonderful weekend.