The return of Tina Charles!

Brace yourself for the comeback of 2011 - Tina Charles is dusting off her dancing shoes to rock dancefloors (in retirement villages) across Europe! The legendary disco diva has recorded a hot new track called "Your Love Is My Light" and it's a triumph. Seriously, I'm so excited I could faint! Not only is the 57-year-old stunner one of my all time favourite club queens but the song is a total Stock Aitken Waterman throwback. Co-written and co-produced by PWL engineers Dave Ford and Ian Curnow, Tina's jam is the best thing Sinitta never recorded. Yes, it's that amazing. I love everything about this from the camp chorus to the bittersweet lyrics. The PWL-tastic sound really suits the English songbird. She should release an album of SAW covers. It's the perfect opportunity for her to reunite with Kelly Marie to tackle Mel & Kim's "Respectable". After all, their version of "Your Disco Needs You" is one of the defining duets of the past decade. Check out a preview of Tina's stunning new track below. You will love to love it!

The return of Amanda Lear!

This is so exciting! Legendary disco diva Amanda Lear has just released a new single in France and it's one of the best things she's done in decades. Produced by Steve Campioni and Alain Mendiburu, "Chinese Walk" is a demented electro-pop anthem about the growing influence of Chinese culture - complete with marching sound effects and trippy synths not heard since 1983! It should be a hot mess of epic proportions but through some strange twist of fate, it works beautifully. I particularly love Amanda's kooky lyrics and the way the pretty beats showcase, rather than hide, her breathy vocals. Dali's muse really is in fine form at the moment. Her previous single "I'm Coming Up" would have been a top 10 hit for anyone under 65 and its parent album "Brand New Love Affair" was a late-career highlight. I'm so glad the pop icon is still riding that wave of momentum. She is one of music's last great originals and "Chinese Walk" is a sublime reminder of that. Happily, the video is just as amazing as the song. Amanda transforms from a Caucasian sex symbol of a certain age into a young Chinese girl in front of your eyes! It's very clever and surprisingly classy. The song is available to download from iTunes now. What are you waiting for?

Raffaella Carrà Returns To Save Music

One of the most popular pieces I've ever written for this blog was a tribute to the legendary Italian diva Raffaella Carrà. I still receive the occasional email about it. They range from helpful recommendations all the way through to outraged essays. Mentioning La Carrà's Argentine adventure haunts me to this very day! Since then my love for Italy's greatest export has continued to grow. She really was ahead of her time and I'm convinced La Gaga stole her look. Anyway, the original and the best has been very quiet lately but pop fans can breathe a sigh of relief because Raffaella is back with the song of the (European/American) summer! "A Far L'Amore" is the handiwork of French DJ Bob Sinclar, who is best known in Australia for his massive number one hit "Love Generation.

Oh, hang on a minute...
Sorry, Raffa called and ordered me to stop polluting her post with inconsequential details about that boring Frenchman.

All you really need to know about this future smash is that it re-works the stunning 67 year old diva's 1977 disco classic "A Far L'amore Comincia Tu". That song is probably Raffaella's biggest international hit. It was translated into German ("Liebelei"), Spanish ("En El Amor Todo Es Empezar") and became her only UK hit when it was released as "Do It, Do It Again". It is so catchy, I can't believe it hasn't been revived until now. And Bob does a great job. He deserves credit for keeping the original vocal and I love the overhaul. "A Far L'Amore" now reminds me of club hits like "We Speak No Americano" and "Barbra Streisand". It's quite minimal and repetitive but after a couple of listens it gets stuck in your head and refuses to leave. La Carrà is even dusting off her sequins to appear in the video. It's exciting but they should just use the stunning fan-made effort (below). Raffaella's exquisite beauty and hypnotic dance moves are perfectly showcased. Brace yourself for the comeback hit of 2011!