Is it love you're after?

Disco band Rose Royce

This song is so glamorous! The sound and band just epitomize glamour! I absolutely loved watching Rose Royce perform, they were always so tight and I was fascinated by Gwen Dicky, I loved how she remained so feminine and didn’t become ‘one of the lads’ like some female front women too – both can work and love both (no criticism here), but I just loved how she oozed femininity in an all male environment.

I remember singing into my hairbrush to this as a teenager, I didn’t care that it wasn’t in the top 40 at that time, I just loved it! I saw it in WH Smiths in the Golden oldie brand that used to be around and as soon as I got home I popped it on a mix tape that I’d listen to it on the way to school on my Walkman. My mix tapes were a right mixed bag of old and new and included artists like Donna Summer, Madonna, Boy George, D Dee Jackson. In fact many of the artists, who’s songs I have gone onto to illustrate.

Then years later my then employers did a Disco themed Christmas party – now we’re talking proper glamorous disco, not fancy dress done by people who think they know what the 70s were about, but proper disco themed as in a live Disco band. Oh man they were amazing there was about 16 people on stage 4 of which did singing and dancing and they were all dressed in white, the hall was decorated white. Every thing was sparkly and gorgeous.

So you can imagine my delight when the band sang this song. I remember grabbing my friend Rob’s hand and just loosing myself on the dance floor. Rob and I had the best time at this party, and returned to our hotel room and continued partying, we still discuss the antics of that night to this day and it was over 15 years ago now!

I was so excited when it was announced it would be a disco band, that along with buying the usual obligatory new frock for the event I splashed out on new make -up form a new brand at that time called ‘Benefit’ and had the lady in Debenhams in Oxford street do a make up demo on me for me to copy on the day.

On the day of the party, I took the day off work so that I could get my hair done, and self tan the bits on display and pack, as Rob and I decided to splash out and get a hotel room for the night.

Partly because as neither of us wanted to play around on night buses after the party, as Rob lived in Croydon and me in Golders Green, so we decided to stay in a well known hotel chain by St Pauls, which was in walking distance of the venue. So mid afternoon as soon as we could check in we met. I think we met in a pub which was our favourite lunchtime watering hole, ‘The Bishops hook and clever’ which was on the square where our offices were, near Smithfield Market. We then ventured to the hotel had some more juice (Wine or vodka) and got ready! Then when our other friends finished work, we invited them to join us at the hotel and we all got ready together, listening to Sugar Babes.

How we got to the venue, what we ate, drank and danced to the rest of the evening are all a bit of a blur now apart from when the band sang “Is it love your after” – that is crystal clear like it happened yesterday!

Is It Love You're After Bette Love

So yep, this is one special song to me, so it had to feature in the 54 Collection or as I also call it the Lockdown disco of my imagination. You can buy it here!