CoryDaye

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    Cory's rise to fame with Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band is documented on the Artists Page D in The DiscoMusuem. This page serves to document her solo output.
     Cory who celebrated her 52th birthday this year, (born in the Bronx 4-25-1952), was in on the groundfloor of the disco movement. However it took her until the height of the movement (1979) to have her own hits.
     After three albums with Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band, Daye enlisted the songwriting and production of Sandy Linzer to replicate her former band's sound on her solo debut, "Cory and Me."
     Linzer's career and legacy date back to the early 1960's. As a writer and producer his credits list Sarah Vaughan, Diane Renay, The Supremes, Frankie Valli & the 4 Seasons, The Ventures, Nancy Sinatra, Tony Orlando, The Lennon Sisters, Odyssey, Barry Manilow.....you get the idea.....the list goes on and on. Sandy was a particularly appropriate match for Daye, since he had already worked with Odyssey on their Dr. Buzzard-inspired disco classic "Native New Yorker."
     Perhaps hoping for similar Top 40 success, Cory seems more commercially motivated on "Cory And Me," than her work with the Savannah Band. That accessibility works wonders on her double-sided 12" hit single. On "Green Light" and "Pow Wow" Cory uses her playfully expressive voice to transform the hokey lyrics into irresistible verses. Linzer combines propulsive beats with climactic orchestration and uses musical shifts and timely special effects to build momentum during extended instrumental breaks. The 12" hit the top of Billboard's Disco charts and shot the album into Gold status. Daye's charm and enthusiasm are contagious throughout the album, but the rest of the songs failed to match her energy level, and the scattered Dr. Buzzard touches often seem diluted by the album's mainstream ambitions. Another hit was not forthcoming.
     Timing is everything and Cory hit at the right and wrong time. She hit at the right time to score a mega-disco hit (1979). The bad part was that coming off that album she hit the disco backlash (1980) and artists like herself were viewed as pariahs in the music world.
     She would kick around the next several years with her co-horts from the Savannah Band. Most notably recording for August Darnell's Kid Creole & The Coconuts on several of their albums. By 1986 Cory was given the chance to record solo again. It resulted in a 12" single on Blue Chip Records (distributed by Profile). "City Nights/Manhattan Cafes" was a rousing big band sounding swinger. I remember at the time thinking it was a lousy record. Listening to it now it sounds like Dr. Buzzard does Callelo's "Sing Sing Sing" with a hint of the Goodmen's "Give It Up" thrown in. It's actually an astonishing song. It probably failed because the club going set was not into the Big Band sound at the time and it's relative obscurity.
     A second 12" single, 1987's "Middle Of The Night," (not the Taka Boom song) failed to garner any action either. The approach on this song was more modern sounding. Sparsness is the key here, and unfortunetly Cory's voice needs "dressing up" musically. The Blue Chip 12" is weak and flavorless with an amateur feel to it. I can understand why there was no other 12"s or an album forth coming after listening to it. Still you gotta love that voice!
     Since then Cory has continued to lend her voice to various former band members projects.Recently she, along with Kid Creole & His Coconuts, appeared on the PNAU single "Una Noche (Get Up)."
     Michael Harkins of ArenaProductions has informed us that Ms. Daye is alive, well and still kicking it! (Way to go Cory!). He shared the following info with us: "Presently, Cory Is Working On A Project In Collaboration With Darrel Martin, Renowned Writer And Producer, While Spicing Up The Stage As Featured Vocalist With The Multi-Talented Coati Mundi And His Mambo-Phonic Orchestra as well as strutting herself onstage as a solo performer at various venues." Cory Daye Can Be Contacted For Bookings Through Arena Production: Music In Motion Management. (718) 492 -5226. Or visit their website at: www.arenaproduction.com for more info.
     Thanks Cory for sharing your talent with the world...we love you!