(first posted 8/30/2018) The annual Back To The Bricks car festival in Flint, Michigan took place a couple of weeks ago, and continues to produce a treasure trove of fascinating and unique cars, along with the usual fan favorites. Over the past several years, this event has brought several hundred thousand people to the downtown area for the big show at the end of the week, which usually happens on the third Saturday of August. There is such a large showing of Corvettes (both new and old) that in recent years, they have been given their own subsection on the north end of downtown. All 315 of the very first, 1953 Corvettes were built in Flint, and with the Vehicle City also being the birthplace of General Motors, there remains a great deal of affection here for America’s Sports Car.
I made the mistake of skipping 2016’s show, opting instead to attend downtown’s electronic dance music (EDM) festival, Drop Fest, that happens two weeks prior to B2B. Don’t get me wrong… Drop Fest was a cool experience and cultural happening (and I love Detroit house music), but I simply love cars more than I love EDM. I love all kinds of dance music, though, and as a kid who grew up watching “Soul Train” on Saturdays, I also have a strong affinity for disco and dance-oriented Urban Contemporary music from the era spanning from the mid-’70s through the mid-’80s. Without further ado, I present to you the literal manifestation of the “Discovette”.
I don’t remember what age I was when I had first heard this era of C3 referred to as such, but it was a nickname that really needed no explanation as it clicked with me immediately. With the design and performance of the third-generation Corvette having started out as a more serious (if gimmicky) high performance car, by the late ’70s it was just a bit softer than it had been just ten years earlier. I still love ’em.
The silver-flecked metallic paint on our featured car glistened in the Michigan summer sun. This Corvette is a rolling disco ball. It is Studio 54 on wheels. It almost gives me a (Love) Hangover just looking at it. Believe it or not, by the early ’80s, Flint had a decent nightlife scene, which I found impressive given our blue collar ethos and beer-drankin’, Rust-Belted lack of sophistication. In addition to The Light, the discotheque in the basement of the Dort Mall with its underlit dance floor (and backroom hot tub), there was also the Mikatam Lounge in nearby Genesee, Michigan. The latter reportedly had a packed dance floor on most weekends through the late ’80s, and also often featured choice, second-tier live acts. Their infamous 10-for-1 mystery shot specials left no questions unanswered as to Genesee County’s ability to hold its liquor.
Not my photo – I was probably in the Fifth or Sixth Grade at the time it was taken in the mid-’80s.
Perhaps the most celebrated club of all was The Copa, located in downtown Flint, one block from the now recently-restored Capitol Theater. Nominally a club geared toward the LGBTQ community, The Copa was the cool, vibrant, edgy place to be – bringing people from all walks of life, ethnicities, social strata, and from all parts of Michigan to drink, dance, and party in its multi-storied, balconied main area. Housed in a ’30s-era building that had once been home to a regional department store (The Vogue), it featured classy artwork, a world-class light show, an all-welcoming attitude and mix of people, and some of the best DJs and music in Michigan. Owner Bill Cain was also a respected figure in the community. Alas, Mr. Cain passed away in ’91, the club closed just four years later, and the building was demolished in ’08 after sitting vacant for years and left to languish.
Back in those heady times, though, what better car to arrive to valet park at Michigan’s own version of Studio than this car? This Corvette is immediately identifiable as a ’79** against the similar ’78 because of the cross-flag emblems and also because it includes the spoiler available for ’78 only on the Indy Pace Car replicas. Seventy-nine could be considered the year that pure disco, in the most mainstream understanding of this music form, was having its last hurrah. While Donna Summer was still riding high on the charts with her “Bad Girls” double-LP and its multitude of hits, disco outings released later that year by vocal powerhouses Aretha Franklin (“La Diva”; may the Queen Of Soul rest in peace) and Cheryl Lynn (“In Love”), as well as others, tanked hard. The Bee Gees pretty much couldn’t get arrested on the Billboard Hot 100 after ’79.
As with the ’79 Camaro I had profiled last December, this model year would also be the all-time high water mark for Corvette production, with about 53,800 units sold. The base engine, a 195-hp Chevy 350, could still get out of its own way in this 3,400-pound car. The L-82 was optional, yielding an additional thirty horses. This particular car is a bit more high profile than I would be comfortable driving, even on a semi-regular basis, as I would assume its paint job might seem to be to police cars what a red cape would be to a charging bull in Barcelona. Maybe this car is just as much “The Glamorous Life”-era Sheila E. as it is Gloria Gaynor, but it was a treat to see this very literal example of a Discovette sparkling in the sun at the super-festive, annual car-party in my hometown.
Downtown Flint, Michigan.
Saturday, August 15, 2015.
** Addendum: Commenter Vetteman has positively identified this as a ’78 model by the emblem up front and the chrome surround of the rear glass.
I love how this article on a Corvette was about so much more and I love your enthusiasm… but man I’ve never been able to warm to the C3. I guess I’ve never been a Corvette man but the C3 in particular is just too overwrought. So I can’t come around to that, but I do feel like listening to some Donna Summer right now!
Thanks, Will. I have to admit my love for the later C3s has grown stronger only in recent years, and I am now drawn more than ever toward its excessive looks. (And you know I have some Donna Summer on my MP3 player.)
Great to see your writing and photography again Joseph. With that paint finish, this ‘Vette looks like a full scale Hot Wheels version. It’s the paint texture that takes getting used to. 🙂
It’s funny, when you mentioned Flint and dance music, I immediately thought of Ready for the World! Interesting how some disco artists transitioned into the 80s better than others. Donna Summer did outstanding, as did Diana Ross. The Bee Gees definitely struggled, as their comeback with ‘He’s a Liar’ in ’81, wasn’t really up to their earlier work. Their comeback arriving in the late 80s. Great article Joseph!
The Bee Gees biggest ’80s hits were written for other performers, like Heartbreaker, Islands in the Stream and Chain Reaction.
The ‘vette’s paint finish does look almost overscale!
They got their own with You Win Again in 1987. Good track.
Agreed, Don. And “You Win Again” is a relatively new discovery for me. Apparently, it was a massive (comeback) hit for the Bee Gees in much of the western world – except for in the U.S. I read that DJs over here were reluctant to play that record because people here still had pretty strong associations of that band with disco, even as late as ’87.
The Bee Gees did score a top-10 U.S. hit with their next single after that, “One”.
For a real hoot, check out their first record (from 1963!) that was a hit in their native Australia. How can these hillbillies be the same band that did “How Can You Mend a Broken Heart”, much less “Jive Talkin'” and “Stayin’ Alive”?
Thanks, Daniel! And I loved RFTW – that was a great band. I was in elementary school when they hit #1 on the trifecta of Pop / R&B / Dance with “Oh, Sheila”… you could sense that the entire city of Flint was feeling these guys. I also liked that they had more than just a few hits.
Confession – I had originally drafted this piece in January and only recently dusted it off and completed it. I’m glad I did. 🙂
Very impressive for Ready for the World to achieve that claim. Ask most people, and they would have guessed Prince or MJ as the first act to top all three charts at once. I heard Digital Display earlier this week on an 80s station.
Though some of the best disco came out in 1979, when acts like Chic, Donna Summer, and the Bee Gees peaked, I thought maybe the best bookend song on the disco era was Funkytown in the summer of 1980.
Thanks again Joe, for this excellent article and photos.
Yay! Dance floor buddy is back – I would have done Drop Fest as well.
I am increasingly of the opinion that the only sports car shapes that adapted to the 5mph legislation without compromise were the C3 and Porsche 911 – each in their own way. While the 911 turned G-banger with rubber concertinas, the C3 looked back to the Astrovette for fully integrated nose and tail. And it worked. Take away the mullet and chain association and the C3 is an accomplished shape.
RIP Miss Ree
EDM meets Soultrain…
Ok, maybe the Lotus Esprit as well.
Don, that video is outstanding! I don’t remember seeing this before today. I have classic “Soul Train” on DVD, and I also like Daft Punk.
I also agree with all three of the examples you cited. They all avoided the ugly-stick when it came to the 5 mph-bumpers. I’m still trying to think of other examples..
Not a true sports car, but the 1977-78 Pontiac Firebird/Trans Am wore their 5mph bumpers quite well, even though they were obviously high-strength bumpers they didn’t look awkwardly tacked on at the last minute. Rather, they looked as though they were designed that way from the outset rather than an update of a mid-1970 design. The Firebird Formula with the lower black stripe on the body and bumper actually disguised the 5mph bulk better than the Trans Am did.
Back to the Bricks is a great show. Have been there once in 2012 with my blue 79 Century Turbo Coupe. I plan on attending in 2019. Here’s a picture I took of my car with two others that were there.
Nice piece! Like Will Stopford, the C3 has never been my favorite. I much prefer the very 80s C4, but there’s no denying the C3 was an influential car.
It’s interesting how one car elicits such different reactions. I see it and think “damn, I’d hate to be the guy to spray a car using this much metal flake in the paint”. Because if one isn’t careful I can see that metal flake clumping up and making a big old mess.
Less of a downer is Joe’s reaction. Given all his various references to singers and dancing, one can almost hear his having Donna Summer playing in the background while he wrote this. Here’s what I think he’s saying:
Nice, Jason!!
Actually, what’s funny about this is that my first CC piece on a C3 (from January of 2016) referenced another Donna Summer tune, “I Feel Love”. That’s probably closer to what I might have been humming in my head either as I was drafting this piece or taking these pictures.
https://www.curbsideclassic.com/blog/cc-capsule/cc-capsule-1977-chevrolet-corvette-i-feel-love/
I was just thinking “I Feel Love” is basically the first-ever EDM hit.
Donna will always take me back to those wonderful 8th-grade dances during the height of the disco era which was a great time to be a young teenager. I recall nearly every dance party ending with, what else, “Last Dance”.
Wow…I can’t remember how long it’s been since I’ve seen The Club™ (Accept No Imitations!).
I may still have one buried in my garage, from back in the late ‘80s/early ‘90s. I only used it a handful of times, as I recall it being a huge pain to install and uninstall, and likely provided little to no additional security. A quick cut of the steering wheel rim, and off it comes.
We should do a piece on period auto accessories that were popular but short-lived trends, like these, the little plastic “waving hands” that suction-cupped to the rear window, antenna tip ornaments, coiled cell phone antennas with shrink tubing on them (to reduce wind noise), Apple decals in the rear window, aftermarket fake fender ventiports, and “Baby on Board” placards (although I still see those on occasion).
Funny how we humans will follow the herd or pack with vehicle accessories, and then we suddenly move onto something else.
This is a great idea Buzzdog!
Unfortunately, while there are a lot fewer of them, those ‘Baby on Board’ placards simply refuse to die.
OTOH, one of the more recent auto accessories are the rear window decals of a kid pissing on something, invariably seen on some sort of huge-tire, high-riding, 4WD full-size bro-dozer pickup, usually an older, obtrusively loud Dodge diesel. Thankfully, those decals seem to be fading away (wish the same could be said for the idiotic trucks they’re usually plastered on), but the family stick figure decals on the rear windows of minivans and SUVs still proliferate.
I’ll second the others, BuzzDog – that would be a great piece. I also had “The Club” on my ’88 Mustang (with the 2.3L 4-cylinder) – like anyone was going to steal it. LOL
I laughed when I saw The Club! My nearly new top of the line 1996 Altima GLE was stolen out of my building’s garage. It had an alarm system and The Club installed the night it was stolen (it was the second car I’d had stolen in SoCal). The Clubs were useless but sold well for a few years. I still see them on occasion here in SoCal, virtually always installed on CC’s. I think the chipped ignition keys did a lot to cut down on car theft and The Club sales.
To me, EDM is Electro-discharge Machining … but I still enjoyed reading this. And hey, Sheila E. and I were born in the same town.
Something tells me that the inside of the glovebox door would test positive for cocaine residue.
I’ve got goosebumps. I love these posts that tie in cars, music, pop culture and history so perfectly. The C3 Vette will always be “The Corvette” to me. Born in ’67, the C3 Era spans most of the years of my childhood, early adolescence and formative years. I still love these above any other and always will. Joe Dennis’ musical proclivities, while obviously widely varied and eclectic, seem to parallel my own, so the musical tie-ins in posts like these always strike a chord (pun intended). And of course a long held interest in the history, culture, ongoing plight and seeming resurgence of the Detroit Metro Area brings me back to a longing to spend some time there, as I’ve been planning a trip up there for some years now, but haven’t been able to get going on that due to other priorities. Let’s hope Summer ’19 offers that opportunity.
I probably wouldn’t be comfortable rockin’ this ride either, but like the author I’m damn happy to see it. My late father left an auction-found 25th Anniversary 1978 ‘Vette in a garage in NJ when he passed in ’08. I’ve got to remember to ask my youngest brother if he still has it somewhere. It was partially in pieces back then, awaiting restoration. The Anniversary ‘Vettes were not nearly as over-the-top as this example, but they do offer as much of a full-on DiscoVette experience as one could buy stock off the showroom floor during that era.
MTN, thank you so much. Also, there really is much of interest for car / music / history buffs in this general part of Michigan, though Flint is not within the Metro Detroit area. I hope you are able to make your trip next year! And that you find out what happened with your dad’s Corvette.
Like some others here, I was completely over the Corvette by 1979. 20 year old me saw it as nothing but sexual enhancement for the older male (with financing by GMAC). But as time has passed I have started to like these. Not necessarily this particular one, but late 70s C3s in general.
My college roommate liked to fish and would occasionally watch fishing shows that were starting to show up on TV in the late 70s. Sort of the opposite of dance music shows, there was still plenty of sparkle as their ultra-expensive bass boats with the high horsepower outboards got paint treatments much like this.
Damn you Joe Dennis, now I am going to be listening to Sheila E and The Glamorous Life in my head for the rest of the day. 🙂
“If you have to ask, you can’t afford this Chev-ro-let… ♪♫” 🙂
Well played!
The end of the love for this version of Corvette does indeed seem to mimic the downfall of disco. The famous Disco Demolition night at Comisky Park was in 1979. The funny thing about history is that we get to rewrite it as we go along, and we update according to how our current generation feels about it. We look back at this car and this era with nostalgia, and it makes us smile. Consider mine a bemused smile, as I lived the life then, and I remember it a bit less rosy. I also consider this style of Corvette as the one I like the most, yet when I picture one, I just see the pink Barbie Dream Corvette version, not this mirrored disco ball version. Hopefully, I can override my instinct and replace using this model. This one is ever so much more fun.
This scene from Airplane! (1980) got a big applause in the theatre….
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=airplane+disco+lives
oops, let’s try that link again…
I had incredibly little exposure to popular culture and music after about 1975 or so, making me quite clueless. Stephanie and I both were deeply steeped in the music and culture of the 60s, and we preferred going on walks at night on Venice Beach instead of going to clubs. I heard it here and there, but it made no real impression on me; pretty much the same as the Discovette. I ignored that too . 🙂
And then our kids came along starting in 1980, and we didn’t watch tv except maybe the news or Masterpiece Theater or NOVA. Nerds, I suppose.
So all this is a bit foreign to me, but I feel like I’m catching up a wee bit thanks to all these wonderful pop culture oriented posts by Joseph.
Paul, the attached is most likely the best known of the EDM genre; probably best considered an introduction to EDM for the masses. If Avicii’s name sounds familiar, it’s probably because he was in the headlines a few months ago after he, sadly, took his own life.
Thanks, Paul. This is slightly related: recently, a friend and I (both in our mid-40s) were lamenting that we’re not quite sure how to use current / semi-current slang terms without knowing exactly what they mean – so we just don’t.
For anything from about 1992, I can highly relate to what Paul’s is saying.
Joe, in regard to slang, I recently learned something about the fluidity of some slang. As one who has a bunch of people who reports to him at work, I periodically have entertaining episodes of personnel issues to attend to. Thus, I am in the HR Manager’s office frequently for strategizing, etc. Recently I joked about how HR Managers likely have annual updates on what is currently non-PC slang, the type that covers all sticky arenas. She said it was no joke; they actually do.
This is a ’78, not a ’79. The badge on the nose is the 25th anniversary badge from ’78. The same badge should be on the fuel filler door, but it’s obscured in the photo of the rear. Also, the trim around the rear window is chrome. For ’79 it was black. The spoiler must be an add-on and not from the factory.
Vetteman, thank you for this – much appreciated. Since the year 1979 is a fairly substantial part of this piece, instead of rewriting it, I’ve just added an addendum to the end thanking you for your clarification.
I’m happy to have what little automotive trivia I know be useful. It’s a great piece regardless. Cars don’t happen in a vacuum, they’re a product of the times. This really illustrates that point.
My junior high years… though I had a poster of the new Trans Am and Formula on my bedroom wall.
My favorite generation of ‘vette, but I have a theory on that. Whatever Corvette was new when you reached your formidable car years as a car guy will be your favorite. Again, it’s just a theory. Born in 1960, I was 7 going on 8 for the 1968 model year. By then, I could identify all of the Impalas (because my Dad had one), and as an 8 year old kid, who didn’t love a pointy sports car that looked like a shark (despite the Stingray name).
This generation was getting on in years through all the malaise, but I still liked them by age 19 in 1979. I was a Brougham head by then, preferring the Continental Mark V (make mine a Bill Blass, please) as the ultimate ‘Disco Clubbing Car’, but still loved these Corvettes. By 1984 when the C4 was introduced, I felt the ‘vette had lost its specialness. It looked like a subdued Trans Am to my untrained eye.
I’ll bet that someone 10 years younger than me would pick the C4 as his favorite, and someone 5 to 10 years older would easily choose the C2.
But again, it’s just a theory. i.e. The ’72 Corvette is my absolute favorite, and I was 11 going on 12 then.
Oh, and like Jason above, Donna Summer’s “Love To Love You Baby” was the song that popped in to my head this morning when I read this post, although the “Love Hangover” reference works too. Nice piece, Joseph.
Now to scare up some of my old favorite disco tunes for this afternoon’s playlist. ;o)
Interesting theory.
I love the C4 Vette (born 1977) but my wife loathes it (born 1983). She loves the C5 and up generation Vettes.
Have fondness for C3 aka “Mako Shark” Vettes. Was one car that my “non car” siblings and I liked. Brother and Sister would point them out to me, when on family trips.
Brand new, in ’68, they seemed like space ships from the future, to me in 2nd grade.
I loved the C3 right until they removed the chrome bumpers… and most of the charm of that bodystyle. It wasn’t the best Corvette (’68’s were plagued with issues), but it was a looker. From ’78 on, I lost interest myself, even though we sold our annual allotment year in/year out. The 2005 C6 renewed my interest… I wish I could say the same about the C7.
I could just imagine how my encounter with the Discovette would go:
“Wow, your ’78 Corvette looks great!”
“It really is!”
“Whoa this is nice. Silver metal-flake paint! It’s like a rolling disco ball! It’s Studio 54 on wheels! I like how you did up the interior too, can I come in?”
“No”.
hehehehehehe
I could identify one of these on the road from about half a mile away thanks to those bulging fenders.
I like it. I do prefer the early years of the C3, but never felt the negative stereotypes of this era.
While there is definitely some truth to the stereotypes of Corvette owners (I’m not sure that Back to the Bricks is doing anybody a favor by clumping them all together ) but none of the Vette owners I have known are anything like that.
Nice article Joseph (as always)
Try as I might I only like the early C3 (68-72) and the late C3( 80-82). The 73-79 models seem to conjure up chain link steering wheels, mullets, gold chains, 8 track players with Hotel California always playing and National Bohemian beer.
Speaking of Corvettes, it seems like the Corvette is now a defacto oldstermobile as most of the ones I have seen on the road has a senior citizen driving it.
I had a chance to buy a 1980 C3, back in ’99, low mileage, well kept and a 4spd manual. Price was right too. The test drive was the deal breaker: Typical late ’70s GM build quality, car had more squeaks, rattles and vibrations than a dog has fleas. And it was gutless, (pretty sure non L82) but that was what passed off as performance in that era.
I still have the December, 1978 issue of Car & Driver that included a Corvette roadtest along with a cover of a young lady in a red top and shorts beside a red ‘Vette.