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4 out of 4 stars
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After Dark: Birth of the Disco Dance Party by Noel Hankin is a nonfiction book about the birth of the discotheque in New York City in the 1970s. A group of college graduates came together and decided to promote dance parties. They called themselves "The Best of Friends" (TBOF). They had organized parties in various homes and locations in college, so they were confident they could do the same professionally. At first, they held the dances at different venues on different weeknights. They catered mainly to the black businessmen and women who came to dance. They had strict rules. No drugs were allowed, they had a dress code, and the atmosphere demanded respect, just like the attendees got respect.
Before disco music became popular, clubs were already called discotheques. TBOF eventually owned five discotheques in New York City. With the success of TBOF, other discotheques began cropping up. TBOF dominated midtown NYC with their clubs, and people from all walks of life and skin colors came to dance. The DJs knew how to mix the music and keep dancers on the dance floor. Their standards were high, and there was zero tolerance for anyone who broke the rules. Find out how TBOF remained the best promoter in NYC for fifteen years. Meet the diverse people who frequented their clubs, from businessmen and women to drug dealers to members of the mafia and even celebrities. Check out how the group went from promoting dances at different venues on weeknights to owning their discotheques. TBOF set the precedence for dancing in the heart of NYC, and the memory of their clubs lives on today.
Hankin's book brought back a lot of memories. I was in my early 20s when discotheques became popular, and I loved the sound of disco music. Just about everyone loved to dance. Mostly black patrons visited the clubs in NYC, but there were a few whites and Hispanics. Skin color was not an issue—everyone just came to dance. The relationship between the friends was what I liked best about this story. They each pulled their weight and were dedicated to making their discotheques successful, while most had families and other careers. After a few years, they began to leave the group one by one to pursue other avenues in their lives, but their friendships remained. I also liked that there is a section at the end where the author tells where each member is. There is a chronology of TBOF members; some appendices show pictures of the flyers they used to promote their clubs, their favorite songs, and more. There is a short piece about the author as well. There are also pictures throughout the pages of the book of the members of TBOF and some celebrities.
There was a bit of redundancy from chapter to chapter, but it is just an observation on my part, not a dislike. It is a well-written and well-edited book, and Hankin kept the story flowing even when the narrative went from one club to another and went back and forth from year to year. The timeline wasn't always in chronological order, but I barely noticed the changes. The book held my interest, perhaps because it brought back many memories of my young adult years.
I believe the book had professional editing. The errors were so few that there was no reason to remove a star. I only encountered a few mistakes, and there was very little profanity. In addition, Hankin's writing is natural and easy to follow, and the story is interesting. For those reasons, I am delighted to give this book 4 out of 4 stars.
I recommend this book to those who enjoy memoirs and to baby boomers who were young adults in the late 60s through the early 80s. If you like disco, you will enjoy reminiscing through this book. Teens may also enjoy reading about the dances from their parents' younger days.
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After Dark
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