"Disco" has meant a lot of things over its lifespan. Early on, it denoted a venue and a means—the nightclub, the DJ spinning according to his and the dancers' tastes. By the mid-'70s it became a style: swishing hi-hats, four-on-the-floor pound, synthetic like nylon (strings) or polyester (synthesizers), narcotic by default (and, OK, design), and most of all omnipresent. After that it was banished from current usage for a while even as the music it engendered, from "Billie Jean" to "Holiday" to "Let the Music Play," owned the radio and clubs.

Read more about Afrobutt on Last.fm.