Pete Bellotte

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist

Pete Bellotte is an English songwriter and producer, born in 1943 in Barnet, near London. He began as a guitarist in the group Linda Laine and the Sinners and toured Germany with them. He learned fluent German, moved to Munich and became assistant to the producer Giorgio Moroder. In 1971 he wrote the lyrics for Moroder's Son of My Father, which became a number 1 hit in England for Chicory Tip.

Music and breakthrough

With Moroder, Bellotte wrote and produced the hits of Donna Summer, such as Love to Love You Baby (1975), I Feel Love (1977) and Hot Stuff (1979). The three of them also made the album I Remember Yesterday, which contains I Feel Love: a track that is almost entirely electronic, with a pulsing synthesizer bass and a tight beat. According to a critic at AllMusic, Bellotte's productions helped shape disco. He also worked with Roberta Kelly, with Sugar Cane, who had a disco hit in 1978 with Montego Bay, and with Elton John, for whose album Victim of Love (1979) he wrote songs. In 1978 and 1979 he was named producer of the year in America.

Influence

When the mood in America turned and the slogan Disco sucks went around, Bellotte became disillusioned. He returned to England and has lived in West Sussex since 1993. In 2004 he was inducted into the Dance Music Hall of Fame, and in 2012 I Feel Love was added to the National Recording Registry of the American Library of Congress.

Listening

In School of Rock

The chapters, maps and magazine stories of School of Rock are currently available in Dutch only.

• Mixtape 8: Electronic Music^NL Reader
• The Dream Factory: Film Reel 5^NL Reader