Ron Hardy

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

Ron Hardy was born in 1958 and died in 1992. He was a DJ and producer from Chicago and a key figure in early house music. He began in 1974 at the gay club Den One, where, with two turntables, a mixer and a tape recorder, he played long nights of underground dance music. Around 1977 he worked in Los Angeles. In late 1982, when Frankie Knuckles left the Warehouse, Hardy played at that club's new venue, which later became The Music Box. In 1986 he made his first recording with Chip E.: Donnie by The It.

Music and breakthrough

His style differed sharply from that of Knuckles. Knuckles played smoothly, while Hardy played with manic energy and little regard for sound quality. He mixed classic Philadelphia disco records with Italo disco, new wave and rock, pitched the records up much faster than usual and sometimes played tracks backwards. He used a lot of tape edits and kept adjusting the sound system. The Music Box was known for its enormous volume.

Influence

Chicago producers such as Marshall Jefferson, Larry Heard, Adonis, DJ Pierre and Chip E. often let Hardy hear their new music first. That is how the wild, squelching sound of a Roland TB-303 bass line by Phuture also came to him. Well after his death he came to be seen as an innovator of edits and mixes of disco, soul, funk and early house.

Listening