Disco Dessert 2/1/20 - "There But For The Grace Of God Go I" by Machine...

"There But For The Grace Of God Go I" was a classic club hit for the studio group Machine, fronted by August Darnell (of Dr. Buzzard's Original Savannah Band). Written by Darnell with bandmate Kevin Nance, the song is an epic and tragic tale of a couple who leave the Bronx for the suburbs to insulate their daughter from the supposed evils of the city, only to have the daughter drawn back and adopt those evils to an even greater degree. She leaves her parents drug-addled for a guy she just met, leaving the sobbing couple to the painful conclusion of the last line, "Too much love is worse than none at all." The song featured vocals from Clare Bathe and Jay Stovall, and appeared on their debut album Machine in 1979, and on Billboard's National Disco Action Top-40 chart, it peaked at #8, spending 19 weeks on the list. It also got to #77 on their pop Hot 100, and #91 on the R&B list. It remains one of my all-time favorite disco songs. Darnell would go on to form Kid Creole & The Coconuts...

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And here's the original 12" version heard in the clubs...