Italo-disco has played an important role in electronic music since its beginnings, surfacing in a variety of forms over the years. Acts like Little Boots, Hot Chip, In Flagranti, Ricardo Villalobos, Sally Shapiro, Glass Candy, Chromatics, along with most of the Italians Do It Better label, and others continue to reinvent the genre to today’s dance music standards. Disco Italia: Essential Italo Disco Classics (1977-1985), takes italo-disco back to its roots. Re-edited original classics by leading producers of the time and tracks appearing for the first time on CD come together on this compilation by crate diggers Strut Records.

The physical disc is packaged in a four panel digipack complete with rare photos, original sleeve artwork from each release, and extensive liner notes by electronic music writer Bill Brewster. The comp drops via Strut on May 27th. Pre-order, track listing, streams, and more on the label’s micro site.

For past italo gems and other festive tracks, check out Lovefingers.

[MP3]: Firefly  ”Love (Is Gonna Be on Your Side)”

12″ Single, Emergency Records; 1981