A FIFTH OF BEETHOVEN
“A Fifth of Beethoven” is a disco instrumental recorded by Walter Murphy and the Big Apple Band. It was adapted by Murphy from the first movement of Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. It was one of the most popular and memorable pieces of music from the disco era. The “Fifth” in the song’s title is a pun, referencing a liquid measure approximately equal to one-fifth of a gallon, a popular size for bottles containing hard liquor, as well as Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony from which the song was adapted. (More from Wikipedia)
I am pretty sure that I must have heard a track or two by the Dutch progressive rock band Ekseption on college radio back in the day; otherwise, I don’t know how Aram Khachaturian’s “Sabre Dance” would sound so familiar to me. The opening track on their self-titled debut album in 1969, Ekseption – simply called “The 5th” – is based on Ludwig van Beethoven’s Fifth Symphony. This might be the first pop treatment of the symphony, though there have been many others over the years. Of course, there is the disco version called “A Fifth of Beethoven” by Walter Murphy.
(January 2013)
