Raúl Orellana and the dawn of Barcelona clubbing

It would be complicated and, above all, unfair to talk about the soundtrack of Barcelona in the 80s and 90s, about the clubber cartography of that time and place, ignoring the name of Raúl Orellana. The DJ and producer from Granada moved, between 1982 and 1994, incalculable tons of bullarengues from the Studio 54 booth. Generations of fellow citizens wore out their soles and shed liters of sweat, love, and euphoria to the rhythm of undeniable hits like Promised Land by Joe Smooth, Hit'n'run Lover by Carol Jiani or that eternal dancefloor-shattering version of Ain't No Mountain High Enough by Inner Life.

And the architect of a good part of that vital soundtrack is Orellana, one of those responsible for the rise of house on the city's dance floors who, as a producer, has worked with a large number of artists, from Los Rebeldes or Gabinete Caligari, to the very first lady of soulful house, Jocelyn Brown.

"As a child, I remember listening to Bandolero by Juan Carlos Calderón or Caballo Negro by Manolo Sanlúcar on the radio. Those two songs hooked me and I always tried to record them," explains this declared fan of Bob Dylan, with whose Hurricane he wore out meters of needle during adolescence.

His life was going to take a turn when, at twenty years old, he was going to enter the booth of the mythical Paral·lel venue to replace the resident DJ, New Yorker Richie Kaczor, who came directly from Studio 54 in the Big Apple, but whose selections failed to adapt to the new times and ended up not working with the local audience.

Musical clash

"The 54 opened in October 1980 with an excellent musical repertoire, with true novelties from American companies and absolutely unknown songs in Spain. That was one of the reasons for its initial success, coupled with the lighting show and the impressive sound and, of course, the venue, unrivaled at that time. But the evolution of music and the appearance of English bands and white music, which had more of a pop than a disco feel, completely turned the tables," Orellana argues about artists like Soft Cell, The Cure, Spandau Ballet, Duran Duran or Human League, who were taking over from artists typical of Kaczor's sets like Kurtis Blow, Cheryl Lynn, Kasso or Firefly.

"Richie ended up disillusioned because what was appearing was neither his style nor his culture, and he ended up playing the same songs four or five times in a single night." That, of course, couldn't last.

--- When you entered the DJ booth of the discotheque, would you say there was a musical clash?

--- I started DJing in June 1982 and found myself doing it for 300 people on a Saturday night, in a venue that could hold over 1,800. Yes, it could be considered a musical clash!

During its years of existence, Studio 54 also hosted a large number of concerts, of which the DJ remembers with special affection "those of Tina Turner, ABC, Simple Minds, Talking Heads and, perhaps due to its relevance today, Depeche Mode's".

The path from selector to artist

In 1983, a fruitful collaboration began between Orellana and the record label Blanco y Negro Music, with the release of the first mixed album ever edited in the country: Studio 54 connection, "Blanco y Negro periodically released, like all companies, many tracks. And at that time, mixes were mandatory". Compiling them was a winning bet, as attested by subsequent releases such as the Bolero mix saga or Blanco y Negro mix. A trend that would characterize several record labels like Max Music.

In 1987, the label and the DJ went a step further by releasing Raúl mix 87, which represented a before and after as it was an album under a DJ's name, and an unforeign one at that. The album became an immediate super-seller and positioned Raúl Orellana's name as an author. It was the first step in a solo career that materialized in two albums that are among the pioneers of house made here for the general public.

"I basically followed everything that came in from the United States, which is why I wanted to emulate house, but with a national accent. My albums Guitarra and Real wild house are an example of this".

The transcendence of a club

Raúl Orellana commanded the Studio 54 booth between 1982 and 1994, the year of its closure.

There are still legions of punters and dancing animals who frequented that temple of Barcelonian clubbing and who continue to pay homage to the figure of that boy from Granada who made so many exciting things happen on the dance floor. To these are added later generations, eager to experience a piece, an instant, of that musical temple in an old, different Barcelona. A city whose current nightlife Orellana laments "has been sold to promoters whose origins are unknown and whom no one knows, although ---he clarifies--- there are increasingly more by-the-pound electronic music proposals".

And, by way of an illustrative finishing touch, Raúl Orellana adds: "the Sónar festival always resorts, as headliners, to artists who were discovered at 54, such as Pet Shop Boys or New Order".

There you have it.

--- And what are you currently involved in?

--- Currently I am focused on gigs and the periodic parties at 54. In fact, we are already preparing the 43rd anniversary.

And a full house is expected, of course.