An Ode To Roller Disco

Kids today are all about hugging and solving their problems via choreographed dance routines. But when I was a kid, we settled our differences in the place where wheeled dreams come true: the Roller Disco.

If there is one thing I miss from my childhood more than anything else, it’s the roller rink. The three rinks around my hometown have all been demolished or closed up in order to make room for big box stores and strip malls, and skating in general seems to have died out in the suburbs, with only hardcore skaters and hipsters with access to rinks in major cities continuing to break it down on the roller disco dance floor. And though Roller Disco is long gone, it’s not completely forgotten: here are a few gems from the roller disco era to keep you rollin’ through the afternoon.

Ok, I’m sorry, that last line was really dumb. But it’s a bit impossible to watch roller disco clips and not get a little corny sometimes, all right? You got a problem? You wanna take it to the floor? I will spin circles around you to the beat of "Don’t Leave Me This Way" Don’t even mess if you can’t pass the test!



Skatetown, U.S.A. "From coast to coast, rock and roller disco is the most!"



Roller Boogie: "It’s love on wheels!"



Xanadu: "A million lights are dancing, and there you are, a shooting star."



Vaughn Mason & Crew: Roller Skate "Girl, I want to skate with you."



The Dolly Dots: Rollerskating "It’s just like a disco, but it’s more than a disco, they are skaaaating!"

Feel free to add your own roller skating jams/memories in the comments.

[Image via Vintage Ads]