Born on January 2, 1948 in London, England, Oscar-winning producer Keith Forsey began his career as a drummer in the early '70s, contributing his skills as a percussionist to Krautrock artists like Roy Fleming and Amon Duul II. In the late '70s, Forsey became one of disco's pioneers, working with dance artists like Lipstique and Claudja Barry.



More importantly, he was legendary disco producer Giorgio Moroder's drummer and appeared on Donna Summer's groundbreaking club records, including the 1979 classic 'Bad Girls'.



Less remembered is Keith Forsey's own band Trax, essentially a collaboration with Pete Bellotte that spawned two LPs, 1977's Watch Out and 1978's Dancing in the Street. Moroder's influence on Forsey grew continually obvious as he further experimented with electronics and European dance rhythms.



Like Moroder, Keith Forsey started producing albums himself. In 1982, Forsey produced Billy Idol's self-titled solo debut. 1983 was the year that established Forsey not just as a top-drawer producer but a commercially desirable one, too. He co-wrote "Flashdance - What A Feelin'" with singer Irene Cara for the Flashdance movie soundtrack, a No. 1 hit on the U.S. charts. In 1984, the song earned him an Academy Award.



The mammoth popularity of Flashdance suddenly gave Forsey the reputation of a soundtrack wiz; it led to a string of blockbuster soundtracks including Beverly Hills Cop, Ghostbusters, and The Breakfast Club.