only worsening, doctors again failed to identify what was wrong with him. At this early stage in the history of HIV/AIDS virus – at the time still referred to as "gay-related immune deficiency" (GRID) by American doctors – misdiagnosis was common and so Cowley, who was gay, was discharged from the hospital (in 1982) after doctors could do nothing more for him. Cowley died at his home in the Castro District neighborhood in San Francisco on November 12, 1982. He was 32 years old, an early victim of AIDS. Legacy Despite never fully achieving mainstream commercial success, Cowley is nevertheless regarded as a pioneer of early electronic music and the creator of hi-NRG, an uptempo strain of disco. Various 1980s artists such as Pet Shop Boys and New Order have cited his influence as a producer. Cowley has been described as "a musical pioneer whose achievements rippled throughout queer culture and beyond into the disco mainstream". Since the 2010s, Cowley's profile has risen as "listeners and scholars excavate disco's intersection with gay liberation." Amid the accompanying emergence of nu-disco in the late 2000s and early 2010s, profiles of Cowley in Gawker and other high-profile outlets have contributed to a resurgence of interest in his work. 2009 saw the release of Catholic, a compilation of post-punk-flavored collaborations with writer/singer Jorge Socarras from 1976 to 1979. Discography Albums Notable collaborations Cowley wrote and produced songs for several San Francisco musicians including friends Paul Parker and Frank Loverde. He was associated with many other musicians such as Kat Mandu, Maurice Tani and Linda Imperial. "Right on Target" by Paul Parker (1982) "Die Hard Lover" by Frank Loverde (1982) "Do You Wanna Funk" by Sylvester (1982) "Tech-no-logical world" by Paul Parker (1982) See also List of artists who reached number one on the US Dance chart References External links Daniel Heinzmann — Patrick Cowley: biography 1 2 3 4 5 Myspace page Myspace page for Catholic album Bandcamp page for Patrick Cowley soundcloud page for Patrick Cowley 1950 births 1982 deaths American dance musicians American disco musicians American electronic musicians American hi-NRG musicians Musicians from Buffalo, New York Musicians from Rochester, New York American gay musicians LGBT people from New York (state) AIDS-related deaths in California 20th-century American musicians City College of San Francisco alumni 20th-century LGBT people