[3] Sylvester had asked Cowley to join his studio band after hearing some of his early synthesizer recordings.

He played synthesizer on Sylvester's 1978 album Step II which included the hits "You Make Me Feel (Mighty Real)" and "Dance (Disco Heat)".

[10][11] He also wrote and produced the dance single "Right on Target" for San Francisco artist Paul Parker, which reached No.

[15] 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.

[18] Since the 2010s, Cowley's profile has risen as "listeners and scholars excavate disco's intersection with gay liberation.

"[17] 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.

[21] Cowley wrote and produced songs for several San Francisco musicians including friends Paul Parker and Frank Loverde.