Star Wars and Other Galactic Funk is the debut studio album of American musician Meco that was released through Millennium Records in 1977.

Upon watching Star Wars (1977), he conceived the idea of re-working its score; he later had a meeting with Neil Bogart of Casablanca Records who approved the project.

By June 1977, Meco was working with Tony Bongiovi and Harold Wheeler, recording at MZH Studio, New York City, for three weeks.

"Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" was released as the lead single in June or July 1977; it peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100 for two weeks.

The album's success helped fund construction of Bongiovi's Power Station Studios and Meco signed to Robert Stigwood Organization (RSO); he would later work on several Star Wars-related releases.

[2] At this stage, Meco started producing records for artists;[3] he co-produced "Never Can Say Goodbye" (1974) by Gloria Gaynor, which became a hit single, with Bongiovi and Harold Wheeler.

[3] Because the Star Wars soundtrack had not yet been released, Meco contacted the music publishing department of 20th Century Fox Records and persuaded the receptionist to give him a copy of the score.

[2] By mid-June 1977, Meco hired co-producers[10] Bongiovi and Wheeler to assist him before sessions took place at MZH Studio in New York City with Harvey Hoffman as recording engineer.

[9] While sessions were underway, Williams' score was achieving success and the film's main theme had charted on the Billboard Hot 100.

According to Peltz; "Luke [Skywalker], [Princess] Leia, and the gang existed in our universe where Disco (not late-Romantic classical) music was the idiom of the time".

[19] Because the album was not a licensed project, the sounds had to be remade using synthesizers;[6] due to the basic nature of the equipment, achieving an effect resembling R2-D2 took Meco eight hours.

[11] Meco was inspired for this side when he was walking through Central Park, New York City, where he heard music drifting over a hill.

Harris said Casablanca would not have minded having Meco on their roster; he deemed it crucial that Millennium "establish itself as a bona fide presence" in the music industry, "and nothing spoke louder than a Platinum[-certified] album.

[3][nb 2] The artwork, which is based on Meco's idea,[6] depicts "two space travelers bumping bottoms", which AllMusic reviewer JT Griffith called "hilarious cheese".

[11] Rodriquez, who was known for his artwork for the Quaker Oats Company,[6] disliked disco music and preferred folk rock over it.

[22] Jason Heller, author of Strange Stars: David Bowie, Pop Music, and the Decade Sci-Fi Exploded (2018), wrote that public perception of the album is as a "novelty record, a piece of opportunistic, dollar-chasing dreck.

"[35] According to Aletti, the album is "fun, occasionally compelling dance music but the soft, slow spots might keep it from being played straight through".

[18] Billboard staff said the album's first half's "beauty and variety ... combined with the film's fanatic appeal, brings it powerful impact", while its second "still works as a single piece, though [is it] not nearly as effectively as the Star Wars side".

[36] Music Week expressed a similar statement, saying the second side is a "complete throwaway – disco dross with a pseudo military beat that is dead dull".

[37] The staff of Cashbox said the album is "reasonably true to the original score, even while infusing it with a throbbing dance beat", adding listener do not need to watch the movie to enjoy it.

[46][nb 3] "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100,[48] following Millennium Records' hit song "Platinum Heroes" (1977) by Bruce Foster weeks prior.

[22] In a November 1977 edition of Music Week, Adam White noted a trend of science-fiction-themed releases in the charts from the preceding months, including "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" by Meco, "Magic Fly" by Space, and "Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft" by the Carpenters.

[12] Rodriquez lamented the lack of time he had to make the artwork; he later saw it featured in an art show about the worst album covers.

[6] The Companion writer Issy Flower said "Star Wars Theme/Cantina Band" laid the foundation for "successful disco renderings of [movie] themes that retained their musicality and incorporated a danceable beat".