Good Gig, Bad Gig.

[JAMdisco]

Had a pretty good one on Saturday night at a Golf club out near my good friend Pete Fisher for a 25th wedding anniversary (he in fact passed this one over to me a few weeks ago - thanks Peter ).

He told me beforehand that the area to play was small and it was a bit of a lengthy load in. Not sure where Peter's been going but got all my gear in with no fuss (a bit of a trek from the car but no real problem).

I had arrived early as I was expecting a difficult setup but I was all set at 7pm (for a 7:30pm start) and just gaffering my last few cables down when the lady came over and handed me the envelope containing the money We had a bit of a chat and introduced me to her husband - a real nice couple. He explained that he'd hurt his back so wouldn't be dancing and he bought me a pint They know Peter and asked if I play the same kind of music he does - I said yeah I have loads of stuff from 1930's (got a laugh lol) - I guessed correctly in the Motown, 60's & 70's area...

I played background music while the guests arrived (over 100 and not the largest of venues and probably the smallest dancefloor I have ever seen).

As I started increasing the volume and moving into some more 'dancy' tunes nothing much happened. I enquired about the buffet at 8:45pm (still no one dancing, just all standing chatting) and the girl behind the bar said in about 10 minutes. I went to the client and said shall I start 'properly' after the buffet which she agreed to.

As they were just about to finish a girl came over (later found out she was one of the daughters) and asked for a list of songs to which I duly obliged.
Well, as soon as she got on the floor with her friends, the floor filled up pretty quickly, we had music from 50's up to modern day and also a couple of smaller children danced to music man, superman & the ever popular Gangnam Style, yes I was up there with them lol

A lot of the guests left early (around 11:30-midnight) as they were 'of an age' but the last half hour (1:30am finish) saw a packed dancefloor to some old rock 'n' roll and 60's classics.

Ended the night by playing Angels (managed to persuade the husband to come and smooch with his wife) and finally ended on New York to a very happy bunch.

Really enjoyed this one after the slow start - was a bit like a wedding reception I suppose and maybe a lot of people haven't seen each other for a while hence the slow start, but yeah - a fun night

[Excalibur]

He told me beforehand that the area to play was small and it was a bit of a lengthy load in. Not sure where Peter's been going but got all my gear in with no fuss (a bit of a trek from the car but no real problem).

Well I don't know it they've now got a new way in, but when I back my van up to the doors, the only way for guests to get in is through the rose bushes in the flower beds!! Glad you could cover it, and that it went well for you. Thanks for that. Much appreciated.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Bit of a task for me to get through the weekend. As reported elsewhere on here, Daryll very kindly jumped in last minute and covered a wedding booking for me on the Friday. It was one I was looking forward to as the Bride was a friend of a friend but Thursday night I started feeling rough and on Friday it wasn't good at all. I think the nerves and anxiousness started getting to me too which didn't help and I was a mess so thanks again to Daryll.

Saturday I still didn't feel too great but I was better than I was on Friday yet still anxious and full of worry. I had 2 bookings on. One was a Wedding at one of my residencies which was being covered by a DJ I use regularly and it went very well by all accounts (I'm back there myself on Tuesday for a Wedding). The other booking was an 18th Birthday out of town at a golf club for another friend of a friends daughter. It was booked last year and they specifically wanted me to do it.

Well, when I met the family at the venue a few weeks back and received the (massive) list of song requests, I must admit that I recognised about 25% of the tracks on it. I had a good idea of what it was going to be like and when I got home and started checking out the tunes I was proved correct. A mix of proper hardcore hip hop, dubstep and a few other things and out of (example) 100 tracks, I'd say 80 of them had explicit language. I did pass on this information to the parents and they were fine with it. I also said that it wasn't my intention to offend anyone including family and was told that it was more of a party for friends.

So, set up in the morning (very nice and helpful staff) and returned later for a 7.30pm start. Birthday girl was very excited as were her friends who were there early on. Started off with some of the more chilled out tunes, RnB and acoustic indie that she'd requested and slowly built it up. It was around 9.00pm when a lot of the guests started arriving. I've never seen so many girls all looking the same (short skin tight dresses and huge heels). It was like a clone factory!

The family had employed doormen for the party who were also monitoring the drinks situation. There were different coloured wristbands etc and it was all very well organised.
From around 9.30pm (just after the buffet) to Midnight, the dance floor was packed with them all having a great time. It was funny because half of the stuff I was playing I didn't know but they loved it. I did a few mixes on VDJ which went down well. I had to tell people to keep drinks off the dance floor just ONCE and they all listened. Whenever anyone dared venture towards the dance floor with a bottle or glass in their hand they would look over at me, smile and go and put it on a table. It was bizarre. They were really well mannered and very complimentary.

Got asked for a couple of cards at the end which was good and the bar steward at the golf club took my details too.
Easy access and exit and I was out and home by just after 12.30am even though I finished at Midnight.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Quite a strange one for me last night. I thought it was going to be a typical midweek wedding scenario and I was right until around 10.00pm.
It was a wedding at one of my residencies. Small affair with around 60 guests. Got married at 4.00pm and back to the hotel at 5.00pm. I had set up the Disco in the morning and was starting at 7.00pm, finishing at 11.30pm.
They had arranged background music with the venue via iPod and docking station from 5.00pm - 7.00pm. They enquired with me about the additional 2 hours and I quoted them but they said they were on a tight budget.
I arrived at 6.45pm to chants of "Here he is" and "Come on, get on with it mate" and after a quick look around the room (not being funny here, you had to be there), I thought "Oh great, here we go, one of those nights".

I never got to meet the couple in advance like I would normally do as they were always 'busy' but I did manage to at least get some requests from them which were pretty much run of the mill. I met both of them yesterday morning when I was setting up and they seemed nice. I was told by the Groom that he was a Drum 'n Bass DJ.
Anyway, I kicked off with some chilled out tunes as the sun was shining and the small buffet was being bought out. Every now and then I'd get someone shout over "Good tune DJ" and I'd acknowledge them. It was quite a rowdy atmosphere already in there (booze obviously) and I expected them to get up and dance when we really got going but it didn't happen for a while. There weren't really any 'oldies' or children there and it was mainly 20 - 30 somethings and a few in their 50's (at a guess).

I mentioned requests multiple times but there was little response to them, a couple of younger guests asked for tunes which I played but they remained seated. It seemed like everyone was content to just sit and chat and booze it up big time. 60 guests were supposed to be there but I'd say there were around 40. When the Groom did his speech around 8.15pm before the first dance he mentioned that a number of people hadn't turned up because they had the 'squits' (his words!).

First Dance was Phil Collins - 'A Groovy Kind Of Love' and it went quite well actually. Other guests joined the Bride & Groom on the Dance Floor and it was at it's busiest all night. I followed that with 'Iris' by The Goo Goo Dolls and everyone sang along. I thought they were in the mood for a party after that but once again the majority sat down.
About 10.00pm I started getting requests and I played every one of them to mixed reaction. Around 10.30pm there were about 20 people left.
It was around this time that a guy came over and asked for Macarena and Saturday Night. I actually thought he was having a laugh and taking the piddle but he wasn't. He was serious. If you had seen him (neck covered in tattoos, thick tribal ones like the ones i have on my arms), then you'd probably have thought the same thing.

I played them and some more cheese and was amazed when the Dance Floor suddenly looked healthy even though there were only around 20 people left. It was quite funny watching this guy and a few others like him all taking it seriously and doing the moves. The Groom wasn't that impressed, you could see it on his face and after a few songs he'd obviously had enough. He came over and said "I give in. I wasn't going to ask but have you got any Drum n Bass?". I had around 30 minutes to go now and I asked him if there was anything in particular. He was amazed that I had the tune and he had a massive grin on his face. I told him that I wasn't a DnB DJ like him so I might not be able to mix them that well. He said "Don't worry about that man, no problem". "I'll give it a go though!" I said.

The song started and the 'boys' started going mental on the dance floor. I cued up the next track on the Denon and started to bring it in and it was easy. The Groom stopped dead in his tracks and got his mates to listen and they all started cheering. He then came up to me and said "Can't mix DnB eh? My ****, that was excellent!" They really appreciated me giving it a go and I think it was that moment that they actually clicked with me, albeit at 11.00pm! The Groom then asked if his mate could use the microphone as he was an MC. I wouldn't normally do it but they were having a great time. I told the guy that I didn't have any reverb effects or anything so it would sound dry and he wasn't bothered.
I have to say in all honesty that he was awesome. I was doing stuff, stopping and starting, adding effects over the tunes and he was MCing and it worked really well. I was quite chuffed with that.

That was about it really. I thought it was going to be a mediocre midweek wedding gig and it started off like that but ended up half decent.
Apologies for the long post - It's been a while since I did an epic post.

[safdiscos]

Well saturday saw me head off to do my first wedding reception (with an experienced DJ!), it was a brilliant night, very posh guests.. and as I'm new to all this really I was amazed to find 90's dance had them going wild (in a good way), and there wasen't any hassle really, just a very drunk man kept banging on about the foo fighters.. which was odd.. and wanted requests that would of totally killed the party
The only thing that stopped this being the best Disco I've done was the karaoke it really stopped the flow of the party and many of the guests left the building when some of the girls were singing! (they were awful!), which then meant I had to tempt them back onto the dance floor which I did with MC hammer. house of pain, vanilla ice etc etc, they were loving the classic mobile disco tunes!

Anyway after an odd incident with the management of the venue who insisted we stop playing as its after 11.30, even though it was 11.05 which we proved to them by showing the clock on my phone and then had to show another clock to prove we weren't lying (weird), we carried on till 11.30 and finished to a cheer, even though we weren't allowed to do 'just one more'. As we were packing away a few of the guests came over for a chat, and one girl who I'd taken a shine to but bottle'd out giving my number to ( Id written it on a karaoke slip.. class.. lol) came over and gave me her business card, we're now going on a date next week .

Sunday saw a return to my usual stomping ground, kids discos and I had a great one, so all in all a brilliant DJing weekend

[Shakermaker Promotions]

Monday morning and I feel like I've been hit by a bus! I ache allover.
I've not had much luck of late with illness and apart from the one blip the other week where Daryll covered a booking for me, I've had to get on with it but it's been tough.

Friday night saw me doing my regular thing down my local. Always enjoyable and always different as it's the punters who request the tunes. As I was loading up the van I must have twisted awkwardly and got a sharp shooting pain up my right shoulder and that side of my neck. By the time I got to the venue I could hardly move my head from side to side and was in agony. A few locals helped me in with my gear and I set up in my own time. It was a great night but very painful and all the way through it I kept wondering how I was going to get through the weekend.

Saturday I travelled 50 miles out of town to do an 80s night at a private residence. My dance floor guy was providing an LED Dance Floor for this too and it was the first time I had actually seen one in the flesh. It was great. Despite lots of painkillers and lashings of Deep Heat on my shoulder and neck, I was still in pain but somehow the atmosphere took the ease of it. The Disco and Dance Floor were set up in a medium sized marquee in the grounds. This was dedicated for the Disco and the customer had a neon sign made up that was over the entrance saying '80s Disco'. All around the grounds there were tables and chairs, trampolines and various tents for the bar and food. There were around 100 guests all in fancy dress. They had a runway built too which was illuminated and the guests used this for the fancy dress competition. It was a great night with lots of dancing and some great comments. It was a gorgeous evening weather wise and the vibe was awesome. I repositioned some of the lights when it got dark and they lit the garden up with colour too. I've already been booked for another party at the same place next year.

On to Sunday and I expected to wake up without any pain but it wasn't the case so out came the painkillers and deep heat again. I got up early to go and set up for a wedding at a venue just outside town which I do around 10 times a year. I had arranged access the week before and I guess I should have called again to confirm it was still ok.....but I didn't. I arrived at the venue at 9.00am only to be told that I couldn't get in until 6.00pm as the room was being used for a 70th Birthday Dinner. Oh joy!
Drove back home and went back to bed for a few hours which is something I don't normally do. Arrived back at the venue, set up the Disco and away we went. I wasn't sure what to expect because the weather was still really nice and it was a Sunday but this lot were well up for it. A good mix of Indie & Alternative classics, Rock 'n Roll, 70s, 80s and 90s and some current chart ensured that the dance floor was always working. It wasn't always busy. During the last 90 minutes it seemed like everyone had decided to dance and it the time flew by. Very happy guests who were very complimentary too. Really enjoyed it myself.

May have to visit the doctors if this pain doesn't go soon.

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

Hope the pain disappears sharpish.

I had a wedding at a venue I'd never done on Saturday and it was a bit of a strange one.

Was booked for 4-Midnight but the venue is bang in the middle of the West End and there's a festival on their just now so I left at 1 and thanks to the wonders of the M74 extension, I was there before half 1, parked right outside the venue with a very short load in.

I'd actually arrived before the wedding co-ordinator but I suppose it's better to be in there early than late. Was set up with an hour spare so I had a quick pint in the beer garden. My brother picked up a fancy new camcorder I was road testing and I managed to forget to take an SD card so my GF and a mate who were out having lunch and drinks were nice enough to buy one and head out West to drop it off.

I had a bunch of Northern Soul and chill out music to play for the meal which everyone enjoyed.

The bride asked for some ceilidh as the groom was from England and they had some foreign friends there too. I called 2 songs and then kaiboshed it as I only had 4 couples dancing by the end of it.

As it was so sunny, as soon as the first dance was over, I'd say half of the 50 or so guests disappeared out into the beer garden, newlyweds included.

That left me with the older crowd who were up for a dance but I was playing some token end of nighters (steeler's wheel, livin on a prayer etc...) really early (I checked back on the video and I'd played both of those by half 9) The grooms brother popped in and asked if I'd play some Muse to try and coax them in. I did Starlight as it was probably the least sonically offensive Muse tune I have and I didn't want to put my guests who were inside dancing off.

Surprisingly enough, none of the outside guests came in, the dancefloor emptied and a rather drunk gentleman came up and started giving me grief about playing somethign they could dance to. I explained that it was a request from the groom's brother and he went away.

People started filtering in but there was maybe 40 odd there the whole night (quite a few of the older ones had left after the meal) You could have got 100 people seated at round tables in the room no bother so the atmos was a bit flat but despite that I'd managed to get a lot of people up dancing, though there were a tonne who had made requests (good ones at that) who just sat and listened

I broke one of my cardinal rules and will never do so again. One of the couple's friends came up and asked if he could plug his iPod in so him and another guy could do a dance routine. I ran it by the bride and having had quite a few glasses of wine, she said to let them do whatever they wanted.

I plug in the iPod, kill thelast tune and..... nothing. I'm still not sure what was wrong because as soon as another iPod was plugged in, it worked fine but needless to say I felt like a bit of a tool and next time I'm flat out refusing to plug any external stuff in. Anyways they did their dance and people really enjoyed it so hey ho.

Buffet came out, I dropped the volume and was over talking to the couple when I noticed my drunk friend hovering over my rig. I got over and asked if I could help him. He was even drunker now and started giving me grief about playing sh*t music to dance to and it being too quiet. I explained to him that the buffet was out and it was so people could have a conversation. He got cheekier so I told him to drop the attitude and give me peace so he stormed away. I later found out it was the father of the groom who in his own slurred words "Just wanted what was best for my boy"

I did apologise later on just to keep the peace but I really shouldn't have had to.

The rest of the night was good and I had plenty of dancers though the young team were rooted to their table getting hammered when they had made the most requests (they'd actually given me a list of 20+ songs...)

Was a good night but it felt like a struggle trying to be all men to all people and not sure I managed that for everyone. The couple seemed happy, I got a big cheer at the end of the night and probably the best part: the venue manager pulled me to the side while I was tearing down and said he'd really liked what I'd done, appreciated that I kept the volume to a decent level and not played after 12 as the locals have been on to environmental health recently, took a card and said they get lenty of people asking for band and DJ recommendations so he'd pass my details on.

That could be very lucrative as in the 2 hours between me arriving and the couple getting there, there must have been at least a dozen couples who had either already booked or were considering booking coming in to have a look around so there's plenty of work there to be had.

2 weddings at the end of the month that I feel will be pretty rambunctious and both couples have essentially told me to do what I want music wise so it'll be nice to get loose after quite a conservative gig there.

[Shakermaker Promotions]

The iPod thing is interesting and it's not something I do unless it has been agreed in advance and it's generally for something like background music. Saying that, if customers want their own background music I usually ask them to put it on an external HD stick and I put it through VDJ and let it do it's thing.

At the wedding I did on Tuesday I was asked if I could play Apache by The Sugarhill Gang. It was requested in advance and was on the song request sheet so I knew I had it. I told the guy that had requested it that I had already played it but he said he hadn't heard it. I'd seen him on the dance floor when I played it so was a bit miffed so played it again and announced that it was for him. The music started and he said "This isn't Apache!". I checked and double checked and it was?? He told me that it was the one from such and such a programme and I hadn't heard it but again I checked. I played some other tunes and checked out the various versions I had of Apache by The Sugarhill Gang and they were all the same. I was a bit confused (it doesn't take much!). As the hotel had free Wi Fi I decided to go online and take a look at YouTube to see whether I was going mad or not. The security on the Wi Fi was mucking me about so I looked on my iPhone instead. I managed to get a link and listen and noticed that the song was different. I've worked out since that the song had been tagged wrongly on my system for some reason. I have the best of The Sugarhill Gang and for whatever reason it was tagged wrong.

The guy then came over and told me that he had it on his iPhone and wondered if I could play it from that. I told him that I was trying to download it to no avail and that I didn't have the cable with me to connect the iPhone. I did actually have one in my laptop case which was in the van in the car park. I didn't realise and was getting flustered trying to sort different things and we were in the final hour so I left it at that. He was ok and appreciated the fact that I went out of my way to TRY and help.
Needless to say, Apache is now tagged correctly but I bet it's never requested again!
I'd never have noticed this unless it had been requested and yes, I guess I should have listened to it beforehand to make sure but you kind of take things for granted that they will be what they're supposed to be.....don't you?

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

The iPod thing is interesting and it's not something I do unless it has been agreed in advance and it's generally for something like background music. Saying that, if customers want their own background music I usually ask them to put it on an external HD stick and I put it through VDJ and let it do it's thing.

I NEVER do it and I won't be doing it again after that. It was really strange. The guy is adamant his volume was up and the tune was definitely playing but hey ho.

They did have the grace to thank me for doing it, I hope everyone else appreciated that I was trying to keep folk happy.

- - - Updated - - -

The iPod thing is interesting and it's not something I do unless it has been agreed in advance and it's generally for something like background music. Saying that, if customers want their own background music I usually ask them to put it on an external HD stick and I put it through VDJ and let it do it's thing.

I NEVER do it and I won't be doing it again after that. It was really strange. The guy is adamant his volume was up and the tune was definitely playing but hey ho.

They did have the grace to thank me for doing it, I hope everyone else appreciated that I was trying to keep folk happy.

[Excalibur]

Right, well due to a hectic time for me, and forum downtime, I've a lot to put in here. I'll datestamp them to make it easier.
Jun 15th.
First up, a huge vote of thanks to the incomparable Twinspin ( John Brown ) for his valuable help on this one. I couldn't have done it without him. Picked John up ready for the drive down to Grantham, where we arrived at the venue on time. Then spent ten minutes finding the loading area at the back. Finally succeeded, and started to lug the kit upstairs. Oh yes, first floor function room. We got the gear in, and set it up. I got the sound sorted, while John got on with the requested slideshow of the birthday girl. It was a 50th Birthday, and we had a playlist of nearly all 70's. Heaven.
Many were in fancy dress, including myself. My Afro, jewellery and frilly shirt saw their second outing in a month. We had a great night, the birthday girl and her twin had a fabulous time, and our client was happy. Loaded up and drove home to end a long but rewarding day. Once again, thanks John, much appreciated.
Jun18th
Back with John for a karaoke night at a local barracks. A very "lively" crowd, but all good fun. Although John's a regular here, it's the first time I've been here, and it was a learning curve equipment wise. Next time we'll tailor it to the venue exactly ( unless we are in the new facility next time, when we'll have to start again ) All in all a good night, and John was his usual efficient self loading up the requests, while I coerced, corralled, chided and complimented our singers.
Jun 21st
Twelve year old party. Third one at the same venue, stemming from a previous booking there. Seems the birthday girl had been to many of her friends' parties, and had been keeping a rating of the DJ's performances at these, and most had got three stars. Seems one though had got five stars. It turned into one of those magical gigs, after the lads had let off some steam early on. I've never seen so many of the lads join in with Macarena, Grease, Gangnam Style, Conga and the rest of the party ones before. What a fabulous night, one that makes you realise why you enjoy this job sometimes.
Jun 22nd
Another rewarding one, but very different. Marquee wedding at Ripon. Was directed into the field with the marquee, and was able to back the van right up to where I was working. Unzip a panel, and I'm in. Magic. Shame the weather wasn't playing the game, heavy showers and strong wind making things unpleasant at times. Ah well. While I'd been bringing the gear in, a worrying thought was going through my mind. We were a long way from the house, and I hadn't heard the reassuring hum of a diesel generator. Waht I did find was a long yellow* extension cable, running to a very battered 13amp reel. Whoopee. Added to the fact that I had to use my own reel to get power to my setup area, and to say I was apprehensive would be an understatement. Suffice to say, the subs and the EFX 500s stayed in the van. Not that this was a problem really, as a Powerbar and a couple of three colour lasers is a more than adequate light show, and the two tops I used had ample volume for the job. I was again working with a playlist of songs which meant a lot to the Bride and Groom ( who were a mature couple, so most of the songs were smack in the middle of my comfort zone. )
Anyhow, we had a Ceilidh band ( also plugged into my reel!! )as well, and the fun began. Surprisingly, the power held up all night, so that was a welcome surprise. I played music during the ceremony at appropriate points, background for a while and then handed over to the band. Who were then tasked with playing through the hog roast buffet. Poor souls. They finished their set, handing back to me, and we all took our turn at the food, as instructed by our hosts. We were also instructed to help ourselves to whatever drink took our fancy as well, and that was a welcome change from my last all day event. The band came back for their second set, and at five o'clock admitted defeat, and went home. Poor souls, never actually had a chance.
This left me supposed to leave the kit on autopilot till my designated start time of seven o'clock, but with a floor full of kids, ( who couldn't use the bouncy castles cos it was hissing down ) and a long playlist, I decided to get stuck in, and was soon playing that all time classic, Gangnam Style. The next few hours were spent cherry picking from the list, and slotting in requests where possible. Hot pies and pasties arrived shortly, and were very tasty. At about half past ten, I'd played most of whatl I was going to from the list, and went freelance, with all the ones I'd normally play at this point ( quite a few of which were actaully on the list, and I'd saved them on purpose. ) Up till then, the dancefloor had been sporadic, and I was pleased to see the hardy souls who had stayed to the end ( I was freezing by this time. No heating, and it was cold. ) take to the floor en masse. I played Hey Jude as the last one just after eleven, and packed up to go home. Another good one, which could have been awesome if the weather had been nice, or awful if the power hadn't been adequate. Ah yes, power.

*Yellow cables. Beware yellow cables, as that's the colour designated for 110 volts. Won't run a disco. Fortunately, mine was carrying 240v, but in the old days, it was common to use 110v for the strings of lights illuminating tents.

Right, that was a long one, at least I'm up to date now.