New Year's Eve Mistakes

[rth_discos]

So we're a couple of days away from New Year's Eve

Any stories of mistakes you've made in the past on New Year's Eve in the past?

Here's mine...

It was Millennium Eve, and I was 16 years old, and had my biggest ever gig at a local community centre. So I took the whole setup along - 2 sets of speakers, light boxes, pin spots, the lot.

And of course, back then, it was all halogen lights.

I did what I normally did back then - I ran my single trusty extension lead to the mains, and plugged everything in.

All was fine whilst I played background music during the buffet, until I 'started' the evening around 9pm - did a bit on the mic and turned up Robbie Williams - Let Me Entertain You.

It won't come as any surprised that as all the lights flicked on with the sound to light, and the amps drew a little more power, that the whole thing tripped!

Fortunately my uncle was at the gig, and had a spare long extension in his van for me to split the sound and light across 2 plugs, and the evening was saved!!

Thankfully, LED lights don't draw anywhere near as much power these days!!

[Imagine]

It was Millennium Eve, and I was 16 years old, and had my biggest ever gig at a local community centre. So I took the whole setup along - 2 sets of speakers, light boxes, pin spots, the lot.

And of course, back then, it was all halogen lights.

Your light boxes ran on halogen???? Wow that must have been warm :coat:

My biggest mistake? Actually agreeing to DO NYE in the first place.

My first time around at this job (I packed in before the Millennium), it wasn't too bad. People were up for a party and it was the "done thing" to be out on the night. I had some really good nights. Back then though, the pubs etc. could only get an extension until about 12:30 and it was an easy night

Since I came back 6 years ago, I've done it thrice....that was enough. The nights were getting quieter (less and less people going out), those that WERE there were so p******d that I ended up carrying the gear out through puddles of puke - not my sort of gig. Plus with 24 hour licensing, it was getting so that the "standard" end time was 2am, meaning home by around 4am if lucky and too shattered to spend New Year's Day with my family.

I haven't done it since. I've turned down countless gigs this year (seems there's a big shortage of DJs at the moment and I've actually been chuckling to myself tonight seeing the number of wannabe agents who have suddenly realised they've taken on NYE gigs for silly prices and now can't cover them).

So I shall raise a glass of Scottish-land's finest, ring in the New Year with my family in front of a roaring log fire and look forward to doing plenty of weddings next year instead :)

[Imagine]

On a serious note about NYE though....(and yes...I've just been checking email and reading posts from the book of faeces....)

How many "wannabe" agents are going to be letting people down this year?

I know....it happens every year where Sidney takes on more bookings than he can possibly cover (after of course, taking his slice), but this year seems a lot worse than I've EVER seen....there are going to be a lot of parties without DJs from where I'm sitting!

It doesn't do this industry any justice of course and it's sad to see a party without the expected DJ...but I really hope the wannabe agents get well and truly bitten on the a**e this year and have their future reputations shot to pieces. It's making my blood boil!

As already mentioned, I don't traditionally DO NYE, but the rig is on standby for the "right" fee...just in case....(well, an emergency plumber/mechanic/electrician isn't going to be cheap on NYE...are they? ;). )

[DJ Jules]

I've taken a NYE gig this year for the money (wife is at Uni full time for another 18 months so the disco income has become key to keeping our household fed). Prior to this year though I've only been out once for NYE, and I let the bar staff make the mistake.

Imagine the scene..... Disco is going well and midnight is approaching so I do the countdown, wish everyone happy new year and launch into the traditional Post midnight songs. The bar staff then (for some unknown reason) decide to turn on the large screen TV by the dance floor which dramatically proclaims it's still 30 seconds to go and starts the countdown :mad:

Turns out I was probably spot on, as there can be a substantial delay introduced in "live TV" with digital broadcasts such as Sky, Virgin, Freeview.

This year, it's TV's off.

Julian

[yourdj]

I was once doing a semi posh restaurant with mixed ages and played Never Forget after the Auld Lang Sign from the start, bad idea! complete energy killer. One older couple mouthed "what the fxxx is this". It was OK, but i think they wanted cheesier party music. I saw the owner at an awards party a few years after and she said "we have done very well, no thanks to you" so their clients may have said bad things about the music I found her very elitist and a bit cocky (she is a life coach - say it all) plus the cliquy suburban, wannabe classy clients, so as much as that I was probably badly suited.

Been doing this venue for over 8 years now (plus the whole of December), much better, great atmosphere. Older people so they want the whole 500 miles and Abba type thing. :)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4ctGsvaIiA

[Excalibur]

Turns out I was probably spot on, as there can be a substantial delay introduced in "live TV" with digital broadcasts such as Sky, Virgin, Freeview.

This year, it's TV's off.

Julian

Young Twinspin nearly got lynched one year for this very reason, due to the venue staff making exactly the same error. Despite it not being his fault, the lad copped all the flak. :(




Been doing this venue for over 8 years now (plus the whole of December), much better, great atmosphere. Older people so they want the whole 500 miles and Abba type thing. :)


Now hold on there, Musky! :Naughty::Naughty::Naughty:
What have we told you about stereotyping folk by age? :mad:

[Nakatomi]

I was once doing a semi posh restaurant with mixed ages and played Never Forget after the Auld Lang Sign from the start, bad idea! complete energy killer. One older couple mouthed "what the fxxx is this". It was OK, but i think they wanted cheesier party music. I saw the owner at an awards party a few years after and she said "we have done very well, no thanks to you" so their clients may have said bad things about the music I found her very elitist and a bit cocky (she is a life coach - say it all) plus the cliquy suburban, wannabe classy clients, so as much as that I was probably badly suited.

Been doing this venue for over 8 years now (plus the whole of December), much better, great atmosphere. Older people so they want the whole 500 miles and Abba type thing. :)


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4ctGsvaIiA

And this, from the DJ who proudly boasts he doesn't do cheese? :confused:

Anyway, I can't think about any major clangers I've dropped at NYE other than the fact I took a gig at a cricket club. A committee man suddenly drunkenly decided I wasn't the DJ he booked, cos I didn't have enough lights & got very vocal about it - to the point where he started prodding my chest & pushing me. Somebody saw this & a good ole spaghetti western style fight ensued. My light stand was toppled but thankfully not even the R80 spots seemed to suffer. The man was ejected - and as far as I know bumped off the committee too. The night continued unabated & as far as I remember went quite well after that.

Other than that - I think maybe I once stopped a major clanger being dropped when somebody asked me if I could 'delay the countdown for just a few minutes'... Who do you think I am.. Superman? :rofl: No way, especially when I've been hyping up the guests for the last 2 hours! Nah - midnight came at the allotted time & I filled til the piper made his appearance - no harm done. But had I tried to tell people their timepieces were all wrong? Er, no.

[rth_discos]

And this, from the DJ who proudly boasts he doesn't do cheese? :confused:

I too am a 'non cheesy DJ'.

Amazed at how many times I've played the Macarena.

However, apart from one outing of the Agadoo (very valid reason for this being requested), I'm yet to play any other Black Lace thankfully!

[Nakatomi]

The nights were getting quieter (less and less people going out),...

I gave up on NYE as a punter a long time ago (2003 I think). Roll up into town having paid Mr Taxi a massively inflated amount, to be met with nearly entirely vacant bars everywhere charging extortionate prices for drinks - DJ ballsed up the midnight stuff completely - still not enough people in the venue to link arms for Auld Lang Syne to any great effect - then had to remortgage the house to pay for a taxi ride home. No thanks!

So I'd say the biggest NYE mistake by far is bigging it up too far & so many outfits just out to gouge everybody.

- - - Updated - - -


The nights were getting quieter (less and less people going out),...

I gave up on NYE as a punter a long time ago (2003 I think). Roll up into town having paid Mr Taxi a massively inflated amount, to be met with nearly entirely vacant bars everywhere charging extortionate prices for drinks - DJ ballsed up the midnight stuff completely - still not enough people in the venue to link arms for Auld Lang Syne to any great effect - then had to remortgage the house to pay for a taxi ride home. No thanks!

So I'd say the biggest NYE mistake by far is bigging it up too far & so many outfits just out to gouge everybody.

[Imagine]

So I'd say the biggest NYE mistake by far is bigging it up too far & so many outfits just out to gouge everybody.

Yes....and no.

Yes, it's the "busiest night of the year" <cough> and supply and demand dictate that everything is going to be dearer (especially on services such as DJs that can only be in one place at a time). if you owned a bar....wouldn't you try to capitalise on booze sales for the night (I know I would!). Likewise Taxis....if I owned a Taxi I'd be capitalising on the potential for having to have a full valet after having an inebriated so-and-so regurgitate in the back seat!

No - because actually....it isn't the busiest night of the year. It's been dying a death for years in this neck of the woods. Pubs would rather open the jukebox for free rather than pay a DJ (and let's face it, the number of songs you can get through a jukebox in 4-5 hours and the amount of commission they're "losing" as a result of making it free for the night is a LOT cheaper than hiring anything like a pro DJ). I know this for fact from very long conversations with my local landlord....their profits on the night are minimal after the brewery's taken it's cut!

My average wedding has more guests than a venue on NYE around here, and they behave better!

What's really making me chuckle this year above all others though (and don't ban me....I'm not turning this into a price thread...Gawd knows there's enough of those on FaceBook at the moment on this very subject), is the number of "Panic...I need a DJ urgently" posts....for a LOT LESS than I'd go out for on any other Saturday night during the year!

I've never seen so many people panicking because they can't cover a gig they've taken on!

These are from the people that have taken on bookings, taken a cut off the top as "commission" or a "finder's fee" of an already undercut price, and then tried to farm it out to A.N.Other bedroom DJ (and happily...failed in doing so!). They're not agents by any stretch of the imagination. Hell, I could have farmed out a couple of dozen gigs that way....but I don't work like that (shame...because I could have made a mint for doing nothing).

I've seen gigs advertised from 9pm to 1am for as little as £150! Even Peter won't go out for that! (:sofa: it's a joke....please take it in the correct spirit! :) ).

Yes, the premium gigs are out there for NYE. Do I want them? No.

I suffer enough on the corporate Xmas parties where Nigel from Accounts gets let out once a year and is allowed to spend his pocket money at the bar. That's messy enough.

Aunt Mabel out on her annual NYE binge is a step to far!

The lack of customer participation, the hassle from drunks and the stupidly late load out (most bookings here are until 2am...why???? Let's do Auld Lang Syne and go home!) put me off a couple of years ago.

Personally, I'd rather spend a night at home with the family and a couple of beers. Call me old fashioned....family at Christmas/New Year means a lot to me and nothing short double my normal fee is going to get me loading the van.

Yes...my phone will ring tomorrow night. Yes, the rig is on standby for the "right" fee for a gig within 20 miles of home....but I'm not expecting to be going out (I actually expect to be drinking cocoa in bed by 11pm...I'm getting old). I'm expensive on New Year's Eve for a reason...

Happy New Year all :) :beer1::beer1::beer1:

[Excalibur]

What I think the trend is for now are Ticket Only functions. This tends to cut out some of the less desirable types, and funds a sensible fee for the DJ. I'm travelling a fair way North, and get fed and watered, bed and breakfast, plus a fee greater than £150. Nice hotel, which is putting on a bash, and running it as a special event.

I think simply trying to pay for the DJ with bar sales is becoming more and more difficult nowadays.


Now, the " Agents": Same round here. Shocking. :mad: :zip:

[Corabar Steve]

Our biggest NYE mistake? Putting a DJ we didn't know into a venue (that we still have the contract with) because all our DJs have regular NYE gigs. He ballsed up the count down & played & I quote from the C&B manager "Bump & grind R&B" to a crowd with an average age of about 70.

A post about it came up in my FB memories today

"Not happy. Can't talk about it at the moment, but extremely :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored:ed off & angry. Seething in fact."

[Excalibur]

Our biggest NYE mistake? Putting a DJ we didn't know into a venue (that we still have the contract with) because all our DJs have regular NYE gigs. He ballsed up the count down & played & I quote from the C&B manager "Bump & grind R&B" to a crowd with an average age of about 70.

A post about it came up in my FB memories today

"Not happy. Can't talk about it at the moment, but extremely :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored:ed off & angry. Seething in fact."

I remember that one. Took a long while to bring you down from the ceiling after that. :(

OK, before Larry and Mo chip in on this one, I made one this year. :o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o:o Drove 120 miles to the gig, and at 110, realised I'd left the cloth for the DSB at home!! :doh::doh::doh:
I was going to Andy's shop ( Cumbria DJ Store, in case you hadn't realised, check out this week's special offers. :) ) so Young Flatliners arrived to see us trying to fashion a replacement from whatever was to hand. To cut a long story short, we ended up sticking two Powerdrive stands under my crossbar, and me borrowing a very nice micro booth of some flavour. Thanks again Andy, once more you're a lifesaver. :bowdown::bowdown:

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

I've taken a NYE gig this year for the money (wife is at Uni full time for another 18 months so the disco income has become key to keeping our household fed). Prior to this year though I've only been out once for NYE, and I let the bar staff make the mistake.

Imagine the scene..... Disco is going well and midnight is approaching so I do the countdown, wish everyone happy new year and launch into the traditional Post midnight songs. The bar staff then (for some unknown reason) decide to turn on the large screen TV by the dance floor which dramatically proclaims it's still 30 seconds to go and starts the countdown :mad:

Turns out I was probably spot on, as there can be a substantial delay introduced in "live TV" with digital broadcasts such as Sky, Virgin, Freeview.

This year, it's TV's off.

Julian

We're in Vegas with an awesome room looking over the strip so we went upstairs and cracked a bottle of fizz to watch the fire works last night. I set my camera up and keep an eye on the TV for the countdown and then BAM BAM BAM Caesers goes up like a Christmas tree. The telly must have been a good 45 seconds behind.

[Jim - Scotland's Party DJ]

What's really making me chuckle this year above all others though (and don't ban me....I'm not turning this into a price thread...Gawd knows there's enough of those on FaceBook at the moment on this very subject), is the number of "Panic...I need a DJ urgently" posts....for a LOT LESS than I'd go out for on any other Saturday night during the year!

I've never seen so many people panicking because they can't cover a gig they've taken on!

These are from the people that have taken on bookings, taken a cut off the top as "commission" or a "finder's fee" of an already undercut price, and then tried to farm it out to A.N.Other bedroom DJ (and happily...failed in doing so!). They're not agents by any stretch of the imagination. Hell, I could have farmed out a couple of dozen gigs that way....but I don't work like that (shame...because I could have made a mint for doing nothing).

I've seen gigs advertised from 9pm to 1am for as little as £150! Even Peter won't go out for that! (:sofa: it's a joke....please take it in the correct spirit! :) ).



I pulled myself off all but a few FB groups during the year so I miss most of the :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored: but I can only imagine it was the same up here. It's not all the sids though, last year I had the biggest agency in the country go in a huff because "£300 is good money to DJ and you'll be standing around while the singer plays most of the night."

Aye £300 is good, unless you're getting double that any other Saturday of the year and standing about watching a singer is still working.

Anyways to the OP. I usually price myself out of NYE so I've not done that many all in.

I think my first was when the pub I used to work at had a call off, someone phoned and said - you do a bit of DJing don't you? "ummmm kind of...."

£120 cash (hey, I was a student at the time and it was a walk in) and we're off.

My pals from behind the bar and the regulars who were at the party furnished me with a tonne of booze to the point the manageress found me slumped over the wall at a nearby garage and had to get me dragged home (as I said, I was a student)

I phoned up the next day and apologised profusely, she laughed it off and said I'd actually been brilliant though my chat on the mic did go a bit wonky after Midnight.

Never touched a drop on a gig again even when I was still doing it for beer money.


I did one for an agent once down in a seaside town and took a few pals who didn't have any plans. This joint had 2 owners, one was great the other was a complete :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored: and guess who was working that night? One of my friends nearly knocked him out for some reason. I can't remember why but the guy was asking for it.


So nothing major from gigs really. The time I lived out in Saudi Arabia and managed to spend a night homeless and standed in Bahrain with no wallet or passport on the other hand!!! :muppet::daft:

[mattydj50]

What I think the trend is for now are Ticket Only functions. This tends to cut out some of the less desirable types, and funds a sensible fee for the DJ. I'm travelling a fair way North, and get fed and watered, bed and breakfast, plus a fee greater than £150. Nice hotel, which is putting on a bash, and running it as a special event.



Pretty much the same for me, though travelling to a very familiar location alongside the A1. Working with a band too, so feet up for another hour and a bit. Many familiar faces there, plus a smattering of new ones, including a table of four who told me they came because they had seen me working at a wedding earlier in the year and decided that I was far better than anyone else they had ever seen (no guide dogs, white sticks or bottle bottom glasses in sight). Average was probably 40-50, so no chance of any chart drivel hitting the ears tonight. In fach the first few dancers were up to background tracks and waltzing, quickstepping and foxtrotting their stuff.

A standing ovation at the end of the night, with well over 80% of the guests still there (and not completely wrecked). Took me ages to pack down as guests kept coming for chats. Fortunately, I too had a room for the night, so dragged my weary body up the stairs, only to find that my electronic key wouldn't open the door, as I had carried it while hugging my laptop, so had corrupted it.

Mr Night Manager kindly gave me another. I did think of winding him up later by ringing for some obscure room service request around 4am, but I was soundly unconcious within 30 seconds of reaching the room!

The hotel had cocked up breakfast, which is usually served as brunch, between 9am and 1pm, allowing a leisurely eye opener (and hangover removal - not me) in the morning. However, the new management shad lunch bookings for, well, lunch, so did breakfast from 7.30am (yeah, right) to 10.30am and then reset the restaurant for lunch. I managed a respectable 9.40, but the queue after 10am probably contained 50% of the guests. I scoffed mine and even helped tidy it up to free a table.

My one :Censored::Censored::Censored::Censored:-up in all the years was to pre-record the last 5 minutes of the old year, then the countdown, bing bong bing bong BONGs, Auld Lang Syne and a couple of tracks to start the year off, so I was free to speak on the mic and join the staff in seeing the New Year in. All went well until about half way through the second post midnight track (can't remember what it was now, might have been Amarillo), whenn the music soddenly stopped. The CD player was still whirring round and the "remaining time" clock was still counting down. I discovered that I had burnt the tracks to a CD, but I hadn't added the full track into my sound editing program, so I had around 2 minutes of silence before the next track kicked in.

Fortunately, I had the next disc already lined up so a quick bit of West Country gibber, I pressed the button and Eileen Came On.

The best (worst) night I ever had though was working a James Bond NYE gala dinner with a promoter so far up his own backside that he could see his own tonsils. And a Rat Pack type singer who, despite having a music stand with the words typed out for him, couldn't get the words right. Or the tune. Or in tune. On some cheapo PA that my 3 year old grandson whould have had a better idea how to work.

He was, by far, the worst act I have ever worked with. So much so that the black tie crown started to heckle him, but he insisted on continuing. When it reached the OFF, OFF, OFF stage, someone had called the manager in who said to me, you'll have to go and switch him off. Not me, I said, this is your hotel and your call. So she went on stage and told him he was off, to which he said on the mic that he would just do one more song. Maybe the diners could not hear him, but Julie and I did, so she headed for his power sockets and simply switched them off.

We had already agreed "plan B" and I'd cued up the Thunderbirds theme, which I played, announcing "welcome to our comedy night, I hope you enjoyed that". The whole place just fell about, apart form the singer and the promoter and their wives, both of whom needed several gallons of mint sauce. They proceded to head to the bar for a whinge and whine about how this crowd did not appreciate them and how the singer had done cruise ships (Titanic?), appeared on TV (Crimewatch?) and had a record (Criminal?) out.

What they didn't realise that my wife was with me and she was also in the bar, talking to one of the bar staff, her daughter!

Anyway, we did rescue the evening and we were showered with praise that night and again at breakfast next morning. Two ladies even stopped my wife and told how much they appreciated what WE (me and her, they said) had done. She did then ask for her half of the fee, but unfortunately, was stood on my deaf side at the time!