DJ

YouTube likes to throw retro music videos at me from time to time. Today a video came up of a track I haven’t heard in a while, but being the bit of a retro music nerd, I do listen to it from time to time.

I had completely forgotten that this song is 30 years old. I was *23* when this song came out. What? I know, right?

The group was “The Party”, formed by members of “The All New Mickey Mouse Club”. The track? Well, it’s a pop take on a Dokken rock track from 1985.

As a DJ, I found this track “felt” faster than it actually is. I always labeled this at 122 BPM, which was typical for the time, but it doesn’t quite have the house feel that was prevalent at the time and unless you were coming out of the right track to segue into this, the beat mix could be a little tricky. Or perhaps I had a beer in me by the time I’d get around to mixing this in for the night.

From 1991, here’s the Top 25 song “In My Dreams” by The Party. As an aside, I’ve always found the video effects in the bridge near the end to be quite nifty, especially for its time when Amiga computers were still the rage. And as a further aside, I miss the sideburns on guys in the 1990s (despite Damon’s mop of hair, he has nifty sideburns).

I’m not sure of the year, probably first half of the 70s, but this live version of “You Won’t See Me” is quite fun.

I have not thought of this song in many, many years. But for the enjoyment of everyone on this Monday, here’s ABC with “When Smokey Sings”. It’s been nearly 35 years since this song was in the Top 5.

One thing I notice about music videos from the 80s: they’re not quite as polished but the performers generally don’t look as grubby as they do in the typical 21st century music videos.

Now get off my lawn and listen to the music.

Around 10 years ago… OK, let’s stop right there for a minute; has it really been ten years? Actually, it’s been 11 years. Wow.

So, a decade and some change ago, I was commuting back and forth to my software developer job for a telecommunications company. The commute was 55 miles in each direction and involved a little bit of expressway, a little bit of main roads through villages, and a few back roads in Amish company. I liked driving back and forth as it gave my mind a chance to wander a little bit. The drive wasn’t stressful, not even on the snowiest of Upstate New York winter days.

I had my new iPhone in tow and would play some music and would often find myself rotating a certain number of playlists. A fan of electronic and dance music, I found myself listening to an artist named DJ Antoine. To this day I love the original radio and dance mix of his track “This Time”.

Here’s the version of the song that I really enjoy. I still frequently use it as a workout song.

Back in the day I looked up the video and while I didn’t particularly enjoy the different remix they chose for the video (it’s really not my thing at all), I liked the story being told in the video, particularly because it took place in the desert. Being in all the sunshine and exploring the world and the expansiveness offered by the desert seemed like such an exciting thing to do.

The video is actually part of a series; there’s also the same video (with a much different track) from the other point of view

As we prepare for our move and went through the storage unit in the basement, I was delighted to find several crates of records from my DJ days. I knew they were down there somewhere, but they hadn’t seen the light of day in nearly four years. And now they’re being packed up and prepped for a ride across the country to Tucson.

When I was DJing three or four nights a week I heavily relied on a few of the remix services, including Ultimix, Hot Tracks, and Hi-NRG from Hot Tracks. These “For DJ Use Only” mixes featured custom mixes of popular songs, often with the necessary lead in and break out beats necessary to keep the dance floor moving in constant time as you moved between songs. It’s not nice to make gay men and lesbians trip and fall as you just mash two songs together; you have to beat mix them, and more importantly, do it at the proper time in the track to keep the energy up and the people dancing.

Ultimix, Hot Tracks, and the like certainly helped in that situation.

I remember listening to this on 62 WHEN. From 1978, here’s John Paul Young and “Love Is In The Air.

This was a big, but fairly niche, club track when I was DJing back in the day. I originally heard the song on “Open House Party” hosted by John Garabedian, and since I knew him from my radio connections, I called him up and he told me about the song. I was happy to start playing it right away.

From 1995, here’s “Movin’ Up” by Dreamworld.

I will always be thankful for coming of age in the 80s. This track was popular when I was a baby DJ. From 1989, here’s Will To Power with “Fading Away”.

And, mustache!

Back when I was first DJing in small clubs I picked up this 12-inch single in a record store in Boston. I always enjoyed the vibe of this record, and a newer version became a big dance hit in 1992 or 1993. When I was Program Director of WOWZ/WOWB (Wow-FM, “The Beat of Central New York”) and had just discovered Napster, we yanked this version and mixed it into rotation. Don’t tell anyone. It was always fun to play alternative versions of tracks once in a while, though it’s not a very good practice for Top 40 radio.

From 1990, here’s Robin Stone (later Robin S) and “Show Me Love”. This is one of the reasons I enjoy YouTube; folks share the stuff you can’t find elsewhere.