Hi Folks

What do you all use for background music before a gig?
At present I have been playing a mastermix flashback cd but am now getting really bored with it. I dont want anything too fast or too slow. Any ideas.

raegge usually , or the buffet love album i did, nice and slow, calms people down before i start up again so they think thank god those songs are over ,whoo lets party,

Mastermix 90's mix

Fairly up to date soul type music, eg Lighthouse family, gabrielle, maybe some compilations medium type soul stuff, nothing heavy.

Depends on the type of function really.



I usually make up a playlist of assorted music that the clients like but are not so good for dancing to, also play some lighter/slower indie and some modern pop tracks during this time.



I never just put on a CD as I don't always take my CD players, But either make up a playlist on the HD2500 or previously on the Laptop was the way to go.

I tend to play a average mix of r kelly, gabrielle, in fact alot of the songs on ay now album are good, i also use this time at the beginning to entertain the kids with certain songs etc,

Perhaps we could all add 10 tracks we use to this thread, would be ideal to follow on from the non cheese thread and others running at the mo?

whatcha all reckon?

I reckon someone else can put it in order and re-type it.

Yeah, im no good at me alphanabet

Ok 10 tracks I would play in the first hour for background music, really nothinh to fast, just any slow to medium style music, depending, but the 10 below are ok.

Sade - Smooth Operator
Enrique Iglesias - Escape
Blue- You make me wanna
Gabrielle - Give me a little more time
Connells - 74-75
Geri Halliwell - Lift me up
Niana Simone - My baby just cares for me
Alison Moyet - Love resurrection
Johhny Nash - I can see clearly now
Billy Withers - Lovely day (88' remix)

Gypsy Kings are ideal background music, especially at weddings on hot summers days. Gives a nice mediteranian feel, depends on the venue though.

The 2 CD's I use the most for background are:

Ministry Of Sound Acid Jazz
60's SOul Mix

I normally use the buffet to fit in all those requests that are more for listening than dancing to. If its a lively crowd then I would carry on with upbeat tracks and give them indigestion

Here's what I played as background music at a wedding last Saturday

1 Amor - Ben E King
2 Because of love - Billy Fury
3 I get the sweetest feeling - Jackie Wilson
4 Our day will come - Ruby & the Romantics
5 For once in my life - Stevie Wonder
6 Third finger, left hand - Martha & the Vandellas
7 But I do - Clarence ‘Frogman’ Henry
8 How sweet it is - Marvin Gaye
9 I hear a symphony - Diana Ross & the Supremes
10 I’d never find another you - Billy Fury
11 Fools rush in - Brook Benton
12 Volare - Bobby Rydell
13 Ain’t that a kick in the head - Dean Martin
14 Witchcraft - Frank Sinatra
15 Almost there - Andy Williams
16 Magic moments - Perry Como
17 Baby, you got what it takes - Brook Benton & Dinah Washington
18 Everybody loves somebody - Dean Martin
19 Young at heart - Frank Sinatra
20 That’s amore - Dean Martin
21 Fly me to the moon - Julie London
22 You’re nobody til somebody loves you - Dean Martin
23 Love and marriage - Frank Sinatra
24 Call me - Chris Montez
25 Something old, something new - The Fantastics
26 Some kind of wonderful - The Drifters
27 Make it with you - Bread
28 True love ways - Buddy Holly
29 - My baby just cares for me - Nina Simone

about 70 mins

Very good list that.Is it an Album or selected tracks by the client?

Here is a selection of what I play for wedding background

Temptations - My Girl (2:52)
Sugar Minott - Good Thing Going (3:35)
Commodores - Nightshift (4:53)
Mamas And The Papas - California Dreamin (2:36)
Beatles - Here Comes The Sun (3:01)
Bill Withers - Just The Two Of Us (3:52)
Stylistics - I'm Stone In Love With You (3:17)
Queen - You're My Best Friend (2:48)
Ub40 - Kingston Town (3:39)
Paul Mccartney & Wings - Silly Love Songs (5:35)
Louis Armstrong - What A Wonderful World (2:14)
Eagles - Take it to the limit (4:32)
Real Thing - You To Me Are Everything (3:16)
Commodores - Easy (3:59)
Robson Jerome - Saturday Night At The Movies (2:22)
Elton John - Can You Feel The Love Tonight (3:57)
Frank Sinatra - You Make Me Feel So Young (2:52)
Olivia Newton John - If Not For You (2:51)
Nat King Cole - Let There Be Love (2:42)
Ben E King - Stand By Me (2:55)
Dire Straits - Romeo Juliet (5:31)
Billy Paul - Me & Mrs Jones (4:40)
Carpenters - Top Of The World (2:57)
Elton John - Your Song (3:56)
Carley Simon - Nobody Does It Better (3:21)
Billy Joel - Just The Way You Are (3:25)
Sam Cooke - Cupid (2:26)
Mc Fadden Whitehead - Ain't No Stoppin' Us Now (3:32)
Drifters - Kissing In The Back Row (3:27)
Danny Williams - Moon River (2:33)


And a selection for General Party

Andy Kim - Rock Me Gently (3:23)
Elton Jhon - Can You Feel The Love Tonight (3:57)
Five Star - All Fall Down (3:24)
Susan Vega - My Name Is Luca (3:48)
Gabrielle - Dreams (3:34)
Sade - Smooth Operator (4:09)
Marc Cohn - Walking In Memphis (4:06)
Real Thing - You To Me Are Everything (3:16)
Rolling Stones - Start Me Up (3:28)
Paul Mccartney & Wings - Silly Love Songs (5:35)
Neil Sedaka - Laughter In The Rain (2:41)
Detroit Spinners - Could It Be I'm Falling In Love (3:51)
Fleetwood Mac - Rhiannon (4:00)
Police - Roxanne (3:02)
Carley Simon - Nobody Does It Better (3:21)
David Grey - Babylon (4:22)
Soul Il Soul - Back To Life (3:22)
Michael Jackson - Off The Wall (4:01)
Dina Carroll - Special Kind Of Love (3:24)
Elton John - Daniel (3:50)
Radio - Jack Jill (3:34)
Light House Family - Lifted (4:24)
Turtles - Happy Together (2:51)
Lou Rawls - Youll Never Find (4:24)
Kool Gang - Ladies Night (3:18)
Eagles - Take it easy (3:27)
Billy Joel - An Innocent Man (5:14)
Stealers Wheel - Stuck In The Middle With You (3:20)
Commodores - Easy (3:59)
Lionel Richie - Stuck On You (3:05)
Peter Sarstedt - Where Do You Go To My Lovely (4:35)
Sam Cooke - Twistin The Night Away (2:35)
Imagination - Just An Illusion (3:52)
Commitments - I Can't Stand The Rain (3:05)
Lionel Richie - Say You Say Me (3:56)

Nik

Anything goes really early on providing not too up beat.

James, a good list but do you not think it is a little on heavy on the oldies side for a modern wedding?

I'm just curious and this is not a criticism, it may well have been what your clients requested.

Most B&Gs getting married now are in their 20s & 30s, this would mean that they were born during the 70s & 80s and would not really start to appreciate music until the 80s & 90s, If we assume that their parents were in their 20s when they had the B&Gs then they were born in the 50s & 60s and would not have really appreciated music until the 60s & 70s. But if your wedding is like the majority I attend, the bulk of the guests are usually around the same sort of age as the B & G. Obviously there will also be some older guests and some youngsters and the occasional geriatric.

I think the above should reflect to some extent the type and styles of music for the background music, so as a percentage I would probably have about 50% from an era that the bride and groom would be most conversant with, say the mid 80s through the early 90s then I would have about 20% from the periods 20 years either side allowing about 10% for an earlier period than this. This is just a general rule of thumb and obviously there will be times when the bride and groom have specific music tastes and want the music to reflect this, Rock n' Roll, Heavy Rock etc

Fortunately I have a lot of free time at work and am therefore able to put a fair bit of effort in to making up a playlist for each specific event to suit the expected crowd. So far it has been successful and I have had some great comments back about the diversity and range of the background music chosen.

I try to put a logical approach into my reasons for choosing what to play and my little formula above seems to work well.

The list was selected by me - I use the same tracks on a fairly regular basis during wedding meal as although they are definitely oldies, most people know them and i often see people singing along to them. I add newer tracks depending on the age group of the guests.

List below is one I used at a recent wedding

1 Love guaranteed - Damage
2 Never knew love like this - Alexander O'Neal
3 L-O-V-E (love) - Al Green
4 Signed, sealed delivered - Blue ft Stevie Wonder & Angie Stone
5 Somethin’ stupid - Robbie Williams & Nicole Kidman
6 From the bottom of my heart - Stevie Wonder
7 Darlin' darlin' baby - O'Jays
8 For the love of you - Whitney Houston
9 How deep is your love - Bee Gees
10 You to me are everything - Real Thing
11 Stars - Simply Red
12 Two hearts - Phil Collins
13 The real thing - Lisa Stansfield
14 Never too much - Luther Vandross
15 Give you my heart - Toni Braxton & Babyface
16 Can't get enough of your love - Barry White
17 Everything I own - Ken Boothe
18 Boy you knock me out - Tatyana Ali
19 Hold me in your arms - Rick Astley
20 Saving all my love for you - Whitney Houston

Isn't this a song about domestic violence?

Could've been worse, could've been on the wedding list :)

No, worse still, Child Abuse.

Not the happiest of tracks to play

Always use Grandmaster Good Groovin' 1 and 2 for the start of the night. Sometimes gets them dancing too, if they are the right kind of crowd.

For the buffet, it's usually either Kenny G or Grandmaster Swing (from track 7 onwards - I find My Way just too depressing)

Yes but a good tune and a lot of people like it... If we start to get to paranoid about what we play then things could get rather boring...

Not bad though out of my whole list you only found one to knock

Nik

Suzane Vega - good track. I like it.



Agreed. A bit like Freda payne and Band of Gold. Classic track. No one minds it's about separation. Just a super tune.

I normally mix my background music from individual tracks. Starting mellow, but slowly taking things up, to slowly get people more in the mood for when the disco starts proper.

Going digital (Denon DN-HD2500 or similar at some point this year) will allow me to program several playlists that do the same.

I do everything live so depends. Nothing too slow or upbeat.

Some examples - Weddings: some old and new stuff medium BPM. Stuff that you would not hear too often perhaps and would not play at the main disco part of the evening.

However, 18/21st Birthdays etc - keep it more upbeat.

Paul hit the nail on the head when he mentioned requests - I try to talk to people before I start, whilst setting up, and get an idea of what they like. I'll then walk amongst the crowd and take some more requests. Not only have I broken the invisible DJ/audience barrier but I have a list of songs I know they want to hear as well as creating some debate amongst requestee's as people slag each others choices off...in humour of course!

Last Christmas I attended a gig where the DJ had almost 20 lighting effects. For the first two hours he played two CD's...the Now! Christmas album. Disk 1 and Disk 2 In between pressing play half-way through he sat drinking and smoking at the bar. Maybe no-one else even noticed but I couldn't help thinking the night could have been better had he made some effort to build up the tempo as we approached party time.

On a personal note, I believe the first two hours of any gig are where you get your repeat bookings from. It's the only part of the evening where you get a chance to shine - after the buffet, we're all pretty much the same. [awaits mucho flack!]

Yes all good points, but whilst us 'old timers' are happy to act as a compare and talk to guests, some of the younger members on here would find this quite daunting. Certainly when i was 18, i was a little shy and preferred being behind the decks all night. Confidence to do this comea with age and experience.

Rob.

I understand what your saying Ed... But does this mean that music from say the 40's and 50's is hardly ever played and in 20 years time music music from the 60's and 70's will also diminish and so on and so one...

Im 42 and appreciate muisc from many decades and styles back to the 1920's, Big Band, Classical, Swing etc...

As I say, I see where your coming from but do think its a shame that so much musical heritage will be lost... Will the Youngsters of today in 30 years time be saying wow did a gig last night and played some great cheese tracks from Beyonce, Shakira, Justin Timberlake, etc..LOL

Although Im a laptop DJ and we are generaly put down as being guys who just load a playlist and let it run, I like to try some ulturnative stuff from time to time.... Dont be afraid to try an oldie but a goodie as the hit jocks used to say lol....

I do hope we dont continue to go down this road of a throw away music culture that we have... Else in a few years time who would have heard of Steps, Scooch, etc.... I jest but in all seriousness the history of music is important what about the beatles still selling many copies of albums to this day. The Who, Queen, David Bowie etc etc....

I see it as our job to remind people of the great music that went before, I guess some of you might think these are the rambelings of an old git, but you to god willing will be an old git one day lol....

This is not a knock at anyone just my musings on a subject some may agree with and shakermaker may not Sorry just joking mate....


Nik

One album I use is Ronny Jordan's 'Get To Grips'.
It's jazz type material, mainly instrumental, and makes a refreshing change (I think) from normal disco output.

Last night I did a Surprise 50th, 70s themed do at someone's house. After the birthday gal arrived I made my way around the room with a request sheet - one woman nearly fell of her chair..."...I'm definitely booking you for my next party" she said "the last two party's I've had the DJ's wouldn't play what we wanted".

This was about 7:30, half-an-hour into the party.

When I played her song, she started to dance and her friends joined in. The time was 7:50 and I had maybe a dozen people on the floor already. I watched this lady tell just about everyone in the room how good I was for the next hour.

Some of the requests I played before the buffet:
Abba - Super Trouper
ELO - Mr Blue Sky
Norman Greenbaum - Spirit in the Sky
Huey Lewis - Power of Love
Bangles - Walk Like an Egyptian
Shakin' Stevens - anything!

Ditch your Mastermix CD and get chatting!!

Best advice ever.

background prelude music...

depending on crowd a bit of Enya sounds good, and I've never used it yet but I've thought about pan pipes. (dependin on crowd)

clearly some places will not suit either of these suggestions in the slightest.

Anything by Marilyn Manson

prodigy - Smack my bitch up ( especially at weddings )



errrrr oh sorry wrong thread.

I always ask the customer and play what they ask for..............if they dont have a preference... the first songs that come into my head at the time. I very rarely pre-plan.