After reading about what are the best ways to go from fast to slow tracks and switch from modern to oldies, I got to wondering if there is a track that all D J's aviod like the plague cos it just wont fit into the flow of any set?

After 30 years at this game i still havent found any ,obviously try to avoid certain things while doing club work like joke records but otherwise no.

Can't think of any either, except the obvious ones.

Depends on the crowd, I usually play it by ear and if in doubt then leave it out!. Sometimes you can stay too safe and each gig becomes like a Radio 1 Playlist with you following one track with the same one at every gig, but if its a different crowd each time, and it fills the dancefloor then what the hell!.

There are the more obvious - I mean, I wouldn't play the Sex Pistols or Marilyn Manson at a function where 80% of the audience were in their 50's or 60's, then again I wouldn't play Max Bygraves at a high school disco or an 18th.

Also look out for obvious tasteless tracks for any circumstances. Playing New York New York on 9/11 could have been taken in 2 contexts, so better not taking the risk, as was my own claim to fame and embarrassing moment, when a Roadie played "You'll never walk alone" at the end of a gig for the disabled!.

Although having said that, a very emotional young girl wanted me to dedicate a track for her boyfriend who had been killed recently in a motorcycle accident. Hmmm the track was "Stayin' Alive" . What would you have done?.

I must admit that I do play some song in the same order, but as stated the crowd are different each gig, only the staff are the same, so can't play the same set every night in December, although I do play a far chunk

I agree with this, if your set works and its a different crowd then why change it. Obviously new things come out or old things rise to the top of the box and then they get mixed in with everything else.

Spin

Hi folks

For a very long long time, one of my most requested songs was bloody "fire starter", and every time I'd play it, everyone disappears, no matter what kind of crowd it was. So now I just won't play it.

I too have certain back to back songs that i've found just fit well together, example...Billy Ocean, Love really hurts, into Steps, Chain reaction 12' version....also Back Street Boys, Everybody back streeets back 12', into Will Smith Miami.

However, crowds are so varied a play list is almost impossible to construct.

Darren

Last saturday I was asked to play Ace of Spades, and thus began my problem cos the person asking for it was the birthday girl, but I could see from the crowd there that it was gonna kill the party, and things had been a bit slow all night and more to the point what the hell was I gonna to play to back it up? finally I thought sod it and put it on half way through the track which had got a mixed reception I suddenly thought about putting on Are You Going My Way by Tom Jones and Robbie Williams IT WORKED.

As for playing inappropriate tracks then you could end up in all sorts of trouble cos most lyrics are precieved by the listner and may mean somthing completely different to them, and any way most people don't even listen to the lyrics! I've worked that out from doing karaoke whilst every one knows the chorus they don't have a clue to the rest of the song!

Come on Chris. tell me which Max Bygraves tune do you play

I find there are a few very popular tracks that get asked for a lot, that would spell death for the dancefloor. Stuff like Bohemian Rhapsody and Bat Out Of Hell, that just would not sustain a full floor (I know some DJs play Bat Out Of Hell... but paradise By The Dashboard Light is a far better option... cos' it actually works!)

On the Max Bygraves note... I have one of his albums that I treasure greatly. The work of genius that is DISCO-ALONG-A-MAX is a sheer pleasure to own (It is a genuine album too)

What is it with Bohemian Rhapsody? It gets requested all the time, and is very difficult to play. Although I did a slow set about an hour before the end finishing with "we are the champions", then I put in Bohemian Rhapsody, and it worked! Then on to Primal Scream and happy Mondays!