Tag Archives: Rhode Island Party DJ

Wedding DJ Plays Vitamin String Quartet

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I find it so fascinating how many young Brides and Grooms incorporate songs by The Vitamin String Quartet into their Wedding Ceremony, Cocktail Hour and Reception these days. It is great music and makes a sensational bridge between music from several generations.

 

How else would Brides and Grooms be able to include Guns N Roses, AC/DC, Lady Gaga and The Beatles seamlessly together in a Wedding Ceremony or Cocktail Hour except with Vitamin String Quartet?

Vitamin String Quartet Tribute to Guns N’ Roses Sweet Child O’ Mine

Next weekend I am Wedding DJ at a Wedding for a young Bride and Groom that enjoy mostly Rock, Indie and Punk. They are also very conscious of wanting their parents and other guests to enjoy the Wedding . They have put together a really neat bunch of songs by Vitamin String Quartet for the Cocktail Hour. It was fun creating the playlist for the Cocktail Hour since I typically make playlists in advance for Wedding Ceremonies and Cocktail Hours to make sure there is no room for errors at the Wedding.

Vitamin String Quartet Tribute to My Chemical Romance Welcome To The Black Parade

Who Is Vitamin String Quartet?

You Had Me at Cello: Entertainment Weekly Review

“For nearly six years, Vitamin Records has tapped that same symphonic spine with its String Quartet Tribute series, which takes rock music and puts it through an orchestral filter. Aimed at collectors, completists, and fans open to reworkings of their favorite songs, the Vitamin catalog includes 140 classically gassed homages to every three-chord wonder from Metallica to the Darkness. ”I like the tribute to us,” says Nickelback guitarist Chad Kroeger. ”When your music is taken to a different place, it’s an honor.”

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Rhode Island DJ

Holding Lighters at Concerts Started September 1969

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It was during a concert at the Toronto Rock & Roll Revival on September 13th 1969 the tradition of holding up lit matches and lighters during Rock Shows began. Before The Plastic Ono Band with John Lennon, Yoko Ono, Eric Claption, Klaus Voormann and Alan White came onstage, the MC Kim Fowley asked the audience to light their lighters to welcome them. It became a phenomenon not long after, whenever a Rock Ballad performed at concerts or before concert encores. It does not surprise me that such an honored tradition was birthed at a performance of John Lennon. We do not really have a performer today that symbolizes Peace and Equality to the degree that John Lennon did back then. It felt like that was what he lived for and was so passionate to the extent of being arrested and eventually shot and killed. Few among us have believed so strongly in Peace to suffer such a consequence.

Plastic Ono Band

The Plastic Ono Band is a conceptual supergroup formed by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1969 before the dissolution of the Beatles. Among the various other members of the band were Eric Clapton, artist Klaus Voormann, future Yes drummer Alan White,Delaney and Bonnie Bramlett, & friends, the Who‘s drummer Keith Moon, New York band Elephant’s Memory, Billy Preston, Nicky Hopkins, Phil Spector, drummer Jim Keltner, and, in a 2009 revival, Sean Lennon. Wikipedia

 Strange Concert Fact

As a peculiar side note to the concert festival, the rumor that Alice Cooper ate live chickens on stage during concerts also was birthed there. The reality is that somebody threw a chicken onto the stage and he through it back to the individual, who ate it. The rumor stuck with him throughout his career and he became somewhat of a Rock legend in creating an image of Alice Cooper as an insane man. Ozzy Ozborne followed Cooper as Rock’s crazy concert man.

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Jimi Hendrix Memories from DJ Mystical Michael (Hey Joe)

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I cannot remember a time in my life when I was not totally enthralled by Jimi Hendrix. I remember as a child hearing Jimi Hendrix massive and soulful guitar riffs and feeling my spine tingle. I remember hearing Jimi Hendrix version of “The Star Spangled Banner” and thinking, that is what we should be singing and pledging to in the morning at school. Jimi Hendrix rocked Woodstock! He died too soon or maybe right on time. Hard to imagine where Jimi Hendrix might have gone next with his guitar if he lived longer.

“Widely recognized as one of the most creative and influential musicians of the 20th century, Jimi Hendrix pioneered the explosive possibilities of the electric guitar. Hendrix’s innovative style of combining fuzz, feedback and controlled distortion created a new musical form. Because he was unable to read or write music, it is nothing short of remarkable that Jimi Hendrix’s meteoric rise in the music took place in just four short years. His musical language continues to influence a host of modern musicians, from George Clinton to Miles Davis, and Steve Vai to Jonny Lang.” Jimi Hendrix.com

I could write all day about Jimi Hendrix and his music weaving its way in and around my life but feel moved to just stop and add a quote and video.

When the power of love overcomes the love of power the world will know peace. Jimi Hendrix

“James Marshall Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942 – September 18, 1970)  Jimi Hendrix was an American musician, singer and songwriter. Despite a limited mainstream exposure of four years, he is widely considered to have been the greatest electric guitarist in the history of popular music, and one of the most important musicians of the 20th century.” Wikipedia

Jimi Hendrix “Hey Joe” Music Video:

http://youtu.be/Lwpr60W7EOk[.embed]

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Wedding DJ In Rhode Island

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Tomorrow night’s Wedding is in Rhode Island . This fact by itself is not significant but in the context of me being a professional Wedding DJ that performs all over the tri-state area but rarely in Rhode Island , it means something to me. I went to college at Rowan University and studied Radio/TV/Film. It is where I began to grow as a professional DJ and learned the ropes. I was already a professional Wedding DJ before I went to Rowan University in Glassboro, NJ, but I matured and mastered the art of DJing there. I miss Rhode Island and do not make it down there very often these days.

 

This is the second reason tomorrow night’s Wedding matters beyond it being a Wedding with a really nice Bride and Groom.  I am somewhere in Rhode Island , Rhode Island , Philly, Eastern Pennsylvania, Hudson Valley or NYC as a Wedding DJ, Event DJ or Party DJ every weekend, sometimes several of them in the same weekend. It is one of the aspects of being a Wedding DJ that I appreciate, I get to visit places all over the New Jersey, New York & Pennsylvania area. Every weekend I am Wedding DJ somewhere different.

 Rhode Island  Wedding DJ with Bride and Groom Choose Great Songs

Other characteristics of tomorrow’s Wedding that I am looking forward to as Wedding DJ are the Bride and Groom have chosen some interesting songs. For the Cocktail Hour, they have requested a combination of Rat Pack, Jack Johnson and other Vocalists blended with their favorite Disney Love Songs like “A Dream is a Wish Your Heart Makes”, “Part of The World” and  “Can You Feel The Love Tonight”. A nice twist on Cocktail Hour Music. The Reception features a wide range of music from diverse genres including Pop, R&B, Country, Rock, Hip Hop, Dance, House and the Dropkick Murphys to mix things up a bit. Should be a fun night!

 

The Bride and Groom have also chosen to have both sets of Grandparents introduced before their parents. I like this and think it is a nice way to honor your family and include them in your Wedding. I had to help them with finding an apprproiate song for them to come out to since they are young  and have no idea what their Grandparents might enjoy.

I can’t wait till tomorrow night as Wedding DJ back in Rhode Island !

Fun Dancing at Wedding with Wedding DJ Mystical Michael

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

100 Days of DJ Music

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Even a professional DJ like myself sometimes gets blown away by the amazing aspects of technology. I noticed recently that I have well over 100 days of DJ Music in my iTunes library!  That means if I start today, September 17th, at the letter ‘A’ in my DJ Music library and let it run continuously till the end, it will play till January of 2013! I have over 106 days of DJ music, is that not unbelievable or what?

 An Exceptional DJ Music Libarary

I remember the days when I would lug six milk crates of albums and 12″ records to each gig and still only honored about 50% of requests from guests at Weddings, Events and Parties. Today, I think I honor somewhere near 98% or so and still trying hard to get closer to 100%. Technology can be amazing when used correctly between the number and diversity of songs in my DJ Music library, the ease in which djay software makes my profession and the mind-blowing clear, clean sound of the  BOSE L1 System. It sure is fun to be a full-time professional DJ these days!

Professional Wedding DJ Music DJ Mystical Michael with Packed Dance Floor at Wedding

 

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Beautiful Wedding at The Tides Estates

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It is Saturday in September and that means I get to perform as Wedding DJ & MC! Today’s Beautiful Wedding is for a really neat Bride and Groom that we have worked really closely together to create a meaningful and fun playlist of tunes. The Bride is a West Indian woman of Indian descent and The Groom is a White male from New Jersey. They both really enjoy music and it has been fun working with a Bride and Groom that appreciate music as much as they do, and as you know, I specialize in Multicultural Weddings, so, I am looking forward to this afternoon’s Beautiful Wedding.

I am not sure how, but I have never performed as Wedding DJ at The Tides Estates before. They are a well-run establishment on a gorgeous property for a Beautiful Wedding. My limited dealings with staff so far has been professional and supportive.

The Tides Estates Beautiful Wedding DJ

“The Tides Estate was New Jersey’s best kept secret – but not anymore! Now everyone knows the finest catered affairs are at The Tides Estate. From the seven acres of magnificent gardens with beautiful gazebos, to the first class, exquisite cuisine and professional white glove service, The Tides Estate has achieved nothing less than total satisfaction among its clients for over 30 years.

The Tides Estate boasts spacious, tastefully decorated banquet rooms which can accommodate parties of any size. Impressive crystal chandeliers and a strikingly beautiful spiral staircase provide the most impressive setting for any affair.

Where Memories Last Forever…

From the seven acres of magnificent gardens with beautiful gazebos, to the first class, exquisite cuisine and professional white glove service,
The Tides Estate has achieved nothing less than total satisfaction among its clients for over 30 years.”

Can’t Wait for today’s Beautiful Wedding!

Party On The Dance Floor at Beautiful Wedding with DJ Mystical Michael

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane!

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I know better. It would be different if I was a twenty-one year-old Wedding DJ who thinks Dance Music started with Michael Jackson’s “Thriller” or I only played Top 40, House or Hip Hop.

 Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

I know better. It would be different if I did not start my career as a Wedding DJ back in 1980 playing Oldies and current music.

 

I know better. It would be different if I have not been a professional Wedding DJ for countless young Brides and Grooms that often forget more than half their friends and family at their Reception will be from one or two generations before them, meaning, music needs to be diverse and meet the needs of everyone! Everyone wants to have a fantastic time at a wedding and that is what I am hired to do!

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

For one night, I forgot all of this and got whacked in the butt by the Bride’s Grandmother! It’s OK, I deserved it. She walked up to me while making her way slowly across the room to leave at the end of the night of fun and dancing, looked me in the eye and said without hesitation, “You didn’t play any of The Old Songs!” She followed that by promptly smacking me in the butt with her cane!

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

It is the first time I have never been hit by a Grandmother with a cane and definitely the first time for not playing enough of our old, classic tunes. I know better and the worst part is I love many of the old songs and play them regularly as Wedding DJ. I grew up with my parents playing old Vocal Classics, Jazz, Swing, Big Bands, Classical and occasionally Top 40. I had a very diverse ear as a young person that continued to expand through my teens and twenties. I have never stopped allowing new and ‘foreign’ music from entering my playlists and events. Some of the first gigs I was hired for as a Wedding DJ were exclusively Oldies parties.

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

Pocono Mountain Resort Wedding DJ Learns Lesson!

Outside of Grandma, it was a totally fun and celebratory night at Mountain Springs Lake Resort in Reeders, Pennsylvania, Pocono Mountains. There was actually not enough room on the dance floor for everyone to fit several times during the night. As I always do, I checked with both the Bride and Groom throughout the night to make sure I was performing the way they wanted and each time I received emphatic responses, “Yes! This is perfect” or “This is exactly we what we wanted!” Unfortunately, Grandma did not feel the same way about the Wedding DJ. Last weekend I had two weddings and made especially sure I did not forget to include enough old tunes to make everybody happy and of course, at the end of the night when the old folks were heading home, cranking-up the songs that the Bride and Groom requested for everybody to let loose.

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

One last time, I know better.

Grandma Smacks Wedding DJ With Cane! - Fun Rhode Island Wedding DJ

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & Boston DJ

Ask about my Rhode Island Wedding DJ and Rhode Island Party DJ Guarantee!

Al Green Let’s Stay Together

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Al Green Let’s Stay Together “People are born to do certain things, and Al was born to make us smile.” These are the words of Justin Timberlake about Al Green for Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest Artists of All Time. Al was number 65. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted Green in 1995, referring to him as “one of the most gifted purveyors of Soul music.”

 

For me, he is an amazing and a powerful songwriter and singer. He has the unique ability to inspire and soften pretty much anybody. You do not have to like his music or Soul to enjoy and appreciate especially, Al Green Let’s Stay Together.  I remember having the cassette, yes cassette, of the Al Green Let’s Stay Together album. The tape broke from overuse and by that time I had a record player and got the record to play it on vinyl. This is the kind of song that as a professional DJ when you want to slow the crowd down on the dance floor before they get burned-out you can play this song and it even fills the dance floor more than with the party stuff.  You will always get a few couples and future-couples making their way to the dance floor with a sparkle in their eyes for the first time of the night.

 

When Tina Turner’s cover of Al Green Let’s Stay Together first came out, I was a bit bothered by her rendition, not that I didn’t like it, I do. I just felt it did not touch Al Green Let’s Stay Together.  I eventually appreciated the fact that a whole new generation was getting to learn and enjoy Al Green Let’s Stay Together.  Many of them have been turned-on to the original since then too! Professional DJs now have two versions to choose from.

Al Green Let’s Stay Together Music Video

http://youtu.be/COiIC3A0ROM

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Marvin Gaye What’s Going On

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Marvin is and always has been one of my heroes. He has inpisred me to cry, laugh, want to be a better person and get off my butt and dance!  When I was a kid I had this ’45’ and wore it out. I am sure my family was sick of Marvin but not me. When I first became a professional DJ and was aked to do performances at Oldies DJ Parties, I knew I would have a chance to break out my Marvin Gaye What’s Going On and Stevie Wonder records, and did as often as possible.

 

Marvin Gaye What’s Going On in particular has a message that still resonates today. Hate and violence are still a significant current in our culture and globally. At some point we have to chose peace and respect. I think that is part of what he was trying to say in Marvin Gaye What’s Going On. I am amazed at how he could produce songs like this and “Mercy Mercy Me” and then balance them with “Sexual Healing” and “Got To Give It Up”. That sweet voice and passion rang through whatever he touched, Marvin Gaye What’s Going On, and he will be remembered by me and many others.

 

Thanks for Marvin Gaye What’s Going On!

As one of the pioneers of Motown, singer-songwriter and producer Marvin Gaye helped shape the sound of R & B music and is considered one of the greatest artists of all time. ‘I think I’ve got a real thing going. I love people. I love life and I love nature, and I can’t see why other people can’t be like that.’ –Marvin Gaye

 

Marvin Gaye What’s Going On and What’s Happening Brother Music Video

http://youtu.be/RE7-2XWGNk4

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ

Katy Perry Firework

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I often do not post videos of Top 40 songs while they are popular. They typically get enough promotion on their own. Katy Perry Firework is somehow different than the bulk of pop songs by teen stars. Katy Perry does seem to try things that are a bit off the beaten path and this is no exception.

 

The video and lyrics of Katy Perry Firework go beyond what is often flooding the pop charts. I wish more artists were willing to incorporate messages in their music and videos that speak to the challenges that many young people experience. Today more than ever pop stars influence their youthful listeners and the messages they provide are rarely supportive to healthy development.

 

Katy Perry Firework Lyrics

Do you ever feel like a plastic bag
Drifting throught the wind
Wanting to start again

Do you ever feel, feel so paper thin
Like a house of cards
One blow from caving in

Do you ever feel already buried deep
Six feet under scream
But no one seems to hear a thing

Do you know that there’s still a chance for you
Cause there’s a spark in you

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you’re a firework
Come on show ’em what you’re worth
Make ’em go “Oh, oh, oh!”
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Baby you’re a firework
Come on let your colors burst
Make ’em go “Oh, oh, oh!”
You’re gunna leave ’em fallin’ down-own-own

You don’t have to feel like a waste of space
You’re original, cannot be replaced
If you only knew what the future holds
After a hurricane comes a rainbow

Maybe you’re reason why all the doors are closed
So you could open one that leads you to the perfect road

Like a lightning bolt, your heart will blow
And when it’s time, you’ll know

You just gotta ignite the light
And let it shine
Just own the night
Like the Fourth of July

Cause baby you’re a firework
Come on show ’em what you’re worth
Make ’em go “Oh, oh, oh!”
As you shoot across the sky-y-y

Katy Perry Firework Music Video

DJ Mystical Michael Rhode Island DJ & NY DJ