We were at the W Hotel last night in Union Square djing a private party. They have this amazing, huge ballroom on the second floor with 40' tall ceilings. It looks like it was an old bank similar to the two converted on the corner of 14th st and 8th ave. The event was more of a mixer/ cocktail party that turned into more of a party towards the end. Enjoy the photos!
This is hilarious, saw the for the first time last night the Dockers commercial featuring Marlena Shaw's California Soul. I was never a hug fan of this song but in many soul lists and compilations it exists as an essential track. The ad displayed a montage of clips of people wearing dockers in California.
I don't know about you but when I think of dockers I think of cape cod, chrysler seibrings, sailboats, chardonnay and brown boat shoes. A while back I posted about songs being ruined by commercials, for me the most egregious example was the Isuzu trooper cruising through the woods with Pusherman by Curtis Mayfield blaring.
To me the subtext of this message was it used to be rebellious to sell drugs on a street corner in Harlem and now the rebellious guy is the one who takes his SUV and trashes some nature. But the Dockers ad is even more of stretch, just look at the album cover versus most of our perceptions of people wearing Dockers! But then when I look at these two photos I realize that Marlena Shaw was oddly prophetic, she envisioned the dockers guy and said, "Who is this bitch, anyway?"
This a great track, often described as salsa romantica, and perhaps less played than Willie Colon's more famous of La Murga, Che Che Cole and El Malo. There are so many different directions you can go when spinning salsa, most of it depends of course on the crowd, how many people can dance salsa, if there are more couples or more single people, Idilio is a good choice for a mid tempo track but perhaps less recognizable than La Murga.
Revisiting my previous post about the amazing Panama Calypso album from the Isthmus of Panama, I was reminded to put it back on the Ipod when I saw the album cover in the display at the Record Mart in Times Square. Earlier I didn't post any of the tracks but this one is just too good I had to share it, called Let Me Do My Thing by Los Dinamicos Exciters.
I've been slowly going through the mixes over at Voodoofunk, there are so many great tracks,
sad to see that Frank is leaving his record collecting tour in West Africa. Because of space in New
York City I simply don't collect records anymore and the piles of old funk, latin soul, salsa, hair metal, 80s etc records I have are sitting in storage. So much about record collecting is the sociology surrounding the experience of digging through crates in odd places on the planet, and once in a while finding that gem you won't find anywhere else. And more importantly the people you meet and experiences you have along the way. On a deeper level it often feels like you are connecting with the past in a pure way, not packaged, computerized or chopped down. It's something people who don't collect records don't understand.
The afro funk is amazing because of how untouched it is, the hiss from the albums, the loose playing and spontaniety. It'd be great to unchain myself from rent here for a while and go to central america and the west carribean and start up the collection again. I love the funk influenced afro beat/island feel type tracks, it combines elements in such a unique way with horns, bluesy bass, great vocals etc. Anyway, without further ado, here is my favorite track from his African Movement compilation, called Cherie De Mon Coeur by Agbandou Babiao. It's 4mb so be patient!
We were at Battery Gardens on over the weekend. I'm not sure when the last time a windmill or snail was on display there, but "the breaks" were in full effect on Friday.
This is a great album, it's described as Cuban Doo-Wop and it's solid all the way through. My favorite track is Cuando Yo La Conici but the entire album is worth checking out.
We were at the Yale Club on Satuday night for the first wedding of 2008. All signs pointed towards Manhattan being one big traffic jam with the Pope's visit and Earth day both happening at the same time. The Yale Club sits right in the middle of the streets that were blocked off for the pope. Incredibly it was smooth sailing and a relaxing day and excellent evening. They have an amazing rooftop lounge where the cocktail hour was held, perfect for spring or summer, and they staff at the Yale Club is top notch.
Here are some photos from Kim and Jeff's wedding there
Here are some the tracks they chose:
1. New Order - Age of Consent ***(love this one)
2. God Only Knows - Beach Boys
3. Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Frankie Valli
4. Sunshine On My Shoulders - John Denver
5. In My Life - Beatles
6. Unforgettable - Nat "King" Cole
7. Nancy Sinatra - Boots Are Made for Walkin'
8. Old Dirty Bastard 0 Hey Dirty
9. Mel Torme - Comin' Home Baby
10. Four Tops - Can't Help Myself
Here are some of the tracks we chose:
1. James - Laid
2. Rancid - Time Bomb
3. Toots & maytals - Reggae Got Soul
4. Cure - Close to Me
5. Simon & Garfunkel - Cecilia
6. Erasure - A Little Respect
7. Depeche Mode - Enjoy the Silence
8. Stone Roses - She Bangs the Drums
9. Dion - Runaround Sue
10. Daft Punk - One More Time
Here were the catwalk songs from the fashion show we dj-ed last night in the West Village
1. Modern Love - David Bowie
2. Una Volta Tanto (Canzone Per Me) Negramaro
3. Shut Up And Drive - Rihanna
4. Matrix Mix - Geley Seher
5. Lovesong - Cure
6. Rock Show - Peaches
7. Dreamworld - Rilo Kiley
8. Hard to Live In the City - Albert Hammond Jr.
9. Wind It Up - Gwen Stefani
10. Ana - Pixies
11. Absolutely Fabulous - Pet Shop Boys
12. Candyman - Kahimi Karie
13. I Got It from My Mama - Will.I.Am
14. Good Life - Kanye West
Here are some photos:
Additional songs played:
Houston Outlaws - Soul Power
Carmen Rizzo - Ecoute
Phoenix - If I Ever Feel Better
S-Tone Inc. -Con Me Sombra
George MaCrae - I Get Lifted
Specials - Message to You Rudy
Kevin Yost - Deep Inside My Soul
Kwaanza Posse - Wicked Funk
Ramsey Lewis - Wade in the Water
Jay Z - Kingdom Come
Thievery Corporation - Lagos Communique
Alice Russell - High Up on the Hook
We djed at the United Nations Delegate's Room last night for a private party, mostly a mixer with some cocktail, lounge, calypso, roots reggae, soul, motown, 60s and 70s pop.
Some of the tracks people responded to and asked us about: 1) Toots & the Maytals - Country Road
2) Might Sparrow - Peace and Love
3)Coldplay - Clocks (Buena Vista Remix)
4) Miguel Migs - Fire (cottonbelly remix)
5) Gloria Jones - Tainted Love
Some photos (still learning the new camera!):
