dj nyc

This is so great, completely takes you back to the old New York.  It took me so long to switch from records to cds (literally up until 2004) and I have a deep attachment to all my old funk, latin soul, brit pop, salsa, hair metal, etc. records.  Unfortunately it just got to be too laborious lugging them into gigs in Manhattan.  In L.A. it’s much easier because everyone has a car, parking spot and places are less tricky to navigate.  The more you can minimize your gear in NYC the better off you are. 

The famous Times Square subway Record Mart, which was first opened in 1958 by Jesse Moskowitz, is set to reopen in the first week of October. Unfortunately it won’t be offering records, which to me would be transcendent to be able to walk through the Times Square subway hustle and bustle and look for records. In a way he’d be defying all the rules of capitalism and commerce. Of course to float that rent I’m sure is no bargain. The good news is that the mart will have music from Cuba, Spain, Mexico, Puerto Rico and and other countries, and they will be playing tunes as you rush by in your commute.

Here’s a clip from the Rainbow Room where we played some merengue, salsa, latin soul, funk, roots, reggae, cha cha cha, calypso, motown and disco. Enjoy!

We’ll be at the Tobacco Warehouse for our next gig and it looks like a sweet place to have an event, particularly for the views, serendipity to the Manhattan Bridge and convenience of accessibility.  The trick with a lot of these venues is that often times the locations in Manhattan are easiest for out-of-towners who are not familiar with New York, and sometimes the most stressful for those of us here in terms of parking, cost, security, etc.  It looks like our friend Henry has been there as well and has some nice photos.