Part 1 : Follow Me / The Importance of Verve in Battle
Music was a mess. For this, I can only the military reply no excuse. Wanted Johnny Gunners to be d.j. A professional. He knows exactly what he’s doing, and will not let others intrude on his flow. I wanted him bad to do the job, but he was a no show to the party. Unfortunately, it was sorta “Bad Rex Time” in the d.j. front from there on out. Dragon insisted on playing loud feedback and longs stretches of silence. He was busy being host and had no clue of the effect of that music on a party situation. I didn’t want to dj, but tried to apply desperate rearguard actions to salvage the situation. eventually gave up and gave reins to Pepys. Sometimes I can I pull out a “Cal-Stanford/ The Play” in certain situations, but I had neither nerve nor verve to even try this nite. So, as hard as it is to write, there was really no dancing @ last nites show (did see the odd girl shake her ass, but for all intents….). It was all there for a successful danseparty : density, nice floor, correct tunes, fellow soldiers that I knew I could count on to suport the mission when asked, young lovlies who I sensed (I knew it, I sensed it, I did) that a push would be good enough to get them up. There were openings, including what I now I.d. as probably the optimal moment. Face and Gallo got loud @ one point (I Predict a Riot), but I was too tied to the d.j. rig and too scared to start the floor. Three minutes there where the primordial soup of partydansefloor had bubbled up. Face and Gallo had brought potentially violent lightning into the room, but it needed to be conducted into the rite context (context=everything) It would have been easy to take it from there : Rite there, rite then, roil up 2-3 good frenz who always go ino battle with you, 2 wives or girlfrenz, and, the hard part, one or two or three girl strangers, and its done. You have a danse floor with 7-8 people, and that emboldens the rest of the partygoers. Then, 15-20 people, and keep it going. It’s fun to watch it go from nobody dancing to 15 people in 25 seconds. Life can be so sweet sometimes. It’s so easy, just two things: sense when that moment is, then have the confidence to strike. It was there, @ that moment when the commotion started, I should have walked over and done something………………being an officer is hard!! HEY : when you get there, read the next paragraph’s (paragraph is about teamwork) last sentence in relation to this paragraph again. It’s that easy, but also that hard.
What, no officers? Reminds me of the days when Big Frank roamed the Midwest. Then, @ parties, we both worked ensemble getting people to danse. We’d bring caseloads of CD’s and actively plan what we were going to do. It takes a lot of gall and vigor to pull off creating a danse floor because you have to put yourself out there first off to reassure people hey, you can do this as well, come on and danse with us. Then you usually have to actually pull out girls onto the floor. If the conditions are rite, then all jump into dancing. The deal with the tandem team of Frank and I was the deal of the mutually supporting team. We both knew what we wanted to do : danse with girls. We both knew how to go about it. And we knew we could draw strength from each other to often do a hard job. And the partygoers appreciate you in the end, but that first letting loose……………. An example was a party @ Patients and Face’s place on Division street back in the day. The ingredients for a successful danse party were there (good crowd, nice place, etc…), and @ a certain point in the night I approached Frank in the kitchen with the words Hey, its about time to get the dancing started and he responded Right. Lets go upon turning to walk towards the music room. If Big Frank was there last night, it would have been easy to get people dancing, no problem Adult life has taught me the powers of teamwork, playing to strengths, and planning.
Here’s an example of teamwork and the division of labour in operation. When Frank and I (back in the day) would take turns @ parties trying to create danse floors, we‘d have interchangeable roles. We would play whatever parts the situation called for; one of us the d.j., the other one taking the lead in pulling the pretty ones onto the floor. Didn’t matter to us who was spinning and who was pulling @ a given party, it really was Lets ‘get it done’. The unit, so to speak, trusted whichever was d.j. that nite to get the music rite and create that good mood. And it would be easy to get people up. Frank and I could put on a song, walk to the middle of the room, sanitize all self decorum by some seconds of goofy dansing , and then pull people up to get’m going. Easy and takes seconds, if you can do it. Remember the Spice Girls Halloween Party example? A script, it became. I guess a power trip as well, I’m musing for the first time right now.
One thing cemented in my mind about d.j’g this past year is that to create the mood or whatever, its got to be planned out or nurtured. The d.j. has to have confidence to take the crowd ‘there’. Hey, dig this shit !! Or Will this continue to make you shake ? are important concerns. A mood has to be created by the d.j. That generally means just one d.j., not many. I d.j’d two weddings in the past summer, and what I learned is that a mood is created most easy when its just one d.j. head manning the mood forward, either the whole show or for long streches @ a time. Get a rhythm going, and have the trust in yrself to get it done. ((As it was, I didn’t want the task last night as there were too many things to look into, and so the music component went to pot big time)).
Part of the charm of creating a danse floor @ a party was that we wanted to danse with the girls. However, we also felt it was our duty to cresate a danse floor. We wanted to do our all to set people dancing and create that fun environment so the hosts would have that distinction of “a fun party“. We knew hosts wanted it, and since it was w/in our powers to do it, we should do our duty. We were such good frenz, seriously!! (I mean it too). I remember the Ides of March Party in ‘96 @ Gunners and Jokers. It was great glowing success, and I remember I had a lot with getting people to go, but what I remember most was that dancing broke out that nite: maybe not for long, but “Boys and girls” was on, and people were jumping up and down. The big feeling was that Frank and I’s duty was done: people dansed, woman wiggled their bodies, Thank You, Jesus. (((Note: it was Frank, not me, who instigated it and created the dancing by himself that nite. An old lover was there and we were in the process of of not seeing each other ever again, so I wasn’t in a mood for dancing that nite. She could always be counted on to danse @ parties.))) It was just so easy when you were young. Anyway, last nite we had no direction, my fault, and it won’t happen again. Next time it’ll be Big John or bust .
Stop now-- I know I’ve devoted a long stance on dance and it not happening last nite. Let not that obstificate(sp) the main point of last nite: the party was brilliant and already planning for the summer one was commenced by Dragon halfway into last nites show. All of it was great. But people who know me (or read this post) know that the music thing @ parties is close to my heart. Winters and Wellington, officers extraordinaire, would have provided for all aspects in last nites “battle”: but I was no such officer on the dancing detail. BUT: Although some battles may have been lost last nite (there always are some lost battles in war), the war itself was won: Part was a success. Now to find that farm in Pennsylvania. to make war no more……..
Again, it was so much easier in bloom of youth: work had not battened down many hatches, all were not settled w/ kids and couples. Generally gone are nites with possibilities of strange people being met were in the air and chix were chased after. Youth, senors.
I’ve written long on this subject. There’s more to write on it, me guess. So, I have another post concerning ‘dancing and sex’ based on what I think an interesting insight from Rocky. And then there’s another tentatively titled ‘A People’s History of the Chicago Danse Floor: House Parties, 1980-2007’. It’s my appreciation of said subject, very up to date, highlighting change and continuity over time in the genre. I think this was what one of my masters thesis‘s was written on. I guess this post qualifies as first section of the work. The two following treatments will be shorter than this post. However, both will be as self aggrandizing and deeply egotistical as the above tripe. The latter will be less interesting for you, but you may enjoy the former. Note taking commences, expect one in a week or so, the other to follow ? . These things take time, I know that I’m…………………
Music was a mess. For this, I can only the military reply no excuse. Wanted Johnny Gunners to be d.j. A professional. He knows exactly what he’s doing, and will not let others intrude on his flow. I wanted him bad to do the job, but he was a no show to the party. Unfortunately, it was sorta “Bad Rex Time” in the d.j. front from there on out. Dragon insisted on playing loud feedback and longs stretches of silence. He was busy being host and had no clue of the effect of that music on a party situation. I didn’t want to dj, but tried to apply desperate rearguard actions to salvage the situation. eventually gave up and gave reins to Pepys. Sometimes I can I pull out a “Cal-Stanford/ The Play” in certain situations, but I had neither nerve nor verve to even try this nite. So, as hard as it is to write, there was really no dancing @ last nites show (did see the odd girl shake her ass, but for all intents….). It was all there for a successful danseparty : density, nice floor, correct tunes, fellow soldiers that I knew I could count on to suport the mission when asked, young lovlies who I sensed (I knew it, I sensed it, I did) that a push would be good enough to get them up. There were openings, including what I now I.d. as probably the optimal moment. Face and Gallo got loud @ one point (I Predict a Riot), but I was too tied to the d.j. rig and too scared to start the floor. Three minutes there where the primordial soup of partydansefloor had bubbled up. Face and Gallo had brought potentially violent lightning into the room, but it needed to be conducted into the rite context (context=everything) It would have been easy to take it from there : Rite there, rite then, roil up 2-3 good frenz who always go ino battle with you, 2 wives or girlfrenz, and, the hard part, one or two or three girl strangers, and its done. You have a danse floor with 7-8 people, and that emboldens the rest of the partygoers. Then, 15-20 people, and keep it going. It’s fun to watch it go from nobody dancing to 15 people in 25 seconds. Life can be so sweet sometimes. It’s so easy, just two things: sense when that moment is, then have the confidence to strike. It was there, @ that moment when the commotion started, I should have walked over and done something………………being an officer is hard!! HEY : when you get there, read the next paragraph’s (paragraph is about teamwork) last sentence in relation to this paragraph again. It’s that easy, but also that hard.
What, no officers? Reminds me of the days when Big Frank roamed the Midwest. Then, @ parties, we both worked ensemble getting people to danse. We’d bring caseloads of CD’s and actively plan what we were going to do. It takes a lot of gall and vigor to pull off creating a danse floor because you have to put yourself out there first off to reassure people hey, you can do this as well, come on and danse with us. Then you usually have to actually pull out girls onto the floor. If the conditions are rite, then all jump into dancing. The deal with the tandem team of Frank and I was the deal of the mutually supporting team. We both knew what we wanted to do : danse with girls. We both knew how to go about it. And we knew we could draw strength from each other to often do a hard job. And the partygoers appreciate you in the end, but that first letting loose……………. An example was a party @ Patients and Face’s place on Division street back in the day. The ingredients for a successful danse party were there (good crowd, nice place, etc…), and @ a certain point in the night I approached Frank in the kitchen with the words Hey, its about time to get the dancing started and he responded Right. Lets go upon turning to walk towards the music room. If Big Frank was there last night, it would have been easy to get people dancing, no problem Adult life has taught me the powers of teamwork, playing to strengths, and planning.
Here’s an example of teamwork and the division of labour in operation. When Frank and I (back in the day) would take turns @ parties trying to create danse floors, we‘d have interchangeable roles. We would play whatever parts the situation called for; one of us the d.j., the other one taking the lead in pulling the pretty ones onto the floor. Didn’t matter to us who was spinning and who was pulling @ a given party, it really was Lets ‘get it done’. The unit, so to speak, trusted whichever was d.j. that nite to get the music rite and create that good mood. And it would be easy to get people up. Frank and I could put on a song, walk to the middle of the room, sanitize all self decorum by some seconds of goofy dansing , and then pull people up to get’m going. Easy and takes seconds, if you can do it. Remember the Spice Girls Halloween Party example? A script, it became. I guess a power trip as well, I’m musing for the first time right now.
One thing cemented in my mind about d.j’g this past year is that to create the mood or whatever, its got to be planned out or nurtured. The d.j. has to have confidence to take the crowd ‘there’. Hey, dig this shit !! Or Will this continue to make you shake ? are important concerns. A mood has to be created by the d.j. That generally means just one d.j., not many. I d.j’d two weddings in the past summer, and what I learned is that a mood is created most easy when its just one d.j. head manning the mood forward, either the whole show or for long streches @ a time. Get a rhythm going, and have the trust in yrself to get it done. ((As it was, I didn’t want the task last night as there were too many things to look into, and so the music component went to pot big time)).
Part of the charm of creating a danse floor @ a party was that we wanted to danse with the girls. However, we also felt it was our duty to cresate a danse floor. We wanted to do our all to set people dancing and create that fun environment so the hosts would have that distinction of “a fun party“. We knew hosts wanted it, and since it was w/in our powers to do it, we should do our duty. We were such good frenz, seriously!! (I mean it too). I remember the Ides of March Party in ‘96 @ Gunners and Jokers. It was great glowing success, and I remember I had a lot with getting people to go, but what I remember most was that dancing broke out that nite: maybe not for long, but “Boys and girls” was on, and people were jumping up and down. The big feeling was that Frank and I’s duty was done: people dansed, woman wiggled their bodies, Thank You, Jesus. (((Note: it was Frank, not me, who instigated it and created the dancing by himself that nite. An old lover was there and we were in the process of of not seeing each other ever again, so I wasn’t in a mood for dancing that nite. She could always be counted on to danse @ parties.))) It was just so easy when you were young. Anyway, last nite we had no direction, my fault, and it won’t happen again. Next time it’ll be Big John or bust .
Stop now-- I know I’ve devoted a long stance on dance and it not happening last nite. Let not that obstificate(sp) the main point of last nite: the party was brilliant and already planning for the summer one was commenced by Dragon halfway into last nites show. All of it was great. But people who know me (or read this post) know that the music thing @ parties is close to my heart. Winters and Wellington, officers extraordinaire, would have provided for all aspects in last nites “battle”: but I was no such officer on the dancing detail. BUT: Although some battles may have been lost last nite (there always are some lost battles in war), the war itself was won: Part was a success. Now to find that farm in Pennsylvania. to make war no more……..
Again, it was so much easier in bloom of youth: work had not battened down many hatches, all were not settled w/ kids and couples. Generally gone are nites with possibilities of strange people being met were in the air and chix were chased after. Youth, senors.
I’ve written long on this subject. There’s more to write on it, me guess. So, I have another post concerning ‘dancing and sex’ based on what I think an interesting insight from Rocky. And then there’s another tentatively titled ‘A People’s History of the Chicago Danse Floor: House Parties, 1980-2007’. It’s my appreciation of said subject, very up to date, highlighting change and continuity over time in the genre. I think this was what one of my masters thesis‘s was written on. I guess this post qualifies as first section of the work. The two following treatments will be shorter than this post. However, both will be as self aggrandizing and deeply egotistical as the above tripe. The latter will be less interesting for you, but you may enjoy the former. Note taking commences, expect one in a week or so, the other to follow ? . These things take time, I know that I’m…………………
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