SwingDJs

Hi all,

I'm curious if people (do, should, will) post their playlists online.

For example, I maintain an RSS feed which lists the Title, Artist, and Album information for all the songs I play in an evening. (I want to add BPM Real Soon Now...)

It's nice, too, because whenever somebody wants to know what that really cool song was that I played last night, they now have a place to look. (You know, like unless you KNOW the title of "Mr. Ghost Goes To Town" or "Celery Stalks at Midnight" or "Blues My Naughty Sweetie Gave To Me", there's no way you'd ever be able to find them on the iTunes Music Store. And these are songs you hear *ALL* the time!)

Each playlist includes the music we use to teach[*] our lessons (so you'll probably see Indigo Swing's version of "My Baby Just Cares For Me" and Campus Five's excellent rendition of Harry James / Helen Forrest's "Mister Five by Five" a *WHOLE* lot) but long about song 5 or 6 or so, the actual dance starts up... My 'signature' opening is "Baron Plays the Horses" 'cuz I like the race-track sax intro.

[* - We teach an 8-Week Series, so the "Week #" at the top indicates how far we are into the lesson. Week One, for example, might use different material than Week Seven.]

FYI - Where I spin, most of the people tend to be on the "Intermediate Plus" side; they like Jump Blues, Rock and Roll, and not-too-fast Balboa music -- mostly ~150-200BPM. Also, the sound system there, uhm, shall we say, "prefers" more contemporary, higher-fidelity recordings, so I tend to avoid tinny "vintage" tracks -- much to my chagrin!

Anyway, I'm curious if other people keep track of what they spin, and would be willing to share. I know I'm kind of sticking my neck out, opening myself up to criticism, but what can I say? I believe in transparency; information wants to be free! Hehe....

(I'm also curious to see who believes their playlists are sacred, tightly guarded intellectual property... And why?)

Cheers!

Well I have a 100% record of doing so

Seriously, the reason I posted mine online was :

1. Someone local here emailed me wanting to know what my playlist was.

2. There was a thread on this on our local swing forum a few months ago and I think as a result, Solomon Douglas posted his when he DJ'd here - sort of like supply & demand. The people wanted it, he posted. I felt the same, even though the thread on that subject has gone quiet, I am not assuming people have lost interest in that sort of info.

In the spirit of practicing what I preach, here's the playlist from 2007-06-27 @ Nick's Nightclub in Alexandria, VA

Please note: "In The Mood" was a special request. One of our students will be dancing to it as the "Daddy/Daughter" dance at a wedding this weekend (which I'll be DJ'ing) so we made it a big to-do... He's the Father of the Bride, BTW.

"L-O-V-E" (immediately afterwards) is the couple's First Dance. They weren't there tonight, but I figured I'd play it anyway...

Enjoy!

"How Lucky Can One Guy Be?"
... by "Indigo Swing" from the album "All Aboard"

"Fly Me to the Moon"
... by "Frank Sinatra" from the album "B Group Secret Decoder CD Vol. II: Stealth Mode"

"My Baby Just Cares For Me"
... by "Indigo Swing" from the album "Indigo Swing"

"Mister 5x5"
... by "Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five" from the album "Jammin' the Blues"

"Baron Plays the Horses"
... by "Indigo Swing" from the album "All Aboard"

"Gang Busters"
... by "Cats and the Fiddle, The" from the album "Unknown Album"

"Hit That Jive, Jack"
... by "Nat King Cole Trio" from the album "Original Swingers: Hipsters, Zoots & Wingtips"

"In The Mood"
... by "Glenn Miller" from the album "Frankie Manning's Really Swingin' Big Band Favorites"

"L-O-V-E"
... by "Nat King Cole" from the album "Unknown Album"

"Flexible Flyer / She Puts Up With Me"
... by "Love Dogs, The" from the album "New Tricks"

"Somethin's Goin' On in My Room"
... by "Colin James and the Little Big Band" from the album "The Little Big Band II"

"Nosey Joe"
... by "Bull Moose Jackson" from the album "The R&B Years: 1952 (Disc 1)"

"Popsicle Toes (with Michael Franks)"
... by "Diana Krall" from the album "Unknown Album"

"Blues Naughty (different)"
... by "Sidney Bechet" from the album "Kyle Smith's ABW2007 CD"

"Jacquet In The Box"
... by "Jonathan Stout and his Campus Five" from the album "Crazy Rhythm"

"Whadaya Want"
... by "Casey Macgill" from the album "Casey MacGill & The Spirits Of Rhythm"

"Caldonia"
... by "Louis Jordan" from the album "Original Swingers: Hipsters, Zoots & Wingtips"

"Rhythm"
... by "Casey Macgill" from the album "Casey MacGill & The Spirits Of Rhythm"

"Safronia B"
... by "Colin James and the Little Big Band" from the album "The Little Big Band II"

"Flat Foot Floogee"
... by "Benny Goodman" from the album "Swing Kids - Soundtrack"

"Killin' Jive"
... by "Cats and the Fiddle, The" from the album "Killin Jive Complete Recordings Vol. 1: 1939-40"

"Shout Sister Shout"
... by "Sister Rosetta Tharpe" from the album "Vol. 2-Swingdance"

"Shout & Feel It"
... by "Count Basie" from the album "Swing Kids - Soundtrack"

"Jeep Jockey Jump"
... by "The Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra" from the album "Swingin' The Century"

"Are You All Reet?"
... by "Cab Calloway" from the album "Are You Hep To The Jive?"

"Back Bay Shuffle"
... by "Artie Shaw & His Orchestra" from the album "The Fabulous Swing Collection"

"Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho"
... by "Sidney Bechet" from the album "1949 Volume 1"

"Mal ô Mains"
... by "Sanseverino" from the album "Putumayo Presents French Café"

"Jive at Five"
... by "Count Basie" from the album "Unknown Album"

"Shorty George"
... by "Count Basie" from the album "Paul's Lindy CD"

"All that Meat and No Potatoes"
... by "Fats Waller" from the album "Collectors' Choice (Best of)"

"Potato Chips"
... by "Slim Gaillard" from the album "Laughing In Rhythm: The Best Of The Verve Years"

"Solid Potato Salad"
... by "Christina Crerar" from the album "Little Jazz Bird"

"Mr. Ghost Goes To Town"
... by "Mora's Modern Rhythmists" from the album "Mr. Rhythmist Goes To Town"

"Who Threw The Whiskey In The Well?"
... by "Wynonie Harris with Lucky Millinder" from the album "Swingdance"

"Lavender Coffin"
... by "Lionel Hampton" from the album "Unknown Album"

"Shorty's Got to Go"
... by "Lucky Millinder" from the album "Bernstein's "Jump Blues + R&B #4" Compilation"

"Salute To Harlem"
... by "Girls From Mars" from the album "Planet Swing"

"Swing Fever"
... by "Bill Elliott Swing Orchestra" from the album "Swing Fever"

"Sun Valley Jump"
... by "Glenn Miller" from the album "American Patrol"

There is a whole stack of playlists on the Australian Swing Forum at

http://www.sweethotblue.com/cgi-bin/ib/ ... f=1;t=3468

(including some of mine)

russell wrote:There is a whole stack of playlists on the Australian Swing Forum at

http://www.sweethotblue.com/cgi-bin/ib/ ... f=1;t=3468

Thanks Russel! Great stuff there!

Cheers mate,

Knoxville's playlists sometimes show up here. Some of us post, some don't, some post with full commentary on why they've been playing what they've been playing. As a newbie dj in the scene, it's been a really helpful resource.

ktron wrote:Knoxville's playlists sometimes show up here. Some of us post, some don't, some post with full commentary on why they've been playing what they've been playing. As a newbie dj in the scene, it's been a really helpful resource.

Rock on! That's what I'm talkin' about!

I like the commentary... There's no way to know how well something went over unless you were actually there, so it's nice to see, "Three people came up and asked what this was," or "This song really bombed -- NEVER PLAY THIS ONE AGAIN!"

Here is most of mine from my second stint. It was opening night of a brand new, purpose-built ballroom in Tigard, OR. I was meant to be spinning for about an hour up to 11pm, but the minutes ticked past 11 and there was no sign of the DJ to take over so I suddenly realised I had to keep going, no parachute, etc.. Talk about baptism of fire. I didn't want much repetition from my first set a couple of weeks ago but because of this panicky situation, I resorted to my no-brainers to get me through 10-15 minutes while I could queue some other stuff up. All was going surprisingly well until about ten minutes left when I queued up a song and it replaced what was currently playing and also cleared my entire playlist, so I am re-producing it here, everything after Snakehips is from memory!
Sorry I don't have any album information but all my stuff is easily found anyway.

Still, a great experience and I was so high on it after I didn't sleep til well past 3am. So much to learn...

Shoo Shoo Baby - Andrews Sisters
Just A Gigolo - Louis Armstrong
Let Me Off Uptown - Gene Krupa w/Anita O'Day
Taint What You Do - Chick Webb
For Dancers Only - Billy May
Walkin' The Dog - Cab Calloway & Fats Waller
Shake That Thing - Preservation Hall Jazz Band
Deed I Do - Diana Krall
The Gal from Joe's - Charlie Barnett
Fort Knox Jump - Jack Teagarden
Slim Gaillard's Boogie - Slim Gaillard
Doin' The Raccoon - George Olsen 10:50pm
Jump Session - Slim Gaillard
Marie - Tommy Dorsey
Snakehips Swing - Ken 'Snakehips' Johnson
Lindyhoppers' Delight - Chick Webb* NEVER PLAY THIS AGAIN(bad version)
Spinning The Web - Chick Webb
Jumpin' At The Record Shop - Slim Gaillard
Jeep Jockey Jump - Glenn Miller and the AAF Band
Flying Home - Will Bradley
Big John's Special - Benny Goodman
Well, Git It! - Tommy Dorsey
Back Room Romp - Duke Ellington
Opus One - Tommy Dorsey
The Dipsy Doodle - Chick Webb
Christopher Columbus - Fletcher Henderson
East St. Louis Blues - Duke Ellington
Jumping At The Woodside - Count Basie
One O'Clock Jump - Benny Goodman
Flat Foot Floogee - Fats Waller
Sweet Georgia Brown - Brother Bones
Satisfied By Jesus - Marie Knight
Mighty Like Blues - Benny Carter
West End Blues - Louis Armstrong (pure self-indulgence).

CountBasi wrote:Lindyhoppers' Delight - Chick Webb* NEVER PLAY THIS AGAIN(bad version)

which version would that be

Hey Count-

What is a "purpose-built ballroom "

Re : purpose-built. It was designed from scratch, the entire inside of the building, the floors (there are multiple rooms as you'd expect in a building), the lighting system, the sound system. It's not a gym, a warehouse, community centre, elks lodge or a bingo hall, etc, etc... occasionally having (some of) its furniture shifted around to make room for dancers. It is first and foremost a building with dance, and only dance in mind. That's really all there is to it. But if you need more, google is always helpful : type 'purpose-built ballroom' and see what definitions come back.

Version of that song was Chick Webb, but with jam-circle type clapping throughout, not nearly enough to drown out the music but when played the other night gave out nasty hissing noises - a version that sounds blisteringly energetic in my headphones and has done since I first heard it. I wouldn't forgive myself if I'd never given it a test run at a dance. Oh well. Now there's lots of other people who won't forgive me, etc, etc...

OK carry on making fun of me.

CountBasi wrote: Version of that song was Chick Webb, but with jam-circle type clapping throughout, not nearly enough to drown out the music but when played the other night gave out nasty hissing noises - a version that sounds blisteringly energetic in my headphones and has done since I first heard it. I wouldn't forgive myself if I'd never given it a test run at a dance. Oh well. Now there's lots of other people who won't forgive me, etc, etc...

Sounds like it might have been ripped off a video. The original on the HEP "Strictly Jive" CD is nice and clean.

CountBasi wrote:Re : purpose-built. It was designed from scratch, the entire inside of the building, the floors (there are multiple rooms as you'd expect in a building), the lighting system, the sound system. It's not a gym, a warehouse, community centre, elks lodge or a bingo hall, etc, etc... occasionally having (some of) its furniture shifted around to make room for dancers. It is first and foremost a building with dance, and only dance in mind. That's really all there is to it. But if you need more, google is always helpful : type 'purpose-built ballroom' and see what definitions come back.

Got it. Thanx.

Wait!

So in the year 2006 or whatever, someone built a brand new ballroom in the USA?

Do tell!!

Do you mind if I point you here..

http://www.theballroomdancecompany.com/Oregonian.shtml

I think the official ribbon-cutting opening ceremony is on Friday afternoon around tea-time.

If you have any specific questions I'll do my best to answer them