SwingDJs

That is very interesting!

I gave it the once over at work and I was not sure if it is really a dance studio more than a ballroom or dance hall.

Difference is in the perception of the tastes of the public and if the venue feels there are enough people out there to support a free-standing ballroom.........or is it a very nice dance studio?

Either way, it looks very appealing in the pix.

Good luck!

Thank you!

It was opening night and there were some teething troubles. Air conditioning and ventilation was a big issue, and Spinning The Web was the start of some more experienced DJs than me noticing the speakers were not 'handling the mid-range' very well.

But we had about 500 come out so I believe, so it was a good platform for me if nothing else.

All the little details.....

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

Sorry if this seems snarky, but this doesn't seem like it would be a properly licensed CD. I know we're all probably tired of yakking about copyright by now, but I definitely hope all DJs here actually own the music they are playing.

julius wrote:

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

Sorry if this seems snarky, but this doesn't seem like it would be a properly licensed CD. I know we're all probably tired of yakking about copyright by now, but I definitely hope all DJs here actually own the music they are playing.

I just did a quick tally on my music collection...

Out of 24,221 songs, 21,722 come from full albums -- the rest were onesy-twosies I picked up here and there.

Back of the envelope math: at 15 songs per CD that's roughly 1,500 albums I've painstakingly ripped -- and that doesn't include the boxes upon boxes that never made it onto the computer. (Even before Tower Records was going out of business, I'd easily drop $200-300 in one visit... When everything was 40% off, I probably doubled that.)

So, yeah, in general I understand your snarky comment -- buy CDs -- but there are numerous ways to encounter music. If somebody puts together a mix, and that's the version I like, I'm going to use it (AND I'll give credit to whoever made the mix, so props to Kyle for his selections for this year's All Balboa Weekend!)

I can live a completely honest virtuous life for sixty years, but if I shoplift a pack of gum, it's still shoplifting.

I understand where you're coming from -- I have bought a few thousand albums myself, and I like to think that it gives me a bit of wiggle room as far as legality, but I know that it's just not true. I definitely recommend not advertising that you have illicit music. I know of at least two people who have paid the RIAA thousands of dollars.

Admitting to owning unlicensed music also makes swingdjs.com look bad. If nothing else, think about more than just you (I'm speaking to the generic audience here now, not you, dabe, in particular).

I'm sure it's just a mix he created based on the posted playlists from the event.

julius wrote:Sorry if this seems snarky, but this doesn't seem like it would be a properly licensed CD. I know we're all probably tired of yakking about copyright by now, but I definitely hope all DJs here actually own the music they are playing.

How about all those European labels that don't pay a penny in licensing fees? Is it OK to DJ tracks off those?

It's not all black and white - there's a large (and growing) grey zone in the middle.

It's black, white, and gray, yes. So it seems logical to me to avoid gray and black zones and err on the side of legality (not to mention any possible fiscal compensation for jazz artists and their estates), but that's just me.

Carry on.

anton wrote:How about all those European labels that don't pay a penny in licensing fees? Is it OK to DJ tracks off those?

It's not all black and white - there's a large (and growing) grey zone in the middle.

I wouldn't really consider that grey. In Europe, where the copyright as lapsed, there it's clearly legal. At present in the U.S. (and Canada), those imports are allowed into the country and are sold in retail stores. I'm not aware of any specific legislation that explicitly permits or prohibits those imports. It's still black and white, the authorities maybe haven't defined which it is.

I buy a lot of import stuff, partly because of value for dollar and partly because much of the music isn't readily available on CD from U.S. publishers.

As for compensating artists, I tend to attend live shows and purchase CDs from the artists directly or through clearinghouses such as CD Baby where possible. I feel that's the best way to support the artists of the music I like, most of whom are not signed to major record labels. That of course means the majors aren't getting much from me. If they want more of my money, they can damn well market music I want to buy.

Many past playlists from me, Colin Wise, Tina Davis, and a few others can be found here.

http://austinswingsyndicate.org/forums/ ... c=309&st=0