So You Think Can Be A DeeJay? You already are ... Part 1 - The School Disco [Bio/Philosophy/CreativeWriting]
The School Disco
Introduction
Who had school discos? And Did you have a school DJ? Why can’t anyone be a DJ? Well, anyone probably can, and this is going to lead to that. Actually, it's going to lead to some reviews on real DJ stuff, but first, we are going to have some harmless fun and creative writing based on my own memories. So, let’s go back in time to somewhere in the 1980's, to the very genesis of my career in the DJ world. I want to define in all it's glory, a huge spectrum of "what is the deejay". Then somehow later make it all relevant ... or how your life task is really to be the 'deejay' ... of your environment.
Moth to the flame
My personal history with DJ’ing goes back now over 3 decades, which sounds impressive, and realistic if you count being in charge at 10 years old of flipping vinyl records at dinner parties, unobtrusively my ultimate and only chance to show my father just how much I’d mastered the family Hi-Fi stack in all the times he hadn't been looking. Guests barely noticing the transitions from side a to b. Paying compliments on the fine tunes, my father would look around bewildered to see which guest had commandeered the Hi-Fi. Discovering it was me, he was then unable to pull his usual practical joke of banshee-like yelling all hell and earth was about to break loose if I didn't stop whatever I was doing. Since this behavior wasn’t polite when in front of house guests, probably not for the last time he was stopped to be reminded of something different about this slightly more peculiar, inquisitive and curious of his offspring ... "too much like ya mother" was the all too often dismissal. "I can buy you a guitar but you still have to finish school and get a job to feed the family, because I ain't got bloody time to sit around and learn guitar, so until I either get us filthy rich or you can make us all living - it'll have to wait!". Or words to the effect. The story was just the same when I asked to become a Formula One driver, which I still maintain to this day would have been my calling, I'd have made a decent go of Jenson Button's job. Let's be humorous here - it was never meant to be - We just didn't have the £90.000 spare, that it would have taken to even have a chance of being spotted among grass-roots go-kart formula racing in the UK. Today? Another story. Multiply by 10. I forgive my parents now and years ago, and thank them immensely for a very pragmatic approach to my upbringing, learning and hobbies. Especially mental development and morals, which my mother drilled into me. Oh how I wish they had the simple knowledge that if you can strum chords or sing well, you will never go without a meal and bed for the night? It can even make you rich. Everything else? That's cool, they did awesome, better than almost any - as you can tell in me. Back to Dee-Jay-ing!
Onwards
Pretty much from then on, I was the only person to touch the hi-fi and change all the records, cassettes, - taking orders for blank tapes for vinyl copies to be placed upon and tracklists copied out onto the inserts, from dinner party guests - was likely my very first business sideline - later CDs, taking charge of cataloging, cleaning and generally maintaining my parents and uncle’s collections without thanks or praise - it was a privilege to be allowed to even near them of course. Later my next brother up and I mastered mix tape cutting and cueing as the week's Top 40 went out on the radio every week. Parents love to exploit whatever children seem to enjoy, by limiting and controlling them by allocating time to such activity and calling it a treat? Well, I agree when it is drugs or sex or computer games, kids shouldn't do that. But guitar? Let that kid play, they'll become a genius at it in no time. That simple, 99% of parents in the world don't even find the time, to find what the kid can do. Don’t you love family for all that kind of bullshit? Sidelined there again for a moment ... now I'm realising, we had damn too much time to play!
First Reminder
When years later one unnamed relative just dropped a decades-long collection of vinyl from 60/70/80s on a charity shop, waited a week, then told me - I kinda then realized, fuck it. Heartborked. Members of my family didn’t know ‘cool’, even though I still to this day love each and every one of them dearly. Just it was up to me to keep my own collection. I should have also visited a LOT more in those intervening years (and do now, whenever I'm in the UK, more soon).
How much vinyl do I have today?
I counted 800 pcs in my room in Fulham Park Gardens circa 2002 at the peak, I was also trading and just buying boxes from closing record shops. Then I just 'Hard Forked'; quite young in my early 20's; wanted to go to the other side of the world, it was now or never at that age! It was Urgent! (Oh boy, it could have even waited until today - no wait, no way, I would not be me ... I would not be telling you this story!
So not long before leaving the UK. I took about 150 with me. The rest, funded the trip or were given to friends. I kept my most personal, nostalgic, and rare pieces and I still have them all to this day, yet have only grown my digital collection for the past 17 years. I have added maybe 3 peices of vinyl found randomly. This should change.
Disco Dave and the Slow Dance
Let’s go back again, this time 11-14 years old and taking an active interest at the time of a class senior who’d been assigned care-taking of the school’s full PA and turntable setup along with a collection of 7-inches that were procured en-mass shortly before any disco event, by utilizing pre-sale ticket funds to run the whole show including soft drinks and crisps. You see, the whole shenanigans of this equipment, all it’s snaking cables, big lumpy speakers, moving parts turntables, and whole ‘mechanics’ of the DJ changing the records, which they’d have some cool metal box with stickers on and go flipping through - I was glued, to even the worst, cheesiest, useless school disco deejay “disc jockey”. It was my lava lamp. And I was the moth to the flame. It lasted a while, I learnt how the disco worked and promptly forgot about it as my college and then hitting university took over - then it was hip hop and turntablism, it was mocking that fun school disco until now I look back upon it as being actually one of THE really cool catalyst moments of my life, I'd just parked somewhere in 'childhood'!
Step in the arena
If you think you can ...
After that I kept dreaming into my late teens, when finally moving out and settling into a university, working nights in cocktail bars and maccy d's, meant I could start keeping a pair of decks and buy vinyl on a weekly basis.
Before we go all cool Mr. DeeJay
Let's stick with the way more humourous childhood folly, because next post is all gonna be serious about TRAKTOR and SCRATCHLIVE software.
Back to that school disco, because I know you are dying for more. We were 14, the slow dance at the end of the night was always the highlight … who could get a slow dance with the cutest chic in our year, or who had character to be a gentleman, and dance with any lady ‘yet to blossom’. Some of the ugliest boys and girls, turned into the prettiest during those days. If you are that age, take a good look around you. Do these discos still go on? Nowadays I'd probably get sectioned or put on a list for asking. Or was very early 90’s really a great peaceful period of free love …. we all dated and held hands. We didn’t f*ck tho! Just for the record, I enjoyed being 13-15. Stay good kids, you'll have plenty of time to be bad later.
These days I think this school disco must be under heavy supervision, or they are underground. We even kissed, tongues were something to brag about in the school yard for the next entire term. Along with, well, bringing the poor girl a reputation … there was this one girl, no names but I do wonder to this day how we always picked one another to dance yet nothing transpired as later teenagers to dating. We never tongued, it was all innocent …
Coming up in part 2: Digital DJ Software for Apple OS X
Why the long post? I'm kicking into gear something much bigger and it's time to keep the brain alive and polished. This is time to start just laying down the tracks and not in Telegram chats.