Nichols/Breen@ Michigan Shores

7.7.07. I was at the Michigan Shores Club, co-leading with Tobey Geise the wedding reception of Lisa and John. It was challenging experience to say the least, being assigned the lead at the last minute, but Tobey and I rose to the occasion. I learned a lot more music in time for Saturday, enlisting the aid of my fellow fig DJs to ensure that I had a complete list of the songs ready to go. During the final meeting, Lisa came to fig with her father Ken, who I must say, is an awesome guy. Perhaps the fact that he called me a "likable guy" had something to do with that...but I felt the need to make sure he was well tended to in addition to the couple. He mentioned a 70s Jazz man, Keith Jarrett, that he really liked, one live performance in particular. So I made sure that I had that ready to play during dinner.

Onto the gig...setup was straightforward, except for one monster tangle that occurred in a very long XLR cable. Tobey handled the announcements with poise, letting the crowd know how the night is going to play out. Dancing started slow, as we competed with the opened bar and dessert table, but it gradually built up. The crowd was finicky though, up for one song, down for another in some cases. But I knew once I had guys on the floor doing the worm, everything is going to be alright. People always remember the worm. The groom, in addition to a 6-yr old present, break danced, and they would have impromptu battles, much to the delight of everyone present. The big genres of music played during the night were rock and disco, with a top 40 set thrown in for good measure. Tobey provided lots of good music suggestions - next time she will be on the decks more.
The end of the night came, and to get everyone to rock out I cut on Bon Jovi's Living on a Prayer, which made for a good ending.
It was perfect says Lisa
Hellofajob says Ken
Everyone danced says Lisa's mom

Summing up the night musically:

• Paul Simon, Late in the Evening
• Van Morrison, Moondance
• Young MC, Bust a Move
• Prince, Lets Go Crazy
• The Police, So Lonely

Solid.

written by Alvin Black III, co-lead deejay