I am the DJ

DJ night

Boyfriend/Girlfriend at the 3 Kings Tavern

11 December 2006

Everybody said, ah, you'll be fine. And I believed them, but still I was getting really nervous about my guest dj gig at boyfriend/girlfriend as Ricardo was explaining to me and Tom how to operate the equipment. It seemed a little complicated. I had never done this before and in the days leading up to Monday night I had developed a little bit of a recurring panic-thought about standing up in the dj booth and causing disjointed and abrupt transitions or worse, causing silence. As it turns out I was fine, only living my little nightmare once and only for no more than a second before I adjusted and got the music back in order. I kept it as simple as possible and just as I was assured, things went fine. Mostly I had a complete blast playing songs I had picked out for so many friends at once. And then getting to spin with three friends who have about the most exceptionally awesome taste in music…well, it's an understatement to say it was way cool.

First let me say Ricardo and Nichole rock. No, wait, they rawk. And they are generous hosts. It is definitely a treat and even more than that, an honor, to be their guests. Even though both Tom and I wanted to play more than we had time for in the evening, I think we shared the time pretty nicely. No fighting about it anyway. Tom has astoundingly excellent taste in music and even more exceptional than that, probably one of the best and most comprehensive collections of Denver music around. Listeners Monday got a little taste of some of the best of it. Check his blog for the setlist. I was super happy to get one local band in there too. Much thanks to Jonathan Till for giving me a brand new Nathan & Stephen song, In the Air, to spin. Definitely the highlight of my set.

Oh my set…I went and overthought my set to a near absurd degree. But actually I do that sort of stuff anyway and it was fun stuff to think about and I don't care if it seems ridiculous. I took to heart the Lipgloss guideline of 2/3 familiarish music and 1/3 new or pushing-the-edges stuff. I also tried, in most cases, to pick music you could dance to if you absolutely had to at that very minute, though admittedly some of it was more danceable than others. I also let each of my three kids pick out one song for me to play.

Okay, my set list is sorta out of order because for all my meticulous planning I changed things around at the last minute and now I can't remember exactly how I played it. But just in case you were interested this is what I played:

Astral Plane – I heart Jonathan Richman. So very much.

Steady as She Goes – Raconteurs. Familiar, danceable, and good. And a fave of my son's. I didn't get around to his first pick, so this one counted as "his" song.

A Dime and A Cigarette – Head Like A Kite. I love Graig Markel's voice on this and this Seattle band plays some highly danceable stuff that's very cool and I hoped people would love it as much as I do, and judging by the dancing going on, I think at least a few people did.

The Letter – PJ Harvey. whoa, oh, oh, o-oh, whoo, oo, oo, oo. This song is evidence to my argument that you can't really, totally, write about music. Not exactly. And it's, um, yeah.

Here Comes Your Man – Pixies. Ultimate comfort in familiarity that never wears out. And Pixies were my daughter Alison's pick.

Seventeen Dirty Magazines – Modern Skirts. This song always makes me smile.

In the Air – Nathan & Stephen. As my pal Bosch would say, dripping ones and zeros. That new. So happy to play this.

Trash – New York Dolls. I had already decided on this before I heard Marky Ramone spin it at Lipgloss. Honest.

Toward the Waves/I'm Ready – Twilight Singers. Great song. Difficult to queue. I will complain to Dulli about this.

Haunt – Paul K and the Weathermen. Probably one of my favorite Paul K songs.

All I Want Is You – Roxy Music.

Come On Eileen – Dexy's Midnight Runners. Yes, my daughter's pick. But I like this near perfect pop song.

Safari – Breeders. One of the best Breeders songs and not played as much.

The Tide is High (Live) – Blondie. Fun.

I wanna be your dog – Stooges. Yeah.

Okay. I think that might cover it.

Thank you Ricardo.

Thank you Nichole.

Thank you Tom.

Thank you to everyone who came and listened.