I’m very lucky in my chosen career. I get to work in some fabulous venues with absolutely lovely couples and their guests, and Tess & Drew’s evening reception was certainly no exception.
The venue? The Garden Barn in Little Bradley, just over the borders in Suffolk.
IT’S ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS and Tess and Drew had put a lot of thought into the decoration for their big day with a real rustic theme to match the interior of the barn.
My brief was simple:
- No cheesy action dances
- A simple setup which didn’t overpower the venue
- Minimal microphone work
- Play a pre-selected playlist of music
Not a problem at all!
Now, there are MANY in my line of work who would see that brief and run a mile for fear of too much client control.
I don’t, and won’t!
I’m a firm believer in the fact that it’s YOUR day and I’ll work in whichever way suits your plans. That’s just how I’ve built my business and it works.
When it comes to providing the soundtrack to your day (or just the evening as in this case), I’m more than happy to work with your ideas to provide exactly what you’re looking for.
So, challenge “accepted” and it’s what I term as a “minimal” setup for the evening.
With modern equipment, it doesn’t actually take too much to create the desired effect without being overbearing. The last thing this particular venue needed was a full-on nightclub setup.
This job really ISN’T always about providing the biggest, shoutiest setup in the world. Sometimes, less is a lot more!
So, how did it go?
As with all weddings I have the pleasure of entertaining at, it went very well.
With only around 70 guests, it was never going to be a floor full of sweaty bodies with arms held aloft. As much as we DJs love those nights, it’s also nice to be there at the more intimate, relaxed weddings as well.
And with the “no cheese” request, it was a pleasure to play music which didn’t see lines of guests attempting the Macarena and the Cha Cha Slide…no problem in my book!
But rather than me waffling on about how it went, here’s what Tess herself left on my Facebook page a couple of days later, which kind of says it all really…
In this job, a happy bride is EVERYTHING!
Some photos
And finally, the playlist
As already mentioned, Tess and Drew were keen for me to stick to their pre-defined playlist which was made up of their own selections, plus those of guests from the wedding invitations. Whilst I fitted a few of my own selections in with permission, the majority of the music came from the playlist provided
- Van Morrison – Have I Told You Lately That I Love You (First Dance)
- Little Mix – Black Magic
- Justin Timberlake – Can’t Stop The Feeling
- Bruno Mars – Uptown Funk
- Abba – Dancing Queen
- Daryl Hall & John Oates – You make my dreams (for Drew’s daughter)
- Wham – Wake me up before you go go
- Kenny loggins – Footloose
- B52s – Love Shack
- Earth, Wind & Fire – DJ Beats: September
- Abba – DJ Beats: Mamma Mia
- Bryan Adams – Summer of ´69
- Bon Jovi – Livin On a Prayer
- The Fratellis – Chelsea Dagger
- Kings Of Leon – DJ Beats: Sex On Fire
- Queen – Dont Stop me Now
- M People – One Night in Heaven
- Black Box – Ride On Time
- Haddaway – What Is Love
- Carly Rae Jepsen – Call Me Maybe
- Maroon 5 – Sugar
- George Ezra – Shotgun
- David Guetta feat. Sia – DJ Beats: Titanium
- Walk The Moon – Shut Up And Dance
- Maroon 5 Feat Christina Aguilera -Moves Like Jagger
- The Pointer Sisters – Jump (For My Love)
- Various Artists – The Grease Megamix
- The Blues Brothers – Everybody Needs Somebody to Love
- Ike and Tina Turner – Proud Mary
- Lou Bega – Mambo No. 5 (A Little Bit Of…)
- Dexys Midnight Runners – Come On Eileen
- House Of Pain – Jump Around
- The Proclaimers – I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)
- Beyonce – Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)
- Amy Winehouse; Mark Ronson – Valerie
- Deee-Lite – Groove Is In The Heart (Radio Edit)
- Bizarre Inc – Playing With Knives
- Real McCoy – Another Night
- Lady GaGa – Just Dance
- Daft Punk – Get Lucky (feat. Pharrell Williams)
- The Jacksons – Blame It On The Boogie
- The Commitments – Mustang Sally
- Michael Jackson – Billie Jean
- Candi Staton – Young Hearts Run Free
- Kool The Gang – Celebration
- Michael Jackson- Don’t Stop ’til You Get Enough (2003 Edit)
- Marvin Gaye – Got to Give It Up
- Bruno Mars -Marry You
- Neil Diamond – Sweet Caroline
- The Killers – Mr Brightside (requested last song of the night)
So, to conclude...
All in all, a really good night.
A lot of fun, and more importantly to me, a happy Bride & Groom (because that’s what I do!)
All the best for a long and happy future together Tess & Drew xx
