The mark of a good deejay is the ability to keep the seats empty and the dance floor full of bodies up and dancing. Mobile deejays, entertainers who perform at weddings, birthday parties, graduation celebrations, and the like, need to have the necessary tools on hand to be effective and earn their way to more business. As such, any successful disc jockey should include certain bona fide tunes guaranteed to have partygoers get their groove on.
Once the food’s been served, the jockey’s job really begins. Changing the mood from a relaxing dinner to a raise the roof off revelry requires the use of reliable songs that will almost always get the bash going. So here’s a list of must-haves for any mobile deejay’s catalog. They represent a wide range of party tunes, from hard-rocking, fist pumping hits to standard line dances to dance floor classics. They are presented in no particular order:
-Electric Slide, Marcia Griffiths
This island-inspired groove spawned its own, dare I say, line dance. The moves of the dance can be a little difficult, but you’re sure to find dance instructors in the crowd that can’t resist getting out there on the dance floor and helping everybody along. This one’s a sure fire floor filler.
-C’mon Ride the Train, Quad City DJ’s
“Ride that choo-choo…” This is a fun and funky song that almost always spawns a…gulp… conga line, but nevertheless it’s sure to get your audience off their seats.
-Hey Ya, Outcast
This wonderful song is catchy in its lyrics and uplifting in its rhythms. It’s a more recent tune than the other songs on this list, but it’s a definite crowd pleaser. Now…”Shake it like a Polaroid picture!”
-Respect, Aretha Franklin
This standard is a reliable favorite sure to get everyone up and moving, singing along to every single word and getting down to Aretha’s powerful voice.
-Shout, Otis Day and the Knights
This tune, made famous in the movie “Animal House”, is the ultimate party song! The changes in tempo, from Day’s soulful crooning to the rip-roaring chorus are sure to have everybody working it.
-Proud Mary, Ike and Tina Turner
This song is the ultimate in dynamic that people love. From the Turner’s soft spoken introduction to the up tempo horns and hot vocals of the classic is sure to get everybody singing and dancing along to this sweltering tune.
-Hey Baby, DJ Otzi
Many will recognize the refrain from this ditty featured in the classic 80’s flick, “Dirty Dancing”:
“Hey, hey Baby.
I want to know If you’ll be my girl.”
This is more of a sing-along than a dance hit, but it’ll surely keep that party a rockin.
-Mony, Mony, Tommy James and the Shondells / Billy Idol
Both versions of this classic rock song are sure to get partygoers up and dancing, but the hard-driving baseline of Idol’s version always gets a bigger response.
-What I Like About You, The Romantics
The unmistakable guitar riff, dizzying percussion, and infectious lyrics of this new-wave era tune is another surefire favorite.
-Mombo#5, Lou Bega
This fun and funky song enjoyed immense success during the 1990’s, and inclusion of it in your playlist is a great way to keep people partying up on the dance floor.
-Love Shack, The B52’s
Clearly the biggest hit for the groundbreaking new wave group of the late 70’s and early 80’s, Love Shack is standard party favorite.
-I’m Too Sexy, Right Said Fred
This silly ode to the egoistic mind of a male model is catchy in its silliness and a familiar ditty to partiers.
-It’s Raining Men, The Weather Girls
This huge hit from the former “Two Tons of Fun” (featuring Martha Wash) marked one of the biggest hits during the waning days of disco and is still as popular now as it was back in the day.
-I Will Survive, Gloria Gaynor
This anthem to self-confidence always brings out the singer in all of us and is a must for any deejay’s collection.
-YMCA, The Village People
This is one dance a deejay never needs to teach. The irresistible urge to form the four letters of the title with arms in the air beckons dancers to the dance floor without any prompting.
-Other Notable Standards:
-Cha, Cha Slide, Mr. C., the Slide Man (see Electric Slide)
-Heaven Must’ve Sent You, Bonnie Pointer, a disco-era classic
-Stayin Alive, The Bee Gees
Mixed with N-Trance’s hip hop/rap version can be total bliss on the dance floor!
-Swing the Mood, Jive Bunny
A mix of swing and 50’s classics sure to get people off their seats.
The collection presented here is not complete, of course. There are many tunes out there that will get guests up and having a good time, and selections can greatly depend on the individual crowd, but the list above consists of songs familiar to a wide-ranging audience that will make for a successful event.
