The Black Party at The Trocodero Transfer, October 9th!

[conor l]

Yes Mark, you can ask. :D What I can tell you is that most of the messages from different people complaining the music wasn't played at Trocadero came from one single person!!! :roll: We found it very spooky when that person started posting replies to his prior message under different names. How do you rationally deal with somebody like that??? :o

However, we believe Miss Yvonne Davis was real (Hey, one of my retired coworkers had the same name! I didn't see her there!). I still have to laugh, all we played was techno music. Is she sure she went to the right club??? :lol:

You should try and get a forum/message board up and running on the site

[markydefad]

Hmmmm....I musta missed all the drama.. I saw the Yvonne Davis post and that seemed to be a lack of knowledge of what type of music would be played at a BLACK PARTY....if ya didn't go, ya wouldn't know...then there was a younger guy who wanted more of the home-grown SF stuff (Cowley, etc.)...that's all I read. Did it get more heated as time went on??? :-?

It's too bad they took it down--couldn't they have just edited as Bernie does here???

[keefelc]

Mark, I was able to print out the pages before the Guestbook was removed. Most of the messages did come after Miss Yvonne. The guy was relentless with his inaccuracies and increasingly hateful. :o Since the website's tech person was going to be on travel, they decided it would be easier to shut the Guestbook down as "Under construction." Later, because everyone's schedule is full, a decision was made to remove the Guestbook. :(

Call me this weekend if you want and I'll read you some of his postings!

[remicks]

Here's more of my recap.
The intensity continued to build when JB brought in “Magic Bird of Fire.” I thought the club would melt when the break hit, especially since JB extended the break out to several minutes (he used parts of “It’s Good For The Soul”) and the strobes were hitting all parts of the cluster and the dancers. Then as Magic Bird reached it exciting climax and all arms were in the air, the opening note from Laura Branigan’s “Gloria” crept in (which JB lengthened). The screams that filled the room were deafening. All arms in the air, people jumping up and down.

We hit the absolute HIGH point of the evening! :D :D :D

can't be the high point yet !!..... great set coming up :

TRIPPING ON THE MOON - CERRONE
SHARKS ARE COOL JETS ARE HOT – THE QUICK
PLAY TO WIN – HEAVEN 17

Keefelc , come back to the floor !!! :D

****

[Discovery]

Perhaps Yvonne heard certain ahead-of-their-time disco tracks like "Traffic Breakdown" and "Utopia" and assumed they were techno.

For those unable to attend, any controversy regarding whether or not disco music was played should have been eliminated as soon as the playlist was posted.

The party and the nonstop disco music were both excellent and great fun!

When is the next event?

[keefelc]

Discovery, you're probably right. Yvonne probably arrived at the wrong time and then didn't bother to stick around. Her loss.

Anyway, I'm glad to hear you had a fun time! Who did you say came along with you again?

Here's the rest of my recap of the evening.

Now I know there are one or two of you that might have heard “Gloria” one too many times. I’m one of them! However, hearing the song that night with everyone cheering, dancing, smiling and singing along reminded me how I originally loved the song.

Well, that last segment filled up the dance floor. JB kept everyone there by slowly bringing in Machine’s “There But For The Grace of God.” Sounded like he extended the synth intro extensively to do one those loooooong overlays he does so skillfully.

Next Jerry brought back the dark Black Party mood with “The Visitors,” Giorgio’s “Utopia,” and Cerrone’s “Tripping On The Moon,” tastefully pitched way down. I believe he played the Hot Tracks remix. The crowd started cheering during the break when the lights went basically to darkness except for a sliver of blue white light on the cluster. As the break grew in intensity, the sliver grew in size until a huge burst of white light hit most of the cluster.

To get everyone out of the spacey mode, JB followed with the Quick “Sharks Are Cool, Jets Are Hot.” As the song reached it’s percussiony instrumental, again extended by JB, the whistling & clapping intro of “Play To Win” made it’s way into the playlist. Perfect segueway! Jerry then played the instrumental of the song. As everyone was grooving along with the song, one of the producers decided it was time to turn off the set of reddish lights (that softly illuminated the dancers, fanners and flaggers on the stage) so the star effects of the fiber optic curtains would really show off. What he didn’t know is that there were two on/off switches close together in the booth. One of those switches powered some of the sound equipment!

So, guess what happened? Yup A few seconds of silence until everyone started cheering. Fortunately, the sound went right back on and Jerry recovered without skipping a beat. Pretty good since he was right in his mix to “Traffic Breakdown.”

The Three Degrees have always been one of Trocadero’s favorite female singing groups. I still have the specially made blue with gold lettering matchbook from their appearance at Troc to promote “New Dimensions.” “Set Me Free” was one of their last big hits at Troc and the crowd this evening still loved the song. Next was Viola Wills version of “Don’t Stop The Train.” Not sure why JB played her version instead of Phyllis Nelson, but the song was well received.

Following Viola was another big Troc favorite, Yvonnne Elliman’s “Love Pains.” As I previously commented, one of San Francisco’s most popular spokesperson for the GLBT community, Donna Sachet (she’s very well spoken, witty and knowledgeable of the Community’s history) did an informal performance to the song on the stair landing overlooking the dance floor (behing the arc lamp in the back of the room). That was fun and the crowd ate it up!

Next was a great surprise, the Champ’s Boys Orchestra version of Chuck Mangione’s “Land Of Make Believe!” Yes, we used to be treated to this song in the morning. Esther Satterfield’s beautiful vocals would sound so good on Troc’s incredible sound system. The rich orchestra on this version also sounded pretty decent during RtTP. The crowd was in a good mood and Jerry’s next selection had them screaming with joy, the Hues Corporation’s “I Caught Your Act.” Such a happy sound for such a sad song.

JB then brought in Barbara, Carla and Yvette (The Sweethearts of Sigma) as Metropolis singing another Troc anthem “The Greatest Show On Earth.” At this point a stranger came up to me (while I was filming) to tell me, “What a wonderful party!” I had to agree!

More cheers and smiles when “Victim” came on. Dance floor became packed again as people sang along on the doo doo wop’s. We reached another high point when Jerry followed with Viola’s “If You Could Read My Mind,” and the dancers loudly sang along and then started cheering and whistling.

Okay, starting to get late, time to start mellowing out the crowd. JB started with Rinder & Lewis “Lust,” Giorgio “In The Middle Of The Night,” and the producers’ own “The Big Hurt” by BearEssense. JB played the instrumental dub and sllllooooweed the record way down. In fact, one of the dancers came up to me and asked why was JB slowing the music down! Had to tell him we only had about an hour left of this joyous ocassion.

Morning music started in earnest when JB played Linda’s “Runaway Love.” At the break, as Linda was singing that she’s gonna go dancing and she’s "the one with the money, honey!" JB brought in the bubbly and effervescent break from “Casanova Brown.” Lots of us were smiling and bopping up and down as Gloria told us, "I was sitting there minding my business, feeling good, checking things out, sipping on a little wine." The room was mostly dark with a purple light on the large mirror ball over the stage and a sliver of bluish white light on the cluster. Dots of lights gently swirled around giving the room a nice romantic relaxed feel. Crowd favorite “Changin’” continued that warm feel to the room. More good vibes with Hi Gloss “You’ll Never Know” and with Phyllis Hyman’s glorious vocals on “Loving You, Losing You!” Barry White’s “Let The Music Play” was next complete with the spoken intro. The perkiness of Bionic Boogie’s “Dance Little Dreamer” seemed to really recharge the dancers. How were we ever going to close the party down? So, JB relaxed the crowd a bit with Lee Oskar and his harmonica (remember Lee from the group War?) in “Haunted House.” Bobby Viteritti introduced a lot of us to this song in his infamous “Giorgio and Beyond” mixed tape set that circulated around San Francisco back in the early 80s. This set was the one those in the know wanted to get our hands on! Anyway, a perfect song to end our Black Party.

Or so we thought, the owner of the club told us we could go until 2:45 am! Just enough time for JB to serenade us with some encores! How appropriate for him to play Gloria Gaynor’s “Never Can Say Goodbye.” Then he delighted us with Sister Sledge’s “Love Don’t You Go Through No Changes On Me.” We all sang along.

Finally, it was past 2:45 am and although the still substantial crowd was cheering for more, we had to put this baby to rest. As we said goodbye to all of our friends, the common comment was “Let’s do this again!” :D

[remicks]

*****

Keefelc ......what a terrific recounting !! Adds a whole 'nother level to the playlist itself. Can really sense the degree of enthusiasm overcoming the room as JB took the crowd on a classic Troc trip !!!

Just think ... what you have described here as a rare special event of today ..... was a typical night's experience back then & available to all for the taking . :D 8)

remicks
*****

[nrgbeat]

I think Yvonne is probably some straight married chick whose idea of a good time is going to her son's soccer game or watching "Finding Nemo" for the 12th time.

[keefelc]

*****

Just think ... what you have described here as a rare special event of today ..... was a typical night's experience back then & available to all for the taking . :D 8)

remicks
*****

You're so right, Remicks. Thank goodness there are still people around able to recreate the Trocadero magic! :D

Hey Nrg, Miss Yvonne at least gets credit for loving some form of disco! :lol:

BTW everyone, Jerry Bonham explained to me why he used Viola Wills's version of "Don't Stop The Train" instead of Phyllis Nelson. Here's what Jerry had to say in his own words,

"Viola Wills actually sang the first original version of “Don’t Stop The Train” and when the Phyllis Nelson version came out they used Viola's vocals for the entire second half of the record!

Listen to your 12” of Phyllis and that’s actually Viola Wills singing after the break.

Some sort of contractual offense apparently, as the Viola Wills full vocal came out on a small label and credited to Kristeen!

And oddly enough there is about 5 seconds of Phyllis Nelson singing on the Viola Wills version, listen closely and you’ll hear the voice change in one of the verses."

So Jerry confirms and adds some info about what we've long suspected on this Board about that song!

Pictures from Remember the Troc Party are now on the www.remembertheparty.com website!! One of the pictures is of a GREAT banner one of our friends, John H. (who we have to thank for many of the mirror balls and motors for the cluster!) helped us make for Jerry Bonham. I remember I was in the booth when JB suddenly cried out during the "Tryouts For The Human Race/ Beat The Clock" medley, "Oh my God, WHOOOOO!!!" With a look of delightful surprise, he directed my attention to the railing of one of the top balconies. They had unfurled the banner which stated, "The Trocadero Family wishes to thank DJ Jerry Bonham." I could have sworn JB's eyes were a little watery. :D

Also, the DJs that I saw in attendance that evening were Paul Goodyear from Australia (Paul later told us that evening's set was one of the best he's heard in about 20 years!), Jerry's dear friend, Phil B. (another extremely popular SF DJ - he and Paul were having a HIGH time that night! ), former Trocadero DJ Steve Fabus and Discovery and Pizzazz's pal, Bus Station John.

From this Forum, I saw Discovery and Pizzazz, as I previously mentioned, and JeffH and SFBeary, plus a few others who aren't as well known as these four.

[keefelc]

I just learned that the first batch of the CD sets of this party will be arriving at Medium Rare Records probably in the next week (week of Nov. 21st). As with the "Soul Recharge" soundtrack, there will only be a limited number of sets available. "Soul Recharge" sold out pretty quick and I suspect this set may go very quickly once the word gets out. I know I want to give a couple of friends sets for Christmas presents! :D

[keefelc]

I don't mean to sound like a commercial. :oops: However, wanted to pass the word on to those people wanting a copy of the Troc Party soundtrack - Jerry decided the sets will only be available from Medium Rare Music in San Francisco, CA. They should have them by this Monday, Nov. 28th (if the shipment already hasn't arrived).

The soundtrack's production run is extremely limited so if you would like one, I really suggest you not wait too long (I can't stress enough). Sound quality is quite nice! :D

The guys at Medium Rare told me they will do mail order. You can reach them by Email at mediumraremusic@aol.com or by phone at (415) 255-7273.

[Jeff H]

Geez... reading that recap (finally!) took almost as long as the party itself! :D :D :D Amazing job, Keefe! (Clearly you didn't have too many of those warm beers if you can "Remember the Party" in such detail!)

I was lucky enough to receive a copy of the soundtrack from this party for Christmas (big thanks, Santa Chow!), and it brought back some memories of a really great night! I have to admit that I'd been at a birthday party all afternoon earlier the same day, so I was able to make it only until about the middle of the party (I left sometime between "Dancing the Night Away" and "I've Seen That Face Before").

But WOW, even the early half of the night was filled with so many must-dance classics: "Lost in Music," "Hit n Run Lover," "Now I Need You," :P "Sinner Man"...! And I really got a workout during "Night Dancer"/"Take Off"/"Queen of Fools"/"Black is Black"/"I Wanna Funk With You Tonight." One of my buddies who was wearing leather gear nearly melted by this point!

After hearing the the party in its entirety on CD, I really wish I could have stayed on my feet longer (like the way I danced practically 'til closing at the October 2004 party!), but I just couldn't hang much past 10:30 or so. (Also, the mist effect seemed to be leaving a nasty, gritty feel in my nose and throat; I wasn't the only person who complained about that.)

I have to say that I liked the music at this party better than what was played at the April 2005 party. But really, it's a special occasion any time you can get a roomful of men dancing and cheering to classics like these as presented by maestros like Jerry Bonham and Robbie Leslie. Can't wait to do it again!

And if you can still find a copy of this soundtrack for purchase, I highly recommend that you buy it!

[keefelc]

I've been getting some inquiries when the fifth Remember the Party at the former Trocadero Transfer will happen. I can't reveal much at this time, but I can tell you it's now being planned. I can also tell you that this past Thursday night (Feb. 23, 2006), I was at a birthday party at the Stud in San Francisco (haven't been in that club in a LOOOONG time).

Jerry Bonham was the guest DJ during the party (about 4 hours) and he gave us a hint of what's to come at the next RtP event! :D The music was so wonderful I couldn't stay off the dance floor. What can I say about the theme of the next party? I'm not suppose to say much but I'll tell you that if you liked the last hour of Remember the Troc Party, you'll definitely be interested in the upcoming party!

BTW for those of you who danced at Trocadero back in the day, a Pyramid is back in the back corner of the room!! However, instead of being the great glass and mirrors tower housing the DJ & lighting director, it's now made out of styrofoam!!! :(

Can you say "tacky"???

[the disco kid]

For those wondering when the next installment of the REMEBER THE PARTY will happen, check out www.remembertheparty.com, go to A BRIEF HISTORY OF THE SCENE and read the last paragraph. I can hardly wait!

[keefelc]

The next Trocadero Transfer reunion party is now being called "Remember the Party 5" (changed from "Can You Feel It")! Why? A very simple reason. As the artwork was being created for the next ad, the producers noticed the poster was consisting mostly of the very long name of the event! :D

Get "behind the groove" at RtP 5 on Sunday, October 8th, 2006 (the 3 day Columbus Day holiday weekend)! DJ Jerry Bonham will be back to spin another magical set of those Troc classics.

Also, something VERY special and wonderful is now up on the RtP website ( www.remembertheparty.com ) - TROCADERO TRANSFER MEMORABILIA!!!!!!! :D :D :D Photos from the club! The Newsletters! Record ads from the era! A Disco Top 40 chart! So, when you're finished over here, you might want to check out the new section of the RtP website, especially those of you who were lucky enough to dance at the Troc and those of you who want a little inkling of what we've been talking about.

[keefelc]

For those of you wanting to find out a little more about DJ Jerry Bonham, Bernie added his bio to the Disco People section. :-D
http://www.discomusic.com/people-more/7185_0_11_0_C/

I didn't know until I read his bio just how extensive his experience was during the classic disco years!! I should have known by his vast knowledge of this era of music.