Tom Lewis

To the guy who wrote "Too bad this s***--not to mention the current garbage of spinners w/ their hats on backwards--put many a TRUE musicians (you know: people that write their own music and play real instruments?) out of business."

Sad that you do not know the real history of how disco put many studio musicians to work during those times. Maybe rock bands were on the downside but then everything in the music business has an ebb and flow. Take off your blinders and look!

Your ignorance of what a DJ, opposed to people who slide one song to the next and call themselves DJ, is sad if you are taking the time to comment in the forum.

This man was a DJ before people knew what a DJ was, and before kids got turntables under the Christmas tree instead of guitars. If you were ever in a bar and said "what the f**k this guy gets paid for this", and then went to a club where the music moved you to dance all night long, you might understand the difference between somebody sliding music and somebody working a crowd.

Tom Lewis was one of the firsts. Just like Jimmy Hendrix changed the way people play guitar. Take the time to learn, I will gladly teach you. If not, why are you even on this page? Go some place and comment about things you actually have knowledge of.

Let me get this straight...

This guy Lewis spun records and then cites as his career accomplishment the knack for sliding one song into the next?

And the rest of you treat this as if playing other peoiple's music makes you some sort of "talent"?

Too bad the current garbage of spinners w/ their hats on backwards--put many a TRUE musicians (you know: people that write their own music and play real instruments?) out of business.

America truly is going to waste.

Tom, since you started the greater Capital District area off with Disco in '76, and I ended the century with it at Nick's Sneaky Pete's... I would like to get in contact with you.

The DJ's who taught me were Chip Reichenthal and Andy Chiouffi, who I am sure you know. - Also, I still have my copy of the DanceBeats book I obtained in '88 from Joe, Greg, Andy, and Chaz out of the Clifton Park office.

I am the current director of the Albany NY Association of DJs, having taken over from Joe Giannini almost a decade ago.
I would like to know more about the origins of the pool. AFAIK it was started around 1976 and was later renamed the Albany NY Association of DJs. Since 1998, it has been part of CSI Promotion Group, which also operates Club Service International and H.O.T. Urban Music Pool in Montreal.
I remember discussing "Disco Beats" with Joe years ago but would love more info about the history of the pool.

Tom,

This is Bernie, the owner of DiscoMusic.com. I see you are interacting with the other members who have also joined us and wanted to welcome you to the site and look forward to more of your recollections of the Disco era. Please tell us more about the Disco BPM publications you put out. Thanks.

I remember my first trip to The Rafters in Saratoga - my first time ever going to a disco - I was 18 - this was 1976 - and was immediately mesmerized by the sound, lights, and "smell" of the dry ice from the moment I walked in. My introduction to the art of DJing began almost immediately when I heard an "effect" eminating from the kick-a** GLI soundsystem - the song was familiar, yet I had never heard this particular version, and it sounded as if it was being put through a filter of some sort, as the high end would pretty much cancel itself out and then zing back in as if it was echoing through a huge sewer pipe. No, this was not a mixer "preset" as we have today, this was DJ Tom Lewis, playing 2 copies of the same record at the same time, guiding his fingernail along the platter of the turntable to decrease one of the records' rotation to just a hair away +/- from the constant spin of the other copy. I HAD to go see what this guy was playing, so I went up to the booth, waited behind a couple of "hot chick" DJ groupie types who were requesting songs, and finally got a first hand look at the inside of the DJ booth. I introduced myself to Tom and was forever hooked on the art of DJing. I was a Rafters "regular" from that night. I went out and started buying 12" singles - loved that "underground" format - most of my friends didn't even know what the heck a 12" was. I recall seeing white label promo copies and DJ only promo copies of records that Tom had in the booth and lost my mind ! (What I have realized just recently was that Tom was in his first year as a disco DJ when I met him, or very close to that. One would have thought he had been doing it for much longer.He was a natural talent.) I remember thinking to myself when I watched him spin for the first time, "I can do that....I definitely can do that...I want to do that"....It changed my life forever as I pretty much met every girl I ever dated from being a DJ, including my ex-wife and my current girlfriend. I am still DJing to this day once a week (I need my DJ fix guys - you can relate I'm sure) and have on occasion borrowed a few of Tom's mixes when playing out that were forever burned in my memory, and people are impressed. Little do they know all the history behind those mixes. Most of the people hearing them weren't even born yet.

I don't recall going to Miami, but I certainly remember the name Bo Crane. I'm pretty sure that it was Bo who called me and said he would sell a quantity of Disco Beats for me, and I gave him a discount.

Now that I'm reading all of your "Disco 101 History" I'm getting a flood of memories of people and music. I'm going to write it up and add it on DiscoMusic.com.

Real fun. It was very much my life for a number of years. Thanks for inviting me to join the family.

tom

Tom, thanks for responding to my surveys. Did you ever come down to Miami, and the Florida Record Pool to market your LISTS?? I remember someone promoting it when I was running the pool for BO CRANE. Was that you??

Tom Lewis, I heard the name many times, now I can put a face to it.Good explanation of beat mixing, and I remember your list, I once saw one. Very Interesting "book". I remember that you also had "supplementals" occasionally. So you have a hundred stories?? See my article in DISCO HISTORY 101, A SURVEY... about Drugs and Disco. Can you help me with a few stories??Can you throw a dog a bone, with an opinion or two?? Glad to see you finally decided to join the family!! I'm sure we will be talking. Welcome!!