Man, we had a party!

02.05.06

Yes indeed. Reaction!, the NYC '60s weekender went above and beyond. Vinyl junkies, mods, DJs, and swingin' sixties gals flooded NYC from all over the country to join in on the debauchery. The grand finale at the Delancey last night was possibly one of the most the most glorious celebrations of '60s soul ever. As Lady Dawn (in diamonds and a beehive) from the Subway Soul club said, "I've been to '60s weekenders all over the word, but I've never experienced anything like this." Hats off to the Mighty Hannibal, who despite being blind, gave a spine-tingling performance that sent shivers through the entire crowd. It was electric. So sexual. The girls were pulling their hair, screaming, swinging their hips. Amylu, Dawn, and I met eyes mid-set, shaking our heads in disbelief. And the Dansettes—Jaime, Jennie, Leah—first with their own performance, and then as the Mighty Hannibal's backup singers, oozed style, sass, and a level of soul sophistication that blew my mind. I've always been a bit apprehensive about retro acts, but last night's performance extinguished all doubt. They were brilliant.

Sheila's favorite Reaction! DJ: Tony The Tyger
So he didn't spin any girl-pop, but whatever he was playing had the entire Beauty Bar stomping their feet.

Got to DJ three sets over the weekend. The Ladies Only DJ showcase slash boozefest slash record fair started at 2 pm. By 3;30 I was $200 poorer, after finding an original copy of Etta James' "Seven Day Fool." I told Michael Robinson that I only had the reissue. "Oh well then you don't have the record," he responded. Ouch! And Evie Sands' "I Can't Let Go," which I had also been on the hunt for. Met Billy + Miriam from Norton Records, the shocking pink DJ Gemini who specializes in ska and rocksteady, and Ty Jesso who sold me a couple of great girlie goodies. Played Yvonne Carroll's "Mister Loveman" out for the first time. It went down well with a Negro Modello. As did many of the Japanese beat girls.

Now for the visuals.......

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Girls do it better from left to right: Lady Dawn (Subway Soul), Jaime Kozyra (the Dansettes), DJ Bossy Boots (hiding behind the decks), Jennie Wasserman (the Dansettes), DJ Gemini, Layla Lozano aka Peppermintwist (Smashed! Blocked!), Miriam Linna (Norton Records), DJ Lynne K., and me, Sheila B.

The Dansettes

The Mighty Hannibal!

BUSTies Callie, Sheila B., and Tracie

Flowered up: Anna Coppacabana

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To Josh + Layla—the beauty, brains, love, and hard work behind this Reaction! Weekender—in the name of.... pop, we salute
you! ; )

Sheila

Posted by Sheila at 03:09 PM