I created this blog to share with you some of my fun experiences from the many Weddings and Special Events I do every year. If you only have time to read a little bit, you can always click on the favorites link to the right to read my favorite postings. Thanks for stopping by!

Thursday, November 23, 2006

Silicon Valley Turkey Trot

Happy Thanksgiving! What a great day already! I volunteered with my nephew Jeffrey this morning at the 2nd Annual Applied Materials Silicon Valley Turkey Trot in downtown San Jose. This is a great 10k walk and run with proceeds benefitting the Second Harvest Food Bank. Over 3000 people turned out for this wonderful event. I was asked to help with the announcements at the main stage. I think I can handle that! How fun! I usually wear my tuxedo when I MC Events but they told me to dress very casual. Don't I look so stylish in my jeans and volunteer t-shirt? You bet!

The Second Harvest Food Bank (http://www.2ndharvest.net/) is my favorite local charity and I usually volunteer there 3 or 4 times a month. The Second Harvest Food Bank provides food for over 170,000 people every month! This is an amazing organization almost completely run by volunteers. Would you like to join me and volunteer? Each shift is only 2 to 3 hours! You can come in after work on Wednesdays from 6pm-8pm or Saturday mornings from 9am-noon. It's easy work and you can meet other kind people just like yourself. If so, give me a call or go to the website I linked above to sign up. I hope to see you there!

Now I am off to my Mom's house to eat. And after I eat, I will eat a little more! It's a good thing my health club is open tomorrow!

Sunday, November 19, 2006

My Big Fat Italian Wedding

Last night, I was at The Stockton Golf & Country Club. As I was unloading my equipment, I saw Alex Spanos (the owner of the San Diego Chargers) getting out of his $400,000 car. I wouldn't have recognized him but one of the Club employee's happily pointed him out to me. He is a member there at the Country Club and lives in Stockton. Nice car. But for the same price, I CAN BUY A CONDO!

Let me also say that I NEVER go to Stockton for weddings. And when I say never, I mean never! (well, except for this one) But I've known the Bride Esther for many years and just couldn't pass up the chance of being the DJ at her reception. There were 250 Italians in one room for this grand celebration and I was pumped up!

For dinner, Chris and Ester wanted a very unique blend of background music including Italian, Reggae, Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, and Smooth Jazz. After dinner, Chris and Ester walked around table to table to say hello to the guests and pass out the traditional Bomboniere Italian Wedding Favors. Their request list for dancing leaned heavily in favor of 70's music which is always fun. Ester's dad danced almost every song during the evening. He was so fun to watch because he was going around the room and grabbing people out of their chairs to dance with him. He must have had 25 different dance partners...my kind of guy!

RANDOM NOTE: The guests arrived ONE HOUR EARLY to the reception! I couldn't believe it! They hired me to DJ from 5pm-10pm but the guests started coming in at 4pm! You gotta be kidding me! It's a good thing that I was already there and set-up. I started playing some background music immediately so everything was fine. (I didn't charge them for the extra hour because they were so sweet!)

Saturday, October 14, 2006

Wedding - Delmonte Building

This was one of those magical nights where I could have played sounds of people burping and the guests would have danced to it. What a great reception for Sean and Kelly! This was a special treat for me too since I DJ'd Kelly's sister's wedding 2 years ago at David's in Santa Clara. Tonight, their reception for 150 people was the Historic Delmonte Building in downtown Sunnyvale. What a blast!

This was a super-energetic crowd and super-fun too. I could tell at the beginning by their response to the Bridal Party Introductions that they were going to be a fun group.

First Dance: "Making Memories Of Us" - Keith Urban
Father-Daughter Dance: "I Loved Her First" - Heartland
Groom-Mother Dance: "I'll Remember" - Madonna
Cake Cutting Song: "Grow Old With You" - Adam Sandler
Garter Song: "Another One Bites The Dust" - Queen
Bouquet Song: "Wouldn't It Be Nice" - Beach Boys
Farewell Dance: "Hanging By A Moment" - Lifehouse
Not much else to say other than they had a great time and they will remember this night forever!

Sunday, September 03, 2006

Wedding - Trader Vic's

John and Caron are amazing. They have more brains in their pinkies then I have in my head. They are both doctors and have devoted their lives to helping the less-fortunate. I got to know them during the planning process over the phone since they live in Minnesota. Caron looked absolutely beautiful and was smiling all night.

The guests last night came from Ecuador, Argentina, and China. It was a very fun, diverse crowd that really enjoyed dancing. First Dance: "Come Away With Me" - Norah Jones
Father-Daughter Dance: "Unforgettable" - Nat King Cole
Bridal Party Dance: "Crazy Love" - Ray Charles/Van Morrison
Farewell Dance: "What A Wonderful World" - Louis Armstrong

Random Note: The Wedding Favors were fortune cookies. Great idea!

Sunday, July 30, 2006

Wedding - Opera House

The reception last night for Mary and Chris was crazy. No, really. CRAZY! I've never seen so many people stuffed into the Opera House in Los Gatos. I do several weddings there each year but usually for around 200 to 250 guests. And when Mary hired me last year, she told me they would be expecting 250. WRONG!! Add 40%! That's right! 350 People! Talk about a guest list exploding out of control.

75 of those guests were fellow alumni from Santa Clara University and they were ready to party. Heck, even the older folks were ready to party. And they did. They pulled out all of the classic dances last night...running man, cabbage patch, centipede, and whatever that dance was that Vanilla Ice did. Funny stuff.

First Dance: "I Could Not Ask For More" - Sara Evans
Bride-Grandfather Dance: "The Way You Look Tonight" - Frank Sinatra
Groom-Mother Dance: "What A Wonderful World" - Louis Armstrong
Farewell Dance: "How Sweet It Is" - James Taylor

Most Popular Fast Dance: "Sweet Home Alabama" - Lynyrd Skynyrd
Most Popular Slow Dance: "Wonderful Tonight" - Eric Clapton
Most ridiculous request from a guest that I didn't play: "Any song from Rapper E40". Yeah right! I DON'T THINK SO!!


I think I've done 35 wedding receptions so far this year and this one was definitely in the top 3. I would love to see the video.

Random Note: Chris and Mary had 26 people in their Bridal party including 7 super-cute flower girls.

Monday, July 17, 2006

Let's Do The Bird!

What a night indeed. The reception for Iliana and Gary was something to remember. That place was jumpin' all night! It could have easily went another 2 hours. They did not want to leave that place!

That place was Peninsula Golf & Country Club in San Mateo. 250 people gathered for this wild & crazy celebration. As guests arrived, they were treated to some beautiful live music from local guitarist Tomas Michaud. (http://www.worldmelodies.com/hire.html). After introducing the happy couple, they waved to their adoring fans from the balcony upstairs and then proceded down the staircase. I encouraged the guests to keep the applause going until they entered the room. The applause continued for over a minute and turned into a standing ovation. This was the first sign that this evening was going to be something special.

First Dance: "Have I Told You Lately" - Van Morrison
Father-Daughter Dance: "More" - Harry Connick Jr.
Farewell Dance: "A Kiss To Build A Dream On" - Louis Armstrong
Most Popular Slow Dance: "Let's Stay Together" - Al Green
Most Popular Fast Dance: "Super Freak" - Rick James

This was a wild night that included one woman who danced with her drink balanced on top of her head (no, it didn't fall off!) and 20 men in their 40's doing "The Bird". (that was sight to see!) Here is a pic. The Bride Iliana danced almost every song the entire evening. She told me back when she hired me that if anyone wanted to talk to her during the reception, they would have to come onto the dance floor to do so because she was not coming off. She was right! She was a dancing machine!

Sunday, June 25, 2006

Wedding - SV Capital Club

Welcome to another edition of "Where was Rich last night?".

Where was I? I'm glad you asked! I was at The Silicon Valley Capital Club in San Jose. The Club is located on the 17th floor of the Fairmont Plaza in downtown San Jose. I've been there many times over the years. It is a place for smaller weddings of around 100 people. There were 120 there last night.

This week, my lovebirds were Shannon and John (Johnny)...a very fun couple. They hired me over a year ago for their wedding. I was the only one they interviewed since they saw me at another wedding where I rocked the house. Well, it really wasn't an interview. We got together for a cup of coffee and they gave me a check!

Last night was cool because 2 of my past clients were in attendance...Kathy and Travis Welch and Winter and Vincent Tracey. Here is a picture of the Bride and Groom with Travis and Kathy. Travis was in the bridal party and all of the guys were sporting black shirts and pink ties. Nice! Goosebump Moment: After they cut the cake and tossed the bouquet and garter, Shannon and Johnny came up to me and told me about Johnny's grandparents (Liz and Tony) who were in attendance. They wondered if we should say something about them since they were going to celebrate their 60th Wedding Anniversary in a few weeks. I said absolutely and I recommended to play a song for them as well. I always recommend acknowledging friends or family members who are celebrating a milestone event. It is very classy move. And come on...60 Years of marriage?? That is awesome! I got on the Microphone and thanked them for inspiring us with 60 years of marriage and played "Young at Heart" By Frank Sinatra. The guests gave them a standing ovation as they zipped over to the floor to dance. I had goosebumps on top of my goosebumps!! And just my luck, they knew the song and were singing along to it as the danced. Boy, I sure know how to pick 'em!

Introduction: "Let's get It Started" - Black Eyed Peas
First Dance: "You're The Inspiration" - Chicago
Father-Faughter Dance: "The Way You Look Tonight" - Rod Stewart
Groom-Mother Dance: "Child of Mine" - Carole King
Groom-Stepmother Dance: "Have I Told You Lately" - Rod Stewart
Farwell Dance: "Let's Get It On" - Marvyn Gaye
What a fun energetic crowd last night. They danced to a wide variety of music including Neil Diamond, The Bee Gees, Elvis, Kool & The Gang, and Usher. And here's something you don't see too often...a groom that likes to dance more than the bride!! Wow! You go Johnny!!

Random Note: This is the second time in 3 weeks that the Bride had a twin sister! Spooky!

Sunday, June 18, 2006

Wedding - Holbert Palmer Park

What a wonderful person the Bride was. Positive. Appreciative. Kind. Every time we talked, she just oozed happiness and kindness. It was like a shot of espresso. I always looked forward to speaking with her during the planning process. She made this such a unique and fun celebration for her guests (not to mention her new husband Chad). And they deserved it.

Holbert Palmer Park in Atherton was the setting for this celebration for 178 people. Christie happened to pick one of the hottest days of the year to have an outdoor dinner! A bit uncomfortable for many at the beginning but once the sun went behind the trees, smiles and laughter were everywhere.

Local Italian Tenor Pasquale Esposito sang during the dinner. (http://www.italianmusicman.com/ ) He is a very talented singer that can sing some great Italian songs and also favorites from Frank Sinatra and Dean Martin. The guests loved him.First Dance: Viene Su (sung by Pasquale)
Father-Daughter Dance: What A Wonderful World - Willie Nelson

The Tie Tree - I have never seen this before and thought it was very cool. All of the guys were invited to take their tie off and loosen up a bit. All they had to do was find their name tag and stick it on their tie. Then just hang their tie on the Tie Tree next to the gift table. I am sure the guys loved this idea considering how hot it was. To honor Chad for serving our country (thanks Chad!!), a second cake was made just for him. This cake was a Tank. All of the guests went outside at the end of the evening with sparklers. Christie and Chad walked through the middle of all the people with sparklers as photos were shot and the video rolled. Then they hopped in the limo and drove off into the sunset.

Random note: I love the smell of sparklers.

Sunday, May 07, 2006

Charity - 49er Foundation

Gentry Magazine puts on this Gala every year and all proceeds benefit a local charity. Gentry teamed up with the 49er Foundation and brought in over 30 of the Bay Area's best Chefs and Superstar Chef Martin Yan. There was also the usual silent auction with some very cool things up for grabs. And of course, many of the 49er Players and Cheerleaders were there.

Normally, I go to this event with my mom, sister, and a few friends as a guest since I love to eat! But this year, publisher Rick Acquaviva asked me if I wanted to volunteer my services to play music by the pool as guests mingled. My first question was..."do I still get to eat?" He said "Of Course!". And it was a done deal.

Best Chef. Without a doubt the best Chef of the evening was Elliott Boggs from Silver Creek Valley Country Club. His Ahi Tuna Poke Cones were absolutely OUT OF THIS WORLD! I must have had 15 of them. (not a joke!) In fact, everyone was talking about his incredibly delicious creation. I also found out later that he won "Best Of Show". Not a suprise though. I've done many weddings at Silver Creek Valley Country Club and have always had the pleasure of enjoying some fantastic food. I salute you Elliott!!

Another treat was seeing Kathy Welch...one of my favorite Brides from the past. I DJ'd her fun wedding a couple of years ago at Hotel Valencia in Santana Row. I guess it shouldn't be that much of a suprise that Kathy was there since she is an ex-49er Cheerleader. She now owns 5 dance studios for kids locally called "Dance Force". (408-371-5678)

As for this event, as usual, it was wonderful. And best of all...proceeds went to a great cause.

Rich Amooi - Owner
Hey Mr. DJ Entertainment
http://www.heymrdj.com

Friday, April 28, 2006

Hi Mom!

Wow! Let's start a blog! Here I am. Hi Mom!!