Our first wedding reception of 2010 couldn’t have been more fun. On January 23rd, Midnight Hour headed out west … well, fine, not very far west, but it was west nonetheless. We headed out to Lancaster, PA to the beautiful Riverdale Manor.
First off, you have to see this facility some time. It’s really beautiful – for me, it was the perfect mix of country charm and modern amenities. I arrived and met the owner, Maureen Raezer, who showed me around and told me about the property. Maureen knows a thing or two about top-notch catering – she used to be the Catering Director at The Smithsonian in Washington, DC. She and her husband / co-owner John Raezer opened Riverdale Manor just about four years ago to accommodate the growth of their catering business. They recently expanded it to include a beautiful room called The Pavillion, and it was in that new room that our bride and groom had their ceremony.
Which brings me to our bride and groom, Loren and Jennifer — what a great couple they are. As always, we worked with Loren and Jennifer in advance to review their tastes and to select music they wanted for their reception. They chose some great songs. Their first dance was James Taylor’s “Whenever I See Your Smiling Face”, which we performed for them … and as they danced for the first time as husband and wife, their guests all clapped and watched. Later, for Jennifer and her father we performed Billy Joel’s “Lullabye (Goodnight My Angel)”, which we had learned at Jennifer’s request. My hat is off once again to our talented keyboardist, Vincent Dimento, for a flawless performance of that song. Loren and his mother danced to “In My Life” by The Beatles, one of our favorites.
We ended the night with another special request – Pat Benatar’s “We Belong”, and as the song was ending the guests formed a “tunnel of love” through which Loren and Jennifer left the room to wild applause. The guests then headed out to the parking lot for a chilly but wonderful sparkler send-off.
Each wedding has its special moments, and for us, we’ll always remember Loren and Jennifer walking hand in hand through that tunnel of arms that was built by their family and friends, as we sang their last song:
We belong to the light; we belong to the thunder,
We belong to the sound of the words we’ve both fallen under,
Whatever we deny or embrace, for worse or for better,
We belong, we belong,
We belong together
On January 20th, 2010, The Midnight Hour Band performed at the new Parx Casino in Bensalem, PA. If you haven’t been to Parx yet, you should plan a trip there some time. The place just oozes fun. The band played in the hot new dance club at Parx, called Three Sixty (360). The name says it all … sitting in this hip club, you can see everything. It’s a wide open club that looks out over a massive casino floor full of great games.
We had a great time, and we really got to let our hair down and play some material that we can’t always play at weddings. One of the things I’m most proud of with Midnight Hour is that we’ve been together for just about 20 years, so we have a deep well of music from which to draw when we play out in dance clubs. We played everything from Lady Gaga to The Temptations, and the diverse and fun crowd at Parx Three Sixty danced all night long.
If you were there, thanks for coming! If you weren’t there, we hope we see you next time!
Usually our blog entries focus on the work we do as a band, the weddings and private parties we play, and the work we do with various venues in the greater Philadelphia region. However, I wanted to take an opportunity to herald the great work our guitar player, Jerry “Rooster” Corrado and his wife Joan did this year around the holidays.
Every year, Jerry puts up a huge display of Christmas lights on his lawn in East Bradford (near West Chester). He really gets into it, and his lawn show is second to none. The local television news stations frequently come to get shots of his lawn, as do the local papers. Jerry spends untold hours setting up the lights, the inflatable figures, etc., and then he’s out there maintaining them just about every day from Thanksgiving through New Year’s Day. He even had extra electrical power installed in his house just to support the Christmas lights he puts up each year.
The lights attract people from all over … they come and park out in front of Jerry’s house with their kids and just stare at the incredible lights. Every night, you’ll see as many as 10 or 20 cars lined up at different times of the night to look at the lights.
This year, Jerry and his wife Joan had the idea to ask those people to bring along a toy to donate to the pediatric unit of Chester County Hospital. It was a wonderful idea, and a huge success; they collected almost 200 toys for the kids, and delivered them throughout December to the hospital.
The Daily Local News of Chester County ran a story about Jerry and his wife Joan in December that tells a little more about their great contributions … here’s a link to that story:
Article about Rooster’s Toy Drive
So, the next time you see our guitar player, give Rooster a much deserved pat on the back for doing something special this year to bring cheer to some sick children during the holidays. Way to go, Rooster and Joan!
Midnight Hour’s holiday season is officially underway! We kicked off December with two fantastic holiday parties.
On Friday December 4th, we played a holiday party for our new friends at Devon EuroMotorcars. We had a great time meeting their staff and friends. Phil Miller, the General Manager of Devon EuroMotorcars, was especially gracious to the band – he even sang a little bit with us. Great job, Phil! But, you have to admit, that guy that came up and sang the Barry White song stole the show.
It was also terrific for us to return to the Radnor Hotel. We’ve performed at the Radnor Hotel many times, and we always love working with the great staff there.
On Saturday night, we were thrilled to perform for our friends at ColorCon. This was our second time playing for the ColorCon Holiday Party, and they really throw a wonderful party. This year, they had a “Dancing With The Stars” dance contest, for which the band played two selections; the classic big band “In The Mood”, and also “The Twist” by Chubby Checker. The party got going and we played everything from Sinatra to the Black Eyed Peas, and we had a marvelous time. The party was held at the beautiful Presidential Caterers in East Norristown, PA., and it was decorated beautifully for the holidays. Special thanks to Joanne and Dot at ColorCon for helping the band so much this year – your planning makes us look great, so thank you!
These were just two of the many holiday parties for which we’re performing this year. The band loves this time of year … we’re fortunate to have a long list of repeat clients who choose Midnight Hour to help them celebrate the holidays, and for us it’s a chance to attend one great party after another! (But don’t worry, we never forget we’re working).
Pictured: Midnight Hour Bandleader Shavin Duffy with ColorCon’s Joanne Angelillis
So maybe it wasn’t a Kevin Costner movie, but this past weekend the Midnight Hour Band enjoyed our own version of “Dances with Wolves”, as we enjoyed an evening of “Dances with Foxes” – specifically, newlyweds Jennifer and Eric Fox, the nicest Foxes you’ll ever meet. They and their family and friends gathered to celebrate their wedding day at The Mendenhall Inn in Mendenhall, PA.
Jennifer and Eric were truly a joy to meet. They each put a lot of effort into working with the band to ensure we delivered the kind of music they envisioned for their reception. I will never forget one of Eric’s great lines when he summarized what was important to him; “Shavin, let there be no disco masquerading as funk”. You gotta love any guy who comes up with a line like that.
We learned a few great songs for them; “Lovin’ Cup” by The Rolling Stones (if you never heard it, go listen to it, off the Stones Exile on Main Street album), “Feelin’ All Right” by Joe Cocker, “Harvest Moon” by Neil Young, and “Not Fade Away” by The Grateful Dead. What a great set of requests! This stuff is right up our alley, and we loved doing each of these songs for them. I was so excited that I even went out and purchased a percussion instrument called a Vibra Slap to get that cool percussion sound you hear in the opening of that Joe Cocker song. Closing the night with “Harvest Moon” was a lot of fun for the band, especially our guitarist “Rooster”, who is a huge Neil Young fan and got to play one of his many acoustic guitars on that one.
For us, it was the second week in a row at The Mendenhall Inn, and we’re actually back there again next week … so it’s a Three Week Stand at The Mendenhall for us! We want to thank Rigo, the Maitre De at The Mendenhall Inn, who does a fantastic job each and every time we’re lucky enough to work with him.
Another great weekend … on Saturday October 24, 2009, Midnight Hour was honored to perform at Fiddler’s Elbow Country Club for the wedding reception of Ryan and Deborah Montgomery. There’s so much to share about this fantastic evening …
This was our first performance at Fiddler’s Elbow – the largest corporate membership country club in the world. Founded in 1965, the club is well known for its extravagant wedding receptions and corporate golf outings. Fiddler’s Elbow is frequented by many famous people, including Steven Van Zandt (of The Sopranos, The E Street Band) and former New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman. Former Presidents Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush have also visited the club on many occasions. The Somerset Ballroom was absolutely beautiful, with many connecting rooms offering a wonderful setting for guests to mingle and enjoy the evening. The staff and services at Fiddler’s Elbow were second to none. As you can imagine, we loved playing there and we look forward to returning to their beautiful club in the near future.
Back to our clients, Ryan and Deborah, who were the perfect wedding clients – they put a lot of thought into their reception in advance, and helped the band to put together a great plan. The bridal party walked into the room to the sounds of The Black Eyed Peas, and then the bride and groom entered to U2’s “Beautiful Day”. For their first dance, Ryan and Deborah chose “When You Say Nothing At All” by Ronan Keating, and the band played it beautifully. Later in the evening, we had a lot of fun playing some specific requests for the happy couple – “It’s My Life” by Bon Jovi, “Hungry like the Wolf” by Duran Duran, and “Eye of the Tiger” by Survivor. For “Eye of the Tiger”, the bride and groom joined us on stage, along with the best man and maid of honor, and the entire crowd pressed up against the stage with fists pumping in the air – it was a full blown 80’s concert moment. We closed the night with another special request, “Take Me Home Country Road” by John Denver, and the crowd sang the last choruses at the top of their voices, arm in arm on the dance floor, without any help from the band.
We worked with a wonderful wedding planner, Nicole Spagnoli of The Finishing Touch Wedding and Event Planning. Nicole was terrific, and we worked together for weeks in advance of the reception to make sure the timeline for the reception was accurate and included all of the key moments we wanted to build into the plan.
We also loved working with Alicia Nathanson of Blossom Productions, a top notch videographer. I can’t wait to see what Alicia and her team captured – they seemed to have that special knack that the best videographers have for being in the just right place in the room at the right time, and we loved working with them.
It was a great night for the Montgomery and Yu families, and we were so happy to have played a part in their celebration.
What a Fall 2009 we’re all having! The Phillies! The Eagles! The cool weather! The band loves this time of year because we are busier than ever, playing weddings each week at some of the most beautiful locations in the Philadelphia area.
This past week, Midnight Hour performed on Saturday October 17th at Huntingdon Valley Country Club for the wedding reception of Josh and Eileen Albillar. We had a great time with Eileen and Josh, their friends and their families.
The band performed Frank Sinatra’s version of “As Time Goes By” for Josh and Eileen’s first dance. Eileen’s parents, John and Kathryn, had just celebrated their 37th anniversary, so we surprised them by playing their wedding song, “Color My World” by Chicago. Naturally, we had to play “Come on Eileen” for Eileen and her girl friends, and they also loved the new songs we played by The Black Eyed Peas and Lady Gaga.
For Josh, we were thrilled to learn “Baba O’Riley” by The Who. I have to give a lot of credit to our keyboardist, Vinny Dimento, who worked overtime to sequence the trademark synthesizer opening to “Baba O’Riley”. Also, great job to Nick, our drummer, for the great Keith Moon impression. Josh and his friends loved it – they were all singing “Teenage Wasteland” together at the top of their voices.
We thank the great staff at The Huntingdon Valley Country Club, especially Carol Keene who ran things for HVCC that evening. Carol, you did a wonderful job as always, and we appreciate you asking for the stack of business cards at the end of the night. We look forward to coming back to HVCC soon!
Pictured: I took this shot from the stage at the end of the night – it’s Josh and Eileen, the bride and groom, surrounded by their friends and family on the dance floor.
The Midnight Hour Band had a fantastic time on Saturday night, October 9th at The Curtis Center in Philadelphia, playing for the wedding reception of our new friends, Ben and Kim Rock.
For Ben and Kim Rock, their last name is both a noun and a verb – they Rock! We met them earlier this year, and we got to know them as we worked with them to plan their reception details. The Curtis Center was absolutely beautifully decorated, and their staff, led by Natalie and Sonny, was wonderful.
Ben and Kim shared a special first dance, “You and Me” by Lifehouse. For Kim’s dance with her father, I prepared a medley of three songs; “Isn’t She Lovely”, “Daddy’s Little Girl”, and “My Wish” – each of the three had special meaning for Kim’s father, so it was a special surprise I had arranged with Kim’s mother prior to the reception.
From start to finish, the guests had a blast, and so did we. We can’t thank The Rocks enough for having us. Thank you!
Pictured: Our lead singer, Joanne Farrell, singing to a packed dance floor at The Curtis Center on 9-Oct-2009.
The Hotel du Pont is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful and exclusive wedding reception sites anywhere in the Delaware Valley. We’ve played in the Gold Ballroom many times, and we never fail to marvel at the beauty and history of that room. When the lights get low, the hand-crafted carvings on the walls come to life, including medallions of 20 of history’s most famous women – from Helen of Troy to Cleopatra.
But it was one woman in particular who took all the attention on this night – the lovely newlywed Andrea, and her husband Rick. Andrea and Rick chose Midnight Hour after meeting us at a showcase, and I’m happy to say we went over the top for them to make the night truly special.
The bridal party entered the room dancing to “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire. When it was time to welcome the Bride and Groom into the room, the band kicked into “The Way You Make Me Feel” … maybe one of the top ten grooves ever, and a great song if you’re looking for something to WALK to. Andrea and Rick even WALKED cool. Once they reached the dance floor, we played their choice for their first dance, “Lucky” by Jason Mraz, and when it was over the dance floor filled with their guests all joining them for a Motown set.
In working with Andrea and Rick leading up to the wedding, I came to know that Rick and his friends are big Dave Matthews fans, so the band learned a song called “Grey Street” for Rick … and it was a great pick. All of Rick’s friends got up to jam to some Dave Matthews and really loved what we did with the song, especially our saxophone player, Darren, who covered the long solo at the end of the song on his soprano sax.
Jillian Cournoyer is the Senior Catering Manager at The Hotel du Pont, and was on site as always to oversee every detail. Jillian is just the best, a true professional to be sure – but it’s the way she makes it all so much fun that leaves us wishing she could come with us every week. Jillian saw to every detail, made sure the timing of the night flowed perfectly, and from start to finish she was right there whenever we needed anything. Our thanks to Jillian, as always!
We had a fantastic time with the Denney and DiCesare families – just wonderful people.
Saxophone Player Darren Lucis performing “Europa” at The Hotel du Pont
This past weekend the band returned to Rivercrest Golf Club in Phoenixville, PA. It seems we’ve played at Rivercrest so many times just this year that it feels like home to us. It’s truly a beautiful facility, and we loved playing for Mike and Sarah’s reception. Their bridal party entered the room as we played the groove to “Superstition”, and then Sarah & Mike walked in to the chorus of “Gimme Three Steps,” with the crowd hollering and screaming. They chose Michael Buble’s “Everything” for their first dance, and I must say, the band did a great job with that song – our keyboardist, Vince Dimento, is really fantastic and played the piano parts just perfectly.
Great ending to the night – the guests all raised long sparklers out by the pool area at Rivercrest as we gave the bride and groom a sparkler send-off … just an awesome sight. Our best to Mike and Sarah, and our sincere thanks to them for choosing Midnight Hour!