Top songs all KJ's must have
Top songs all KJ's must have
Can you guys tell me what you think are some of the top songs all KJ's must have?
Well, depends on what you mean by "top songs." If you mean, "songs kj's learn to hate but people love to sing" then my list looks something like this:
Bohemian Rhapsody
Total Eclipse of the Heart
Love Shack
Sweet Caroline
Friends in Low Places (world's worse karaoke version, right here -- and yes, those are kazoos in the background, it was Kazoo Karaoke night)
There are others. The only song I really get a lot of requests for that I don't have is Black Velvet. But I don't buy much country music because I'm catering to (and trying to attract) a specific college to 30-something crowd. Everyone else with karaoke within 100 miles of me has as much country as anyone can want, so I decided to aim for something different.
I would also recommend the 6-cd set of original artist Motown Karaoke. They're the best versions of those songs that you will ever find (it's the original backing tracks, it doesn't get better) and it doesn't matter what the age group is, there's always people who connect with classic Motown.
The best thing to do is to flat-out ask for suggestions. Put out a sheet where people can request songs. I did this for about a year when I first started and when I bought disks I would find the songs I wanted in the suggestion list first and then see which discs they popped up on and tried to find as many common songs on as few discs as possible.
Bohemian Rhapsody
Total Eclipse of the Heart
Love Shack
Sweet Caroline
Friends in Low Places (world's worse karaoke version, right here -- and yes, those are kazoos in the background, it was Kazoo Karaoke night)
There are others. The only song I really get a lot of requests for that I don't have is Black Velvet. But I don't buy much country music because I'm catering to (and trying to attract) a specific college to 30-something crowd. Everyone else with karaoke within 100 miles of me has as much country as anyone can want, so I decided to aim for something different.
I would also recommend the 6-cd set of original artist Motown Karaoke. They're the best versions of those songs that you will ever find (it's the original backing tracks, it doesn't get better) and it doesn't matter what the age group is, there's always people who connect with classic Motown.
The best thing to do is to flat-out ask for suggestions. Put out a sheet where people can request songs. I did this for about a year when I first started and when I bought disks I would find the songs I wanted in the suggestion list first and then see which discs they popped up on and tried to find as many common songs on as few discs as possible.
Some people are going to disagree with me for saying this, but any song is a duet. My philosophy is: the more people you get on stage in a night the more fun everyone has. I encourage folks to perform as duets or groups but a lot of kjs don't like that. And for understandable reasons, like you don't want people complaining about the rotation all night, which can happen.
But my experience has been that 4–6 people on stage doing Bohemian Rhapsody or Total Eclipse of the Heart or Sweet Caroline is more fun for the folks on stage and WAY more entertaining for the audience at the same time. There's a line between karaoke and spectacle that's worth crossing a time or two a show.
But my experience has been that 4–6 people on stage doing Bohemian Rhapsody or Total Eclipse of the Heart or Sweet Caroline is more fun for the folks on stage and WAY more entertaining for the audience at the same time. There's a line between karaoke and spectacle that's worth crossing a time or two a show.
Great suggestion on that Motown series. I was looking at that and I have a couple questions. How many tracks are on each disc? Amazon shows that there are only 8 but another site showed more. Who's got it right?
Also are there more than 6 CDs? It seems like there might be more CDs beyond what's available in the boxed set but you have to buy them individually. Is that right?
Finally, are there vocals on the left or right channel? Are they the original artist vocals and if so are there also stereo tracks with no vocals?
Thanks.
Also are there more than 6 CDs? It seems like there might be more CDs beyond what's available in the boxed set but you have to buy them individually. Is that right?
Finally, are there vocals on the left or right channel? Are they the original artist vocals and if so are there also stereo tracks with no vocals?
Thanks.
Dr. Rhythm
It's actually 16 tracks per disc: the first 8 are with vocals and the last 8 are repeats without the vocals.
There are now about 18 cds. The first 6 are top-heavy, though -- there was some serious cherry-picking going on when they put those out. Not that there aren't good songs on the next 12, but the first 6 discs have more songs that people are going to sing then the next 12 combined, IMO. You can buy each disc individually, but the set of 6 was a deal so I got the set.
The vocals are on the...right I think (my powered mixer is mono, so I don't often listen to these in stereo) on the first 8 tracks.
Here's the link to the whole series (type "original artist" in the site's search bar to get all 18 to show up).
There are now about 18 cds. The first 6 are top-heavy, though -- there was some serious cherry-picking going on when they put those out. Not that there aren't good songs on the next 12, but the first 6 discs have more songs that people are going to sing then the next 12 combined, IMO. You can buy each disc individually, but the set of 6 was a deal so I got the set.
The vocals are on the...right I think (my powered mixer is mono, so I don't often listen to these in stereo) on the first 8 tracks.
Here's the link to the whole series (type "original artist" in the site's search bar to get all 18 to show up).