Subway Soul Club came to order on Saturday, May 12, at a new venue under the able-bodied hostesship of Lady Dawn and with resident DJ Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus. The event was held at Ceremony, a fairly new club in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. It is beautifully appointed, has a wonderful wooden floor, the management and the employees were easy to work with, and it is conveniently located near the crossroads of the G and L trains. Our pal Steve Myers hipped us to the joint about a year ago, but more recently, our friend Claudia Lily from The Baby Shakes went the extra mile to make introductions. Once Lady Dawn and Phast Phreddie saw the joint, they fell in love with it. It’s got a great DJ booth and it is often utilized by our friends Josh Styles, Avi Spivak and William Martin when they hold their Rebel Rouser Club House parties. Ceremony has plenty of room for dancing and it was all taken up by dancers on this night.

For this Subway Soul Club event, guest DJs were Ty Jesso and Yana Lil-Jerk.

Ty Jesso is one of the East Coast’s best DJs of reet music. He hails from Providence, Rhode Island and his Soul Power that takes place there is often voted the best dance party in town by the local newspapers. He also helms Soulelujah in Cambridge, Massachusetts that is also very popular in the Boston area. Ty was one of the original guest DJs for Subway Soul Club dating back to its days at Rififi in the East Village. The cat has great records and he sure knows how to play them–and he played plenty.

Yana Lil-Jerk has DJed all over town. Currently, she hosts the Bangarang (reggae, rocksteady, ska) and the Living for Kicks (garage rock, soul, R&B and other stuff) parties, usually at the Robert Bar. These gigs are always a gas. She has great soul records and she brought a box of them to Ceremony on May 12 where she kept the dance floor hopping all night. This was her first time working Subway Soul Club and she did a great job. You know she’ll get asked back.

Ceremony was pretty full; not too full that folks couldn’t dance, though. The place was jumping with excitement, with folks showing up right at the nine o’clock opening and staying until nearly the three AM closing. We were happy to see a lot of long-time Subway Soul Club attendees as well as many new faces. Also on hand were several of the DJs who regularly guest at Subway Soul Club. There were plenty of English people, including a British fellow, now living in Toronto, who drove down with his wife.

As mentioned, Lady Dawn was in the house, flitting around in her groovy Mod threads, meeting and greeting folks. Special guest door-person was DJ Jumpy, who was occasionally given time off to dance. Miss Nancy Gardner made spicy cinnamon brownies for the event, but alas, could not make the scene.

At the end of the night, as folks were leaving, it was pretty unanimous that Ceremony may be the best place for Subway Soul Club since the Rififi days. Future dates are being negotiated, so the possibility of another Subway Soul Club event taking place before the end of the year is very strong.

Here’s a list of all the records played by Phast Phreddie the Boogaloo Omnibus at Subway Soul Club:

• The Dogs–Soul Step (Treasure)
• Warren Covington and His Orchestra–Watusi Jo (Decca)
• Allyn Ferguson and His Orch.–Your Red Watermelon (Äva)
• Dick Jacobs and His Orchestra–Barefootin’ (Brunswick)
• Billy Martin and the Soul Jets–The Strut (London; Canada)
• Carmen Taylor–You’re Puttin’ Me On (Kama Sutra)
• The Drifters–We Gotta Sing (Atlantic)
• Roland Kirk–Walk on By (Limelight)
• The Sweethearts–This Couldn’t Be Me (Kent)
• The Artistics–Price of Love (Brunswick)
• Ronnie Taylor–I Can’t Take It (Revilot)
• Bobby Bland–Lover With a Reputation (Duke)
• The Chosen Few–Footsee (Instrumental) (Roulette)
• Mr. Pitiful–Girl Can’t Help It (Josie)
• Maurice McCallister (formerly of The Radiants)–Baby Hang On (Chess)
• Charlie Russo & His Orchestra–Goofin (Port)
• Jay and the Techniques–Baby How Easy Your Heart Forgets (Smash)
• The Happy Cats–These Boots Are Made for Walking (Omack)
• The Nick Venet Orchestra–Main Theme From Out of Sight (Decca)
• Dobie Gray–Out on the Floor (Charger)
• Willie Mitchell–That Driving Beat (Hi)
• Nino Ferrer–Mirza (Monkey) (Riviera; Canada)
• The Charmaines–Keep on Searchin’ (Minit)
• Witches and the Warlock; music by The Camaros–No Where to Run No Where to Hide (Sew City)
• Kenny Bernard–Ain’t No Soul (Left in These Ole Shoes) (Compass)
• Prini–Boogaloo (Beverly; Brazil)
• Pete Rodriguez–I Like It Like That (Alegre)
• The Mohawks–Baby Hold On Part II (Cotillion)
• The Golden Pot–Motive (Disc AZ; France)
• Alder Ray–My Heart Is In Danger (Minit)
• The Vontastics–Never Let Your Love Grow Cold (St. Lawrence)
• Jimmy & Vella Cameron–Lovin’ You Is Such a Groove (Reprise)
• Earl Grant–Hide Nor Hair (Decca)
• The Apollas–Sorry Mama (Loma)
• King Coleman–Do the Booga Lou (Part 1) (Port)
• Lou Courtney–Hey Joyce (Pop-Side)
• The Mohawks–Ride Your Pony (Pama; UK)
• Desmond Dekker & the Aces–Israelites (Uni)
• Billy Butler–Right Track (OKeh)
• Baby Jean–If You Wanna (Stacy)
• George E. Lee–Dance What You Wanna (Kapp)
• The Blackburds–Get Out of My Life Woman [from EP The Blackburds Play the Bugaloo] (Philips; France)
• Johnny Bartel and the Soul Masters–If This Isn’t Love (Solid State)
• Susan Barrett–What’s It Gonna Be (RCA Victor)
• Bobby Bland–Shoes (Duke)
• Marsha Brody–Right Combination (Hot Shot)
• Candy and the Kisses–Someone Out There (Decca)
• The Flirtations–Nothing But A Heartache (Deram)
• Johnny Nash–I’m Movin’ On (Warner Bros.)
• Owen Gray–Help Me (Island; UK)
• Franky Coe–Game of Love (Part 2) (OKeh)
• The Majestics–(I Love Her So Much) It Hurts Me (Linda/Vampi Soul; Spain)
• Contours–Baby Hit and Run (Tamla Motown; UK)

None of these records are for sale. Click on them for hot, youtubes action!