Instagram story viewer> @iamdaveralph> Tagged

Dave Ralph

@iamdaveralph

2.1K

followers

578

following

Aspiring to be Human

POSTS STORIES REELS TAGGED

Thanksgiving Eve, 2005. Buzz DC.

A packed club. An irate promoter. Paul Oakenfold refusing to go on and a secret test I didn’t even know I was taking.

What happened next changed everything.

#PaulOakenfold #PerfectoRecords #Trance #DJStories #trancefamily

213

50

An epic moment where my entire music destiny flashed before my eyes.
Hour after signing to @perfectorecords in 2005, @maxgraham - Does She Know Yet was the soundtrack to one of the most magical moments in my career.

A few years later @feddelegrand might have ruined a moment in Boston for me 😉 but Max Graham, @pauloakenfold, @iamdaveralph and team at Avalon helped cement a core dj memory. Here it is.

#trance #trancefamily #avalonboston #LAtrancefamily #DJstories

157

29

$// THE RAVE, EARLY SUNDAY MORNING \\ #woodstock99 #woodstock1999 #woodstock #daveralph #rave$

15

3

There’s just something about these mixes. I come back to them time and time again.

The funny thing is, although most people would probably consider them “trance” mixes, they’re each well under 50% actual trance. What they truly capture is the journey.

These aren’t background vibes to casually groove to, but they’re also not relentless, peak-time festival energy. They pull you into another world, they Tranceport you… they build a story, and leave you, in some strange way, healed in the end.

#5 Paul Oakenfold — Tranceport
This is where it all started for me. The lead melody in Paul van Dyk’s “Words (For Love)” single-handedly pulled me out of the punk and ska world and into a 25+ year journey that is still unfolding.

#4 Dave Ralph — Tranceport 2
I didn’t even like this mix at first. But as I began to understand that trance wasn’t only about the epic breakdown or massive drop, I realized this album is a masterclass in track selection, restraint, release and programming.

#3 Paul Oakenfold — Another World
Oakenfold’s legendary Goa Essential Mix reloaded. An absolute journey through sound, emotion and imagination—film scores and all.

#2 Paul Oakenfold — Essential Mix, Rojam, China
Pure magic, launched by Pete Tong’s iconic introduction: “I bet you haven’t been there. Well, he has, and here it comes.”

#1 Sasha - Global Underground: Ibiza
The perfect palette of sound. It speaks the musical language of my spirit. Across both discs, the programming, progression and track selection are absolute perfection.
And side notte, I actually own a small historic piece of this mix… I’ll share that story soon. ;)

What are your favorite DJ mixes of all time?

… oh and yes, let’s address the elephant in the room: three out of five are Oakey. There’s a reason he was the biggest DJ in the world during this era.

2k

390

20 tickets up for grabs to party All Night Long with Chris Stussy, Rossi, Marsolo, & Natalia Roth as we celebrate our fist collab (of many) with my brother @kobidanann 🦈 + all the amazing people @thisisframework
ps: it wouldn’t be a real Arizona party without @sjlighting in control ⭐️
Share this, tag your friends, & tell them here comes the Stuss!
See y’all there ✌️

1k

803

35 Years ago today, ‘Bliss’ had its second all-dayer At Fallows in Aintree, Liverpool.

Bliss was a weekly Monday party with Dave Ralph, and me weekly. I was the warm up DJ, and it was my first residency. Weekly we had 1000+ clubbers on a Monday! It’s crazy to think about that now! Let that sink in, 1000+ clubbers weekly on a Monday!

On bank holiday Mondays, we have 3 amazing all dayers, and 35 years ago today, was our second ‘Bliss’ all dayer. And some huge line ups to boot! They were amazing!

I was 19 years old, and on this same day, Shelly’s in Stoke also had an all-dayer, with Ralphy (Dave Ralph), Sasha and Dave Seaman playing both events, and so I was left to host this crazy party as a young whippersnapper for 4 hours, chatting and rearranging Sasha and Dave Seaman’s set times. Both of whom I really looked up to, and used to watch them play at Shelly’s on Friday nights (if I didnt have a dj gig myself).

The unannounced act was Rozalla, whose track ‘Everybody’s Free’ was still an underground anthem (later to become a huge chart and dance classic).

Sasha was phenomenal and I remember him playing Moby - Go (again still quite an unknown track back then), and also was the first time that I heard anyone play Denice Lopez - Don’t You Want To Be Mine.

Dave was always playing great tracks, and this is when his Brothers In Rhythm production team was really gaining momentum, with Peace & Harmony and Such A Good Feeling being absolute anthems!

Stu Allen was a hero of mine, as his weekly radio shows had educated me for many years, so I was always very happy to chat and play alongside Stu.

Me and Alan James were both local DJs, both with solid weekly residencies, me at Fallows and Alan at the infamous Coconut Grove, we forged a friendship through music.

And Dave Ralph, (along with John Cotton) gave me my first breaks as a DJ. The Djs who’s I admired and they helped me along. Dave is a fantastic DJ and he took me under his wing, and I’m eternally grateful for him passing on his knowledge and believing in me.

So who’d have thought that 35 years later… this house music thing would still be a thing?

#housemusic #fallows #steveparry #liverpoolclubbing

176

45

I was always obsessed with mixing from when I first heard about it. Be they DMC mixing championships and watching my good friends @dj_mike_trix and later on seeing @iamdaveralph mixing hip hop and house music when I was at @quadrantparkofficial under 18s night.

As I got to know Trix and Dave, I was lucky enough to get tapes of them playing, and these blew my head off. I’d literally almost wear the tapes out from constant playing. This must have been 1987/88.

The first actual DJ mix tape i remember buying from a shop was around 1990, when i spotted a @graemepark tape in a shop called Backtracks in Liverpool - the tape had this track on that took me years to find the name of ‘Charles B - Lack Of Love’, still a fave to this day. And who was the young shop assistant that sold me the tape? That’ll be one of the most important DJs in Liverpools history for me (and since that day one of my best friends) @lescalvert

The link with Les continues to my first real DJ mix obsession, as we both learned that we adored a mix series called Hit Mix 86. So yes 86 tracks in the mix all released in 1986! It was mixed by Les Adams and @paul_dakeyne and was so influential in both of mine and Les lives, that we still talk about this today, 40 years later.

So what was it for you? A dj mix? A cassette copy of a copy? A purchase CD? What was the first mix that blew you away?

44

62

Michael Winter is talking about something Miami respects immediately. A real pipeline.

He says it straight. Steve Adelman tried to kick him off the door. Thought he wasn’t the right guy. And what happened right around that time is the part every operator should pay attention to. Talent doesn’t argue. Talent moves.

Andy Massey was like fuck this, I’m out. Sean Christie was like fuck this, I’m out. They go to Vegas, start building what becomes Light Group, and the rest is history.

That’s what happens when you have a room that actually develops people. Lyons Group wasn’t just throwing parties, they were producing killers. The alumni list is stupid. Guys running major properties, booking massive fights, running casinos, running entertainment groups, running music for multiple venues. People who learned the game in Boston, then scaled it on the biggest stages.

That’s the Boston hustle. Straight fucking hustlers.

And Michael shouting out the legends matters too. The bookers, the music guys, the behind-the-scenes people who don’t get the credit but built the energy that made the whole machine run. Those are the ones that teach you taste, timing, discipline, and how to move crowds without begging.

This is why culture and training beats hype every time. You build people right, they go take over cities.

What’s your take. Is nightlife more about the room, or the talent you develop inside it?

Watch the full episode of Just the Tip for the full conversation.

Thank you to our sponsors:
@rooftopsolutions
@brodsoninc
@socialmedia.sage

449

206

If anyone has ever heard me DJ, they know I love a filthy acid line, that blippy and bendy sound that a 303 makes, has captured my heart since I very first heard it back in the late 80s, and still send la my mind wonky to this day.

I could probably make a top 100 acid tracks playlist, but let’s save that for another day. Today is ‘what is your favourite acid house / 303 track of all time’?.
And I’ll be honest I usually hate attempting to pick of a favourite of any genre of music… however I’ve got to play my own game - and so it’s the magnificent Hardfloor - Acperience that does it for me.

So, how about you?

71

70

Having been warm up DJ at so many amazing gigs - including my residencies at Cream and Alderaan, I’m all about the art of the warm up DJ.

It’s easy to go in an play big tunes, but if you do that at the start of the night, you’re not leaving any musical headroom for the rest of the gig, and people get fatigued, which zaps the energy from the dancefloor. A bad warm up set can literally ruin a night.

Yes I know it’s a cliche to tell a story musically, but there’s a reason for that. It’s what all good dj sets do, much like the way a film builds and develops, so should music on a night out.

For me the master is Danny Howells. His almost underrated approach blows me away every time. He locks you in, and finds tracks that I’ve never heard before, and subtly gives you a musical hug, and fills the dancefloor - yet keeping it deep and groovy. It’s an art, it’s a skill, and Daniel is the King for me.

Honourable mentions to Scott Bradford and Ralph Lawson, who were resident DJs at Shindig and Cream respectively. Both phenomenal DJs.

From my home town Dave Ralph (he gave me my first gig) residing at Fallows, Shelly’s, Time & Space and Cream, and follow Cream resident Paul Bleasdale both knew what to do, and how to do it so very well.

So who does it for you? Who don’t get to the club early to hear? Who is the best warm up DJ that you’ve ever heard?

78

95

Good times Creamfields UK 1999. @creamfieldsofficial @cream_official #creamfields #jamesbarton

537

23

Couldn’t wish for a better grand opening. #Reframe 🦈

3k

91