A popular function band like Down for the
Count has two busy periods- the summer and Christmas. The summer is spent
playing first dances for excited (and sometimes nervous) brides and grooms, and
enticing wedding guests up on the dance floor to dance the night away to swing
and soul music.
As soon as the nights start drawing in- our
thoughts turn to Christmas! Most of you out there will probably start embracing
that good old Christmas spirit around the start of December- but at Down for
the Count Towers, the Christmas spirit is normally upon us in September!
Down for the Count is always in demand for
Christmas parties and events- and we endeavor to seamlessly incorporate
Christmas hits into our swing and soul sets. Mike goes to great lengths to arrange popular Christmas
songs that suit the whole 9-piece, and one of our favourite tunes to play is
Andy Williams’ “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year”. We often use it to open
our sets and it always goes down extremely well! When we want to slow a set
down and give the guests a break from dancing to energetic swing and jazz,
another firm favourite is Eartha Kitt’s “Santa Baby”.
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| Rich practices the good old swing rhythms we are so well known for! |
A lot of preparation and work goes into
getting the band Christmas-ready, after Mike’s spent far too many festive hours
arranging new tunes for the band, we all come together for a fun day of
rehearsing to drink too much tea, eat too many pastries, and to put the tunes
together.
In rehearsals we cover issues such as where
Kate can add some sleigh bell accompaniment to tunes, adding backing vocals to
“All I Want for Christmas Is You”, and where in a set is it appropriate to put
on the Santa hats…
We love doing public gigs at Christmas
time. They’re a rarity, so it’s especially great when our friends and family
can watch us play. Last year we put on A Very Down For The Count Christmas in
Winslow, which was a New York-inspired glamorous evening.
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| Christmas Down for the Count... |
This year we are delighted to be returning
to Bucks- but this time to Wingrave as the DFTC Swing Orchestra where we will be playing at ‘the UK’s hottest tea dance’ for the
Swingrave Christmas Special on 2nd December. So come and join us as
we dig out our 50’s outfits and provide the music for a real swing party. Find
out more at www.swingrave.co.uk.
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| Swing Down for the Count! |
We can’t wait to start performing for all
these Christmas functions, so pop along to our public performance if you can,
or who knows- we may be playing at your work’s Christmas party!
