Dj Ron Rella Born in the Bronx, NY having been in the music industry as a DJ since 1974. His first club was Christopher Street, LI NY, where the turntables did not have speed control, when one turntable was playing you had to be precise as to when you we're going to mix in the next track by knowing exactly when the song playing was ready to fad(end) so to then bring the volume up from the second song on the mixer and ride it overlapping the current song as to making your mix! .BPM was not used as to being a real dj then meant knowing all your records intro's and endings and every lyric of the song. Ron has played at Many Dance Clubs, Including
Xenon's N.Y.C., The Electric Circus N.Y.C. The Top Floor N.Y.C. Penrod’s L.I. NY Chaz L.I.NY Christopher Street, LI N.Y. The Soap Factory N.J. D'Jais Belmar N.J. The Meadowbrook N.J. Motionz N.J. Hitzville N.J. Close Encounters NJ, Saints Cafe N.J One Step Beyond N.J. Modern Times Sayreville N.J. Among many other dance Clubs.
DJ Ron is currently a music producer and arranger of Pop, Dance, House, Techno, Disco Music since 2000. Founder of www.danceacrosstheuniverse.com
Dj Paul Casella was one of my mentors as when we first meet at the Monastery in Queens N.Y.,I asked him how do you learn to mix as great as you! He
said practice with the break of love is the message all day!...so I did.
Dj Jackie McCloy was also my mentor At Penrod’s L.I. NY Jackie installed 4 turntables and it was the first time I spun along Jackie both playing
together doing mixes out of each others sets. It was wild and fun Jackie and me had lots of new imports thanks to Jackie getting music first as
imports (El Bimbo) long before most DJ's had the song. That was also the first time I heard and learned about BPM from Jackie McCloy who was also
one of my mentors!.
The Soap Factory was my first dedicated resident dj job as for me doing the grand opening in 1975. It was one of the best largest dance floors
in N.J. that the crowd did the dance called The Bus Stop(The walk).
Dj Lou Capurso comments: Back in 75, I ran to the DJ booth and asked the DJ what's that song. "Turn the Beat Around" Vickie Sue. The DJ was Ron Rella and the club was the
Soap Factory. Been friends every since!!
Lou used to come into the booth every night and slowly learned to work the lights and set up my records. We became a awesome team as I became his
mentor by allowing him to start the first hour of music from 9 to 10 by learning the turntables, bozak mixer! and all the music!
I took over The Top Floor West 26th N.Y.C. for DJ Richie Kazor when he left and opened Studio 54.
Best DJ gig ever was working the The Top Floor Club/ After hours At The Top Floor West 26th N.Y.C. where basically I had two types of sets and crowds, The early top 40 dance disco crowd, then the after 2 am late night nyc/nj after hours night
club goers.. Spinning till 8am fri and sat night, was the best club.
I was the dj there for 3 years from 1977 to 1979. Club hours we're from 9pm to 8am. Many dj's visited the club after thier club was closed around
4am for the night.
The Meadowbrook located in Cedar Grove N.J. was the largest club with the largest dancefloor I was one of the first pioneers dj's in N.J. to
transistion punk dance music into a club. Friday nights was punk night and saturday night was disco night. It was awesome changing the types of
music with punk and disco alternating fri and sat nights.
Dj Jay Negron Comments on Dj Ron Rella
The beauty and the 'HIT' from DJ-ing back in the day was if you were good at it you would GET the music. By hook or by crook, you were gonna have all the hot shit THE DAY it came out or BEFORE it came out.
I mean, that was my job. If there was a hot song you had to get it to play at your club, no questions asked. I would be on the phone haggling to get it BEFORE The Record Pool and to get the imports THE DAY they arrived because I could not have anyone get
it ahead of me. I think all DJs were like that. The good ones were at least.
"Leave it with your secretary, I'll pick it up!" "No, don't mail it, I'll come get it now." was a regular conversation with me and the record companies.
And I was pretty good at it. And everyone knew it. So as the story goes, after I spun at Tropicalia all night till 4am; All of us, patrions & the staff of the club would go to 'The Top Floor" after work and hang until the wee hours. The DJ there was good, he played
most of the new shit, but he was NEVER completely up to date. (in 1977 you HAD to keep up---stuff coming out everyday!!)
All of a sudden at 5:30am he plays this:
Out of NOWHERE---A BAD-ASS REMIX of a 6 month old song---people were screaming LAMF!! I was agast!! I was PISSED!!! What was that and HOW did he get that??? AND How come he has it and I DON'T?!? The bartender from MY club looked at me and pointed to the booth; Louie Pegs, the bouncer at Tropicalia looked at me and shrugged; the dumb waitress from Tropicalia came over to me and asked, "Jay, how come you don't have THAT one?? It sounds pretty nice. That DJ's REAL
GOOOOOOOD!" I wanted to smack her!!!
My pride & ego prevented me from goin to the DJ booth and asking him what it was and where he got it. He played it AGAIN about 30 mins later (it
was HOTTTT)--the same people gave me that same look!
I spent the next week haggling Rafael Charres at Delite Records. He had one for me, but he would be out of the office and would not just leave it
at his desk--he had no freakin secretary. The next Friday they gave it to us at The Record Pool. And all in the world was right!!!
That was 33 years ago--I don't sweat records anymore--I just send The Disco Police after them!!!
Back in those days you expected to hear something new & hot from any top DJ. When I went to hear Richie Rivera at The Pines in Fire Island, he debuted "Up Jumped The Devil"--that was like WOW!! (Got it from Sam Records the
next day!)
When I went to hear Bobby DJ play at Starship and he played "Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" for the first time---that was surreal!!! (got that
the next day at Downstairs Records--last copy at 9am)
The best memory like that I have was a bit earlier in Jan. 1976. I went to hear Bobby DJ at Hollywood on a Monday or Tuesday night; it wasn't packed; he was playin everything I knew until after he was in the
middle of "Los Conquistadores Chocolates" by Johnny Hammond. He crossfaded into a song that I knew who they were but NEVER heard the track before. It was The Trammps "That's Where The Happy People Go"!! NOW then I was not too shy to go straight to the booth and ask Bobby; he showed me a UK Import 45; it took me 5 days but I finally got it-- It was another month before Atlantic released it here. I had it for a month before it came out, no more imports came and I had a real scoop for my crowd!!
I just never thought I would get 'out-scooped' by the DJ at The Top Floor. I was embarrased to no end!!!
Jay Negron THIS WAS THE MIX YOU PLAYED
"DANCIN" (SPECIAL DISCO MIX) CROWN HEIGHTS AFFAIR
Claude W Miller Really good story Jay. it reminded me how my Bro-in-Law DjRon Rella was a cutthroat when it came to getting the latest HOT music to play at his
clubs. He lived and breathed the life, always looking to out-scoop his brother DJs to deliver the best possible dance experience to his fans.
Record Pool Member I was one of the first members of David Mancuso 99 Prince st. Record Pool
The Long Island Discotheque Disc-Jockeys Association (L.I. Record Pool)
Legends Of Vinyl Hall Of Fame http://www.legendsofvinyl.com/hall-of-fame-part-1
Soap Factory
http://www.discomusic.com/clubs-more/6119_0_6_0_C/
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DJ RON RELLA All Rights Reserved