Contagious Blog

The end of summer can give you the blues but the Contagious Party Band found the perfect cure for the end of summer blues. That's being at the wedding of Joanne Lombard and Matthew Palombo at the Avalon Yacht Club. The Avalon Yacht Club has a rich tradition of being a leader in the community for more than 50 years with a fantastic staff and splendid service. I watched one of the most awesome sunsets I've ever seen at the shore from their deck which enhanced the day for Joanne and Matthew even more. I'm sure the photos will be great. I would like to say that the band brought the fun but this crowd was fantastic! The introductions were alive and capped off by the Maid of Honor and the Best Man bursting into the room in life vests, and sunglasses blowing their whistles and ordering the guests "out of the water." Joanne and Matt entered to a robust round of applause and cheers and then shared their first dance to Al Green's "Let's Stay Together". Staying with the "shore" theme the band also performed a specially learned rendition of "Little Surfer Girl" by the Beach Boys. This was truly a whirlwind of an event. I've never seen five hours go by so fast but a few things cannot be left out. I'll do this a little differently than usual and list a few.

• This was one of the hardest partying crowds I have ever seen.
• Matthew sings a mean Sweet Home Alabama.
• Joanne led a spicy "shake it" section of "Hey Ya".
• The band could have sat down during "Soul Man" The Guest ROCK IT!!
• The dance floor NEVER emptied. Thanks for tanking the musical journey with us.

Now speaking of a "musical journey" there was a little girl there about eleven years old. I'm getting old so that's my excuse for why I cannot remember her name but check out the picture below. I believe she is related to Matthew. She performed a killer version of "Don't Stop Believing"! The Contagious Party Band is very interactive with the guests. We never forget it's your event. We are the entertainment and I know that many people love to just be part of the fun. I don't know how this little girl came to the attention of our vocalist "Shake" but "Oh My" was she awesome. Shake was gracious enough to turn over the microphone duties for the song and this small wonder wore it out. Moments like this help make an event truly special. As we all recovered from the "wow" factor the party kicked into high gear and we all danced until the moon was high, the tide was in, and the lifeguards cleared the waters. Joanne and Matthew, thank you so very much. The Contagious Party Band was honored to be a part of your special day. Good luck and much happiness as you share your future together.

Definitely Doc
Definitely Contagious

As the leaves started to turn to autumn colors the Contagious Band headed south from Philly to look for warmer weather. We only made it to Delaware before we had to stop at the beautiful and prestigious Hotel du Pont where there was a special event going on, the wedding of Jessica McClafferty and Scott Craig. I could think of no better day or place for a wedding. The Gold Ballroom sparkled in anticipation of the day’s event and was only out done by the radiance of the happy couple. Jessica and Scott glowed as they made their first appearance official as husband and wife and showed smooth moves as they dance to KT Tunistal’s “The Universe and U” which the Contagious Band learned especially for them. As always the Hotels DuPont’s staff was outstanding and efficient as they hosted the evening’s festivities. No stone was left unturned and the guests were pampered with world class service setting the stage for the Contagious Band to do what we do best, PARTY, and party we did. The guests were so ready to go that earlier they crowded the dance floor “while the dinner music was playing”. We got them seated but promised to dance them until the end. To start it off Jessica and Scott graced the stage and lead the guest through a little “Disco Inferno” to heat up the crowd. The temperature increased as we covered everything from a little classic rock up to the Black Eyed Peas “Boom, Boom, Pow”. We dance together, sang together, and even got down on our backs on the floor together during our rendition of “Shout”. (I wish I had that picture of me and some of the groomsmen) When it was all said and done I was tired! I’m getting too old for this but I wouldn’t trade a moment of it all. Seeing big smiles on the faces of the guest at the end of the night makes it all worth wild. Congratulations to Jessica and Scott with best wishes for many years of happiness to come.

Definitely Doc
Definitely Contagious

The Contagious Band took a short trip south to Wilmington, Delaware to the Brantwyn Estates . It is a former DuPont Family home located on the grounds of the DuPont County Club. The event of the day was the wedding of Allyson Hendel and Eric Goodstadt. The Brantwyn Estate mansion was a perfect picture frame for the day. All the guest gathered in the Conservatory for the introductions and the first dance which was to Brad Paisley’s “Then." Quoting Allyson’s “I just want to party” I watched the Brantwyn staff go into high gear and as quickly and efficiently as I’ve ever seen it done take care of all the food and service for the guests making her statement come true. “Summer time and the livin’ is easy” and the party is hopping. The band covered the bases from Frank Sinatra to the Black Eyes Peas with plenty of audience participation including a rambunctious chair ceremony during the Hora. The heat stayed on all evening and throughout until the band finished with the final requested song “Last Dance" by Donna Summer. The slow dance turned into a mad disco at what I will now call the “Brantwyn Estates Studio 54”. What a great time!  I’d like to thank Eric and Allyson for making the Contagious Band a part of their magical day and I hope we helped make some memories that will last a life time.

Definitely Doc
Definitely Contagious

It’s “Hot Times, summer in the city” as Philadelphia sweats its way through the hottest summer in many years, so the Contagious Party Band took a slight road trip northwest of the city to Phoenixville, Pa. to the Columbia Station to be exact. It seemed like a good idea to start off the month of August 2010. We managed to leave the city behind but the “hot times” came along for the wedding of Kelly Schoeninger and Andrew Stazi. Love was the theme for the day with much being shown by a supporting cast of guests who traveled from as far away as Singapore and Australia to share the day with Andy and Kelly.  After an energetic introduction of the Bridal Party, the happy couple shared their first official dance to The Beatles' "Here, There, and Everywhere" which the band learned especially for them. As we all got settled in for the evening’s event, Robert Ryan Catering’s magnificent staff served an amazing meal to the guest. It turned out that they would need the energy.

Energy up, the heat is on and the party is underway. Contagious did what we do best and took the lead in making the party happen. Andy and Kelly’s crew came prepared, keeping a packed dance floor all night long. As we got to the part of the evening where a requested Anniversary Dance came to the top of the evening’s agenda the dance floor was so pack it was hard to find the happy couple. That was OK as they were unceremoniously removed from the dance floor for being married LESS THAN ONE DAY! It took quite few minutes to get to the senior married couple who topped out at SIXTY YEARS of marital bliss. What better example to have on your wedding day than a couple who has walked the path of life together for Sixty Years. Kelly and Andy then presented them with a small token of their appreciation for sharing the day with them and the two couples completed the Anniversary dance together. As things started to wind down the temperature started to rise as the band challenged the guests to a little dance contest. On a personal note I got a little more than I can handle as the Mother of the Bride, Lynda Schoeninger, worked what I like to call the “Brick House Breakdown” to the max and sent me back to the stage with my lesson learned. Kelly and Andy took the last “breakdown” and literally “tore up the dance floor” it was truly a “first”.  As the big event started to come to a conclusion the evening’s breeze came through to cool us all down and let us catch our breath. What a day! The Contagious Band was honored to be the entertainment for the evening’s events and offer our best wishes to Andy and Kelly. Thank you for allowing us to be a part of when it all began.

Definitely Doc,

Definitely Contagious:

Here is a picture of the happy couple, Andy and Kelly: