Story

The First Year

From February 21^st 1987 to July 18^th 1987 I had already played over 100 parties. The JAM crew consisted of Chris Bennett, Tim Weismann, Aaron Widmann, Darrell Danger, Jared Knott, Dan Peet, Tim Thompson, Tom Borschel, Roger Finke, Chris Chaplin, Matt Crow, Mike Lindaman, & John Kennedy.

On July 20^th I purchased my first new piece of equipment, a CR-W86 Fisher double cassette player. I had been switching from record to tape and back, on the Pioneer amp, while rewinding the cassettes by spinning them on a popsicle stick through the wheel. The cassette player in the Pioneer had a ‘song search’ function that could stop the tape at the blank gaps of sound it found fast forwarding or fast reversing the tape. On the record of course you could see each track. I could only ‘mix’ the songs by turning the selection knob from record to cassette to microphone, so I would carry Trivial Pursuit cards and read trivia questions to the crowd while switching out a record, tape, or finding a song request by ‘song searching’ each tape. I saw the movie Cocktail and I started emulating the act of juggling and flipping the cassettes and records around to add to the show. I bought a white felt fedora with colored feathers and wore white pants I airbrushed with multiple colors and graffiti. I grew my hair long enough to reach my belt and became vibrant and self-confident when I spoke. I had the rock star look and demeanor. I knew people would remember me if I stood out in the crowd.

I particularly liked the Halloween holiday and I had put together a costume using short stilts, a black cloak, a skull mask, and skeleton gloves. In August 1987 at the start of my second year at Ellsworth College, I thought it would be funny to put the costume on and rampage down the hallways of the women’s dorm. It was rather hilarious to see the girls screaming and diving into rooms to escape an 8 foot tall Grim Reaper, but the Dean of the college did not find it amusing and I was kicked out of the men’s dorm the first week. I ended up renting a house right behind McClure Hall ‘off campus’ at 1015 Main St. in Iowa Falls and it soon became the ‘Animal House’ of Ellsworth. When I wasn’t playing somewhere else, my JAM crew, friends, girlfriends, and all their friends ended up at my house. Day after day, night after night, there were bottles of booze in every cabinet and piece of furniture, and there were people drinking, smoking, and having sex all over my house. I stepped over bodies every morning on the way to classes and was handed a bottle on the way back in. I played music constantly, collected new music, and DJed 4 to 6 nights every week at someone else’s party, a bar, or a nightclub. My fans and crew would follow me to each next event and I met new friends and girlfriends at each show. I had a different girlfriend at every house party and in every new city I played. All my alcohol was free and I was probably drunk 4 or 5 nights a week. By October of 1987, only 9 months into my DJ career, I had become famous in Iowa Falls as a king of the party scene.

On October 26^th 1987 I had my first party at my own house and I advertised it with the first poster I ever made to advertise my company. The party had over 200 people rampaging throughout my house and cost me my first arrest for many different violations, but it boosted my reputation for other parties in town and I had even more shows.

The Iowa Falls JAM Idea

Iowa State Fairgrounds held a multi band concert each year on Memorial Day for a number of years. I attended the 1986 concert on my May 26^th birthday as my first concert ever and then again in 1987. When I heard there was no concert set for 1988, I told my crew member Darrell Danger that we should “move the Iowa Jam to Iowa Falls and create the Iowa FALLS Jam” with me opening for all the bands. I decided that a Monday concert on Memorial Day would not draw a crowd because they would all be out of town so the Friday before would be better. I found out the rental of the Estes Park Bandshell was very affordable so we made posters for the show and set the first Iowa Falls JAM for May 27^th 1988. There was no way we could book any bands to do this, so I was going to make JAM dj systems the whole show.

I decided my equipment would not be powerful enough for an outdoor concert so we created 2 boxes with 3 flood lights each, red, yellow, and blue that ran with 6 ordinary wall switches. Then I took all the seats but 1 out of my Dodge Omni and made it a van. I bought a Scott 50 watt amplifier and Darrell, Dan Peet, and I went to Ames to Stereo Sound Studios and rented a pair of 200 watt Klipsch LaScala speakers that still barely fit in my Omni. I took milk crates and an easy chair with no legs and built a ‘throne’ to sit in on stage so I would look like a king. We packed so much into the Omni on the first trip from my house to the bandshell that Darrell sat in the throne on the top of the car as we rode to the park. The crew helped set up and we decorated the stage with other colored house bulbs and Christmas lights.

The show was amazing and there were a few hundred people there. I sat on the throne and every time I raised my arms the people would cheer. Every time I walked to the edge of the stage girls would scream and try to touch my feet. At one point the Scott amplifier overloaded and caught fire so Al Rider from the local radio station ran to the station a block away and brought back another amp to finish the show. I had a blast.

All my crew agreed that this was one of the best shows ever and at the after party I said, “We have to do this every year from now on.”

I have never missed a year since.

Music

This compilation was actually put together in 2013 and was the ninth one. The first ones made were JAM 6, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 25, & 26. I had always wanted to do a compilation album every year and just did not have time until digital media began to make it easier.

This album cover was the first JAM logo ever drawn on February 15th, 1987. The second picture (inside liner of the CD) is a picture of me at age 15 with SICO and one of the Pioneer speakers of the Stereo I started DJ-ing with. Also a drawing of the Grim Reaper with a guitar that was on the poster of the first DJ party I ever created myself. The third picture of the CD shows the logo of S.I.C.O. records, the official record label I created for the albums. The last picture is the back of the album showing a picture of the first wedding I ever DJ-ed on Jul 11, 1989 for Renee Evans in Ackley Iowa.

01 – Cheech And Chong – “DAVE”

When I was a kid I had the “Heavy Metal” movie poster and on the back of it was “Cheech & Chong Still Smokin”. The “Dave” skit always cracked me up.

02 – Blue Swede – “HOOKED ON A FEELING“

First 45 rpm record I ever purchased with a $5 bill I found walking home from 1st grade in Plattsmouth, Nebraska.

03 – Sammy Hagar – “HEAVY METAL“

From the movie “Heavy Metal”. One of my favorite movies due to the artwork and the music. Bought the cassette in 1982.

04 – The Royal Guardsmen – “SNOOPY VS. THE RED BARON“

When I was 4 my cousin Rob had a Fisher Price record player. One of the 45 rpm records he had was this song and we played it over and over so many times. It was one of the first songs I ever memorized.

05 – Emerson, Lake, & Palmer – “KARN EVIL 9 1^st IMPRESSION, PT. 2“

When I was 10 my mom was working as a secretary for a Police Department and they held a police auction where I bought a pack of 10 records for $1. “Brain Salad Surgery” was one of them. I played this record hundreds of times with headphones on the same stereo I started DJing with.

06 – Bread – “IF“

This song played during the “Moonlight Skate” at the Newton Roller Rink. It reminds me of trying to nervously hold hands with a girl in the black and blue lighting while we skated in a circle.

07 – Scorpions – “BLACKOUT“

My best friend Scott and I took a road trip to Kirksville Missouri in my 1975 Ford Cobra and I played Scorpions cassettes the whole week. They are now my favorite group.

08 – ZZ Top – “SLEEPING BAG“

When I was a Junior in high school I entered a talent show called Cafe ’85 and did a break dance routine to this song. When I started to DJ I would break dance at the beginning when the crowd wouldn’t start dancing. It got them to come out.

09 – Electric Light Orchestra – “DON’T BRING ME DOWN“

This was one of the Newton Roller Rink songs. When it played people would try and skate as fast as they could. I remember kids losing control and sliding off the floor into walls chairs and bleachers.

10 – Red Rider – “LUNATIC FRINGE“

Just always loved this song. I like to play obscure, powerful songs. This is a favorite.

11 – Yello – “SI SENOR THE HAIRY GRILL“

When I purchased the Klipsch La Scala speakers Darrell and I set up all the speakers in my rental house living room in a circle. We sat in the center and cranked this song so loud the plaster started crumbling off the walls.

12 – Judas Priest – “YOU’VE GOT ANOTHER THING COMING“

One of my first 10 albums purchased in the police auction. My parents hated this record so I loved it even more.

13 – Chris DeBurgh – “DON’T PAY THE FERRYMAN“

One of the first songs I remember on Friday Night Videos before MTV existed. Saw it many times during sleepovers at Scott’s house.

14 – Oingo Boingo – “DEAD MAN’S PARTY“

This was the first song I played DJing at the first house party I created myself on October 26th 1987 at 1015 1/2 Main Street in Iowa Falls. Hundreds of people attended and a busload of them were arrested with me.

15 – Meat Loaf – “BAT OUT OF HELL“

One of my first 10 albums purchased in the police auction. I drew the cover multiple times while listening to it. The cooler the album cover, the cooler the music.

16 – Pink Floyd – “RUN LIKE HELL“

Watched the movie “The Wall” many times. The artwork and music inspired me to draw and perform.

17 – Van Halen – “INSIDE“

On my 18th birthday, May 26th 1986, I went to my first concerts ever. First the Iowa Jam at the Iowa State Fairgrounds, then BTO/VanHalen at Veterans Memorial Auditorium. Sammy Hagar sang “Happy Birthday” to me and Eddie VanHalen gave me his guitar pick. This was my favorite song from the 5150 album they toured for that year.

18 – AC/DC – “HELLS BELLS“

When I rode on the bus to away basketball games, I would “DJ” by playing my tape collection on a boombox for the rest of the team. This was one of the most requested songs. It was probably the only time in high school that I felt I was accepted as a peer and not looked down upon.

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