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Pete "DJPJ"
Paraskevas specializes in 1950's rock and roll. (That's the
music this writer grew up with, so of course I like it too!) His
name is correctly pronounced "Par-AS-ka -vas" in Greek, but
most people end up saying "Paris-KEY-vas", or just
"Hey, Pete!".
In a recent interview, he said: "You asked why I like the 1950s
so much. Well, not just because of the great music, but dance-wise
also. Not many swing dance communities promote that music.
At least not many that I know of. I also like to have variety of
music styles to dance to. I hear stories of swing dance
communities that only do one style of music. That gets very boring.
People that promote only one style get their dancers to dance only to
that one style, and they may not be able to get out it easily. That's
what I like about the dances here in Maine. Different styles of
music, give you different styles of dancing."
Pete started collecting old recordings several years ago and now has
about 400 12- and 7-inch vinyl discs and 100 10-inch 78's.
He also collects CD compilations (like the entire Bill Haley and the
Comets collection from Decca) and has about 700 CDs now. When DJ'ing
for dances, he plays a mixture of many kinds of swing music from
original big band to current rockabilly, always with a good, healthy
dose of the 1950's. This past summer, he DJ'd for an antique
auto show here in Brooksville and got rave reviews from the old car
buffs.
Pete has been a DJ since 1983 when he graduated from Waynflete
School in Portland.
With Steve Carpenter, they played "pop 80's stuff" on vinyl
which they lugged in crates to the dances. Their equipment was
"cheap and assembled from components." Now, as DJPJ, he has
a more sophisticated sound system, but it still includes a turntable
for those special vinyl recordings. Being a dancer himself, he
finds DJ'ing for swing dances especially rewarding. He still
brings to each event much more music than will actually be needed, but
when "that one particular song" seems appropriate, he is
ready to play it.
Pete was born in Biddeford raised in Westbrook, and graduated from the
University of New England with a business degree in computer
information systems. He's currently at USM studying
environmental safety and health. This busy guy is also a volunteer
operator of antique railroad equipment at the Maine Narrow Gauge
Railroad Company and Museum, and is taking acoustic bass lessons and
currently writing a paper on rhythm and blues of the late 40's early
50's for a Jazz course.
Pete thinks dancing should be just for fun, which is why he doesn't
bother with dance competitions, although he likes to perform.
"Look at the 1956 movies 'Rock Around the Clock' and 'Don't Knock
the Rock'. These movies are about dancing and having
fun." He collects movies from, and about, the
1930's through 1950's era that have swing dance scenes, and
incorporates some of that style in his energetic dancing.
He has a background in theatre from college and high school and for
past 10 years has acted, produced, directed, and designed (lighting
and sound) shows for Portland Players - South Portland, City Theatre
in Biddeford, Pine Tree Players in Sanford, The Chocolate Church in
Bath, and the State Theater on Congress Street, which he and others
reopened in October of 1997 with the Rocky Horror Show.
Pete likes to organize sock hops, and he hosts or fills-in for other
DJ's on various radio shows on WMPG radio. He feels
honored to have interviewed on the radio and/or MC'd, for various rock
and roll and rockabilly legends including the Sean Mencher Combo (Sean
Mencher is from the world famous rockabilly band called High Noon out
of Texas); Ray Condo and the Riccochets; Marshall Lytle (the original bass player for
Bill Haley and his Comets); Billy Lee Riley; and current Maine bands such as King Memphis,
Charles Brown Organization, The Pinetones and The Delta Knights. Pete has worked with other bands such as the Phil Rich
Big Band twice for organizing swing dance demos in Biddeford as a fund raiser for the Greek Orthodox Church.
Sean Mencher says, "'DJPJ' is the modern day Alan Freed."
Indeed, Pete and DJ Matt Little will be doing the "Alan Freed
Birthday Special" at WMPG radio on Saturday, December 22nd, 2001
from 2:30-5:00pm (That's EST, USA). People in the Portland,
Maine area can get this show on 90.9 FM or 104.1 FM. Otherwise, you
can get the program by logging on to: http://www.wmpg.org/.
DJ Pete can be reached at deepend333@yahoo.com
by Calling his voicemail/pager: 821-1875 or writing to: P.O. Box 598,
Scarborough, Maine 04070-0598
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