First off, my sincere apologies for taking so damn long to post this.... You all deserve better...

So a little context about this set....
This the 4th night of a truly wonderful four night musical journey for me. The honor of playing for Widespread Panic's ravenous fans is not one I take lightly. I saw my first Panic show in the early 90's in New Orleans and have remained a loyal fan ever since. So when I was asked to play for them at their annual getaway in 2013 I was both honored, and a bit terrified. I know how discerning, demanding, and downright nuts the Panic fanbase can be. How the heck to approach this challenge as a DJ right? I chose in 2013 to focus my 2 sets on music that Panic had covered or played and it seemed to work well. One of those nights was posted previously here on Soundcloud as well.

For 2014 Cloud9 upped the ante and gave me all four nights, at 4-hours per, so, simply repeating the previous formula didn't seem appropriate. Besides the fact that I would need to create some newer Panic-related remixes, I would also need to give everyone a different look and feel every night. Also, I would be up against a live band in another venue on two of the nights, and that supergroup included some of my favorite musicians EVER (including the likes of George Porter Jr, Col. Bruce Hampton and Grant Green Jr.) So as it turned out, the first night was indeed much like 2013, with a very rock-heavy set. It made sense since I was up against the big jam to do something unusual on night 2, so we went all Talking Heads (for FOUR HOURS), which certainly made some new fans (and a few haters). The third night was far more "clubby" and went over huge (to my surprise).

By night four I felt like I had explored all of the different places that were musically appropriate for the event. I had done 3 nights for everyone else and felt safe to do one night for myself. Going up against the big blues jam also gave me some cover too. If someone didn't like what I was doing they could always go see GEORGE PORTER... I mean, come on, who's gonna have a problem with that right?

The other context is that the entire staff of this event was incredible. I don't just mean Cloud 9 Adventures... it goes without saying that they are the cat's pajamas. But for me the most wonderful thing about this event his how well the 100% Dominican staff of the Hard Rock treat two-thousand American rock & roll crazies. And after 3 nights in the club, (and 5 over 2 years) I had come to appreciate the sound staff, bartenders, waiters etc that made these parties so wonderful. So on that final night, instead of soundchecking, I spent the hour before this set playing Salsa, Soca, Afro-Cuban, and Latin breakbeat classics (similar to the stuff I used to play at Mojito). The Moonlounge staff basically spent the hour before their long-ass shift dancing with delight while the Panic kids watched the final glorious night of rock on the beach a quarter-mile away. It was the best warmup set I've ever had and the joy in that club BEFORE the crowd came in was palpable.To say that I was in a good mood by the time the show started is a huge understatement. Also, after 4 nights, I think my skills were sharper and my focus and understanding of this audience was dialed in.

So what came about was, in my opinion as good a DJ set as I know how to play. That's not to say I haven't played as well before, or won't again. Or that there aren't some clams in here. It's a LIVE set, so there is an element of danger. But this one was, for my part anyway, as good as I get. So with that, it is my pleasure to share it with you all.

Huge thanks to Cloud 9 Adventures, the Hard Rock Hotel Punta Cana, my visual guru Alton Brooks Parker, and my "roadie" Tim Dietz for their support. And especially to the Widespread Panic community for doing me the honor of requesting my presence at their events. Spreak For Life.